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To enter the giveaway, fill out our listener survey here. On this week's episode, Francine sits down with Dr. Victoria Reyes, from the Department of Gender & Sexuality Studies at UC Riverside, to unpack her book Academic Outsider (link), which is a collection of feminist essays about the conditional citizenship awarded to women and people of color in academia. Stay tuned for a conversation on women's space in academia, mentorship, and carving your own journey! Lightning Round: 04:41 Research and lecture summary: 13:15 Advice for researchers and recommendations: 44:45 Dr. Reyes' Top Recommendations: The Best We Could Do by Thi Bui (link) What We Carry by Maya Lang (link) Beautiful Country by Qian Julie Wang (link) Fairest by Meredith Talusan (link) The Body Papers by Grace Talusan (link) The music on the podcast is from "Me and Some Friends", a musical project by a group of friends at Cornell, to experiment with how the beautiful timbres of Gamelan music can meld with hypnotic guitar parts to create a contemplative and unique experience. Check them out here.
How to get yourself in the right place to write, and how to use what you already have on the page to find your way forward, with authors Grace Talusan and Jessica Keener.Grace Talusan is the author of The Body Papers, which won the Restless Books Prize for New Immigrant Writing and the Massachusetts Book Award in Nonfiction. Her writing has been supported by the NEA, the Fulbright, US Artists, the Brother Thomas Fund, and the Massachusetts Cultural Council. She teaches in the Nonfiction Writing Program at Brown University. Jessica Keener's latest novel, Strangers in Budapest, was an Indie Next pick, a "best new book” selection by Entertainment Weekly, Chicago Review of Books, January Magazine, Real Simple, and a Southern Independent Bookstore Association (SIBA) bestseller. Her debut novel, Night Swim, was a national bestseller, followed by Women in Bed, her collection of award-winning stories. She has taught writing at Brown University, Boston University, Grub Street, and the Story Summit, and is currently completing a new novel. An anniversary edition of Night Swim is forthcoming in February 2023. And here are some of the things we talked about.First, Nancy Krusoe's method of “burrowing” which she discusses in her contributor's notes for her story “Landscape and Dream” in The Best American Short Stories 1994:Secondly, Douglas Bauer's The Stuff of Fiction: Advice on CraftAlso the idea from Virginia Woolf of “gathering in,” most helpful for revision.And finally, one of our marvelous webinar participants (Allison Grinberg-Funes) shared a writing software tool called “focusmate”: “It's a software where you can schedule 25 or 50 minute sessions and be on video with someone. At the beginning, you say what you're working on, then you get to work! You stay in the seat. At the end of the time period, you tell the person how much you accomplished. It's free for 3 sessions a week. More than that is $5/mo and it's honestly worth it in my opinion!” This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit 7amnovelist.substack.com
Joanne and Abram launch the fourth season of Poetry For All with a short discussion about what this podcast is all about and how it relates to all the other great poetry podcasts in the world. This conversation is an excerpt from our virtual visit with the students in Grace Talusan's creative writing workshop at Brandeis University. Grace uses our podcast in her course, and her students have gone on to create their own podcasts that focus on close readings of poems. If you want more information on how to use our podcast in the classroom, please reach out to us via Facebook, Twitter, or our gmail account (poetryforall2020). For more on Grace Talusan and her excellent work, please see here (https://www.gracetalusan.com/).
I'm kicking off the New Year with a solo episode – a list of my favorite reads of 2020. Support the Best Book Ever Podcast on Patreon Follow the Best Book Ever Podcast on Instagram or on the Best Book Ever Website Host: Julie Strauss Website/Instagram Do you have a book you want to tell me about? Go HERE to apply to be a guest on the Best Book Ever Podcast. Discussed in this episode: Romance Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert I love this one on audio, thanks to the incredible voice work of Adjoa Andoh (voice actor for series) A Rogue by Any Other Name by Sarah MacLean (I mistakenly called this “A Scandal by Any Other Name” in the podcast; forgive my error. It's part of Sarah MacLean's The First Rule of Scoundrels series, and I should know better than to try to record a podcast while sick!) Thriller/Mystery The Witch Elm by Tana French Louise Penny's Inspector Gamache Series Memoir Crying in H Mart: A Memoir by Michelle Zauner Beautiful Country by Qian Julie Wang Graphic Novels In Waves by AJ Dungo Historical Fiction The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller The Iliad of Homer The Rose Code by Kate Quinn Fiction The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam Severance by Ling Ma Joanna Balfour on “The Body Papers: A Memoir” by Grace Talusan, Best Book Ever Episode 051 Bel Canto Books, Long Beach, California – ships all over the world, support indie bookstores! Zenobia Neil on “The Song of Achilles” by Madeline Miller, Best Book Ever Episode 035 Lisa Marie Cabrelli on “Severance” by Ling Ma, Best Book Ever Episode 050 (Note: Some of the above links are affiliate links, meaning I get a few bucks off your purchase at no extra expense to you. Anytime you shop for books, you can use my affiliate link on Bookshop, which also supports Indie Bookstores around the country. If you're shopping for everything else – clothes, office supplies, gluten-free pasta, couches – you can use my affiliate link for Amazon. Thank you for helping to keep the Best Book Ever Podcast in business!)
I'm kicking off the New Year with a solo episode – a list of my favorite reads of 2020. Support the Best Book Ever Podcast on Patreon Follow the Best Book Ever Podcast on Instagram or on the Best Book Ever Website Host: Julie Strauss Website/Instagram Do you have a book you want to tell me about? Go HERE to apply to be a guest on the Best Book Ever Podcast. Discussed in this episode: Romance Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert I love this one on audio, thanks to the incredible voice work of Adjoa Andoh (voice actor for series) A Rogue by Any Other Name by Sarah MacLean (I mistakenly called this “A Scandal by Any Other Name” in the podcast; forgive my error. It's part of Sarah MacLean's The First Rule of Scoundrels series, and I should know better than to try to record a podcast while sick!) Thriller/Mystery The Witch Elm by Tana French Louise Penny's Inspector Gamache Series Memoir Crying in H Mart: A Memoir by Michelle Zauner Beautiful Country by Qian Julie Wang Graphic Novels In Waves by AJ Dungo Historical Fiction The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller The Iliad of Homer The Rose Code by Kate Quinn Fiction The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam Severance by Ling Ma Joanna Balfour on “The Body Papers: A Memoir” by Grace Talusan, Best Book Ever Episode 051 Bel Canto Books, Long Beach, California – ships all over the world, support indie bookstores! Zenobia Neil on “The Song of Achilles” by Madeline Miller, Best Book Ever Episode 035 Lisa Marie Cabrelli on “Severance” by Ling Ma, Best Book Ever Episode 050 (Note: Some of the above links are affiliate links, meaning I get a few bucks off your purchase at no extra expense to you. Anytime you shop for books, you can use my affiliate link on Bookshop, which also supports Indie Bookstores around the country. If you're shopping for everything else – clothes, office supplies, gluten-free pasta, couches – you can use my affiliate link for Amazon. Thank you for helping to keep the Best Book Ever Podcast in business!)
Northern California is experiencing extreme heat just days before the first official day of summer; we learn more about how long the high temperatures will last and how to protect yourself. An official with the Sacramento International Airport also walks us through what the rules are when flying following the state's reopening. Plus, CapRadio kicks off its After The Assault podcast, and Classical Announcer Jennifer Reason previews the station's Summer Concert Series. Today's Guests Sacramento National Weather Service Senior Meteorologist Craig Shoemaker discusses the extreme heat moving into Northern California Manager of Air Service Development, Marketing and Communications for the Sacramento International Airport Mark Haneke breaks down the rules for masks and social distancing as travelers ramp up their summer plans Morning Edition and CapRadio Reads Host Donna Apidone shares author Grace Talusan's new book “The Body Papers” to kick-off the station's special coverage programming, “After the Assault” CapRadio Midday Classical Announcer Jennifer Reason previews the station's Summer Concert Series and looks ahead to more musical selections in honor of Juneteenth
NOTE: This interview contains discussions about sexual assault. The annual arrival of houseguests was a horrifying event for Grace Talusan, who, as a child, was regularly assaulted by one of the visitors. Her memoir “The Body Papers” takes readers into the dark times of her youth, only some of which she can remember, as well as loving times she shared with her parents and niblings. Talusan is open and authentic in relating the effects of the assault on her mental and physical health. She also draws parallels to everyday occurrences – how fear shows up in crossing busy streets and how making yogurt becomes an opportunity to nurture. As a speaker and teacher at the university level, Talusan is mindful of the impact we have on each other. She is a prominent voice for Asian and Pacific Island communities and cancer prevention.
I was introduced to Bel Canto Books from previous guest of the Best Book Ever, Asha Sabbella, who travels there frequently with her book club. Jhoanna has impeccable taste in book curation, and is a fierce advocate for BIPOC and women authors. Major warning: this episode will make you want to open a bookstore. I have spent many hours – many, many hours – researching bookstore ownership since my talk with Jhoanna. Support the Best Book Ever Podcast on Patreon Follow the Best Book Ever Podcast on Instagram or on the Best Book Ever Website Host: Julie Strauss Website/Instagram Guest: Jhoanna Belfer of Bel Canto Books Bookstore/Instagram Want to be a guest on the Best Book Ever Podcast? Go here! Discussed in this episode: The Body Papers: A Memoir by Grace Talusan Page Against the Machine Bookstore, Long Beach, CA Bel Canto by Ann Patchett Parnassus Books Emma Straub Books are Magic Bookstore, Brooklyn, NY (Emma Straub's bookstore) Paz and Associates Bookstore Bootcamp Truth and Beauty: A Friendship by Ann Patchett The Silver Unicorn Bookstore, Acton, MA BFAB: Boston Filipino American Book Club America is Not the Heart – Elaine Castillo In Waves by AJ Dungo The Hangout, Long Beach, CA Bookshop.Org LibroFM Bullshit Jobs: A Theory by David Graeber Discussed in our Patreon Conversation These Precious Days by Ann Patchett Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead Underground Railroad TV Series All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr Crying in H Mart by Michelle Miracle Creek by Angie Kim The Broken Country: On Trauma, a Crime, and the Continuing Legacy of Vietnam by Paisley Rekdal (Note: Some of the above links are affiliate links. If you shop using my affiliate link on Bookshop, a portion of your purchase will go to me, at no extra expense to you. Thank you for supporting indie bookstores and for helping to keep the Best Book Ever Podcast in business!)
I was introduced to Bel Canto Books from previous guest of the Best Book Ever, Asha Sabbella, who travels there frequently with her book club. Jhoanna has impeccable taste in book curation, and is a fierce advocate for BIPOC and women authors. Major warning: this episode will make you want to open a bookstore. I have spent many hours – many, many hours – researching bookstore ownership since my talk with Jhoanna. Support the Best Book Ever Podcast on Patreon Follow the Best Book Ever Podcast on Instagram or on the Best Book Ever Website Host: Julie Strauss Website/Instagram Guest: Jhoanna Belfer of Bel Canto Books Bookstore/Instagram Want to be a guest on the Best Book Ever Podcast? Go here! Discussed in this episode: The Body Papers: A Memoir by Grace Talusan Page Against the Machine Bookstore, Long Beach, CA Bel Canto by Ann Patchett Parnassus Books Emma Straub Books are Magic Bookstore, Brooklyn, NY (Emma Straub’s bookstore) Paz and Associates Bookstore Bootcamp Truth and Beauty: A Friendship by Ann Patchett The Silver Unicorn Bookstore, Acton, MA BFAB: Boston Filipino American Book Club America is Not the Heart – Elaine Castillo In Waves by AJ Dungo The Hangout, Long Beach, CA Bookshop.Org LibroFM Bullshit Jobs: A Theory by David Graeber Discussed in our Patreon Conversation These Precious Days by Ann Patchett Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead Underground Railroad TV Series All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr Crying in H Mart by Michelle Miracle Creek by Angie Kim The Broken Country: On Trauma, a Crime, and the Continuing Legacy of Vietnam by Paisley Rekdal (Note: Some of the above links are affiliate links. If you shop using my affiliate link on Bookshop, a portion of your purchase will go to me, at no extra expense to you. Thank you for supporting indie bookstores and for helping to keep the Best Book Ever Podcast in business!)
Priyanka Champaneri presents her new book The City of Good Death, winner of the Restless Books Prize for New Immigrant Writing, in conversation with a past winner of the prize, Grace Talusan. In their discussion of Priyanka's novel set in Varanasi, India, a tale full of memory, ritual, and the uncanny, the two authors talk about personal and cultural superstitions and the obligations and rewards of fiction. (Recorded February 23, 2021)
In this encore of our April 21, 2020 release, Chris and Janelle talk with Anna Kim, Grace Talusan, Rachmad Tjachyadi about the vastness of the Asian-American Experience and the danger of a homogenized representation of Asians in the U.S, speaking within a culture that is often considered silent, as well as highlight the APIA involvement in various social justice movements.
When researching for her memoir, Grace Talusan found pictures of herself as a 1-year-old, mimicking the acts of reading and writing. In 2019, Grace shared her stories with the world in The Body Papers. The book gathers Grace’s essays, touching on deeply personal topics. Her writing explores her cultural identity, experiences as an undocumented immigrant, genetic disease, and her time as Fulbright Scholar in the Philippines. In this episode, Grace shares how writing the book has shaped her life.
Join Janelle and Chris as we talk with Grace Talusan about her memoir The Body Papers. http://gracetalusan.com/the-body-papers/
Join Janelle and Chris as we talk with Grace Talusan about her memoir The Body Papers. http://gracetalusan.com/the-body-papers/
Chris and Janelle talk with Anna Kim, Grace Talusan, Rachmad Tjachyadi about the vastness of the Asian-American Experience and the danger of a homogenized representation of Asians in the U.S, speaking within a culture that is often considered silent, as well as highlight the APIA involvement in various social justice movements. https://www.patreon.com/echoesmedia Recording date 3/8/2020 Stay safe. Stay inside. Wash your hands.
Chris and Janelle talk with Anna Kim, Grace Talusan, Rachmad Tjachyadi about the vastness of the Asian-American Experience and the danger of a homogenized representation of Asians in the U.S, speaking within a culture that is often considered silent, as well as highlight the APIA involvement in various social justice movements. https://www.patreon.com/echoesmedia Recording date 3/8/2020 Stay safe. Stay inside. Wash your hands.
March 3, 2020 at the Boston Athenæum. Born in the Philippines, young Grace Talusan moves with her family to a New England suburb in the 1970s. At school, she confronts racism as one of the few kids with a brown face. At home, the confusion is worse: her grandfather’s nightly visits to her room leave her hurt and terrified, and she learns to build a protective wall of silence that maps onto the larger silence practiced by her Catholic Filipino family. Talusan learns as a teenager that her family’s legal status in the country has always hung by a thread—for a time, they were “illegal.” Family, she’s told, must be put first. The abuse and trauma Talusan suffers as a child affects all her relationships, her mental health, and her relationship with her own body. Later, she learns that her family history is threaded with violence and abuse. And she discovers another devastating family thread: cancer. In her thirties, Talusan must decide whether to undergo preventive surgeries to remove her breasts and ovaries. Despite all this, she finds love, and success as a teacher. On a fellowship, Talusan and her husband return to the Philippines, where she revisits her family’s ancestral home and tries to reclaim a lost piece of herself. Not every family legacy is destructive. From her parents, Talusan has learned to tell stories in order to continue. The generosity of spirit and literary acuity of this debut memoir are a testament to her determination and resilience. In excavating such abuse and trauma, and supplementing her story with government documents, medical records, and family photos, Talusan gives voice to unspeakable experience, and shines a light of hope into the darkness.
Spring forward with an all-new SHELF TALKING! Recorded live at Literati: –Grace Talusan shares an excerpt from her memoir The Body Papers. –Alexander Weinstein reads the story “Infinite Realities” from his collection Universal Love. Shelf Talking is produced by Mike and Hilary Gustafson with John Ganiard, Bennet Johnson, and Sam Krowchenko Our theme songs are “Orange and Red” and "Bonhomie" by Pity Sex (2016, Run for Cover Records)
"This is why it’s so important for immigrants and feminists to tell our own stories. If we don’t, someone will tell a story about us for their own purposes." - Grace Talusan Grace Talusan was born in the Philippines and raised in New England. A graduate of Tufts University and the MFA Program in Writing at UC Irvine, she is the recipient of a U.S. Fulbright Fellowship to the Philippines and an Artist Fellowship Award from the Massachusetts Cultural Council. She is the Fannie Hurst Writer-in-Residence at Brandeis University for 2019–2021. The Body Papers, winner of the Restless Books Prize for New Immigrant Writing, is her first book. Connect with Grace on Instagram, Twitter, and her website. Grace's book recommendation: Burn It Down: Women Writing About Anger, edited by Lilly Dancyger This episode is brought to you in collaboration with Leonetti Confetti. We donate 5% of all our sales to a different feminist organization each month. Our January charity is Welcoming America. Get $5 off your Feminist Book Club Box with the code PODCAST at feministbookclub.com/shop. -- Website: http://www.feministbookclub.com Instagram: @feministbookclubbox Twitter: @fmnstbookclub Facebook: /feministbookclubbox Goodreads: Renee // Feminist Book Club Box and Podcast Email newsletter: http://eepurl.com/dINNkn -- Logo and web design by Shatterboxx Editing support from Phalin Oliver Original music by @iam.onyxrose Transcript for this episode: bit.ly/FBCtranscript55 Get $5 off your Feminist Book Club Box with the code PODCAST at feministbookclub.com/shop.
Calvin Hennick jokingly calls his memoir, ONCE MORE TO THE RODEO, "every thought I've ever had," and the book touches on fatherhood, manhood, race, family, alcohol, baseball, and countless other topics, all considered on a road trip to his childhood hometown with his young son. He talks to James about having the memoir roundly rejected until it won the Pushcart Press Editor's Award, walking around naked in front of the reader, and not solving all of the world's problems. Plus, the legendary Bill Henderson of Pushcart Press. - Calvin Hennick: https://twitter.com/calvinhennick?lang=en Buy ONCE MORE TO THE RODEO: Buy ONCE MORE TO THE RODEO Calvin and James discuss: The Chunky Monkeys THE BOSTON GLOBE MAGAZINE Grub Street Boston Red Sox Adam Jones Baltimore Orioles Curt Schilling Fenway Park GET OUT dir by Jordan Peele Cooperstown, NY Baseball Hall of Fame PLEASANTVILLE dir by Gary Ross Jackie Robinson Millicent Bennett Grand Central Publishing Pushcart Editor's Prize Bill Henderson APOCALYPSE NOW dir by Francis Ford Coppola BUSINESS INSIDER Alex Marzano-Lesnevich Chip Cheek Whitney Scharer Jenn DeLeon THE BODY PAPERS by Grace Talusan Franz Kafka James Joyce - Bill Henderson: http://pushcartprize.com/ Buy THE PUSHCART PRIZE ANTHOLOGY: Buy the PUSHCART PRIZE ANTHOLOGY Bill and James discuss: THE KID THAT COULD THE PUBLISH IT YOURSELF HANDBOOK by Bill Henderson The Pushcart Prize Anais Nin Buckminster Fuller Ralph Ellison Joyce Carol Oates Doubleday THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW PUBLISHERS WEEKLY Mattel Toys Random House WW Norton & Co. ESQUIRE Central Park ONCE MORE TO THE RODEO by Calvin Hennick Little, Brown Millicent Bennett POETS & WRITERS Cooperstown Fenway Park Boston Red Sox WASHINGTON POST YOU ARE NOT A GADGET by Jaron Lanier GARDEN STATE by Rick Moody THE TALE OF THE RING: A KADDISH: A PERSONAL MEMOIR OF THE HOLOCAUST by Frank Stiffel A DAY LIKE ANY OTHER: THE GREAT HAMPTONS HURRICANE OF 1938 by Genie Chipps Henderson - http://tkpod.com / tkwithjs@gmail.com / Twitter: @JamesScottTK/ Instagram: tkwithjs / Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tkwithjs/
We all need companionship in our creativity. This week, Sara interviews author Grace Talusan, who shares writing tips and reads from her book, The Body Papers.In this episode, we discuss:Rejection rates (they’re high!)Grace’s process for making editing and revising pleasurableHow to use a Critic JournalAnd more!If you're a new listener to Fierce Womxn Writing, I would love to hear from you. Please visit my Contact Page and tell me about your writing challenges.Follow this WriterReach Grace Talusan on Twitter, Instagram, and on email.Follow the PodcastVisit our website for more info on the podcast.Follow the HostSlide into my DM’s on Instagram.Follow our PartnersLearn more about our partner, We Need Diverse Books, whose mission is to put more diverse books into the hands of all children.This Week’s Writing PromptEach week the featured author offers a writing prompt for you to use at home. I suggest setting a timer for 6 or 8 minutes, putting the writing prompt at the top of your page, and free writing whatever comes to mind. Remember, the important part is keeping your pen moving. You can always edit later. Right now we just want to write something new and see what happens.This week’s writing prompt is: Write about a meal that you’ve made for someone else out of love, or that someone has made for you out of love. Explore these Womxn AuthorsIn this episode, the author recommended these womxn writers:Jia Tolentino, Meredith Talusan, Roslyn Talusan, Celeste Ng, Jennifer De Leon, Whitney ScharerEnsure the Podcast ContinuesLove what you’re hearing? Show your appreciation and become a supporter with a monthly contribution.Check Out More Fierce Womxn Writing ProgrammingTrailerSupport the show (https://fiercewomxnwriting.com/support)
Not every family legacy is destructive. From her parents, Talusan has learned to tell stories in order to continue. In excavating abuse and trauma, and supplementing her story with government documents, medical records, and family photos, Talusan gives voice to unspeakable experience, and shines a light of hope into the darkness.Grace Talusan was born in the Philippines and raised in New England. She graduated from Tufts University and the MFA Program in Writing at UC Irvine. She is the recipient of a U.S. Fulbright Fellowship to the Philippines and an Artist Fellowship Award from the Massachusetts Cultural Council. Talusan teaches at Grub Street and Tufts.Decolonize Your Bookshelves is a book club founded by blogger and activist Eliza Romero, also known as Aesthetic Distance. The group will focus on Asian American writers who tell stories of struggle and triumph, and explore themes of civil unrest, assimilation, racism, and profound alienation. Because a disproportionate number East Asian writers are represented in the American mainstream compared with other Asians, the club will delve into the works of South and Southeast Asian authors , including Filipino, Indian and Vietnamese creators. The goal: thought-provoking discourse that reveal the absolute necessity of these works to the American collective identity.Writers LIVE programs are supported in part by a bequest from The Miss Howard Hubbard Adult Programming Fund.Re-opening activities are made possible in part by a generous gift from Sandra R. Berman.Recorded On: Tuesday, October 22, 2019
Not every family legacy is destructive. From her parents, Talusan has learned to tell stories in order to continue. In excavating abuse and trauma, and supplementing her story with government documents, medical records, and family photos, Talusan gives voice to unspeakable experience, and shines a light of hope into the darkness.Grace Talusan was born in the Philippines and raised in New England. She graduated from Tufts University and the MFA Program in Writing at UC Irvine. She is the recipient of a U.S. Fulbright Fellowship to the Philippines and an Artist Fellowship Award from the Massachusetts Cultural Council. Talusan teaches at Grub Street and Tufts.Decolonize Your Bookshelves is a book club founded by blogger and activist Eliza Romero, also known as Aesthetic Distance. The group will focus on Asian American writers who tell stories of struggle and triumph, and explore themes of civil unrest, assimilation, racism, and profound alienation. Because a disproportionate number East Asian writers are represented in the American mainstream compared with other Asians, the club will delve into the works of South and Southeast Asian authors , including Filipino, Indian and Vietnamese creators. The goal: thought-provoking discourse that reveal the absolute necessity of these works to the American collective identity.Writers LIVE programs are supported in part by a bequest from The Miss Howard Hubbard Adult Programming Fund.Re-opening activities are made possible in part by a generous gift from Sandra R. Berman.
Today, I’m speaking with Grace Talusan, the author of the memoir The Body Papers. Grace is a professor at Tufts University in Boston, and the Body Papers is her first book. In 2017, the yet unpublished manuscript of the Body Papers won the 2017 Restless Books Prize for New Immigrant Writing. It has been incredibly well received and has been written up by such publications as the New York Times, the Boston Globe, and Nylon Magazine. Grace’s story is one about overcoming abuse and trauma and coming to terms with her immigrant and Filipino-American identity. She carefully and intentionally navigates topics that are often set aside into the realm of the unspoken and creates a space where more stories like hers can be shared. You can support our podcast by donating to the gofundme. Here's the link Our music is composed by Basim Usmani, one of the lead vocalists of the punk band "The Kominas."
Born in the Philippines, young Grace Talusan moves with her family to a New England suburb in the 1970s. At school, she confronts racism as one of the few kids with a brown face. At home, the confusion is worse: her grandfather's nightly visits to her room leave her hurt and terrified, and she learns to build a protective wall of silence that maps onto the larger silence practiced by her Catholic Filipino family. Talusan learns as a teenager that her family's legal status in the country has always hung by a thread--for a time, they were "illegal." Family, she's told, must be put first. The abuse and trauma Talusan suffers as a child affects all her relationships, her mental health, and her relationship with her own body. Later, she learns that her family history is threaded with violence and abuse. And she discovers another devastating family thread: cancer. In her thirties, Talusan must decide whether to undergo preventive surgeries to remove her breasts and ovaries. Despite all this, she finds love, and success as a teacher. On a fellowship, Talusan and her husband return to the Philippines, where she revisits her family's ancestral home and tries to reclaim a lost piece of herself. Not every family legacy is destructive. From her parents, Talusan has learned to tell stories in order to continue. The generosity of spirit and literary acuity of this debut memoir are a testament to her determination and resilience. In excavating such abuse and trauma, and supplementing her story with government documents, medical records, and family photos, Talusan gives voice to unspeakable experience, and shines a light of hope into the darkness. Talusan is in conversation with Noel Alumit, author of novels Letters to Montgomery Clift and Talking to the Moon.
Today the Creative + Cultural Podcast connects with Grace Talusan in collaboration with UCI and the Illuminations initiative. Grace Talusan was born in the Philippines and raised in New England. A graduate of Tufts University and the MFA Program in Writing at UC Irvine, she is the recipient of a U.S. Fulbright Fellowship to the Philippines and an Artist Fellowship Award from the Massachusetts Cultural Council. Talusan teaches the Essay Incubator at GrubStreet and at the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life at Tufts. She is the Fannie Hurst Writer-in-Residence at Brandeis University. The Body Papers, winner of the Restless Books Prize for New Immigrant Writing, is her first book. Creative + Cultural is an interdisciplinary podcast dedicated to creative collaboration and cultural innovation. Each series is designed to provide community leaders a platform to share stories about business, history, technology, and the arts. Building on UCI’s demonstrated excellence in the creative arts and cultural programming, Illuminations aims to ensure that all of our students, regardless of major, have serious and meaningful exposure to the creative arts. In addition, we seek to strengthen the connections between UCI and our regional arts and culture centers and institutions. Producer: Heritage Future and UCI Illuminations Host: Trevor Allred Guest: Grace Talusan Music composed and performed by Dan Reckard
As people around the country prepare to celebrate Mother's Day, we contemplate the reality that U.S. women are having fewer children than ever before. What are the social conditions and personal decisions leading to this development, and how does it change our concepts of family and even of womanhood? We speak with Jenny Brown, organizer with National Women's Liberation and author of Birth Strike: The Hidden Fight Over Women's Work; Nayomi Munaweera, author of Island of a Thousand Mirrors and What Lies Between Us; and Grace Talusan, author of The Body Papers. Then we lighten it up with comics Diane Amos, a mom and grandmother (and the internationally renowned Pine Sol Lady), and Lisa Geduldig, an honorary Jewish mother. They'll be performing Thursday night at Ashkenaz, along with comic moms Emily van Dyke, Karinda Dobbins and Brandi Brandes. The post Four Non-Moms (and one who is) appeared first on KPFA.
ABOUT THE BOOK Born in the Philippines, young Grace Talusan moves with her family to a New England suburb in the 1970s. At school, she confronts racism as one of the few kids with a brown face. At home, the confusion is worse: her grandfather’s nightly visits to her room leave her hurt and terrified, and she learns to build a protective wall of silence that maps onto the larger silence practiced by her Catholic Filipino family. Talusan learns as a teenager that her family’s legal status in the country has always hung by a thread—for a time, they were “illegal.” Family, she’s told, must be put first. The abuse and trauma Talusan suffers as a child affects all her relationships, her mental health, and her relationship with her own body. Later, she learns that her family history is threaded with violence and abuse. And she discovers another devastating family thread: cancer. In her thirties, Talusan must decide whether to undergo preventive surgeries to remove her breasts and ovaries. Despite all this, she finds love, and success as a teacher. On a fellowship, Talusan and her husband return to the Philippines, where she revisits her family’s ancestral home and tries to reclaim a lost piece of herself. Not every family legacy is destructive. From her parents, Talusan has learned to tell stories in order to continue. The generosity of spirit and literary acuity of this debut memoir are a testament to her determination and resilience. In excavating such abuse and trauma, and supplementing her story with government documents, medical records, and family photos, Talusan gives voice to unspeakable experience, and shines a light of hope into the darkness. gracetalusan.com
The dazzling, drunken, dirty (in an elegant, literary way) debut by Chip Cheek, CAPE MAY, is the result of a feverish writing spree and a measured revision process. Old friends Chip and James discuss learning to let go, having fun at the desk, selecting the right words in sex scenes, discovering characters through their dialogue, and changing ice cream to sherbet. Then, super agent to Chip and many past guests, Katherine Fausset. - Chip Cheek Buy CAPE MAY: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781250297150 Chip and James discuss: Pages: A Bookstore Whitney Scharer Sally Rooney The Chunky Monkeys Celeste Ng Grace Talusan Jenn De Leon Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich Lizzie Stark THE SECRET HISTORY by Donna Tartt James Salter THE GREAT GATSBY by F. Scott Fitzgerald REVOLUTIONARY ROAD by Richard Yates BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY'S by Truman Capote THE CALL OF CTHULHU by H.P. Lovecraft Jeanne Leiby Jim Butler Gustave Flaubert Jennifer Haigh Katherine Fausset - Katherine Fausset: https://www.curtisbrown.com/agents/katherine-fausset/ Katherine and James discuss: Chip Cheek The Muse & The Marketplace Grub Street Benjamin Percy Colm Toibin STATION ELEVEN by Emily St. John Mandel THE THIRD HOTEL by Laura van den Berg A MANUAL FOR CLEANING WOMEN: SELECTED STORIES by Lucia Berlin Farrar, Straus & Giroux - http://tkpod.com / tkwithjs@gmail.com / Twitter: @JamesScottTK Instagram: tkwithjs / Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tkwithjs/
At first, she wrote essays as a distraction from her fiction, but over time, Grace Talusan felt the pull of the experiences that would form the foundation of her memoir, THE BODY PAPERS. From immigration to cancer to sexual abuse, the book depicts a life marked by trauma, and yet through it all there is humor, family, and hope. Grace tells James how she embraced her own story, faced honesty, and escaped despair. Plus, Grace's editor and Restless Books marketing director, Nathan Rostron. - Grace Talusan: http://gracetalusan.com/ Buy THE BODY PAPERS: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781632061836 Grace and James Discuss: UC-Irvine Joanne Diaz Restless Books Ilan Stavans ONCE MORE TO THE RODEO by Calvfin Hennick Ross White's THE GRIND Bread Loaf Writer's Conference Tell All Grub Street Alysia Abbott Celeste Ng Porter Square Books Whitney Scharer Chunky Monkeys Jeff Rubin THE FACT OF A BODY by Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich Tufts University Counseling Center - Nathan Rostron of RESTLESS BOOKS: https://restlessbooks.org/ Nathan and James discuss: Graywolf Press New Directions Publishing Farrar, Straus and Giroux W.W. Norton & Co. Simon & Schuster Regan Arts Judith Regan Ilan Stavans Amherst College THE BOY by Marcus Malte, Translated by Emma Ramadan & Tom Roberge Riff Raff Richard Pevear and Larissa Volohonsky Prix Femina Editions Zulma THE INVISIBLE BRIDGE by Julie Orringer Cormac McCarthy THE BODY PAPERS by Grace Talusan THE IMMIGRANT WRITING PRIZE TEMPORARY PEOPLE by Deepak Unnikrishnan George Saunders Salman Rushdie Hindu Prize - http://tkpod.com / tkwithjs@gmail.com / Twitter: @JamesScottTK Instagram: tkwithjs / Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tkwithjs/
Born in the Philippines, Grace Talusan is the 2017 Restless Books Prize winner for New Immigrant Writing for Nonfiction. She is the author of the memoir, The Body Papers , a courageous memoir that explores immigration, the trauma of abuse and the female body.
Jon speaks with author Grace Talusan about her book The Body Papers. Born in the Philippines, young Grace Talusan moves with her family to a New England suburb in the 1970s. At school, she confronts racism as one of the few kids with a brown face. At home, the confusion is worse: her grandfather’s nightly visits to her room leave her hurt and terrified, and she learns to build a protective wall of silence that maps onto the larger silence practiced by her Catholic Filipino family. Talusan learns as a teenager that her family’s legal status in the country has always hung by a thread—for a time, they were “illegal.” Family, she’s told, must be put first. The abuse and trauma Talusan suffers as a child affects all her relationships, her mental health, and her relationship with her own body. Later, she learns that her family history is threaded with violence and abuse. And she discovers another devastating family thread: cancer. In her thirties, Talusan must decide whether to undergo preventive surgeries to remove her breasts and ovaries. Despite all this, she finds love, and success as a teacher. On a fellowship, Talusan and her husband return to the Philippines, where she revisits her family’s ancestral home and tries to reclaim a lost piece of herself. Not every family legacy is destructive. From her parents, Talusan has learned to tell stories in order to continue. The generosity of spirit and literary acuity of this debut memoir are a testament to her determination and resilience. The post The Body Papers (Part 2) – Ep 53 with Grace Talusan appeared first on Read Learn Live Podcast.
Jon speaks with author Grace Talusan about her book The Body Papers. Born in the Philippines, young Grace Talusan moves with her family to a New England suburb in the 1970s. At school, she confronts racism as one of the few kids with a brown face. At home, the confusion is worse: her grandfather’s nightly visits to her room leave her hurt and terrified, and she learns to build a protective wall of silence that maps onto the larger silence practiced by her Catholic Filipino family. Talusan learns as a teenager that her family’s legal status in the country has always hung by a thread—for a time, they were “illegal.” Family, she’s told, must be put first. The abuse and trauma Talusan suffers as a child affects all her relationships, her mental health, and her relationship with her own body. Later, she learns that her family history is threaded with violence and abuse. And she discovers another devastating family thread: cancer. In her thirties, Talusan must decide whether to undergo preventive surgeries to remove her breasts and ovaries. Despite all this, she finds love, and success as a teacher. On a fellowship, Talusan and her husband return to the Philippines, where she revisits her family’s ancestral home and tries to reclaim a lost piece of herself. Not every family legacy is destructive. From her parents, Talusan has learned to tell stories in order to continue. The generosity of spirit and literary acuity of this debut memoir are a testament to her determination and resilience. The post The Body Papers (Part 1) – Ep 52 with Grace Talusan appeared first on Read Learn Live Podcast.
In Grace Talusan’s “The Girl in the Red Dress,” Rodrigo sees the eponymous girl. But is it a ghost or a hallucination—or perhaps a sign of illness? During a visit to the doctor with his mother, Rodrigo tries to understand the intricacies of affection and intimacy and ponders what wealth means.