Podcasts about literary

Literary critic Brooke Allen drops by to talk about her new essay collection, Good Bones: Glorious Relics from the Age of Reading. She and Chris also discuss Brooke's idiosyncratic career path (including her time writing for Divorce Court), the emergence of a post-literate culture, and the future of criticism. Show notes: Brooke's new collection, Good […]

Sharing my January reading wrap-up covering 25 contemporary books read as both a coping mechanism during a heavy month and as advance reading for upcoming spring and summer 2026 reading guides. I revisit seven books from a January reading vlog (due to poor video/audio quality) and then discuss 18 additional books not previously shared, grouped by vibe: romance, mysteries/thrillers, and literary/general fiction.Romance highlights include How to Write a Love Story (Catherine Walsh), Toe to Toe (Fallon Ballard), The Starter Ex (Mia Sosa), No Matter What (Cara Bastone), and Abby Jimenez's The Night We Met (the author's best). Mystery/thriller picks include The PI and Mash Detective Agency (J.D. Brinkworth), Everyone in This Bank Is a Thief (Benjamin Stevenson), Pomona Afton Can Totally Catch a Killer (Bellamy Rose), Missing Sister (Joshilyn Jackson), and Tana French's The Keeper. Literary/general fiction discussed includes A Lake Effect (Cynthia Sweeney), the literary horror ghost story Valley Eventful Ghost (Kim Fu), Celestial Lights (Cecile/Cecily Pin), and Almost Life (Kiran Millwood Hargrave).

In her new book, award-winning novelist Namwali Serpell takes on Toni Morrison, one of the towering figures in American literature. Serpell guides readers through Morrison's extraordinary body of work, offering close readings that illuminate the depth of Morrison's imagination, innovation and craft. Geoff Bennett sat down with Serpell to discuss "On Morrison." PBS News is supported by - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/about/funders. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy

Welcome, writers and book lovers. The Bleeders is a podcast about book writing and publishing. Make sure you subscribe to the companion Substack: https://thebleeders.substack.com/welcomeToday's guest is Courtney Maum—novelist, memoirist, and author of Before and After the Book Deal—and she talks candidly about the reality of a writing career, the myth of the breakout book, and why longevity matters more than literary hype.In this episode, Courtney breaks down what publishing actually looks like across every lane: Big Five launches with national tours, indie presses that nurture your inner “art witch,” and self-publishing born out of necessity. She shares the story behind the book that almost never happened—and how the lowest advance of her career became the one that defined her platform—plus why the industry now expects authors to function as marketers, publicists, event planners, and content creators all at once.We also discuss building an audience in the newsletter era, the limits of social media, and why “a thousand true fans” is a better goal than virality. Courtney explains how writers can protect their mental health in a system built on comparison, what's actually changed since 2020 (AI, proposals, platform pressure), and why readers—not gatekeepers—ultimately determine a book's shelf life. This conversation is essential listening for any writer trying to build a sustainable creative career in today's publishing landscape.Preorder Courtney Maum's latest book Alan Opts Out and preorder Courtney Kocak's debut memoir Girl Gone Wild.Subscribe to Courtney Maum's Substack Before & After The Book Deal. Follow her on Instagram @cbmaum, and buy your copy of Before and After the Book Deal on Bookshop.org, or wherever books are sold!The Bleeders is hosted by Courtney Kocak. Follow her on Instagram @courtneykocak and Bluesky @courtneykocak.bsky.social. For more, check out her website courtneykocak.com.Courtney is teaching some upcoming workshops you might be interested in:Land Big Bylines by Writing for Columns: https://writingworkshops.com/products/land-big-bylines-by-writing-for-columns-zoom-seminarSo You Want to Start a Podcast?: https://writingworkshops.com/products/start-podcast-workshop-courtney-kocakEdit & Elevate: Revision Intensive: https://writingworkshops.com/products/edit-elevate-revision-intensive-zoom-seminar-with-courtney-kocakHow to Build a “Platform” for Writers Who Shudder at the Thought: https://writingworkshops.com/products/how-to-build-a-platform-for-writers-who-shudder-at-the-thought-zoom-seminarStart a Newsletter to Supercharge Your Platform, Network and Business: https://writingworkshops.com/products/start-a-newsletter-to-supercharge-your-platform-network-business-zoom-seminar

In this episode, producer Maia Harris and co-host Emily Stuchbery say goodbye to The SpokenWeb Podcast and introduce the all new Literary Listening Podcast.With contributions from past team members, a sneak peak at VOLUME!: Sonic Scholarship in Literary Studies, this episode celebrates the 6 seasons of The SpokenWeb Podcast and ushers listeners into the new project on the same RSS feed, Literary Listening.Special thanks to those who contributed their voice to this special episode:Jason CamlotKatherine McLeodHannah McGregorStacey CopelandKelly CubonMiranda EastwoodKate MoffattJudith Burr Thank you to TJ MacPherson and Lou Raskin for help in the booth.

In this episode, we explore the extraordinary life of Origen of Alexandria, a child prodigy and prolific ancient Christian author who, driven by intense zeal and literal interpretation of scripture, faced significant challenges and became a controversial figure in church history. We also uncover his groundbreaking contributions to biblical scholarship and theology, alongside the theories that sparked controversy.Chapters00:00 Who Was Origen?01:39 Early Life & Martyrdom Desire04:46 Asceticism and Personal Decisions08:10 Literary & Theological Contributions13:02 Fame, Jealousy, and Persecution16:18 Legacy and Contradictions

Valentine's-ish Literary Romance: Lucas Oakley on Nearly Departed, Boys Book Club & love stories that stay with you long after readingJoin Kate and Lucas Oakeley for this Valentine's-ish episode of The Book Club Review, recorded at Housmans Bookshop in King's Cross. We're exploring literary fiction where love takes centre stage, but the reward is complexity rather than a guaranteed happy ending.Nearly Departed manages to combine the enjoyable tropes of Rom Com with the thoughtful exploration through writing that we associate with literary fiction. We explore how Lucas's real-life experiences—witnessing a fatal cycling accident and his father's first wife dying young—shaped the book's exploration of love, loss, and second chances, and the art of balancing humour with heartbreak while playing with rom-com tropes.Of course, we've got plenty of recommendations for love stories with emotional depth, including Lily King's Writers & Lovers, Andrew Kaufman's All My Friends Are Superheroes, Kazuo Ishiguro's The Remains of the Day, David Nicholls' Sweet Sorrow, Douglas Stuart's John of John, and hot-book-of-the-moment Wuthering Heights. We're also discussing Boys Book Club, the organization Lucas has co-founded to encourage men to read and talk about books. What makes a great book club pick for an all-male book club? We're going to be finding out.We've even got Valentine's recipe – rigatoni with a long-simmered ‘Sunday sauce' – and a couple of cocktail ideas. All in all, the perfect ingredients for a literary Valentine's weekend.Become a member of The Book Club Review communityJoin The Book Club Review community on Patreon for ad-free listening, extra episodes, Kate's weekly reading diaries, the opportunity to connect with other listeners in the chat groups, and at the higher tier to talk books in-person with Kate at the monthly book club. Find all the details and how to sign up at patreon.com/thebookclubreview.BooklistYou can find all the titles mentioned in this episode in the Book Club Review bookshop on bookshop.orgNearly Departed by Lucas Oakeley Heart The Lover by Lily KingAll My Friends are Superheroes by Andrew KaufmanSweet Sorrow by David NichollsJohn of John by Douglas StuartWuthering Heights by Emily BrontëComfort MOB: Food that Makes You Feel GoodTheory & Practice by Michelle de KretserAll My Precious Madness by Mark BowlesThe Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre DumasThe Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey NiffeneggerThe Curious Case of Benjamin Button, and Tales of the Jazz Age by F. Scott FitzgeraldLife Out of Order by Audrey NiffeneggerLinksFollow Lucas on Instagram and Tik Tok @lucasoakeley, and you can find out all the details for the Boy's Book Club at theboysbookclub.co.ukHousmans bookshop, the longest continuous-running radical bookshop in Britain, established in 1945 and based in London's Kings Cross since 1959See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Send a textHave you officially jumped on the Wuthering Heights bandwagon yet? If you're anything like us, reading this classic novel by Emily Brontë for the first time, you may find yourself thinking “WTF!?” on every other page, confused about the point of view, the narrator, the timelines, and the ghosts…? And we get it! So do not fret; we've got you! Welcome to our newest bonus series where we're taking deep dives into some of the most beloved classics of our time, kicking it off with Wuthering Heights! We're just in time for the new and controversial movie written and directed by Emerald Fennell… starring Margo Robbie and Jacob Elordi and marketed as “the greatest love story of all time.”

On my radio show 'Literary London' on Resonance 104.4fm, I chat to Professor Carl Chinn about Birmingham, his writings and the REAL truth about the Peaky Blinders gang. A new film is due soon from fellow Brummie Stephen Knight. See www.BohemianBritain.com 

Literary hub, polling place, warming center and now… food pantry? Some libraries can do it all. With 81 branches, the Chicago Public Library system is one of the largest and most robust in the world. On today's In the Loop, we look at how libraries are about a lot more than just books with Chris Brown, Chicago Public Library Commissioner, Megan Greenback, Legler Library Assistant Director and Mary Davis Fournier, Executive Director, Public Library Association. For a full archive of In the Loop interviews, head over to wbez.org/intheloop.

Host Jo Reed and contributor Alan Minskoff dive into three remarkable audiobooks: Zadie Smith's Dead and Alive, John Banville's Venetian Vespers, and Thomas Pynchon's long-awaited Shadow Ticket. They explore Smith's incisive essays, read by the author with clarity and authority; Venetian Vespers, with Luke Thompson navigating Banville's long, sinuous sentences; and Pynchon's noir caper, handled with virtuosic range by Edoardo Ballerini. It's a conversation filled with sharp insights into writing, narration, and what makes these audiobooks such compelling listens.   Audiobooks Discussed:  Dead and Alive, written and read by Zadie Smith (Penguin Audio) Shadow Ticket by Thomas Pynchon, read by Edoardo Ballerini (Penguin Audio) Venetian Vespers by John Banville, read by Luke Thompson (Random House Audio) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Texas Standard commentator W.F. Strong examines how one of the state's most celebrated writers found a home in San Antonio. The post Sandra Cisneros, a Texas literary rock star appeared first on KUT & KUTX Studios -- Podcasts.

A quiet supernatural story about aging, death, and the unsettling certainty that something always comes after. When a man is interrupted by an unexpected knock, he's forced to face his mortality.Told with restraint and dark humor, What Comes Next explores the thin boundary between life and whatever waits beyond it. This is a story about endings--life, relationships, our existence in a world we belong to, and what happens if that world tells us its time to move on. It's about the deeply human desire to remain in a world we know—even when the universe has other plans.David Corisis is a born-and-raised Idahoan and graduate of Gonzaga University. He lives the exciting life of a programmer by day and aspiring writer by night. When not sharing a keyboard with his cat, David enjoys running, brewing mead, playing Magic the Gathering, camping, and worrying about the ever-marching hand of time stealing everything he holds dear. His favorite books include At the Mountains of Madness, and Flatland. He couldn't be happier taking on the world and its challenges with his eternally inspirational wife at his side. To find out more, you can visit www.dcorisis.com.The Kaidankai Podcast features original short fiction exploring horror, fantasy, science fiction, and the strange.New episodes every Wednesday.Subscribe on Spreaker, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.Read the stories at kaidankaistories.comFollow the show:InstagramFacebookBlueskyHave a story you'd like us to read? Send submissions to kaidankai100ghoststories@gmail.com.

What does it mean to be a part of the writing community? How can you be a good literary citizen within the writing community?  In this episode, Emma Walton Hamilton, Julie Hedlund, Katie Davis, and Kelli Panique share easy ways you can support your fellow writers and illustrators, as well as booksellers and libraries. (Guess what? Many of these suggestions are free things you can do help get the word out about books and support the reading, writing, and literacy communities.)  What will you do to be a good literary citizen in your neighborhood and online?

This time Nick Hennegan celebrates Literary birthdays in January. With Virgina Woolf, JRR Tolkien and Monty Python's Terry Jones' music and material. www.BohemianBritain.com 

Oxford literary festivalhttps://oxfordliteraryfestival.org/ LGB mortality rateshttps://www.itv.com/news/2026-01-13/lesbian-gay-and-bisexual-people-have-higher-death-rates-ons-data-showshttps://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/healthandsocialcare/healthinequalities/bulletins/allcauseandcausespecificmortalitybysexualorientationenglandandwales/march2021tonovember2024Sappho and a literary hoaxhttps://aeon.co/essays/how-a-playful-literary-hoax-illuminates-classical-queernessMondrian and Marlow Mosshttps://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2026/jan/12/piet-mondrian-crossdressing-lesbian-artist-marlow-moss-cornish-coveRadio Norfolk programmeThat's a Queer Ol' Place - Norfolk Nightlife - BBC SoundsAre non-binary people scared of AI?https://www.advocate.com/technology/can-queer-people-trust-ai This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thelesbianprojectpod.com/subscribe

In S7E12 I sit down with author and practitioner Melissa Seims to discuss her latest book, Light In Extension: A History of Bradford's 1888 Golden Dawn Temple Horus No. 5, which casts light on a lesser known part of the early history of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and a momentous chapter in British magical history. Melissa:https://www.thewica.co.uk/my-articlesLight In Extension:https://www.thewica.co.uk/lightinextensionSUBSCRIBE to the ARCANVM Newsletter:⁠⁠⁠https://ikebaker.com/newsletter⁠⁠⁠For all things Ike be sure to visit/message him at: ⁠⁠⁠https://ikebaker.com⁠⁠⁠SUPPORT ARCANVM for $5/MONTH: https://patreon.com/arcanvm ⁠ FOLLOW on Facebook: ⁠https://facebook.com/arcanvvm ⁠ FOLLOW on Instagram: @a.r.c.a.n.v.m#magick #goldendawn #magic #history

In this episode of AI Experience, we look back at five articles that each shed light, in their own way, on the growing presence of artificial intelligence in our lives. What if the AI we use every day had a direct impact on the health of entire communities, far from screens and big cities?What if the real AI revolution at work is not about jobs disappearing… but about jobs changing fast and deeply?What if the most effective ads are actually the ones we prefer not to look at too closely?What if the so-called “AI jobs apocalypse” is as much a story as it is an economic reality?What if the silent disappearance of literary translators has already begun? These questions reveal how far AI reaches beyond labs and tech companies: it now shapes our choices, our leisure, our purchases, and even our most intimate spaces.Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

From MPR News, Art Hounds are members of the Minnesota arts community who look beyond their own work to highlight what's exciting in local art. Their recommendations are lightly edited from the audio heard in the player above. Want to be an Art Hound? Submit here.Dinner with literary greatsErin Janssens is a big fan of the Northfield Arts Guild Theater, and she is looking forward to their play “Little Wars,” which opens Friday. Set in the French Alps on the night before France falls to the Nazis, the play imagines a dinner party of female literary greats: Agatha Christie, Gertrude Stein, Dorothy Parker, Alice B. Toklas and Lillian Hellman. The play runs Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m., and Sundays at 2 p.m., through Feb. 8.As the characters discuss what they can do to help Jewish people targeted by the Nazis, Erin says the play raises questions that feel timely.Erin says: What do you want your legacy to be? How do you want to be remembered? Do you want to be remembered as someone who did something to help someone? Or do you want to just be someone who stood back and watched while others helped? There are some serious themes in the show. They deal with antisemitism, xenophobia and your own moral responsibility.— Erin JanssensClassical words meet musical improvisationMinneapolis author Cheri Johnson is looking forward to seeing the Ken Takata Ensemble set the words of Shakespeare, Jane Austen and other classic authors to music. The free event takes place this Saturday, Jan. 31, from 2 to 3:30 p.m. at George Latimer Central Library, as part of the St. Paul Winter Carnival. Hear examples of Takata's work here.Cheri says Takata began by setting the songs in Shakespeare's plays to music, but he's expanded to include short Shakespearean passages, often starring female characters, as well as passages from other classic works. She says the music style varies to fit the words.Cheri says: Ken started out as mostly a jazz musician, but there's [also] stuff that sounds very classical, and then other times he does R&B, or it sounds very musical theater. He just sort of chooses a style, it seems, based on what inspires him in the text and how he can imagine a production looking.— Cheri JohnsonA gospel tradition, continuedElla Gates-Mahmoud of Minneapolis says she's been to nearly all the productions of “The Sound of Gospel” since it began in 2018. The production, presented by Second Chance Outreach, takes place Sunday, Feb. 1, at 3 p.m. at the O'Shaughnessy at St. Catherine University in St. Paul.Ella says to expect an array of music, from spirituals to quartets, solos to choirs, spanning the history and styles of gospel.Ella says: I think it's important to note that gospel music is really a transformative experience. It covers an array of life experiences, and it encapsulates people's emotions, from happiness and joy to sadness to celebration. It encompasses all of that, and you can find yourself crying and laughing at the same time. It's just a beautiful experience.— Dr. Ella Gates-Mahmoud

A first-person supernatural confession about inheriting witchcraft, where fear, taboo, and belonging collide.In That Sound That the Crickets Make, tradition is not comfort—it's obligation, and refusal has a cost.This is not a story about monsters from the outside, but about what it means to inherit a world you didn't choose. Told with brutal honesty and dark humor, it explores witchcraft as culture, survival, and generational obligation—and asks whether tradition must always be obeyed.Valerie Tendai Chatindo is a biochemistry graduate, writer and communications consultant. She's a regular contributor for The Kalahari Review, Enthuse Magazine, The Diplomat Zimbabwe and EarGround. Her work has also appeared in Pink Disco Magazine, Creepy Pod, Agbowo, Argyl Literary Magazine, The Afterpast Review, Whisper House Press, Omenana, Efiko Magazine, Writer's Space, and Literary Yard. Her short story “Sheba,” was shortlisted for the African Cradle African Heroines literary prize, and her pieces were featured in Povo Afrika's Nehanda Reimagined anthology. Her debut novel Mono: Tales of The Tapa Kingdom is shortlisted for the Iskanchi Book Prize. The twenty-nine-year-old resides in Harare, Zimbabwe with her cat, Muffins. She runs her own Literary Platform, Shumba Literary Magazine.You can read "That Sound That The Crickets Make" at https://www.kaidankaistories.com.Illustration by Aubrey BeardsleyThe Kaidankai Podcast features original short fiction exploring horror, fantasy, science fiction, and the strange.New episodes every Wednesday.Subscribe on Spreaker, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.Read the stories at kaidankaistories.comFollow the show:InstagramFacebookBlueskyHave a story you'd like us to read? Send submissions to kaidankai100ghoststories@gmail.com.

Join host Edith on the Book Lover‘s Companion podcast as she welcomes writer and journalist David Finkle. In this riveting episode, Edith and David delve into his books 'Humpty Trump and the Second First Hundred Days' and 'Humpty Trumpy Hit a Brick Wall,' which present the tumultuous presidencies of Donald Trump through verse. David shares inspirations, challenges, and candid thoughts on the political landscape. The conversation also touches upon David's mystery novel, 'The Great Gatsby Murder Case,' and the upcoming 'Oliver Twist Murder Case.' Don't miss out on this compelling dialogue about writing, history, and societal upheaval.00:00 Introduction and Guest Welcome00:32 Discussing Trump's First 200 Days01:59 Writing Humpty Trumpy03:16 Trump's Second Term and Healthcare Act05:39 Zelensky's Visit and Global Reactions07:45 Reflections on Trump's Administration15:14 Marjorie Taylor Greene and Political Shifts31:02 David's Writing Process and Inspirations31:25 The Great Gatsby Murder Case48:47 Teaching and Encouraging New Writers51:07 Holiday Parody and Final Thoughts53:36 The Changing Dynamics of US-Europe Relations54:31 The Impact of Leadership on International Relations59:26 The Influence of Media and Fictional Characters01:04:53 Exploring Literary Inspirations and Travel01:11:40 The Reality of Historical and Political Tensions01:16:51 The Role of Fear in Politics and Society01:32:04 Upcoming Works and Reflections on Writing01:37:19 Conclusion and FarewellIf you like what we do, you might consider buying us a coffee.You can do so here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.buymeacoffee.com/booklovercom⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ https://ko-fi.com/bookcompanion⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Follow us: Web: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://book-lovers-companion.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/book_companion⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/ez.fiction.7/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/book_companion/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Youtube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6vyAyrh3zzsxNeexfyU0uA⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Feedback is always welcome: bookcompanioncontact@gmail.comMusic: English Country Garden by Aaron Kenny Video Link: https://youtu.be/mDcADD4oS5E

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Robert John Hodge.Robert John Hodge makes cross-stitch work based on Renaissance sculptures, using a CMYK / screenprint-style layering approach and recurring Wingdings symbols.In this half we jump into Robert's newer series - smaller, quicker pieces that work like little stitched collages: videogames, screenshots, photos, culture… and, for reasons we absolutely get into, a whole run of nuclear weapons tests.Part 2 is where we widen out into the stuff that feeds the work: horror films from the 70s and 80s, documentaries that stitch history into a continuum, Kate Bush and Wagner, and even T.S. Eliot's The Waste Land as a kind of cultural collage blueprint.Timestamps:00:00:00 - Introduction00:01:30 – Cross stitch as a serious art medium00:05:44 – Challenging the “serious art” prejudice00:07:50 – Balancing making work and making money00:09:02 – Art-world reality: logistics + day job00:11:22 – Film influences + nostalgia threads00:18:16 – A wide media diet (and why it matters)00:24:53 – Literary influences: T.S. Eliot and collage thinking00:26:52 – Looping + obsession as the creative engineLinks:Website: robertjohnhodge.comInstagram: robertjohnhodgeIntro music is Cotton Candy by Cospe via Epidemic Sound.About NeedleXChange:NeedleXChange is a conversation podcast with embroidery and textile artists, exploring their process and practice.Hosted by Jamie "Mr X Stitch" Chalmers, it is an in-depth showcase of the best needlework artists on the planet.Visit the NeedleXChange website: needl.exchangeSign up for the NeedleXChange Newsletter here: bit.ly/NeedleXChangeNewsIf you're looking for modern cross stitch designs, then XStitch is the magazine you need!Find out more here: xstitchmag.comAnd follow Mr X Stitch on all the usual social media channels!Facebook: mrxstitchInstagram: mrxstitchPinterest: mrxstitchYouTube: mrxstitchLinkedIn: mrjamiechalmers

Literary grief takes center stage this week with awards-baity HAMNET, an aching portrait of love, loss, and motherhood. Find out Wesley's surprising (for an English major) admission at orwhatevermovies.com. Contains spoilers.Thanks for listening.  818-835-0473 orwhatevermovies@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today's show, Alex and Calvin sit down with the co-authors of a viral op-ed in The Chronicle of Higher Education regarding the controversial restructuring of the English Department at Carnegie Mellon University: Dr. Sheila Liming (Associate Professor of Writing & Publishing, Champlain College) and Catherine Evans (doctoral candidate in Literary and Cultural Studies, Carnegie Mellon University). This article is particularly significant for Calvin and Alex, who also earned their PhDs in Rhetoric from the CMU English Department and had many cherished mentors and colleagues in the Literary and Cultural Studies (LCS) program. In the article, entitled "A Coup at Carnegie Mellon?," Sheila and Catherine examine the administrative pivot at CMU from LCS to a new degree in Computational Cultural Studies (CCS). Specifically, the authors analyze and interrogate the institutional rhetoric of innovation - a buzzword that puts a positive spin on undemocratic changes, such as dissolving or downsizing university programs, staff, and/or faculty.In our conversation, we talk with Catherine and Sheila about how values like "interdisciplinarity" and "innovation" are paradoxically being used to hollow out the humanities at Carnegie Mellon as they privilege a more narrow set of research priorities. They take us through the major findings in their article regarding the opaque administrative process that "froze out" faculty and student input, effectively replacing a program centered on the critique of power with one focused primarily on training with computational tools. We also discuss the broader implications of the "AI hype" cycle in higher education, the validity of arguments regarding job market prospects for humanities graduates, and the vital importance of studying literature and culture for their own sake - rather than as case studies for purportedly "neutral" data-driven methodologies.Sheila and Catherine's co-authored article: Liming, S., & Evans, C. A. (2025). A Coup at Carnegie Mellon? The Chronicle of Higher Education.Works & Concepts Referenced in this Episode: England, J. & Purcell, R. (2020). Higher Ed's Toothless Response to the Killing of George Floyd. The Chronicle of Higher Education. Gitelman, L. (2008). Always already new: Media, history, and the data of culture. MIT Press.Kirschenbaum, M. (2025). The U.S. of A.I. (Public lecture, Princeton University). Williams, J. J. (2016). Innovation for What? Dissent.An accessible transcript of this episode can be found here (via Descript)

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.Some historical figures feel larger than life — until you finally meet the woman behind the myth.In this episode, I'm joined by Lynn Cullen, an acclaimed historical fiction author who has spent decades uncovering the real people behind cultural legends. We dive into her latest novel about Marilyn Monroe, focusing on Marilyn's deeply personal relationship with photographer Eve Arnold — the only woman Marilyn ever trusted to photograph her.We talk about trauma, fame, the female gaze, and what happens when a woman known entirely through images finally gets to be seen as herself. If you love feminist historical fiction, celebrity history, or stories that reclaim women's narratives from the male gaze, this conversation is for you.

We caught up with author Madeline Cash at the launch party for her debut novel, Lost Lambs. Surrounded by friends, fans, and her boyfriend's entire extended family, we discussed manifesting a book deal, a failed lamb photoshoot, and the family dysfunction that drives her debut.  The Flynn family is unraveling–romantically, emotionally, and possibly morally–in a small seaside town. But when an open marriage collapses, gnats swarm the church, and conspiracies flare, the chaos could be just enough to tangle them all up together again. Get Lost Lambs at bookofthemonth.com.  Learn more about Book of the Month LIVE at bookofthemonth.com/botm-live.  

*Enjoy a preview of our new My Heroine Journey podcast:We all want the happy ever after, but what if that happy ending you dream of every day isn't actually the ending you want?What if your true happy ever after was something you've never dreamt of?Join today's journey as Megan and Kate discuss:Your core self versus your human self and the difference in their desiresThe truth behind why you want what you wantHow to find the pearl of your true heart's desire in the sea of human confusion The steps to start creating the happy ever after of your dreams Scotland is calling! Join our APRIL 2026 Scotland Fantasy Tour HERE Want to explore the world of SJM with us? Become a PATRON and gain access to our entire Sarah J. Maas series collection! LISTEN to our new My Heroine Journey podcast and follow us here: APPLE / SPOTIFY / WEBSITE

The various words for “divorce” in Japanese—rien, enkiri, fūfu wakare, rikon—reflect how the socially constructed institutions of marriage and family, along with their dissolutions, have been understood in Japanese history and jurisprudence. Employing a broad definition of divorce as the end of a romantic union sanctioned by law, social custom, or mutual agreement, Bold Breaks: Japanese Women and Literary Narratives of Divorce explores the shifting attitudes toward divorce in literature by women from the Heian (794–1185) to Heisei (1989–2019) periods. The collection features writing by renowned authors Tamura Toshiko (1884–1945), Uno Chiyo (1897–1996), and Tsushima Yūko (1947–2016), who used divorce as a literary device to enable their female protagonists to take bold steps toward new lives. A coda explores more contemporary views on marriage, divorce, and romantic love in the work of novelists Itoyama Akiko (1966–) and Kawakami Mieko (1976–) and poet Saihate Tahi (1986–). A wide-ranging introduction provides an overview of the historical, legal, and literary significance of divorce in Japan. The translated texts, appearing in English for the first time, are accompanied by essays introducing the authors and offering brief analyses. Bold Breaks will appeal to students and scholars of Japanese literature and culture, particularly those interested in gender issues and family social practices, and will enrich the growing conversation on marriage and divorce across cultures and eras. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

The various words for “divorce” in Japanese—rien, enkiri, fūfu wakare, rikon—reflect how the socially constructed institutions of marriage and family, along with their dissolutions, have been understood in Japanese history and jurisprudence. Employing a broad definition of divorce as the end of a romantic union sanctioned by law, social custom, or mutual agreement, Bold Breaks: Japanese Women and Literary Narratives of Divorce explores the shifting attitudes toward divorce in literature by women from the Heian (794–1185) to Heisei (1989–2019) periods. The collection features writing by renowned authors Tamura Toshiko (1884–1945), Uno Chiyo (1897–1996), and Tsushima Yūko (1947–2016), who used divorce as a literary device to enable their female protagonists to take bold steps toward new lives. A coda explores more contemporary views on marriage, divorce, and romantic love in the work of novelists Itoyama Akiko (1966–) and Kawakami Mieko (1976–) and poet Saihate Tahi (1986–). A wide-ranging introduction provides an overview of the historical, legal, and literary significance of divorce in Japan. The translated texts, appearing in English for the first time, are accompanied by essays introducing the authors and offering brief analyses. Bold Breaks will appeal to students and scholars of Japanese literature and culture, particularly those interested in gender issues and family social practices, and will enrich the growing conversation on marriage and divorce across cultures and eras. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/east-asian-studies

The various words for “divorce” in Japanese—rien, enkiri, fūfu wakare, rikon—reflect how the socially constructed institutions of marriage and family, along with their dissolutions, have been understood in Japanese history and jurisprudence. Employing a broad definition of divorce as the end of a romantic union sanctioned by law, social custom, or mutual agreement, Bold Breaks: Japanese Women and Literary Narratives of Divorce explores the shifting attitudes toward divorce in literature by women from the Heian (794–1185) to Heisei (1989–2019) periods. The collection features writing by renowned authors Tamura Toshiko (1884–1945), Uno Chiyo (1897–1996), and Tsushima Yūko (1947–2016), who used divorce as a literary device to enable their female protagonists to take bold steps toward new lives. A coda explores more contemporary views on marriage, divorce, and romantic love in the work of novelists Itoyama Akiko (1966–) and Kawakami Mieko (1976–) and poet Saihate Tahi (1986–). A wide-ranging introduction provides an overview of the historical, legal, and literary significance of divorce in Japan. The translated texts, appearing in English for the first time, are accompanied by essays introducing the authors and offering brief analyses. Bold Breaks will appeal to students and scholars of Japanese literature and culture, particularly those interested in gender issues and family social practices, and will enrich the growing conversation on marriage and divorce across cultures and eras. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/gender-studies

My guest today on the Online for Authors podcast is JD Rasch, author of the book Quasi-Crystal. Jody “J.D.” Rasch is a writer, artist, social activist, and author. His debut fantasy series, The Wanderer, incorporates social issues including politics, religion and how we are influenced in our lives.   Jody is also a painter, whose art explores the mysteries of our world. Jody worked in finance for many years but managed to use it for good by helping banks that gave loans to the poor. Jody now serves on not-for-profit boards that seek to make the world a better place.   A native New Yorker who was forced to move to the burbs, Jody now lives just outside New York City.   In my book review, I stated The Quasi-Crystal is part 3 of a fantasy series, The Wanderer. Despite being the third book of which I didn't read the first two, I found this fantasy quite fascinating. I particularly liked Pom, an ex-thief who soon realizes she has immense powers of empathy and calm, as well as Theb, a gemstone cutter who insists the rock he has found is more than a rock. Both find themselves drawn into a quest despite having no real appetite for one.   JD does a great job getting readers to think about politics and religion, asking questions like what do you want? And why? In one instance, he shows two groups who worship differently, and face in opposite directions to pray. The question is asked - does the direction matter? And it made me think about ways people worship and whether the differences are significant or superficial.   Throughout the book, readers learn tidbits of JDs beliefs - humans are humans, people can create excuses for anything they do, we always have a choice, and more. Throw these in with great characters and a fantasy world complete with a quest to save humankind - and you have a great story. As someone who isn't usually interested in fantasy, I still enjoyed this story.   Subscribe to Online for Authors to learn about more great books! https://www.youtube.com/@onlineforauthors?sub_confirmation=1   Join the Novels N Latte Book Club community to discuss this and other books with like-minded readers: https://www.facebook.com/groups/3576519880426290   You can follow Author JD Rasch Website: https://jdrasch.com/ LinkedIn: @jodyrasch IG: @jodyrasch FB: @jody.rasch.35   Purchase The Quasi-Crystal on Amazon: Paperback: https://amzn.to/4hUtLin Ebook: https://amzn.to/4qRuxke   Teri M Brown, Author and Podcast Host: https://www.terimbrown.com FB: @TeriMBrownAuthor IG: @terimbrown_author X: @terimbrown1   Want to be a guest on Online for Authors? Send Teri M Brown a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/member/onlineforauthors   #jdrasch #thequasicrystal #fantasy #terimbrownauthor #authorpodcast #onlineforauthors #characterdriven #researchjunkie #awardwinningauthor #podcasthost #podcast #readerpodcast #bookpodcast #writerpodcast #author #books #goodreads #bookclub #fiction #writer #bookreview *As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

The various words for “divorce” in Japanese—rien, enkiri, fūfu wakare, rikon—reflect how the socially constructed institutions of marriage and family, along with their dissolutions, have been understood in Japanese history and jurisprudence. Employing a broad definition of divorce as the end of a romantic union sanctioned by law, social custom, or mutual agreement, Bold Breaks: Japanese Women and Literary Narratives of Divorce explores the shifting attitudes toward divorce in literature by women from the Heian (794–1185) to Heisei (1989–2019) periods. The collection features writing by renowned authors Tamura Toshiko (1884–1945), Uno Chiyo (1897–1996), and Tsushima Yūko (1947–2016), who used divorce as a literary device to enable their female protagonists to take bold steps toward new lives. A coda explores more contemporary views on marriage, divorce, and romantic love in the work of novelists Itoyama Akiko (1966–) and Kawakami Mieko (1976–) and poet Saihate Tahi (1986–). A wide-ranging introduction provides an overview of the historical, legal, and literary significance of divorce in Japan. The translated texts, appearing in English for the first time, are accompanied by essays introducing the authors and offering brief analyses. Bold Breaks will appeal to students and scholars of Japanese literature and culture, particularly those interested in gender issues and family social practices, and will enrich the growing conversation on marriage and divorce across cultures and eras. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/literary-studies

In this episode, Jack Eidt interviews author Max Talley on his book called Peace, Love, and Haight, set in the wild San Francisco district of Haight-Ashbury in 1969. The hippie counterculture clashes with the capitalist society in the era of the Vietnam War, the push for civil rights, and the sexual revolution. We feature clips from LSD guru and CIA turncoat Dr. Timothy Leary, poet Allen Ginsberg, psychonaut Terence McKenna, political activist Eldridge Cleaver, and of course the sounds of the Grateful Dead. Support the Podcast via PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=LBGXTRM292TFC&source=url For an extended interview and other benefits, become an EcoJustice Radio patron at https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio Max Talley [https://maxtalley.com/] is an author, editor, musician, visual artist, and writing teacher – he's doing it all – who has published multiple novels, essays, and short stories and won awards for his mix of literary, psychedelic-dystopian, crime, sci-fi, and satirical works. His latest which we will discuss today are the story collection, Destroy Me Gently, Please by Serving House Books, and Peace, Love & Haight – as in San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury – from Three Rooms Press. He resides in Santa Barbara where we encountered him in, of all places, a noisy hotel lounge. Jack Eidt is an urban planner, environmental journalist, and climate organizer, as well as award-winning fiction writer. He is Co-Founder of SoCal 350 Climate Action and Executive Producer of EcoJustice Radio. He writes for a PBS SoCal project called High & Dry [https://www.pbssocal.org/people/high-dry]. He is also Founder and Publisher of WilderUtopia [https://wilderutopia.com], a website dedicated to the question of Earth sustainability, finding society-level solutions to environmental, community, economic, transportation and energy needs. Podcast Website: http://ecojusticeradio.org/ Podcast Blog: https://www.wilderutopia.com/category/ecojustice-radio/ Support the Podcast: Patreon https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=LBGXTRM292TFC&source=url Executive Producer and Host: Jack Eidt Engineer and Original Music: Blake Quake Beats Episode 276 Photo credit: Max Talley

Dr. Michael Rectenwald is a distinguished author, scholar, and advocate for free speech, holding a Ph.D. in Literary and Cultural Studies from Carnegie Mellon University. A former professor at New York University and once a committed Marxist, he has since become a vocal critic of leftist ideologies, corporate censorship, and globalist agendas. Rectenwald has authored 14 books, including "The Great Reset and the Struggle for Liberty: Unraveling the Global Agenda," "Google Archipelago: The Digital Gulag and the Simulation of Freedom," and the novel "Thought Criminal." He founded Citizens for Free Speech and serves as Executive Director of AZAPAC (Anti-Zionist American PAC), frequently engaging in debates on topics like Zionism, secularism, and political freedom. X:  @RecTheRegime  EPISODE LINKS YOUR GIFTS SUPPORT THE MAD MAMLUKS PODCAST: Please support us on https://Patreon.com/themadmamluks You can also support us on PayPal https://themadmamluks.com/donate VISIT OUR SOCIALS FOR MORE DISCUSSIONS: Twitter https://twitter.com/TheMadMamluks Instagram https://www.instagram.com/themadmamluks/ Tiktok https://www.tiktok.com/@themadmamluks SIM: https://x.com/ImranMuneerTMM MORT: https://www.tiktok.com/@morttmm Harry: https://x.com/MrHarry198 Shaykh Amir: He is too pious for Social Media. GUEST SOCIALS Twitter: ----------- #palestine #palestineisrael #gaza #genocide #themadmamluks #podcast #honesty #oppression #israel #oud #syria #syriancivilwar

Justin Tate is a biographer and literary historian specializing in Gothic Studies and pulp paperback fiction. His essays have been published by Pearson and Edinburgh University Press. He is also the founder of Red Sands Writers Circle, a popular creative writing workshop in Mesa, Arizona. For more, please be sure to check out his website and social media.Please rate us on Apple and/or Spotify and subscribe to our YouTube channel This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikeyopp.substack.com/subscribe

This week on From the Front Porch, it's a Literary Therapy session! Our literary Frasier Crane, Annie, is back to answer more of your reading questions and dilemmas. If you have a question you would like Annie to answer in a future episode, you can leave us a voicemail here. To purchase the books mentioned in this episode, stop by The Bookshelf in Thomasville, visit our website (search episode 564) or download and shop on The Bookshelf's official app. From the Front Porch is a weekly podcast production of The Bookshelf, an independent bookstore in South Georgia. You can follow The Bookshelf's daily happenings on Instagram, Tiktok, and Facebook, and all the books from today's episode can be purchased online through our store website, www.bookshelfthomasville.com.  A full transcript of today's episode can be found here. Special thanks to Dylan and his team at Studio D Podcast Production for sound and editing and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations.  This week, Annie is reading Meet the Newmans by Jennifer Niven. If you liked what you heard in today's episode, tell us by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts. You can also support us on Patreon, where you can access bonus content, monthly live Porch Visits with Annie, our monthly live Patreon Book Club with Bookshelf staffers, Conquer a Classic episodes with Hunter, and more. Just go to patreon.com/fromthefrontporch. We're so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week. Our Executive Producers are...Beth, Stephanie Dean, Linda Lee Drozt, Ashley Ferrell, Wendi Jenkins, Martha, Nicole Marsee, Gene Queens, Cammy Tidwell, Jammie Treadwell, and Amanda Whigham.

In this interview we discuss The Unraveling Heart: Women's Oral Poetics and Literary Vernacularization in Marathi (Columbia UP, 2025). Women's songs of the grind mill are among the oldest oral traditions in South Asia. They have been sung to accompany a daily household labor, making flour using a stone hand mill, for many centuries. Even today, grind mill songs are still well known in Maharashtra, testifying to the endurance of a remarkable genre. Yet these songs have long been understood through sociological or anthropological lenses, treated as entirely separate from literary culture. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

In this interview we discuss The Unraveling Heart: Women's Oral Poetics and Literary Vernacularization in Marathi (Columbia UP, 2025). Women's songs of the grind mill are among the oldest oral traditions in South Asia. They have been sung to accompany a daily household labor, making flour using a stone hand mill, for many centuries. Even today, grind mill songs are still well known in Maharashtra, testifying to the endurance of a remarkable genre. Yet these songs have long been understood through sociological or anthropological lenses, treated as entirely separate from literary culture. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/literary-studies

Literary agent and TV producer Sandra Martin shares exciting stories of her unique journey in publishing and media -- from growing up on a farm in Bracey, Virginia to becoming a literary agent in New York City. Sandra Martin's career as an agent and executive producer for television has been devoted to bringing inspiring, boundary breaking authors, books and television documentaries, in the fields of spirituality, self-help and consciousness, to the mainstream public -- featuring renowned authors like Dr. Dean Radin.During the 90s Sandra was among the first agents to develop her own publishing imprint when she launched ParaviewBooks -- now Simon and Schuster's Para View Pocket Books. Paraview holds a unique position in the media industry aimed at the worldwide audience of “Cultural Creatives” -- a huge, growing audience interested in consciousness, deep spirituality, healing and the paranormal.CONTACT : Sandra Martin thesandramartin33@gmail.comFOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/ASMALPodcastVISIT OUR WEBSITE: http://www.asmallmediumatlarge.coEMAIL: asmallmediumatlargepodcast @gmail.com Show Produced by Green Valley Production StudioMusic by DJ Booda: http://www.djbooda.com

People who lie down are a fixture of contemporary literature, art, and life. Murder victims, protesters, invalids, depressives, sex workers, and more: these are the recumbent figures that populate Here Is a Figure: Grounding Literary Form (Northwestern UP, 2025) the latest book from literary critic and poet Sarah Dowling. Out now from Northwestern University Press, this fascinating and ambitious study moves to the ground of mainstream and experimental literary and artistic work from the late twentieth century to the present. There Dowling traces a pattern of prone figures, like a chain of paper dolls strewn across the floor. These figures do a surprising amount of work from their horizontal position, challenging our notions of human subjectivity and political agency, and, at the same time, turning our attention to the ground against which they stretch. In this rich and wide-ranging conversation with Alix Beeston, Dowling shares how researching and writing Here Is a Figure allowed her to work through unexpected and minor forms of feminist and anti-colonial action, the inextricability of literature and the other arts, and the groundedness—the historical and material conditions—of all artistic and scholarly labor. She issues a call for scholars of literature and art to shake off habits of mastery and detachment and instead to approach their work as a form of passionate advocacy for the enduring value of criticism. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

People who lie down are a fixture of contemporary literature, art, and life. Murder victims, protesters, invalids, depressives, sex workers, and more: these are the recumbent figures that populate Here Is a Figure: Grounding Literary Form (Northwestern UP, 2025) the latest book from literary critic and poet Sarah Dowling. Out now from Northwestern University Press, this fascinating and ambitious study moves to the ground of mainstream and experimental literary and artistic work from the late twentieth century to the present. There Dowling traces a pattern of prone figures, like a chain of paper dolls strewn across the floor. These figures do a surprising amount of work from their horizontal position, challenging our notions of human subjectivity and political agency, and, at the same time, turning our attention to the ground against which they stretch. In this rich and wide-ranging conversation with Alix Beeston, Dowling shares how researching and writing Here Is a Figure allowed her to work through unexpected and minor forms of feminist and anti-colonial action, the inextricability of literature and the other arts, and the groundedness—the historical and material conditions—of all artistic and scholarly labor. She issues a call for scholars of literature and art to shake off habits of mastery and detachment and instead to approach their work as a form of passionate advocacy for the enduring value of criticism. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/literary-studies

Notes and Links to Kiese Laymon's Work   Kiese Laymon is a Black southern writer from Jackson, Mississippi. Laymon is the Libbie Shearn Moody Professor of English and Creative Writing at Rice University. Laymon is the author of Long Division, which won the 2022 NAACP Image Award for fiction, and the essay collection, How to Slowly Kill Yourself and Others in America, named a notable book of 2021 by the New York Times critics. Laymon's bestselling memoir, Heavy: An American Memoir, won the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction, the Christopher Isherwood Prize for Autobiographical Prose, the Barnes and Noble Discovery Award, the Austen Riggs Erikson Prize for Excellence in Mental Health Media, and was named one of the 50 Best Memoirs of the Past 50 Years by The New York Times. The audiobook, read by the author, was named the Audible 2018 Audiobook of the Year. Laymon is the recipient of 2020-2021 Radcliffe Fellowship at Harvard. Laymon is at work on the books, Good God, and City Summer, Country Summer, and a number of other film and television projects. He is the founder of The Catherine Coleman Literary Arts and Justice Initiative, a program based out of the Margaret Walker Center at Jackson State University, aimed at aiding young people in Jackson get more comfortable reading, writing, revising and sharing on their own terms, in their own communities. He is the co-host of Reckon True Stories with Deesha Philyaw. Kiese Laymon was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship in 2022. Buy Heavy   “The Worst Shot Ever Taken” from Believer Magazine   Review for Heavy from NPR   Kiese Laymon's Website   Kiese Laymon's Wikipedia Page At about 1:45, the two discuss Kiese's article from The Believer and word counts and teaching high and college  At about 3:05, Kiese talks about his love of hoops and names some standout and favorite players from back in the day and now At about 4:10, The two shout out grizzled veterans like Phillip Rivers and LeBron James At about 5:30, Pete highlights Ernie Barnes' work and asks Kiese about the significance of Barnes' paintings At about 8:45, Kiese shares his memories of and love for basketball and jumpstops and shot fakes-shout out, Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf At about 10:40, Pete shouts out Jeff Pearlman's basketball wiles At about 11:10, Kiese lays out the exposition for his The Believer article and Pete and Kiese fanboy over Kiese's writer friends and Sactown's own, Cydni Matsuoka At about 14:00, Kiese responds to Pete's question about the “possibility” of Steph Curry At about 16:45, Toni Cade Bambara and “Gorilla, My Love” is highlighted, as Pete links Kiese's penultimate sentence to Bambara's work At about 18:20, The two discuss Kiese's mom as a “public intellectual” and Kiese lists formative reading and listening  At about 20:30, Kiese shouts out Kendrick Lamar as a link to Public Enemy's activism and consciousness, and marvels at his lasting power At about 24:20, Kiese reflects on Public Enemy's methods versus that of others like NWA or Dead Prez At about 26:25, Kiese highlights Julian Randle, Safiya Sinclair, Deesha Philyaw, and Sarah Aziza's work as some that resonates with his college students At about 28:40, Pete calls attention to Heavy's epigraph and dedication and discusses their significance  At about 30:05-30:27 At about 31:05, Kiese responds to Pete's question about so much of the book's Prologue being centered on his Grandmama At about 32:45, Kiese outlines his rationale and motivation for ultimately writing a different type of book, not the “safer” book his mom and publishers might have wanted At about 34:30, Kiese and Pete discuss the echo of his time at Millsap College being censored/edited with an op-ed piece of his At about 35:40, Kiese recounts stories associated with the book's opening scene in Las Vegas At about 38:45, Kiese reflects on his mother as his “best friend” and ideas of mortality and “initation”  At about 40:55, Kiese responds to Pete's questions about the way his family interacted in his childhood At about 45:20, Pete sets up an important opening scene involving Layla and asks Kiese about rape/sexual assault in the house of older acquaintances  At about 50:10, Kiese reflects on ideas of power and safety and sexuality  At about 53:15, Pete and Kiese discuss the juxtaposition of his mom as a public intellectual and as someone who struggled with financial and other practical pursuits At about 55:30, Kiese talks about Malachi Hunter in the book and balancing “reductive and stupid” comments he made with lessons he taught Kiese At about 57:20, Kiese and Pete trace the different ways in which Malachi and Kiese's mom and grandmother undertook “reckoning” or didn't At about 59:00, Kiese homes in on his grandmother's life and “reckon[ings}” with history and sexism and racism At about 1:01:00, Pete and Kiese discuss the ways in which Kiese's grandmother got by financially and spiritually At about 1:01:50, Kiese expands on the ways in which he viewed organized religion  At about 1:03:40, The two discuss the ways in which the book's title was manifested through his grandmother's love At about 1:04:10, Abundance! and slang that didn't catch on is discussed At about 1:04:50, Kiese reflects on a painful experience in school involving a viewing of Roots without a larger discussion  At about 1:08:55, Kiese expands upon how he saw Mississippi in his year away in Maryland At about 1:11:05, Kiese discusses an early relationship and its challenges and the conflicting ways in which he viewed his coach and teacher At about 1:14:10, Kiese regrades a high school essay-it's an “A!” At about 1:15:00, Kiese responds to Pete asking about his high school graduation boycott At about 1:16:50, The two discuss time in college and Kiese's relationship with a girl and his learning in class and outside of school-Pete highlights a wonderful paragraph on Page 141 that highlights “liberation” At about 1:18:00, Kiese shares the practical advice Malachi Hunter gave Kiese as he was threatened in college for his writing At about 1:19:25, Kiese reflects on the ways in which he viewed his writing At about 1:20:45, Kiese talks about Tate Reeves' presence at a racist frat event and the ways in which Tate knew Kiese and failed him At about 1:23:50, Kiese talks about how the book is different/aged since he published it in 2018   You can now subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, and leave me a five-star review. You can also ask for the podcast by name using Alexa, and find the pod on Stitcher, Spotify, and on Amazon Music. Follow Pete on IG, where he is @chillsatwillpodcast, or on Twitter, where he is @chillsatwillpo1. You can watch other episodes on YouTube-watch and subscribe to The Chills at Will Podcast Channel. Please subscribe to both the YouTube Channel and the podcast while you're checking out this episode.       Pete is very excited to have one or two podcast episodes per month featured on the website of Chicago Review of Books. The audio will be posted, along with a written interview culled from the audio. His conversation with Jeff Pearlman, a recent guest, is up soon at Chicago Review.     Sign up now for The Chills at Will Podcast Patreon: it can be found at patreon.com/chillsatwillpodcastpeterriehl      Check out the page that describes the benefits of a Patreon membership, including cool swag and bonus episodes. Thanks in advance for supporting Pete's one-man show, DIY podcast and extensive reading, research, editing, and promoting to keep this independent podcast pumping out high-quality content! This month's Patreon bonus episode features an exploration of formative and transformative writing for children, as Pete surveys wonderful writers on their own influences. Pete has added a $1 a month tier for “Well-Wishers” and Cheerleaders of the Show.     This is a passion project, a DIY operation, and Pete would love for your help in promoting what he's convinced is a unique and spirited look at an often-ignored art form.    The intro song for The Chills at Will Podcast is “Wind Down” (Instrumental Version), and the other song played on this episode was “Hoops” (Instrumental)” by Matt Weidauer, and both songs are used through ArchesAudio.com.     Please tune in for Episode 317 with Dr. Timothy Wellbeck. a leader in the fight for justice and racial equity. Timothy presently serves as the founding Director of the Center for Anti-Racism at Temple University, where he has led the Center from its inception into becoming one of the leading institutions of its kind. A Civil Rights Attorney by training and practice, Timothy is a scholar of law, race, and cultural studies. We'll be talking about his standing-room only, incredibly popular Temple University classes about Kendrick Lamar and his music. The episode airs on January 13. Please go to ceasefiretoday.org, and/or https://act.uscpr.org/a/letaidin to call your congresspeople and demand an end to the forced famine and destruction of Gaza and the Gazan people.  

Since the Bible sometimes uses symbolic language, how can we know that Jesus' resurrection literally took place? Today, R.C. Sproul explains how a clear study of Scripture's literary forms upholds the Bible's historical reliability. With your donation of any amount, get a 12-month subscription to Tabletalk, the Bible study magazine of Ligonier Ministries. You'll also receive lifetime digital access to R.C. Sproul's video teaching series Knowing Scripture and the study guide: https://gift.renewingyourmind.org/4518/offer   Live outside the U.S. and Canada? Request the digital teaching series and study guide with your donation: https://www.renewingyourmind.org/global   Meet Today's Teacher:   R.C. Sproul (1939–2017) was founder of Ligonier Ministries, first minister of preaching and teaching at Saint Andrew's Chapel, first president of Reformation Bible College, and executive editor of Tabletalk magazine.   Meet the Host:   Nathan W. Bingham is vice president of media for Ligonier Ministries, executive producer and host of Renewing Your Mind, and host of the Ask Ligonier podcast. Renewing Your Mind is a donor-supported outreach of Ligonier Ministries. Explore all of our podcasts: https://www.ligonier.org/podcasts

A faithful reading of Scripture takes into account its genres and literary forms. We must interpret narrative, poetry, and prophecy differently if we are to understand God's intended meaning. Today, R.C. Sproul equips us to do that. With your donation of any amount, get a 12-month subscription to Tabletalk, the Bible study magazine of Ligonier Ministries. You'll also receive lifetime digital access to R.C. Sproul's video teaching series Knowing Scripture and the study guide: https://gift.renewingyourmind.org/4518/offer   Live outside the U.S. and Canada? Request the digital teaching series and study guide with your donation: https://www.renewingyourmind.org/global   Meet Today's Teacher:   R.C. Sproul (1939–2017) was founder of Ligonier Ministries, first minister of preaching and teaching at Saint Andrew's Chapel, first president of Reformation Bible College, and executive editor of Tabletalk magazine.   Meet the Host:   Nathan W. Bingham is vice president of media for Ligonier Ministries, executive producer and host of Renewing Your Mind, and host of the Ask Ligonier podcast. Renewing Your Mind is a donor-supported outreach of Ligonier Ministries. Explore all of our podcasts: https://www.ligonier.org/podcasts

For this final episode of the 2025 season on The Literary Life Podcast, we bring you a special year-end conversation with Angelina Stanford, Cindy Rollins, and Thomas Banks all about their year in reading. Thomas talks about how most of his reading was tied to classes he taught. Cindy and Angelina talk about the reasons they didn't read as many books as they usually do in a year. They share some of their favorite non-fiction reads of the year, books that surprised them, and fiction highlights. In the course of the conversation, our hosts also make several points about reading in the literary tradition and avoiding public judgment of other people's choices in books. The House of Humane Letters Christmas sale is still on! Head over to the website to peruse the discounted webinars and mini-classes on sale, already discounted, no coupon code needed. Don't forget to check out this coming year's annual Literary Life Online Conference, happening January 23-30, 2026, "The Letter Killeth, but the Spirit Quickeneth: Reading Like a Human". Our speakers will be Dr. Jason Baxter, Jenn Rogers, Dr. Anne Phillips, and, of course, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks. Finally, you can also sign up now for upcoming classes like "Abiding in the Fields: Spenser, Milton, and the Pastoral Poetic Tradition" taught by Dr. Anne Phillips, or Dr. Michael Drought's "Viking and Old Norse Culture." To check out the full show notes for this episode, including all the books referenced, please visit https://theliterary.life/309. 

The New Yorker turned a hundred this year. And marking the occasion is a new documentary film on Netflix titled: “The New Yorker at 100”. But with some 5000 print issues, and ten decades worth of reporting, illustrating, and editing… where does one even begin? That's a question staff writer Jelani Cobb brought to the film's director, Marshall Curry, and executive producer, Judd Apatow, on an edition of The New Yorker Radio Hour that we're sharing this week. On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

 ELECTION NIGHT LANDSLIDE AND POLITICAL REALIGNMENT Colleague David Pietrusza. On election night, early returns from Connecticut signaled a massive victory for Roosevelt, contradicting the predictions of the Literary Digest straw poll. Roosevelt won a historic landslide, capturing 46 states and sweeping huge Democraticmajorities into Congress. This victory marked a permanent political realignment, as the children of immigrants in major cities overwhelmingly voted for Roosevelt. While Landon's campaign was decimated, the election solidified the Democratic Party's shift from a Southern-dominated organization to a national coalition powered by urban centers and the working class, cementing the triumph of the liberal ideal. NUMBER 8