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First broadcast on May 07, 1990. Hearing Chopin being played through the pipes of another apartment and a tale about a young girl who died and whose father froze her body in an ice house are among the stories in Stuart Dybek's book, "The Coast of Chicago." Dybek explained that although his stories may seem dream-like, he tries to come up up with stories from some place of reality.
In this episode, host Douglas Cowie and his guest, Gregory Miller, discuss Stuart Dybek's 1990 book of short stories, The Coast of Chicago. In particular, they place Dybek's depiction of the shifting demographics of the Pilsen neighborhood into broader contexts, and also look at Dybek's lyrical, musical writing style, and the effects it accomplishes.
We welcome an old friend this time! I sit down with Greg Dybek for a mini-marathon, where we discuss art, culture, politics, death and everything in between!the.ludkast@gmail.com
The continuing saga begun in part one. With Greg Dybek.
This episode stars Jeremy T. Wilson (Adult Teeth). It was recorded at the 3rd Coast Cafe in Chicago, IL in January 2020.
W programie Jarosław Kuźniar rozmawia z dr Tomaszem Dybkiem o protestach fizjoterapeutów.
In the first episode of 2019, Connor and Jack discuss Natasha Trethewey’s “Letter.” Jack calls Connor out for his poetical preferences, Connor waxes abstractly about associative logic, both explore how things as small as a letter can reveal our most profound grief. A Dybek umbrella descends. Read the poem below. More on Natasha Trethewey, here: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/natasha-trethewey Find us on facebook at: facebook.com/closetalking Find us on twitter at: twitter.com/closetalking You can always send us an e-mail with thoughts on this or any of our previous podcasts, as well as suggestions for future shows, at closetalkingpoetry@gmail.com. Letter By: Natasha Tretheway At the post office, I dash a note to a friend, tell her I’ve just moved in, gotten settled, that I’m now rushing off on an errand—except that I write errant, a slip between letters, each with an upright backbone anchoring it to the page. One has with it the fullness of possibility, a shape almost like the O my friend’s mouth will make when she sees my letter in her box; the other, a mark that crosses like the flat line of your death, the symbol over the church house door, the ashes on your forehead some Wednesday I barely remember. What was I saying? I had to cross the word out, start again, explain what I know best because of the way you left me: how suddenly a simple errand, a letter—everything—can go wrong.
Stuart Dybek is the author of three books of fiction: I Sailed With Magellan, The Coast of Chicago, and Childhood and Other Neighborhoods. Both I Sailed With Magellan and The Coast of Chicago were New York Times Notable Books, and The Coast of Chicago was a One Book One Chicago selection. Dybek has also published two collections of poetry: Streets in Their Own Ink and Brass Knuckles. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
This episode stars Donald G. Evans (An Off-White Christmas). It was recorded walking through the Gold Coast neighborhood in Chicago, IL in November 2018.
Stuart Dybek joins Deborah Treisman to read and discuss "Miracle Polish," by Steven Millhauser, from a 2011 issue of the magazine. Dybek is a poet and fiction writer, whose story collections include "Paper Lantern: Love Stories" and "Ecstatic Cahoots: Fifty Short Stories." He was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship in 2007.
A sweeping, romantic, and profoundly moving novel, set in Europe in the aftermath of World War I and Los Angeles in the 1950s, about a lonely young man, a beautiful widow, and the amnesiac soldier whose puzzling case binds them together even as it tears them apart. From the bone-strewn fields of Verdun to the bombed-out cafés of Paris, from the riot-torn streets of Bologna to the riotous parties of 1950s Hollywood, Nick Dybek's The Verdun Affair is a riveting tale of romance, grief, and the far-reaching consequences of a single lie. Dybek is in conversation with Julia Fierro, author of the novels The Gypsy Moth Summer and Cutting Teeth.
In a break with protocol, I decided to interview a novelist rather than a military historian. Nick Dybek, a creative writing professor at Oregon State University has written a terrific novel, The Verdun Affair: A Novel (Scribner, 2018). It’s protagonist is Tom, an American living in France after World War I, having served as an ambulance driver for the American Field Service. He has the macabre task of gathering bones from the battlefield at Verdun, in preparation for the construction of ossuary there. Families come from all over France, looking for news, or perhaps the remains, of loved ones reported missing or dead during the war. One such pilgrim is Sarah, also American, looking for her husband, Lee, whom she is convinced still lives. You can learn more about the story in the interview (or go read the book!), which also details some of the remarkable historical research that Dybek conducted as he wrote. The sense of global catastrophe, the losses of grieving families, the search for meaning, the efforts to rebuild, all conjure the atmosphere of postwar Europe. Dybek’s descriptions of Verdun, of the battles on the Isonzo and in the Dolomites, the fascist violence in Italy reflect that careful research and teach the history of the period with greater impact than all but the best works of history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
In a break with protocol, I decided to interview a novelist rather than a military historian. Nick Dybek, a creative writing professor at Oregon State University has written a terrific novel, The Verdun Affair: A Novel (Scribner, 2018). It’s protagonist is Tom, an American living in France after World War I, having served as an ambulance driver for the American Field Service. He has the macabre task of gathering bones from the battlefield at Verdun, in preparation for the construction of ossuary there. Families come from all over France, looking for news, or perhaps the remains, of loved ones reported missing or dead during the war. One such pilgrim is Sarah, also American, looking for her husband, Lee, whom she is convinced still lives. You can learn more about the story in the interview (or go read the book!), which also details some of the remarkable historical research that Dybek conducted as he wrote. The sense of global catastrophe, the losses of grieving families, the search for meaning, the efforts to rebuild, all conjure the atmosphere of postwar Europe. Dybek’s descriptions of Verdun, of the battles on the Isonzo and in the Dolomites, the fascist violence in Italy reflect that careful research and teach the history of the period with greater impact than all but the best works of history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
In a break with protocol, I decided to interview a novelist rather than a military historian. Nick Dybek, a creative writing professor at Oregon State University has written a terrific novel, The Verdun Affair: A Novel (Scribner, 2018). It’s protagonist is Tom, an American living in France after World War I, having served as an ambulance driver for the American Field Service. He has the macabre task of gathering bones from the battlefield at Verdun, in preparation for the construction of ossuary there. Families come from all over France, looking for news, or perhaps the remains, of loved ones reported missing or dead during the war. One such pilgrim is Sarah, also American, looking for her husband, Lee, whom she is convinced still lives. You can learn more about the story in the interview (or go read the book!), which also details some of the remarkable historical research that Dybek conducted as he wrote. The sense of global catastrophe, the losses of grieving families, the search for meaning, the efforts to rebuild, all conjure the atmosphere of postwar Europe. Dybek’s descriptions of Verdun, of the battles on the Isonzo and in the Dolomites, the fascist violence in Italy reflect that careful research and teach the history of the period with greater impact than all but the best works of history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
In a break with protocol, I decided to interview a novelist rather than a military historian. Nick Dybek, a creative writing professor at Oregon State University has written a terrific novel, The Verdun Affair: A Novel (Scribner, 2018). It’s protagonist is Tom, an American living in France after World War I, having served as an ambulance driver for the American Field Service. He has the macabre task of gathering bones from the battlefield at Verdun, in preparation for the construction of ossuary there. Families come from all over France, looking for news, or perhaps the remains, of loved ones reported missing or dead during the war. One such pilgrim is Sarah, also American, looking for her husband, Lee, whom she is convinced still lives. You can learn more about the story in the interview (or go read the book!), which also details some of the remarkable historical research that Dybek conducted as he wrote. The sense of global catastrophe, the losses of grieving families, the search for meaning, the efforts to rebuild, all conjure the atmosphere of postwar Europe. Dybek’s descriptions of Verdun, of the battles on the Isonzo and in the Dolomites, the fascist violence in Italy reflect that careful research and teach the history of the period with greater impact than all but the best works of history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Read.Write.Repeat: a podcast for readers, writers, thinkers, and dreamers.
A 60-minute podcast in which Author Nick Dybek joins Kelsey to discuss the books that impacted him the most as a writer. He also shares his writing process, discusses his bad writing habits, and talks about the tenacity required to make it as a writer. Don’t miss it. You can find full show notes at www.readwriterepeatpod.com.
Gary and Roscoe have long wanted to get award-winning author Stuart Dybek on the show, and now we have! Boy, was it ever worth the wait. Dybek is one of America's finest writers of literary fiction, particularly the short story form. His work has been said to "move easily between the gritty reality of urban decay, and a magical realm of lyricism and transcendence linked to music, art and religion." Read this glowing NYT review of his latest work. The reviewer writes that Dybek is "not only our most relevant writer, but maybe our best." If you haven't read any of his work, do yourself a favor and pick up a volume. Here's his bio. Our show begins with a remembrance of Muhammad Ali and how boxing imagery appears in some of Stuart's writing. Ali transcended sport and also his own innate talent and skill to become something more than just a world-class athlete. He was a world-class human being. Read more here. In 2006, Gary directed a world premiere theatrical adaptation of The Coast of Chicago, a collection of Stuart's short stories. Adapted by Laura Eason and presented by Walkabout and Lookingglass Theatre Companies, as well as our very own producer, Stuart reflects on what an exciting experience that was. Learn why Stuart says, "Music is the defining art for me. Always has been." and what kind of music he writes to. What profession he might have entered if writing hadn't been his true calling. How memory, recollection and imagery play parts in his creative process. And the difference between narrative and associative writing. An avid theatergoer, Dybek loves the risks and real chances that Chicago theater artists take. The city's long history of developing improvisation as an art form is a big part of that risk taking. Shout outs to friends of the show, Improv Olympic and The Second City. More here. Ever been lost in a big city? Stuart used to get lost in Prague but can't any longer, to his regret. But he tells a wonderful story of being lost while searching the Michigan woods for mushrooms. Gary relates a tale about getting lost in Seville, Spain, and coming upon a magnificent street ceremony for the Virgin Mary quite by accident. And Roscoe and his family once found themselves disoriented in the Paris Metro. Dybek cites John Dewey as America's greatest writer of the 20th century with regard to social issues. Because "we all depend on one another's choices." Could that be more topical? Read more about this philosopher, psychologist and educational reformer here. Stuart loves to write about work and working class characters so we recount our worst jobs -Stuart washed helicopters at Midway and worked on a production line in an ice cream factory. Roscoe toiled summers in his youth in a vegetable canning factory. Gary picked grocery orders in a large and steamy warehouse. What's your worst work experience? Finally, we discuss Stuart's Fabulous Fiction course at Northwestern University. Gary and Roscoe are signing up! Stuart talks about the importance of imagery as a jumping off point to any good story, then tells us about a couple of student stories he particularly likes and that have found publication. He promises to come back and read some of their (and his) works on a future show. Kiss of Death - Shirley Bell Cole - Radio Voice of Little Orphan Annie Though Ms. Cole passed in 2010, we thought with her Chicago connection and her involvement in the art of storytelling on the radio, she'd be a fitting conclusion to our conversation with Stuart Dybek. From 1930 to 1940, Shirley Cole lent her high-pitched voice to the spunky, curly-haired Little Orphan Annie, first on WGN and then on national NBC networks. Five days a week she would take the trolley to the radio station for the live broadcast. Imagine! No editing! When Ovaltine (not Shirley's favorite drink) dropped its sponsorship of the program, Ms. Bell's acting career came to an end. Shirley Bell Cole was 89.
In a summer rental shared by two families, a boy and a girl in Nick Dybek's "Three Summers" search for treasure in the secret corners of the house. Parents search for a different kind of treasure--a shared history whose adventure and romance now eludes them. Over the course of three summers, both adults and children wrestle with the pull of the past and the allure of the imagined. "Three Summers" appears in print in the Fall 2013 issue of Ploughshares, and in text on Ploughshares online. The story is read aloud for The Drum by David Mawhinney.