Podcast appearances and mentions of Phillip B Williams

Joniece Abbott-Pratt performs this multigenerational novel set over several decades in the American South. Host Jo Reed and AudioFile's Kendra Winchester discuss this debut novel from poet Phillip B. Williams. In the 1830s, a mysterious woman named Saint frees enslaved people from plantations and brings them to a town they call Ours, where they find a safe haven from the rest of the world. But when Saint tightens her control of the townspeople, they begin to wonder what it means to be a free Black person in America. Abbott-Pratt's cadence enthralls listeners, giving weight to this sweeping epic. Her performance is a stunning example of a masterful narrator at her best. Read the full review of the audiobook on AudioFile's website. Published by Penguin Audio. Discover thousands of audiobook reviews and more at AudioFile's website. Support for AudioFile's Behind the Mic comes from HarperCollins Focus and HarperCollins Christian Publishing, publishers of some of your favorite audiobooks and authors, including Reba McEntire, Zachary Levi, Kathie Lee Gifford, Max Lucado, Willie Nelson, and so many more! This episode is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/AUDIOFILE and get on your way to being your best self. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Leslie Jamison joins Medaya and Kate to discuss her latest book Splinters: Another Kind of Love Story, a memoir that chronicles the birth of her daughter and the collapse of her marriage soon after. Jamison writes about the bond with her own mother, as well as the intense, consuming love for her child. The book is not only a story about her most intimate relationships, but an examination of doubt, betrayal, forgiveness and, as the subtitle says, love. Also, Phillip B. Williams, author of Ours, returns to recommend The Black Book, edited by Toni Morrison.

Leslie Jamison joins Medaya and Kate to discuss her latest book Splinters: Another Kind of Love Story, a memoir that chronicles the birth of her daughter and the collapse of her marriage soon after. Jamison writes about the bond with her own mother, as well as the intense, consuming love for her child. The book is not only a story about her most intimate relationships, but an examination of doubt, betrayal, forgiveness and, as the subtitle says, love. Also, Phillip B. Williams, author of Ours, returns to recommend The Black Book, edited by Toni Morrison. Literaturememoirmotherchildmarriagebreak-updoubtbetrayalforgivenessLoveLeslie JamisonSplinterMedaya OcherKate WolfLos Angeles Review of BooksPhillip B. WilliamsOursThe Black BookToni MorrisonEric Newman      

“If my mother and my grandma were in this book, how would they be? And what kind of love can I show them as a writer…”  The American Daughters by Maurice Carlos Ruffin brings readers to pre-Civil War New Orleans to meet a cast of strong, fierce women in a hope filled novel of freedom and liberation. Ruffin joins us to talk about the intricacies of writing about his hometown, cultural impacts on identity, building empathy through fiction and more with Miwa Messer, host of Poured Over.    This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Executive Producer Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang.                    New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app.          Featured Books (Episode):  The American Daughters by Maurice Carlos Ruffin  We Cast a Shadow by Maurice Carlos Ruffin  The Prophets by Robert Jones, Jr.  Ours by Phillip B. Williams  American Spy by Lauren Wilkinson  Lone Women by Victor LaValle  Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov  The Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison  Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides   12 Years a Slave by Solomon Northup  Trust Exercise by Susan Choi 

Phillip B. Williams' debut novel, Ours, is a sweeping story that takes place in the 19th century. It takes off with a conjuror named Saint who destroys plantations and enslavers, and creates a community of freed people, Ours, that grapples with mysticism, spirituality and liberation over the course of several decades. In today's episode, Williams speaks with NPR's Ari Shapiro about the different interpretations and experiences of freedom in the novel, and the importance of community in the story. To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookoftheday Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Eric Newman speaks with Phillip B. Williams about his debut novel, Ours. A surrealist epic largely set in the American midwest both pre- and post-emancipation, the book tells the story of Saint, a conjure woman who uses her supernatural powers to liberate slaves and keep them safe in a magically secluded town near St. Louis. But as Saint's magic begins to falter and newcomers appear in the town, the residents chafe at her power over them, eager for a freedom, identity, and community forged on their own terms. In the interview, Williams discusses his novel's blend of diasporic traditions and spirituality, how his characters repair themselves and each other, and what it means to read–and write–with love. Also, Lucy Sante, author of I Heard Her Call My Name: A Memoir of Transition, returns to recommend April Ashley's Odyssey by Duncan Fallowell and April Ashley.

Eric Newman speaks with Phillip B. Williams about his debut novel, Ours. A surrealist epic largely set in the American midwest both pre- and post-emancipation, the book tells the story of Saint, a conjure woman who uses her supernatural powers to liberate slaves and keep them safe in a magically secluded town near St. Louis. But as Saint's magic begins to falter and newcomers appear in the town, the residents chafe at her power over them, eager for a freedom, identity, and community forged on their own terms. In the interview, Williams discusses his novel's blend of diasporic traditions and spirituality, how his characters repair themselves and each other, and what it means to read–and write–with love. Also, Lucy Sante, author of I Heard Her Call My Name: A Memoir of Transition, returns to recommend April Ashley's Odyssey by Duncan Fallowell and April Ashley.

In conversation with Airea D. Matthews Phillip B. Williams is the author of two acclaimed poetry collections, Thief in the Interior, which won the Kate Tufts Discovery Award and a Lambda Literary Award; and Mutiny, which was a finalist for the PEN/Voelcker Award for Poetry Collection and the winner of a 2022 American Book Award. A creative writing professor in New York University's MFA creative writing program, he is the recipient of a Whiting Award and fellowships from the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University and the National Endowment for the Arts. A surrealistic epic about the complexities of freedom and the boundaries of love, Ours tells the story of an 1830s-era conjuror who destroys plantations and spirits enslaved people away to a magically concealed community. Airea D. Matthews is the 2022–23 Philadelphia Poet Laureate and directs the poetry program at Bryn Mawr College. Her collection Simulacra won the 2016 Yale Series of Younger Poets Prize and her work has appeared in The New York Times, Best American Poets, Gulf Coast, Harvard Review, and VQR, among other journals. Matthews' other honors include a 2022 Academy of American Poets Laureate Fellowship, a 2020 Pew Fellowship, and the 2016 Rona Jaffe Foundation Writers' Award. Addressing themes of income inequality, commodification, and conventional economic theories, her most recent book Bread and Circus combines poetry, prose, and imagery to tell an intimate story about the author and her family. Because you love Author Events, please make a donation to keep our podcasts free for everyone. THANK YOU! The views expressed by the authors and moderators are strictly their own and do not represent the opinions of the Free Library of Philadelphia or its employees. (recorded 2/20/2024)

“To have freedom you have to give something up, to have love — to experience love as an action — there has to be something that you're willing to sacrifice…”  Ours is the epic and lyrical debut novel by poet Phillip B. Williams, featuring unforgettable characters woven together with folklore and humanity's search for freedom. Williams joined us to talk about how his characters shaped the story, the influences of poetry on his prose, including myths and legends and more with Miwa Messer, the host of Poured Over.   This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Executive Producer Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang.                    New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app.          Featured Books (Episode): Ours by Phillip B. Williams  Mutiny by Phillip B. Williams  Blindness by José Saramago  One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez  Cannibal by Safiya Sinclair 

In conversation with poet Phillip B. Williams Airea D. Matthews is the 2022–23 Philadelphia Poet Laureate and directs the poetry program at Bryn Mawr College. Her collection Simulacra won the 2016 Yale Series of Younger Poets Prize and her work has appeared in The New York Times, Best American Poets, Gulf Coast, Harvard Review, and VQR, among other journals. Matthews' other honors include a 2022 Academy of American Poets Laureate Fellowship, a 2020 Pew Fellowship, and the 2016 Rona Jaffe Foundation Writers' Award. Addressing themes of income inequality, commodification, and conventional economic theories, Bread and Circus combines poetry, prose, and imagery to tell an intimate story about the author and her family. Phillip B. Williams is the Whiting Award-winning author of Thief in the Interior and Mutiny. A recipient of the Kate Tufts Discovery Award, Lambda Literary Award, and Whiting Award, he has also received fellowships from the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University and the National Endowment for the Arts. He currently teaches at Bennington College and the Randolph College low-residency MFA. (recorded 6/1/2023)

Today's poem is Final Poem for the "Field of Poetry" by Phillip B. Williams. This episode was originally released on June 7, 2022.

Today's poem is Final Poem for the "Field of Poetry" by Phillip B. Williams.

In which Phillip B. Williams writes with anger and preserves with love.

Poet Randall Mann, a winner of the Kenyon Review Prize in Poetry, joins Fiction/Non/Fiction podcast co-hosts V.V. Ganeshananthan and Whitney Terrell to continue last week's conversation about the significance of literary awards. Mann talks about how poets use prizes to seek publication, the increasingly diverse winners, and why he loves frank: sonnets, by Diane Seuss. He also reads the poem “Beginning & Ending with a Line by Michelle Boisseau,” from his most recent collection, A Better Life. To hear the full episode, subscribe through iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app (include the forward slashes when searching). You can also listen by streaming from the player below. Check out video excerpts from our interviews on the Fiction/Non/Fiction Instagram account, the Fiction/Non/Fiction YouTube Channel, and our show website: https://www.fnfpodcast.net/ This podcast is produced by Anne Kniggendorf. Selected Readings: Randall Mann ●    "Beginning & Ending with a Line by Michelle Boisseau" ●    A Better Life ●    Complaint in the Garden ●    Breakfast with Thom Gunn ●    Straight Razor ●    The Illusion of Intimacy: On Poetry Others: ●    “How on Earth Do You Judge Books?” Susan Choi and Oscar Villalon on the Story Behind Literary Awards ‹ Literary Hub (Fiction/Non/Fiction Season 5, Episode 10) ●    Announcing the 2022 PEN America Literary Awards Finalists ●    Announcing the Finalists for the National Book Critics Circle Awards ●    Yellow Rain: Poems by Mai Der Vang ●    Sho by Douglas Kearney ●    Heard-Hoard by Atsuro Riley ●    frank: sonnets by Diane Seuss ●    Mutiny by Phillip B Williams ●    Ceive by B.K. Fisher ●    The Renunciations by Donika Kelly ●    Cutlish by Rajiv Mohabir ●    The Rinehart Frames by Cheswayo Mphanza ●    "Among the Gorgons" by Michelle Boisseau ●    Poet wins first Maya Angelou Book Award from MU, other Missouri schools Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

S6 E67: In this episode, meet poets Robin Coste Lewis, Phillip B. Williams, and Elisabet Velasquez. Step into the recording booth and learn how these authors' books of poetry and a novel-in-verse came to be. Plus, hear what each writer learned about themselves during the recording process. Voyage of the Sable Venus by Robin Coste Lewis: https://www.penguinrandomhouseaudio.com/book/250774/voyage-of-the-sable-venus/ Mutiny by Phillip B. Williams: https://www.penguinrandomhouseaudio.com/book/688039/mutiny/ When We Make It by Elisabet Velasquez: https://www.penguinrandomhouseaudio.com/book/665231/when-we-make-it/

Phillip B. Williams is from Chicago, IL and author of the book Thief in the Interior (Alice James 2016). A recipient of the Kate Tufts Discovery Award, Lambda Literary Award, and Whiting Award, he currently teaches at Bennington College and the Randolph College low-residency MFA. Twitter: PBW_POET Instagram: PBW_POET "Of Contour, Of Cadence" was originally published in Thief in the Interior (Alice James 2016). Phillip B. Williams' forthcoming book MUTINY: poems comes out from Penguin Poetry, Sept 7 2021.  Text of today's poem and more details about our program can be found at: deerfieldlibrary.org/queerpoemaday/ Queer Poem-a-Day is directed by poet and teacher Lisa Hiton and Dylan Zavagno, Adult Services Coordinator at the Deerfield Public Library. Music for our series is from Excursions Op. 20, Movement 1, by Samuel Barber, performed by pianist Daniel Baer. Queer Poem-a-Day is supported by a generous donation from the Friends of the Deerfield Public Library. Queer Poem-a-Day is a program from the Adult Services Department at the Library and may include adult language.

Recorded by Phillip B. Williams for Poem-a-Day, a series produced by the Academy of American Poets. Published on January 26, 2021. www.poets.org

by Phillip B. Williams

Today's poem is Often I am Permitted to Return to the City by Phillip B. Williams.

Poet Phillip B. Williams reads from his collection Thief in the Interior, and then talks to Daniel Ford about the poets who have influenced his work and the idiosyncrasies of his writing process. To learn more about Phillip B. Williams, visit his official website or follow him on Twitter @PBW_Poet. Today's episode is sponsored by OneRoom and NovelClass. 

 2017 marks the 25th anniversary of one of contemporary poetry’s most prestigious awards—Claremont Graduate University’s Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award, given for poetry volumes published in the preceding year and created to both honor the poet and provide the resources that allow artists to continue working towards the pinnacle of their craft. In a celebration moderated by the Poetry Society of America’s Executive Director Alice Quinn, join us for an evening looking back at 25 years of this special prize along with readings by this year’s winners Vievee Francis and Phillip B. Williams. For photos from the program, click here.