Podcast appearances and mentions of Toni Morrison

Hi Loyal Readers. Thank you for opening this week's issue of Article Club.Today's issue is dedicated to a beautiful conversation with Saint Trey W, author of this month's featured article, “They Burn Books to Burn Us Too.” He shares space with Sarai Bordeaux, Article Club contributor and Poet Laureate of Eureka, California.If you haven't yet, I hope you read the article. Then if you appreciate it, which I predict you will, I invite you to listen to the conversation, then join our discussion next Sunday, August 24. Kind, thoughtful people (like you!) will engage deeply with Saint Trey's piece on Zoom, beginning at 2:00 pm PT and ending at 3:30 pm PT.If you're interested, you can learn more and sign up by clicking the button below.When I first read “They Burn Books to Burn Us Too,” I was deeply moved. I was moved by the power of Saint Trey W's message. But I was equally moved by the beauty of his writing. Saint Trey is a poet. This essay is lyrical.“When a government begins to fear its own history,” Saint Trey writes, “it has already declared war on the people who survived it.”Yes, this is an essay about book banning. It is about erasure, the war on memory, and our government's attempt to dominate and destroy Black people. But the piece is also about dreaming. No matter the government's violence, Black people will not be silenced. They will not be unwritten. Saint Trey writes:What they do not know is that we were never written in the first place. We were sung. We were carved into tree trunks and kitchen counters and braided into our mother's hair. We are older than their archives. And our stories do not end with silence.When I finished the piece, I had three immediate thoughts:* I must share this essay with Sarai right now* Hopefully they appreciate it as much as I do* Wouldn't it be perfect if Sarai and Saint Trey got to talk to each other?If you're newish to Article Club, you may not have met Sarai yet, so here are a few words of (re)introduction: Sarai is one of the most astute readers I have ever met. Whenever we talk, they make me smarter. More importantly, Sarai helps me connect the dots and act with more compassion.So it was an obvious next step — given my three thoughts above — that I should reach out to Sarai and gather their perspective. The rest is history. Sarai loved the essay, I contacted Saint Trey, he generously said yes to doing the interview, and they met up on Zoom to talk about his beautiful piece.The result is this wholehearted conversation. Sarai and Saint Trey cover a wide range of topics. I won't try to list them all here. It was clear to me, as I listened to Sarai and Saint Trey — two poets thinking together and sharing their perspectives about a powerful essay — that I was struck by the mutual care they shared with one another. In their discussion of Saint Trey's piece, they centered on imagination and possibility, as well as the power of language and lineage.Here's an excerpt from the conversation that I especially appreciated. About ancestors, language, Blackness, libraries, and God, Saint Trey says:Our ancestors are not just bloodlines, right? They're also our bookshelves. People like Toni Morrison, you know — she taught me that language can be a spell. It can be a sword, but it also can be a sanctuary. Reading Beloved and The Bluest Eye — it was the first time I understood the sacredness of Blackness in a way, especially in its unspoken parts — her reminding us that, if you are free, then you must free somebody else.I think libraries are a portal to that. James Baldwin, giving permission to tell the truth, especially when it burns. This sort of clarity — this heat, this refusal to perform respectability — and his teaching that moral authority doesn't require approval. Audre Lorde, reminding us that silence is not going to protect us. She made queerness feel like gospel. So the reason I mentioned libraries is because they're all-encompassing of these stories. They're in a sense, I would say, akin to church, right, to those who are believers, right? For me, the way I have reimagined faith in God is in language, it is in words that, you know, are passed through vessels — the artists, the writers, the griots. All have showed me that craft and conviction can dance, right? — that words don't have to be soft to be sacred. And I think libraries, they feed us when the world try has tried to starve us.Seriously: I could listen to that passage over and over again. The clarity of Saint Trey's words — both spoken here in this conversation, as well as in “They Burn Books to Burn Us Too” — is a gift.I hope you take a listen to the conversation. A little disclaimer: The quality of the audio is a bit patchy at times, particularly at the beginning. The Internet was not behaving. It tried to be a nuisance. But it was unsuccessful, for two reasons: First, the audio smooths out after the first few minutes. Second, the quality of Sarai and Saint Trey's words will make you listen more closely and tune out the distractions.One more time, I'd like to thank Saint Trey for bringing us this piece. It's an essay I believe that everyone should read and reflect on. I appreciate your words and your generosity of spirit. And Sarai, I am grateful to you as well, not only for this conversation but also for your contribution to our reading community. An invitation to our discussion on August 24I warmly invite you to participate in our discussion on Sunday, August 24, 2:00 - 3:30 pm PT. We'll meet on Zoom. You can sign up below, it's free.Thank you for reading and listening to this week's issue. Hope you liked it.

This week Dalanie and Katie discuss parts 3-6 of Jazz by Toni Morrison. IN THIS EPISODE: Video episodes are now available on YouTube! Subscribe here: https://www.youtube.com/@classicallyblackpodcast PURCHASE OUR MERCH!: https://www.classicallyblackpodcast.com/store JOIN US ON PATREON!: https://patreon.com/ClassicallyBlackPodcast FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA! https://linktr.ee/classicallyblack Former long-standing Cincinnati Symphony cellist has died https://www.thestrad.com/news/former-long-standing-cincinnati-symphony-cellist-has-died/20045.article London's Royal Opera House Allegedly Bans Performer and Activist https://theviolinchannel.com/londons-royal-opera-house-bans-performer-and-activist/ "Melania: The Opera" Set to Premiere in London in September 2025 https://theviolinchannel.com/melania-the-opera-set-to-premiere-in-london-in-september-2025/ Black Excellence: Norman E. Johns Piece of the Week: Elegy No. 1 in D - Giovanni Bottesini https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJLN43M-RGE

Una historia con dos niñas, una blanca y una negra… pero Morrison nunca dice cuál es cuál. Recitatif es un experimento literario que revela más de quien lee que de quien escribe. En este episodio analizo cómo Toni Morrison desarma nuestros prejuicios con una sola historia.linktr.ee/bibliotequeando

This week Dalanie and Katie discuss parts 1-3 of Jazz by Toni Morrison. IN THIS EPISODE: Video episodes are now available on YouTube! Subscribe here: https://www.youtube.com/@classicallyblackpodcast PURCHASE OUR MERCH!: https://www.classicallyblackpodcast.com/store JOIN US ON PATREON!: https://patreon.com/ClassicallyBlackPodcast FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA! https://linktr.ee/classicallyblack Double Bass Virtuoso Gary Karr has Passed Away https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/29/arts/music/gary-karr-dead.html?unlocked_article_code=1.bk8.yAQr.PhNfaeF5S0N9&smid=url-share 1740 Violin Stolen from a Pub in London https://theviolinchannel.com/1740-violin-stolen-in-from-a-pub-in-london/ House Republicans Support Bill to Name Kennedy Center Theater After Melania Trump https://theviolinchannel.com/house-republicans-support-bill-to-name-kennedy-center-theater-after-melania-trump/ Bill Introduced to U.S. Congress to Rename Kennedy Center after Donald Trump https://theviolinchannel.com/bill-introduced-to-u-s-congress-to-rename-kennedy-center-after-donald-trump/ Black Excellence: Reginald Smith, Jr. https://www.reginaldsmithjr.com/ Piece of the Week: The Masquerade is Over - Benny Golson https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QbtYE_2Z7r8

In this episode, I'm sharing what it really looks like to build a creative business that supports your whole life and not just your bottom line. After a reset in the mountains and a break from the constant pressure to perform, I'm sharing some honest reflections on what's shifting in my business, why I've restructured Build It Remarkable as a full-year experience, and what comes next.We'll talk about the emotional weight of the world right now and how artists and educators can show up with intention, creativity, and impact even when things feel heavy. I share the Toni Morrison quote that keeps me grounded, and a beautiful voice message from artist @ardithgoodwin that reminds us exactly why we do this work.I also give you a fly-on-the-wall look at conversations from inside my programs this month, including a brilliant marketing breakthrough to a member who hit her beta launch goal and found her voice again. You'll hear my best advice for both beginners and seasoned creators, and I'll walk you through exactly what to focus on right now to build momentum without burning out or abandoning your values.New FREE mini masterclass: The Profitable Course Creator is an instant access workshop to help Creatives, Artists and Makers discover how to achieve financial success as a course creator without sacrificing their passion. Learn More HEREFor transcripts, more links mentioned in the episode, and for the full episode show notes

Lonely Crowds by Stephanie Wambugu is a heartfelt and empathetic coming-of-age story centered on the volatile relationship between two artists. Stephanie joins us to chat about campus novels, outlining, Toni Morrison and more with cohost Isabelle McConville. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Isabelle McConville and mixed by Harry Liang.                     New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app. Featured Books (Episode): Lonely Crowds by Stephanie Wambugu The Diaries of Franz Kafka by Franz Kafka Sula by Toni Morrison Corregidora by Gayl Jones Horse Crazy by Gary Indiana

It's The Stacks Book Club Day, and we're discussing Toni Morrison's God Help the Child with Dana A. Williams, author of Toni at Random. Together, we talk about the themes that show up in God Help the Child that have echoes from Morrison's earlier work—generational trauma and racialized beauty. We also discuss why Toni Morrison wanted to write a contemporary novel, the great names in the book, and who we would cast in the film.There are spoilers on this episode.Be sure to listen to the end of today's episode to find out what our August book club pick will be.You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks' website:https://www.thestackspodcast.com/2025/7/30/ep-382-god-help-the-childConnect with Dana: Instagram | Bluesky | WebsiteConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | SubstackSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this heartfelt episode, Deborah talks with Diandra Ford-Wing about healing through grief by writing. Diandra shares how creating her book helped her process deep sorrow and became a source of comfort for others. What began as personal healing turned into a message of hope. Tune in to discover the power of storytelling in finding peace after loss!  Here are the things to expect in the episode:Diandra's personal journey through loss and her path to becoming an author.Diandra's unique writing process.How writing became a healing tool during grief.The transformative feeling of becoming an author.How Diandra's book resonates with readers and offers comfort.And much more! About Diandra:Diandra Ford-Wing is a passionate storyteller and dynamic Sales Director who discovered the healing power of writing during a period of profound grief. Growing up as an Army brat, Diandra's formative years were spent in culturally diverse settings, including Germany, which shaped her unique narrative style.After the loss of her mother, Sandra, Diandra embarked on a transformative journey that inspired her debut memoir, Red Bird. Through this work, she shares her personal reflections on love, loss, and resilience, hoping to inspire others facing life's trials.Diandra lives with her husband, Ben, and their two cherished doodles, CoCo and XuXa (ShoeSha). When not writing, she enjoys the simple joys of life and continues to explore storytelling as a path to connection and healing. Connect with Diandra Ford-Wing!Website: https://www.booksbydiandra.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/diandrafordwing/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/diandrafordwing/Book: Red Bird by Diandra Ford-Wing Book Recommendations:The Color Purple by Alice WalkerThe Bluest Eye by Toni MorrisonBeloved by Toni Morrison   Connect with Deborah Kevin:Website: www.deborahkevin.comSubstack: https://debbykevin.substack.com/Instagram: www.instagram.com/debbykevinwriterLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deborah-kevin/Book Recommendations: https://bookshop.org/shop/storytellher Check out Highlander Press:Website: www.highlanderpressbooks.comTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@highlanderpressInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/highlanderpressFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/highlanderpress

✦ 61 years ago, racial minorities had no legally protected right to vote. A new documentary film “Harmony of Freedom” reminds us of this unsettling fact while celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act, through the power of music. WABE has partnered with Georgia State student conductor and filmmaker Jackson Allred to air “Harmony of Freedom” on August 4th. The film showcases orchestras from all over the state of Georgia performing composer Margaret Bonds’ “Montgomery Variations.” City Lights Collective co-host Kim Drobes recently sat down with Jackson Allred to learn more. ✦ Atlanta Pride, Georgia's oldest nonprofit organization serving our city’s local LGBTQ+ community, turns 55 this year. To celebrate, they’ve partnered with Out on Film and are showcasing queer resistance in the South - through a film screening and community summit. WABE arts reporter Summer Evans shares more. ✦ For nearly three decades, Dad's Garage has been become synonymous with improv comedy in Atlanta. And as their fans have put down roots and grown families here in Atlanta, so to has Dad's expanded their offerings to appeal to the next generation of comedy lovers. Performing Saturday matinee shows, Wowie Zowie is a playful and engaging experience for audiences of all ages. Kids get to let loose and see their creative ideas come to life on stage, while parents can enjoy an afternoon out of the house without suffering the oppressive summer heat. City Lights Engineer Matt McWilliams recently caught up with Dad's Garage ensemble player Avery Sharpe-Steele after a sold-out Wowie Zowie show. ✦ . You may be familiar with Toni Morrison, the Pulitzer and Nobel Prize-winning author of novels “Beloved,” “The Bluest Eye,” and more. But did you know that Morrison was also one of the first Black editors for a major publishing company? A new book, “Toni at Random,” examines Morrison’s years as an editor at Random House and the book’s author, Dana Williams, will celebrate her new release tomorrow, with a discussion at Atlanta’s Auburn Avenue Research Library. City Lights Collective member Alison Law recently caught up with Willams to talk about “Toni at Random” ahead of tomorrow’s event. ✦ City Lights Collective members Jasmine Hentschel and EC Flamming, the creatives behind Atlanta’s visual art print magazine, “GULCH”, want you to get out and engage with the city’s art scene. Each week they spotlight five standout happenings, and today their mix includes: prints galore at the Black Art in America Print Fair, love and care in a group show at the historical Haugabrooks Gallery on Auburn Avenue, and thoughtful textile explorations at Gallery Chimera.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

 In this compelling episode, we sit down with literary scholar and author Dana A. Williams to explore her new book, Toni at Random. Best known as a Nobel Prize-winning novelist, Toni Morrison also spent over a decade as a formidable editor at Random House—amplifying Black voices, shaping cultural memory, and changing the face of American publishing. Williams reveals how Morrison championed iconic figures like Angela Davis, Muhammad Ali, and Toni Cade Bambara, and how her behind-the-scenes work helped lay the foundation for a more inclusive literary canon.  Tweet us at @podcastcolors. Check out our partner program on international affairs, Global with JJ Green on Substack. Please subscribe. Email us at colors@the colorspodcast.com.

Ayesha Roscoe and Dr. Dana Williams engage in a thought-provoking dialogue that traverses the landscape of African American literature, delving into the editorial legacy of Toni Morrison and its ramifications for contemporary publishing. The conversation highlights Morrison's astute understanding of the market and the need to balance artistic integrity with commercial viability. Dr. Williams articulates the challenges faced by Black authors in a predominantly white publishing milieu, while also celebrating the resurgence of interest in works that reflect the complexities of Black identity. The episode serves as a clarion call for listeners to support Black literature and to advocate for diverse narratives that challenge the status quo. By emphasizing the importance of community engagement and the cultivation of literary spaces that prioritize Black voices, the podcast not only honors Morrison's legacy but also inspires a commitment to the ongoing evolution of African American storytelling.Takeaways:The episode features notable figures Ayesha Roscoe and Dr. Dana Williams, who share their insights into the impact of African American literature. Dr. Dana Williams discusses her experiences with notable authors and editors, highlighting the importance of literary representation in the publishing industry. The podcast emphasizes the importance of supporting Black authors and literature by promoting the purchase of their works to ensure their continued presence in the publishing industry. The discussion addresses the evolving landscape of publishing and the need for Black voices to demand quality literature that reflects their experiences.Save 10% on your 1st purchase on MahoganyBooks, use the code: FRONT ROWFeatured Book: Toni at Random: The Iconic Writer's Legendary Editorship

Haley Cohen Gillian, the director of the Yale Journalism Initiative, joins us this week to discuss her new book, A Flower Traveled in My Blood: The Incredible True Story of the Grandmothers Who Fought to Find a Stolen Generation of Children, which chronicles the grandmothers who searched for their children and grandchildren who were disappeared by Argentina's brutal dictatorship. In this episode, Haley gives us insight into how she came across this history and how she grappled with the moral complexities throughout. She also talks about the subjectivity of truth and details her research process and organization.The Stacks Book Club pick for July is God Help the Child by Toni Morrison. We will discuss next Wednesday, July 30th with Dana A. Williams.You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks' website:https://www.thestackspodcast.com/2025/7/23/ep-381-haley-cohen-gillilandConnect with Haley: Instagram | WebsiteConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | SubstackSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on the Stacks, journalist Megan Greenwell joins to discuss her debut book, Bad Company: Private Equity and the Death of the American Dream. She breaks down the ins and outs of private equity, how it works, why it harms communities, and if there is an ethical path for the industry.The Stacks Book Club pick for July is God Help the Child by Toni Morrison. We will discuss next Wednesday, June 30th with Dana A. Williams.You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks' website:https://www.thestackspodcast.com/2025/7/16/ep-378-megan-greenwellConnect with Megan: Instagram | WebsiteConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | SubstackSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The library is open--to prose the queens find indispensable for poets!Please Support Breaking Form!Review the show on Apple Podcasts here.Aaron's STOP LYING is available from the Pitt Poetry Series.James's ROMANTIC COMEDY is available from Four Way Books.You can find John Hollander's Rhyme's Reason here.Check out an excerpt in the NYT from Michael Schmidt Lives of the Poets. Here's an NPR review of Olivia Laing's Funny Weather: Art in an Emergency. For more about Agnes Martin by Olivia Laing, check out this interview. Maggie Nelson engaged in this conversation with Laing about Laing's book Everybody. Check out this reading and conversation between Adam Moss, the author of The Work of Art: How Something Comes from Nothing, and two of his subjects: Marie Howe and Michael Cunningham. Purchase Rebecca Brown's The Gifts of the Body, which Publisher's Weekly called "beautifully controlled, immensely affecting." It is 176 pages.You can get Brown's What Keeps Me Here (stories) here.Read this review of Annie Ernaux's The Use of Photography, which includes some excerpts from the book.Read James Baldwin's "Notes of a Native Son."For more about Kevin Killian's Selected Amazon Reviews, click here.Here's an NPR "Fresh Air" interview with Toni Morrison about writing Beloved. Watch Wayne Koestenbaum's "Why I Make Mini-Movies"

NB: Oops, I meant 18th century. Also, Michael Haneke is Austrian after all.SLEERICKETS is a podcast about poetry and other intractable problems. My book Midlife now exists. Buy it here, or leave it a rating here or hereFor more SLEERICKETS, subscribe to SECRET SHOW, join the group chat, and send me a poem for Listener Crit!Leave the show a rating here (actually, just do it on your phone, it's easier). Thanks!Wear SLEERICKETS t-shirts and hoodies. They look good!SLEERICKETS is now on YouTube!For a frank, anonymous critique on SLEERICKETS, subscribe to the SECRET SHOW and send a poem of no more 25 lines to sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] com Some of the topics mentioned in this episode:– Toni Morrison's 1993 Nobel Prize lecure– Leopards in the Temple" by Franz Kafka (couldn't find any good links, so here's the text Mark copy-pasted to me: “Leopards break into the temple and drink to the dregs what is in the sacrificial pitchers; this is repeated over and over again; finally it can be calculated in advance, and it becomes a part of the ceremony.“)– Returning the Sword to the Stone by Mark Leidner– Mark's Substack: Opaque Hourglass– Recitatif by Tony Morrison– Funny Games (1997 & 2007)– Hamlet– Julius Caesar– Jack Handey– Andy Kaufman– Plato– The Gettysburg Address– Amleth– The Tower of Babel– The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil– Harold Pinter's 2005 Nobel Prize lecture– Chelsey Minnis– Juvenilia by Hera Lindsay Bird– A Field of Telephones by Zach Savich– Dogs of War by Mark LeidnerFrequently mentioned names:– Joshua Mehigan– Shane McCrae– A. E. Stallings– Ryan Wilson– Morri Creech– Austin Allen– Jonathan Farmer– Zara Raab– Amit Majmudar– Ethan McGuire– Coleman Glenn– Chris Childers– Alexis Sears– JP Gritton– Alex Pepple– Ernie Hilbert– Joanna PearsonOther Ratbag Poetry Pods:Poetry Says by Alice AllanI Hate Matt Wall by Matt WallVersecraft by Elijah BlumovRatbag Poetics By David Jalal MotamedAlice: In Future PostsBrian: @BPlatzerCameron: Minor TiresiasMatthew: sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comMusic by ETRNLArt by Daniel Alexander Smith

MacKenzie Scott is best known as the ex-wife of Jeff Bezos—but that's only a fraction of her story. In this episode, we explore the life of a woman who helped build Amazon, pursued her passion as a novelist, and is now transforming philanthropy through one of the most radical giving sprees in modern history. From working with Toni Morrison to anonymously donating billions to overlooked organizations, MacKenzie Scott is quietly rewriting the rules of power, wealth, and generosity. Follow us on IG: @homance_chronicles Connect with us: linktr.ee/homance Send us a Hoe of History request: homancepodcast@gmail.com

Mandii B and WeezyWTF, the co-hosts of the Decisions, Decisions podcast, join us today to discuss their New York Times Best-selling book, No Holes Barred: A Dual Manifesto of Sexual Exploration and Power. They talk about the challenges of staying sex positive while writing about their own shame and which parts of the book they were most nervous about having published. We also talk about how the changing political landscape has impacted the kinds of conversations they have around sex.The Stacks Book Club pick for July is God Help the Child by Toni Morrison. We will discuss on Wednesday, June 30th with Dana A. Williams.You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks' website:https://www.thestackspodcast.com/2025/7/9/ep-379-mandii-b-weezywtfConnect with WeezyWTF: InstagramConnect with Mandii B: InstagramConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | SubstackSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Diverse Voices Book Review host Hopeton Hay interviewed Dana A. Williams, author of TONI AT RANDOM: The Iconic Writer's Legendary Editorship. In the interview, Dr. Williams discussed Toni Morrison's path to becoming a book editor, some of the Black writers she edited at Random House including Angela Davis and Toni Cade Bambara, and what inspired her to write the book.Dana A. Williams is Professor of African American Literature in the Department of English and Dean of the Graduate School at Howard University. She is former president of the College Language Association and the Modern Languages Association and is the author of In the Light of Likeness—Transformed: The Literary Art of Leon Forrest. Diverse Voices Book Review Social Media: Facebook - @diversevoicesbookreview Instagram - @diverse_voices_book_review     

This week on the Stacks, we are joined by author and African-American literature professor, Dana A. Williams. She has written a brand new book called Toni at Random: The Iconic Writer's Legendary Editorship, which chronicles Morrison's time as an editor at Random House. Dana shares with us the behind the scenes story of how her book title came to be, her favorite Morrison book, and why she chose God Help the Child for our July Book Club Pick.The Stacks Book Club pick for July is God Help the Child by Toni Morrison. We will discuss on Wednesday, June 30th with Dana A. Williams returning as our guest.You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks' website:https://www.thestackspodcast.com/2025/7/2/ep-378-dana-williamsConnect with Dana: Instagram | Bluesky | WebsiteConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Substack | SubscribeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Too much of our history is looked at through either a colonial lens or a patriarchal one. Ira Mukhoty joins Amit Varma in episode 421 of The Seen and the Unseen to share her gaze on India's history, and all that it has taught her. (FOR FULL LINKED SHOW NOTES, GO TO SEENUNSEEN.IN.)   Also check out: 1. Ira Mukhoty on Instagram, Twitter, Goodreads and Amazon. 2. Women in Indian History -- Episode 155 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Ira Mukhoty). 3. The Lion and The Lily: The Rise and Fall of Awadh -- Ira Mukhoty. 4. Akbar: The Great Mughal -- Ira Mukhoty. 5. Song of Draupadi -- Ira Mukhoty. 6. Daughters of the Sun: Empresses, Queens and Begums of the Mughal Empire -- Ira Mukhoty. 7. Heroines: Powerful Indian Women of Myth and History -- Ira Mukhoty. 8. Jahangir the Curious — Episode 147 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Parvati Sharma). 9. The Many Cities of Delhi — Episode 172 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Rana Safvi). 10. Episodes of The Seen and the Unseen with Manu Pillai: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. 11. Wifedom: Mrs Orwell's Invisible Life -- Anna Funder. 12. Invisible Women -- Caroline Criado Perez. 13. An Immense World -- Ed Yong. 14. What Is It Like to Be a Bat? — Thomas Nagel. 15. History of European Morals — WEH Lecky. 16. The Expanding Circle — Peter Singer. 17. Yuganta -- Irawati Karve. 18. The Great Indian Kitchen -- Jeo Baby. 19. Heart Lamp -- Banu Mushtaq. 20. Misogyny is the Oldest Indian Tradition -- Amit Varma. 21. One Bad Law Goes, but Women Remain Second-Class Citizens -- Amit Varma. 22. The Incredible Curiosities of Mukulika Banerjee — Episode 276 of The Seen and the Unseen. 23. Mughal History as a window to Modern India -- Ira Mukhoty on The India Briefing. 24. The Life and Times of Shanta Gokhale — Episode 311 of The Seen and the Unseen. 25. The Life and Times of Mrinal Pande — Episode 263 of The Seen and the Unseen. 26. Caste, Capitalism and Chandra Bhan Prasad — Episode 296 of The Seen and the Unseen. 27. In defence of suit, boot — Chandra Bhan Prasad. 28. The Indianness of Indian Food — Episode 95 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Vikram Doctor). 29. Pushpesh Pant Feasts on the Buffet of Life — Episode 326 of The Seen and the Unseen. 30. Real Birds in Imagined Gardens -- Kavita Singh. 31. The Light in Winter -- Episode 97 of Everything is Everything, on Spanish art. 32. Tawaif — Episode 174 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Saba Dewan). 33. Swapna Liddle and the Many Shades of Delhi — Episode 367 of The Seen and the Unseen. 34. The Broken Script — Swapna Liddle. 35. Culture of Encounters: Sanskrit at the Mughal Court -- Audrey Truschke. 36. The Tibetan Book of the Dead. 37. The Year of Magical Thinking -- Joan Didion. 38. Blue Nights -- Joan Didion. 39. H is for Hawk -- Helen Macdonald. 40. The Procrastination Matrix -- Tim Urban. 41. The Age of the Partial Outsider -- Janan Ganesh. 42. Wolf Hall, Bring Up the Bodies and The Mirror and the Light -- Hilary Mantel. 43. The Silence of the Girls -- Pat Barker. 44. The Hindus: An Alternative History -- Wendy Doniger. 45. Daily Rituals -- Mason Currey. 46. Daily Rituals: Women at Work -- Mason Currey. 47. The Surface Area of Serendipity -- Episode 39 of Everything is Everything. 48. Tawaifnama — Saba Dewan. 49. The Other Song -- Saba Dewan. 50. Sex and the Family in Colonial India -- Durba Ghosh. 51. Blueprint for Armageddon — Episode 50-55 of Dan Carlin's Hardcore History. 52. Roam Research. 53. Zettelkasten on Wikipedia. 54. The History Thieves: Secrets, Lies and the Shaping of a Modern Nation -- Ian Cobain. 55. Vagabond Princess: The Great Adventures of Gulbadan -- Ruby Lal. 56. Empress: The Astonishing Reign of Nur Jehan -- Ruby Lal. 57. Coming of Age in Nineteenth-Century India: The Girl-Child and the Art of Playfulness -- Ruby Lal. 58. What is Islam? -- Shahab Ahmad. 59. Gods, Guns and Missionaries: The Making of the Modern Hindu Identity -- Manu Pillai. 60. The House Divided: Sunni, Shia and the Making of the Middle East -- Barnaby Rogerson. 61. Muntakhab-ut-Tawarikh -- ʽAbd al-Qadir Badayuni. 62. Sarkai Lo Khatiya Jada Lage -- Song from Raja Babu. 63. Edge of Empire -- Maya Jasonoff. 64. Shatranj Ke Khiladi -- Satyajit Ray. 65. That Obscure Object of Desire -- Luis Buñuel. 66. This House of Grief -- Helen Garner. 67. Joe Cinque's Consolation -- Helen Garner. 68. Grief Is the Thing with Feathers -- Max Porter. 69. Burial Rites -- Hannah Kent. 70. Maya Angelou and Toni Morrison. 71. The Wonder -- Emma Donahue. 72. When Montezuma Met Cortés -- Matthew Restall. 73. Stolen -- Karan Tejpal. Amit Varma and Ajay Shah have launched a new course called Life Lessons, which aims to be a launchpad towards learning essential life skills all of you need. For more details, and to sign up, click here. Amit and Ajay also bring out a weekly YouTube show, Everything is Everything. Have you watched it yet? You must! And have you read Amit's newsletter? Subscribe right away to The India Uncut Newsletter! It's free! Also check out Amit's online course, The Art of Clear Writing. Episode art: ‘Unseen Histories' by Simahina.

If you'd like to see full video of this and other episodes, join the Reel Notes Patreon at the Homie ($5/month) tier or higher. Each episode is also available to buy individually for $5 (Buy it through a web browser and not the Patreon app. You'll get charged extra if you purchase through the app.) You also get early access to episodes, an invite to our Discord server, access to the Reel Talk archives, and more!My guest this week is Chicago-via-Maryland-via-Virgnia rapper, producer, and animator McKinley Dixon. We spoke about the Scream and Final Destination franchises, our definitions of what makes a scream queen, Snow Dogs, Tekkonkinkreet, being inspired by Toni Morrison and the late Japanese director Satoshi Kon, the pros and cons of live-band hip-hop, and the creative process behind his latest album Magic, Alive! Come fuck with us. Magic, Alive!  is available wherever music is sold, streamed, or stolen. Consider copping directly from from Bandcamp page. Follow McKinley on Instagram (@freemckinley), Twitter (@mckinleydixon), and TikTok (@mckinleydixonn)Read my review of Magic, Alive! over at Bandcamp Daily. My first book, Reel Notes: Culture Writing on the Margins of Music and Movies, is available now, via 4 PM Publishing. Order a digital copy on Amazon.Reel Notes stands in solidarity with American immigrants against ICE and the oppressed peoples of Palestine, Congo, Sudan, Tigray, and Haiti. Please consider donating to the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, the Palestine Children's Relief Fund,  The Palestinian Youth Movement, The Zakat Foundation, HealAfrica, FreeTigray, and/or Hope For Haiti.  For information about contacting your representatives to demand a ceasefire, finding protests, and other tools, check out CeasefireToday!Follow me on Instagram (@cinemasai), Twitter (@CineMasai_), Bluesky (@cinemasai.bsky.social), TikTok (@cinemasai), Letterboxd (@CineMasai), and subscribe to my weekly Nu Musique Friday newsletter to stay tapped into all things Dylan Green.  Support the show

The queens talk literary confidantes; then we discuss the pros and pitfalls of poetic friendships.Please Support Breaking Form!Review the show on Apple Podcasts here.Aaron's STOP LYING is available from the Pitt Poetry Series.James's ROMANTIC COMEDY is available from Four Way Books.NOTES:Check out Toni Morrison's  1987 eulogy for James Baldwin in the New York Times.We read from Fran Lebowitz's remembrance of her friend Toni Morrison, printed in the Paris Review.If you haven't already, read Brenda Hillman's "Male Nipples" Read "The Curious Friendship of Elizabeth Bishop and Robert Lowell" from The Atlantic.Check out this exploration of the dynamics in literary friendships published in Esquire. 

Meet Trajall Harrell, an American groundbreaking choreographer, and this year's Holland Festival associate artist. By combining and adapting postmodern dance, voguing, the Japanese dance-theatre form butoh, runaway fashion and visuals arts, Harrell has created a one-of-a-kind oeuvre over the last 20 years. Looking at sources of inspiration and his own work, moderator Maarten van Hinte will speak with Trajall Harrell about pushing the boundaries of modern dance traditions, taking risks as a renowned artist, and building new connections with your audience."I always try and apply to my work something that Toni Morrison once said: If there's a book that you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it." - Trajal HarellTrajall Harrell (Douglas, Georgia, 1973) is one of the major contemporary choreographer interntionally. With universal human emotions and themes like interconnection, tragedy, tenderness and vulnerability, Harrell's pieces often move audiences on a deeply personal level. Harrell became internationally known from 2009 with his Twenty Looks or Paris is Burning at The Judson Church, a series of works in which voguing − a dance style that came out of Harlem's ballroom scene of the 1980s – and early postmodern dance form the basis. In his recent work Harrell weaves theoretical elements from voguing with movements and ideas from early modern dance and butoh, a minimalist and socially engaged form of dance from post-war Japan that was developed by Japanese dancer and choreographer Tatsumi Hijikata (1928-1996) in the late 1950s.Trajal Harrell is the associate artist for the 78th edition of the Holland Festival in June 2025.---Want to know more about Forum on European Culture? Here you can find more information.Zie het privacybeleid op https://art19.com/privacy en de privacyverklaring van Californië op https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

our ohio module kicks off with a known quantity: the undeniably great debut novel from toni morrison, the bluest eye. after briefly reflecting on the states so far, we talk about famous people from ohio as well as whether the bluest eye feels specific to ohio. we talk about its thematic ties to ryan coogler's sinners, as well as the text's generational trauma and its characters who can afford to be nice. why isn't joey bothered when his least favorite trope in movie-making pops up in books? we discuss. we admire toni morrison's mastery of dialogue — especially kid dialogue, as well as kid behavior. we talk about her writing this novel from the perspective of an editor and the merits of introducing great literature to high school students (even if it's lost on them). egg writes in a great email. reading list for season fourteen the bluest eye by toni morrison omensetter's luck by william gass outside in by doug cooper ohio by stephen markley

You know Toni Morrison the writer, but what about Toni the editor? As she rose in literary fame, Morrison also worked in publishing as a senior editor for Random House, the first black woman to hold such a title in the company. Dana A. Williams, professor of African American literature and dean of the Graduate School at Howard University, discusses her new book about Toni Morrison's career as an editor, Toni at Random: The Iconic Writer's Legendary Editorship, which includes stories about the authors she shaped, and her efforts to change publishing for the better.

May we create the reality we deserve. Be encouraged. Happy Black History Month.

Let us not only free ourselves, but learn ourselves. Be encouraged. Happy Black History Month.

May we learn to be the solution to our own problems as we grow. Be Encouraged. Happy Black History Month.

Let us move forward and powerful awareness of our resources. Be Encouraged. Happy Black History Month.

Let us lead a life that will encourage and impact others. Be Encouraged.

We're pulling another banger episode out of the Patreon vault this week with our episode on the 1999 classic Deep Blue Sea starring Samuel L. Jackson, LL Cool J and Thomas Jane. But first did Cody get a new tattoo? How did it remind Cody of Terry Moore's art in Rachel Rising? Do we have a Toni Morrison horn? Did Cody love The Private Eye by Brian K. Vaughan? Was Janice Soprano in this movie? Do they rip-off Jurassic Park in this movie? Was this Anthony's first time watching Deep Blue Sea? Is this Cody's favorite shark movie? Were sick end credit songs necessary in 90s movies with rappers turned actors? Do we love the LL Cool J song Deepest Blue? Was Susan the true villain of the movie? Is there a little bit of Alien and Free Willy in this movie? Does Anthony have solidarity with orcas? Does everyone get eaten in this movie? Are they trying to cure Alzheimer's in this movie? Can shark swim backward? Was Preach our favorite character? Would we consider this a horror movie? Did we think Samuel L. Jackson's character would end up being the villain? Was this the best movie of 1999? Was '99 banana bonkers stacked? Do we make our first sports reference in this episode? Will Comics and Chronic be the voice of the summer Olympics in LA in 2028? Was Deep Blue Sea ahead of its time? Is Jaws the best shark movie? What is Cody's dark secret this episode? Does Sam Tallent have a great impersonation of Cody's laugh? Could the sharks in this movie take down the Titanic? Why does Cody want Anthony dead? Does Anthony have Michael Rapaport vibes? Is the Thomas Jane Punisher movie the best one? Is The Bronx Zoo Anthony's North Star? Are the guys working on a trilogy of Bronx Zoo horror movies? Can you dab shark brain juice? Is Jake still giving away House of Slaughter Vol. 1?New episodes every THURSDAYFollow us on social media! Bluesky // Instagram // Twitter // TikTok :⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@comicsnchronic⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.youtube.com/channel/UC45vP6pBHZk9rZi_2X3VkzQ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠E-mail: comicsnchronicpodcast@gmail.comCodyInstagram // Bluesky:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@codycannoncomedy⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter: @Cody_CannonTikTok: @codywalakacannonJakeInstagram // Bluesky:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@jakefhaha⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠AnthonyBluesky // Instagram // Threads // Twitter // TikTok:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@mrtonynacho⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

How do brains slip so easily from the real world into made up worlds? What do authors of great literature have in common with stage magicians and comedians? What does any of this have to do with cognitive shortcuts, prediction machines, Marcel Proust, Toni Morrison, Jane Austen, or why jokes are always structured in threes? Join Eagleman this week for a conversation with his Stanford colleague Joshua Landy as they discuss brains on story.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 29, 2025 is: nascent • NASS-unt • adjective Nascent is a formal word used to describe something that is just beginning to exist, or in other words, is recently formed or developed. // The actress is now focused on her nascent singing career. See the entry > Examples: “I asked my father, recently, if I might borrow one of his old journals as research for a nascent writing project. It felt like there might be something there—in the poetry of varietal names (Beedy's Camden Kale, Ruby Perfection Cabbage), or the steady plotless attention to the natural world.” — Fiona Warnick, LitHub.com, 9 May 2024 Did you know? Nascent descends from the Latin verb nasci, meaning “to be born,” as does many an English word, from nation and nature to innate and renaissance. But rather than describing the birth of literal babies—as in pups, kits, hoglets, et al.—nascent is applied to things (such as careers or technologies) that have recently formed or come into existence, as when scholar Danille K. Taylor-Guthrie wrote of Toni Morrison being “an integral part of a nascent group of black women writers who would alter the course of African American, American, and world literature.”

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 29, 2025 is: nascent • NASS-unt • adjective Nascent is a formal word used to describe something that is just beginning to exist, or in other words, is recently formed or developed. // The actress is now focused on her nascent singing career. See the entry > Examples: “I asked my father, recently, if I might borrow one of his old journals as research for a nascent writing project. It felt like there might be something there—in the poetry of varietal names (Beedy's Camden Kale, Ruby Perfection Cabbage), or the steady plotless attention to the natural world.” — Fiona Warnick, LitHub.com, 9 May 2024 Did you know? Nascent descends from the Latin verb nasci, meaning “to be born,” as does many an English word, from nation and nature to innate and renaissance. But rather than describing the birth of literal babies—as in pups, kits, hoglets, et al.—nascent is applied to things (such as careers or technologies) that have recently formed or come into existence, as when scholar Danille K. Taylor-Guthrie wrote of Toni Morrison being “an integral part of a nascent group of black women writers who would alter the course of African American, American, and world literature.”

Nonfiction writer Paul Elie joins co-hosts Whitney Terrell and V.V. Ganeshananthan to discuss his new book The Last Supper: Art, Faith, Sex, and Controversy in the 1980s and Pope Leo XIV. Elie compares the new pope to John Paul II, whose conservative views shaped the 1980s. He explains how and why '80s artists like Andy Warhol, U2, and Bob Dylan produced art he considers “crypto-religious,” a term coined by poet Czesław Miłosz. He analyzes limbo and purgatory in the work of writers of the period, including Louise Erdrich and Toni Morrison, and recalls the culture wars, including iconic incidents like Sinéad O'Connor tearing up the pope's picture on Saturday Night Live, as well as the controversy over Andres Serrano's Piss Christ. He reads from The Last Supper. Selected Readings: Paul Elie The Last Supper: Art, Faith, Sex, and Controversy in the 1980s Reinventing Bach: The Search for Transcendence in Sound The Life You Save May Be Your Own: An American Pilgrimage The Down-to-Earth Pope: Pope Francis Has Died at Eighty-eight | The New Yorker  Others Madame Bovary Mystery and Manners: Occasional Prose  Love Medicine The Handmaid's Tale Striving Towards Being: The Letters of Thomas Merton and Czeslaw Milosz U2 - Gloria  “The Controversial Saturday Night Live Performance That Made Sinéad O'Connor an Icon,” Time Magazine, July 26, 2023 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 'Meanwhile', Jacqueline Woodson and Catherine Gund weave together the words of literary legends to explore the intersection of art, grief, and social justice.Description: James Baldwin, Toni Morrison, Muhammad Ali and Nina Simone are some of the artists featured in the moving new film “Meanwhile”, from National Book Award-winner Jacqueline Woodson and Emmy-nominated producer & director Catherine Gund. Their meditations on grief, art, breath and more are beautifully woven together as the film poses the question, how do you keep breathing amidst the chaos? Catalyzed by the Covid-19 pandemic and the police killing of George Floyd, Gund and Woodson tap into our shared existence. The artists featured in the docu-poem, with a haunting soundtrack by Meshell Ndegeocello, work through questions of race, political violence, resistance and identity — so much of what shapes our lives and relationships. “This is not a love letter to this country but to us inside this country,” says Woodson in the film. “We see us. We love us. We make eye contact and nod to us”. In this conversation with Laura Flanders, the trio of longtime friends discuss the film from Aubin Pictures, the losses they experienced in the 80s, and how the arts and poetry can compel us to enact change. Can we reclaim the “meanwhile”? All that, plus a commentary from Laura on hers.Guests:•  Catherine Gund: Producer & Director, Meanwhile; Filmmaker & Founder, Aubin Pictures•  Jacqueline Woodson: Writer & Performer, Meanwhile; Author, Brown Girl Dreaming; Founder, Baldwin for the Arts;  The Elders Project, ColumbiaWatch the special report released on YouTube May 16th 5pm ET; PBS World Channel May 18th, and on over 300 public stations across the country (check your listings, or search here via zipcode). Listen: Episode airing on community radio (check here to see if your station airs the show) & available as a podcast May 21st.Full Conversation Release May 16th, 2025: While our weekly shows are edited to time for broadcast on Public TV and community radio, we offer to our members and podcast subscribers the full uncut conversation. ARE YOU AUDACIOUS? SUPPORT OUR RESISTANCE REPORTING FUND! Help us continue fighting against the rise of authoritarianism in these times. Please support our Resistance Reporting Fund. Our goal is to raise $100K. We're at $35K! Become a sustaining member starting at $5 a month! Or make a one time donation at LauraFlanders.org/Donate RESOURCES:Watch the broadcast episode cut for time at our YouTube channel and airing on PBS stations across the country  Related Laura Flanders Show Episodes:•  Ask Angola Prison: What Difference Can a Play Make?  Watch / Listen:  Episode and Full Conversation•  Survival Guide for Humans Learned from Marine Mammals with Alexis Pauline Gumbs: Watch / Listen:  Episode and Full Conversation  •  V (formerly Eve Ensler): Reckoning with Our Past, Transforming the Future: Watch / Listen Related Articles and Resources:•  Jacqueline Woodson:  Kennedy Center Education Artist-in-Residence (2022-2024)•  Catherine Gund's Meanwhile:  A gorgeous, quietly energetic, and moving meditation on Black resilience and world-making in the face of interminable violence. by Brittany Turner, March 2025, The Brooklyn Rail•  Ivy Young, D.C. journalist, poet, and activist dies at 75: A life of service dedicated to community building. By Staff reports, June 6, 2023, Washington Blade•  Gai Gherardi, legendary co-founder of L.A. Eyeworks, Garrett Leight *Recommended book:“Brown Girl Dreaming” by Jacqueline Woodson. Get the Book*(*Bookshop is an online bookstore with a mission to financially support local, independent bookstores. The LF Show is an affiliate of bookshop.org and will receive a small commission if you click through and make a purchase.) Full Episode Notes are located HERE. Laura Flanders and Friends Crew: Laura Flanders, along with Sabrina Artel, Jeremiah Cothren, Veronica Delgado, Janet Hernandez, Jeannie Hopper, Gina Kim, Sarah Miller, Nat Needham, David Neuman, and Rory O'Conner. FOLLOW Laura Flanders and FriendsInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/lauraflandersandfriends/Blueky: https://bsky.app/profile/lfandfriends.bsky.socialFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/LauraFlandersAndFriends/Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lauraflandersandfriendsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFLRxVeYcB1H7DbuYZQG-lgLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lauraflandersandfriendsPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/lauraflandersandfriendsACCESSIBILITY - The broadcast edition of this episode is available with closed captioned by clicking here for our YouTube Channel

In 'Meanwhile', Jacqueline Woodson and Catherine Gund weave together the words of literary legends to explore the intersection of art, grief, and social justice.Description:  James Baldwin, Toni Morrison, Muhammad Ali and Nina Simone are some of the artists featured in the moving new film “Meanwhile”, from National Book Award-winner Jacqueline Woodson and Emmy-nominated producer & director Catherine Gund. Their meditations on grief, art, breath and more are beautifully woven together as the film poses the question, how do you keep breathing amidst the chaos? Catalyzed by the Covid-19 pandemic and the police killing of George Floyd, Gund and Woodson tap into our shared existence. The artists featured in the docu-poem, with a haunting soundtrack by Meshell Ndegeocello, work through questions of race, political violence, resistance and identity — so much of what shapes our lives and relationships. “This is not a love letter to this country but to us inside this country,” says Woodson in the film. “We see us. We love us. We make eye contact and nod to us”. In this conversation with Laura Flanders, the trio of longtime friends discuss the film from Aubin Pictures, the losses they experienced in the 80s, and how the arts and poetry can compel us to enact change. Can we reclaim the “meanwhile”? All that, plus a commentary from Laura on hers.“. . . Having lost people so early and in such quick succession and under such an awful oppressive situation [of AIDS in the 80s], . . . each one of those hit so hard. We wrote and we made movies, and we had these elaborate memorials, and we did things to process and grieve. I am really holding on to that approach to death and dying as we get older, because I don't wanna ever not care.” - Catherine GundGuests:•  Catherine Gund: Producer & Director, Meanwhile; Filmmaker & Founder, Aubin Pictures•  Jacqueline Woodson: Writer & Performer, Meanwhile; Author, Brown Girl Dreaming; Founder, Baldwin for the Arts;  The Elders Project, Columbia Full Conversation Release: While our weekly shows are edited to time for broadcast on Public TV and community radio, we offer to our members and podcast subscribers the full uncut conversation. These audio exclusives are made possible thanks to our member supporters.Watch the special report released on YouTube May 16th 5pm ET; PBS World Channel May 18th, and on over 300 public stations across the country (check your listings, or search here via zipcode). Listen: Episode airing on community radio (check here to see if your station airs the show) & available as a podcast May 21st. ARE YOU AUDACIOUS? SUPPORT OUR RESISTANCE REPORTING FUND! Help us continue fighting against the rise of authoritarianism in these times. Please support our Resistance Reporting Fund. Our goal is to raise $100K. We're at $35K! Become a sustaining member starting at $5 a month! Or make a one time donation at LauraFlanders.org/Donate RESOURCES:Watch the broadcast episode cut for time at our YouTube channel and airing on PBS stations across the country Full Episode Notes are located HERE. Related Laura Flanders Show Episodes:•  Ask Angola Prison: What Difference Can a Play Make?  Watch / Listen:  Episode and Full Conversation•  Survival Guide for Humans Learned from Marine Mammals with Alexis Pauline Gumbs: Watch / Listen:  Episode and Full Conversation  •  V (formerly Eve Ensler): Reckoning with Our Past, Transforming the Future: Watch / Listen Related Articles and Resources:•  Jacqueline Woodson:  Kennedy Center Education Artist-in-Residence (2022-2024)•  Catherine Gund's Meanwhile:  A gorgeous, quietly energetic, and moving meditation on Black resilience and world-making in the face of interminable violence. by Brittany Turner, March 2025, The Brooklyn Rail•  Ivy Young, D.C. journalist, poet, and activist dies at 75: A life of service dedicated to community building. By Staff reports, June 6, 2023, Washington Blade•  Gai Gherardi, legendary co-founder of L.A. Eyeworks, Garrett Leight   Laura Flanders and Friends Crew: Laura Flanders, along with Sabrina Artel, Jeremiah Cothren, Veronica Delgado, Janet Hernandez, Jeannie Hopper, Gina Kim, Sarah Miller, Nat Needham, David Neuman, and Rory O'Conner. FOLLOW Laura Flanders and FriendsInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/lauraflandersandfriends/Blueky: https://bsky.app/profile/lfandfriends.bsky.socialFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/LauraFlandersAndFriends/Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lauraflandersandfriendsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFLRxVeYcB1H7DbuYZQG-lgLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lauraflandersandfriendsPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/lauraflandersandfriendsACCESSIBILITY - The broadcast edition of this episode is available with closed captioned by clicking here for our YouTube Channel

It took nearly six years for bestselling author Daniel Handler to sell his first book, a satirical novel called The Basic Eight. When his agent sold it in 1998, it was “for the least amount she had ever negotiated for,” laughed Handler, who spoke at a UC Berkeley event earlier this month. More than two decades later, Handler has published seven novels. Under his pen name Lemony Snicket, he has written dozens of books for children, including the 13-volume series A Series of Unfortunate Events. His most recent book, And Then? And Then? What else?, is part memoir, part inspiration for aspiring writers. Handler was the keynote speaker at the Magnes Collection of Jewish Art and Life's inaugural Jewish Arts and Bookfest, a day of events held on May 4 in celebration of Jewish American Heritage Month. Throughout the day, artists and authors came together for panel discussions, workshops and other programming that showcased the Jewish experience through art, culture and storytelling. In episode 226 of Berkeley Talks, Handler, joined in conversation by J. The Jewish News of Northern California's editor-in-chief Chanan Tigay, discusses how his Jewish identity shapes his worldview and storytelling, where the name “Lemony Snicket” came from and how a great mentor taught him to read work by authors he admired in order to hone his craft.“When you suggest that we create our own canon, you don't necessarily mean a list of books that are the most significant to us,” Tigay said to Handler at the event, “but actually, the moments in books, turns of phrase and plot twists that are, in some ways, significant. “And I'm wondering if you could take us through a bit of your own canon, in that regard, the moments and turns of phrase and plot twists in books, specific books that have been most impactful to you as a writer?”“For writers, I try to encourage them to seek out what they're enthused by,” Handler replied. “ … So instead of saying, ‘Gosh darn it, Toni Morrison is sure a great writer,' that you think, ‘What is it about Beloved that I return to, that I think about all the time?' … Then, you can go back and find that scene, and look at it, and study it for what it is that you're trying to do, what you're trying to take from it."Handler went on to describe how a scene from the 1958 film Vertigo, when an important character named Midge leaves halfway through the story, inspired the structure of his second novel."My second novel Watch Your Mouth has two parts," he said. "I remember thinking, 'I want ... to have that feeling of like, OK, some things are gone. What in the world can happen in the second half of this story?' That was exciting to me, and I lifted that from that scene in Vertigo. No one in a million years would think that, there's nothing in the novel that reflects that plot or anything like that, but that was what it did for me." This conversation was recorded by Aaron Levy-Wolins / J. The Jewish News of Northern California.Read more about the speakers on the Magnes' website.Listen to the episode and read the transcript on UC Berkeley News (news.berkeley.edu/podcasts).Photo by Brittany Hosea-Small for UC Berkeley.Music by Blue Dot Sessions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

An ambitious genre-crossing exploration of Black speculative imagination, The Dark Delight of Being Strange: Black Stories of Freedom (Columbia University Press 2024) combines fiction, historical accounts, and philosophical prose to unveil the extraordinary and the surreal in everyday Black life.In a series of stories and essays, James B. Haile, III, traces how Black speculative fiction responds to enslavement, racism, colonialism, and capitalism and how it reveals a life beyond social and political alienation. He re-envisions Black technologies of freedom through Henry Box Brown's famed escape from slavery in a wooden crate, fashions an anticolonial “hollow earth theory” from the works of H. G. Wells and Jules Verne, and considers the octopus and its ability to camouflage itself as a model for Black survival strategies, among others. Looking at Black life through the lens of speculative fiction, this book transports readers to alternative worlds and spaces while remaining squarely rooted in present-day struggles. In so doing, it rethinks historical and contemporary Black experiences as well as figures such as Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass, Booker T. Washington, W. E. B. Du Bois, Henry Dumas, and Toni Morrison.Offering new ways to grasp the meanings and implications of Black freedom, The Dark Delight of Being Strange invites us to reimagine history and memory, time and space, our identities and ourselves. Winner, 2025 Hugh J. Silverman Book Prize, Association for Philosophy and Literature Finalist, 2025 PEN America Open Book Award James B. Haile III is a Professor of English & Philosophy at the University of Rhode Island. You can find him at the University of Rhode Island Philosophy Department website. You can find the host, Sullivan Summer, online, on Instagram, and at Substack, where she and Dr. Haile continue their conversation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/literary-studies

Have you watched the Heartstopper series or read the graphic novels by Alice Oseman? In this episode, we're sharing a conversation that originally aired on Patreon all about the pilot episode of Heartstopper, based on Oseman's beloved graphic novel series. Before we dive into the adaptation, we kick things off with a bookish check-in—Ashley shares about Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros, and Jen is rereading Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison. We wrap things up with a fun Lit Chat question about whether we prefer borrowing or buying books (spoiler: it depends!).   Whether you've read the series, watched the show, or are just curious what all the buzz is about, we hope you'll tune in and join the conversation. Let us know what you thought about this one! Remember that you can support us on Patreon if you're interested in contributing to the podcast. Visit the Unabridged website for our full show notes and links to the books mentioned in the episode. Interested in what else we're reading? Check out our Featured Books page.   Want to support Unabridged?   Follow us @unabridgedpod on Instagram or Facebook. | Join our Unabridged Podcast Reading Challenge. | Visit our curated list of books at Bookshop.org. | Become a patron on Patreon. | Check out our Merch Store. | Visit the resources available in our Teachers Pay Teachers store.

An ambitious genre-crossing exploration of Black speculative imagination, The Dark Delight of Being Strange: Black Stories of Freedom (Columbia University Press 2024) combines fiction, historical accounts, and philosophical prose to unveil the extraordinary and the surreal in everyday Black life.In a series of stories and essays, James B. Haile, III, traces how Black speculative fiction responds to enslavement, racism, colonialism, and capitalism and how it reveals a life beyond social and political alienation. He re-envisions Black technologies of freedom through Henry Box Brown's famed escape from slavery in a wooden crate, fashions an anticolonial “hollow earth theory” from the works of H. G. Wells and Jules Verne, and considers the octopus and its ability to camouflage itself as a model for Black survival strategies, among others. Looking at Black life through the lens of speculative fiction, this book transports readers to alternative worlds and spaces while remaining squarely rooted in present-day struggles. In so doing, it rethinks historical and contemporary Black experiences as well as figures such as Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass, Booker T. Washington, W. E. B. Du Bois, Henry Dumas, and Toni Morrison.Offering new ways to grasp the meanings and implications of Black freedom, The Dark Delight of Being Strange invites us to reimagine history and memory, time and space, our identities and ourselves. Winner, 2025 Hugh J. Silverman Book Prize, Association for Philosophy and Literature Finalist, 2025 PEN America Open Book Award James B. Haile III is a Professor of English & Philosophy at the University of Rhode Island. You can find him at the University of Rhode Island Philosophy Department website. You can find the host, Sullivan Summer, online, on Instagram, and at Substack, where she and Dr. Haile continue their conversation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/african-american-studies

An ambitious genre-crossing exploration of Black speculative imagination, The Dark Delight of Being Strange: Black Stories of Freedom (Columbia University Press 2024) combines fiction, historical accounts, and philosophical prose to unveil the extraordinary and the surreal in everyday Black life.In a series of stories and essays, James B. Haile, III, traces how Black speculative fiction responds to enslavement, racism, colonialism, and capitalism and how it reveals a life beyond social and political alienation. He re-envisions Black technologies of freedom through Henry Box Brown's famed escape from slavery in a wooden crate, fashions an anticolonial “hollow earth theory” from the works of H. G. Wells and Jules Verne, and considers the octopus and its ability to camouflage itself as a model for Black survival strategies, among others. Looking at Black life through the lens of speculative fiction, this book transports readers to alternative worlds and spaces while remaining squarely rooted in present-day struggles. In so doing, it rethinks historical and contemporary Black experiences as well as figures such as Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass, Booker T. Washington, W. E. B. Du Bois, Henry Dumas, and Toni Morrison.Offering new ways to grasp the meanings and implications of Black freedom, The Dark Delight of Being Strange invites us to reimagine history and memory, time and space, our identities and ourselves. Winner, 2025 Hugh J. Silverman Book Prize, Association for Philosophy and Literature Finalist, 2025 PEN America Open Book Award James B. Haile III is a Professor of English & Philosophy at the University of Rhode Island. You can find him at the University of Rhode Island Philosophy Department website. You can find the host, Sullivan Summer, online, on Instagram, and at Substack, where she and Dr. Haile continue their conversation. 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

An ambitious genre-crossing exploration of Black speculative imagination, The Dark Delight of Being Strange: Black Stories of Freedom (Columbia University Press 2024) combines fiction, historical accounts, and philosophical prose to unveil the extraordinary and the surreal in everyday Black life.In a series of stories and essays, James B. Haile, III, traces how Black speculative fiction responds to enslavement, racism, colonialism, and capitalism and how it reveals a life beyond social and political alienation. He re-envisions Black technologies of freedom through Henry Box Brown's famed escape from slavery in a wooden crate, fashions an anticolonial “hollow earth theory” from the works of H. G. Wells and Jules Verne, and considers the octopus and its ability to camouflage itself as a model for Black survival strategies, among others. Looking at Black life through the lens of speculative fiction, this book transports readers to alternative worlds and spaces while remaining squarely rooted in present-day struggles. In so doing, it rethinks historical and contemporary Black experiences as well as figures such as Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass, Booker T. Washington, W. E. B. Du Bois, Henry Dumas, and Toni Morrison.Offering new ways to grasp the meanings and implications of Black freedom, The Dark Delight of Being Strange invites us to reimagine history and memory, time and space, our identities and ourselves. Winner, 2025 Hugh J. Silverman Book Prize, Association for Philosophy and Literature Finalist, 2025 PEN America Open Book Award James B. Haile III is a Professor of English & Philosophy at the University of Rhode Island. You can find him at the University of Rhode Island Philosophy Department website. You can find the host, Sullivan Summer, online, on Instagram, and at Substack, where she and Dr. Haile continue their conversation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/folkore

I am so excited to say that my guest on the GWA Podcast is one of the most exciting painters working in the world today, Michaela Yearwood-Dan. Hailed for her works that bloom, dance, and come alive when you are witness to them, with an abundance of textures, weathers, colours, mark-makings, and more, Yearwood-Dan intertwines the botanical with abstraction, and brings painting back to its natural-like essence. Never restricting herself to just one medium, Yearwood-Dan works across ceramics, sound, installation, performance, and all-encompassing paintings that can range from small to the colossal, with some measuring up to 8-metres-wide. See them in the flesh and it's like seeing an entire ecosystem unfold, embedded with hidden languages, whether it be the symbolism she uses or the small elements of text, poetry and song lyrics, that add another dimension to her rich, embellished worlds. Raised in London as the youngest of three girls, by parents and grandparents that taught her about craft, weaving, seamstressing, Yearwood-Dan completed her studies at Brighton from 2013–2016, where she graduated top of her class, before going onto experiment with an artistic language that has constantly been growing and reinventing, and pushing paint to its limits. While early work – at the time I met her in around 2019, when she invited me for a studio visit when we were both in our mid 20s – explored more interior images intertwined with house plants, it has been incredible to watch her work mould into spaces of abundance, possibility and exhilaration. And indeed, her work has been described by the renowned writer and curator Ekow Eshun as having “a sense of boundless possibility”, which feels apt for a time like today, when it feels more than ever for art to be our guide to expanding our imagination, and also joy in times of despair. This is exactly the topic of Yearwood-Dan's new exhibition, opening at Hauser & Wirth in London on 13 May, titled No Time for Despair, referencing a line from Toni Morrison's 2004 article for The Nation, which states, “in times of dread, artists must never choose to remain silent.” – and I can't wait to find out more… Exhibition page: https://www.hauserwirth.com/hauser-wirth-exhibitions/michaela-yearwood-dan-no-time-for-despair/ -- THIS EPISODE IS GENEROUSLY SUPPORTED BY THE LEVETT COLLECTION: https://www.famm.com/en/ https://www.instagram.com/famm_mougins // https://www.merrellpublishers.com/9781858947037 Follow us: Katy Hessel: @thegreatwomenartists / @katy.hessel Sound editing by Nada Smiljanic Music by Ben Wetherfield

Notes and Links to Vanessa Saunders' Work       Vanessa Saunders is a writer living in New Orleans. She teaches as a Professor of Practice at Loyola University New Orleans. She was the editor-in-chief of Helium Journal from 2013 to 2016. Her writing has appeared in Writer's Digest, Writer's Chronicle, Seneca Review, Sycamore Review, Los Angeles Review,  Nat. Brut, Entropy, PANK, Passages North, Stockholm Review of Literature and other journals.​​ She is at work on a novel of magical realism about whiteness and a book-length prose poem about the ethics of authorship.  Buy The Flat Woman   Vanessa's Website At about 1:45, Vanessa recommends places to buy her book, including Baldwin Books At about 2:55, Vanessa responds to Pete's question about her expectations for the Pub Day and beyond versus the realities At about 5:20, the two discuss Kafka's Metamorphosis and his parables and connections to Vanessa's The Flat Woman, as well as absurdities and allegory At about 9:30, Vanessa gives background on her early reading and writing, including her grandfather's and Sylvia Plath's influences, and Anne Carson's influence on The Flat Woman At about 13:30, Vanessa explains the unique British library system At about 15:25, Vanessa responds to Pete's questions about At about 16:35, Vanessa mentions Kelly Link, Sarah Rose Etter, Aimee Bender, and Hadriana in my Dreams as contemporary writers and writing that inspires him At about 18:20, Pete and Vanessa shout out the generosity and greatness of Aimee Bender, and Vanessa talks about meetings with inspiring writers At about 19:20, Pete shouts out Antonya Nelson's “In the Land of Men” for the 1,987,231 time in Chills at Will history At about 19:55, The two discuss the book's epigraph and seeds for the book At about 22:40, Vanessa expands upon stewardship and community and the environment in the formulation of her book At about 24:20, Pete wonders about Vanessa's decision to avoid naming her characters At about 26:40, Pete asks Vanessa  At about 29:10, the two discuss the lengthy “setups” that are chapter titles, or “headlines” At about 32:20, “leaky boundaries” and the family dynamic, including the absent father, are discussed At about 33:35, “Terrorism” and government cover-up in the book and its couching is discussed; Vanessa talks about birds as “indicator species,” as she learned from a group of “elite ornithologists” (!!!) with whom she lived At about 36:40, Vanessa talks about perpetual archetypes and storylines for “female villainy” At about 37:40, Bird grief and research and animals as stand-ins for humans as discussed in the book is explored by Vanessa At about 41:10, Vanessa, in explaining her views of animals and things and dominion, references a wonderful Louise Gluck line  At about 42:35, Pete and Vanessa discuss Bay Area history, anthropology. and its effects on their mindsets and writing At about 44:00, The two talk about the “patriarch[al]” POPS Cola, and the protagonist's early life after her mother is arrested and convicted  At about 45:45, Vanessa expands on the patriarchal society and the 2024 election's connections to the systemic misogyny on display in the book At about  49:50, The protagonist, depicted 10 years as “The woman,” and Part II are described, as well as the “chaotic aunt” and more ugly realities that confront the woman At about 51:45, Vanessa cites inspiration from an interview with Toni Morrison regarding family alienation  At about 53:10, Vanessa explores connections between humor and speculative fiction At about 54:10, The woman's earliest interactions with and attractions to the man are discussed At about 55:10, Vanessa responds to Pete's question about the man being drawn to Elvis, with a trip down memory lane of a San Francisco that may no longer exist  At about 59:20, Vanessa talks about setting the woman as working at the very company that has imprisoned her mother  At about 1:01:25, Vanessa responds to Pete's question about the grisly displays of hurt and dead animals, and the two discuss ideas of entertainment and willful (or not) ignorance about the brutality in Gaza and climate change At about 1:05:00, Pete complements Vanessa for humor on the page and asks if the man has “discovered the manosphere”  At about 1:08:35, Vanessa talks about social justice being “commodified” At about 1:10:40, Vanessa talks about initial hesitat[ion] in depicting the man as having some assorted wisdom, along with many horrible traits At about 1:11:40, Vanessa discusses a famous writer, who is not related to her :(  At about 1:13:00, Another Maurice Carlos Ruffin shoutout At about 1:14:20, Movie actors for the book's characters! At about 1:16:10, “You are hearing me talk”-Al Gore 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. This week, his conversation with Episode 270 guest Jason De León is up on the website. A big thanks to Rachel León and Michael Welch 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, his DIY podcast and his extensive reading, research, editing, and promoting to keep this independent podcast pumping out high-quality content! This month's Patreon bonus episode will feature an exploration of the wonderful poetry of Khalil Gibran. I have added a $1 a month tier for “Well-Wishers” and Cheerleaders of the Show.    This is a passion project of Pete's, a DIY operation, and he'd 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 285 with The Philharmonik, Episode 58 guest, vocalist, multi-instrumentalist, lyricist, music producer and genre defining artist. Recently, he has been nationally and globally recognized after winning the 2023 American Song writer contest and NPR's 2024 Tiny Desk Contest for his song “What's It All Mean?” The episode marks the one-year anniversary of his NPR Tiny Desk Contest win. This will be released on May 16.  

Toni Morrison (1931-2019) was a groundbreaking writer and the first African-American woman to win the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1993. Her works, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel Beloved—where she coined the word "rememory"—explore race, identity, and the legacies of slavery. Morrison’s profound storytelling has made her one of the most influential voices in American literature. For Further Reading: National Women’s History Museum: Toni Morrison Toni Morrison, Towering Novelist of the Black Experience, Dies at 88 Manifestations and Memory: A Look At Trauma, Hauntings, and “Rememory” 'I wanted to carve out a world both culture specific and race-free': an essay by Toni Morrison Toni Morrison, a Writer of Many Gifts Who Bent Language to Her Will This month, we’re talking about Word Weavers — people who coined terms, popularized words, and even created entirely new languages. These activists, writers, artists, and scholars used language to shape ideas and give voice to experiences that once had no name. History classes can get a bad rap, and sometimes for good reason. When we were students, we couldn’t help wondering... where were all the ladies at? Why were so many incredible stories missing from the typical curriculum? Enter, Womanica. On this Wonder Media Network podcast we explore the lives of inspiring women in history you may not know about, but definitely should. Every weekday, listeners explore the trials, tragedies, and triumphs of groundbreaking women throughout history who have dramatically shaped the world around us. In each 5 minute episode, we’ll dive into the story behind one woman listeners may or may not know–but definitely should. These diverse women from across space and time are grouped into easily accessible and engaging monthly themes like Educators, Villains, Indigenous Storytellers, Activists, and many more. Womanica is hosted by WMN co-founder and award-winning journalist Jenny Kaplan. The bite-sized episodes pack painstakingly researched content into fun, entertaining, and addictive daily adventures. Womanica was created by Liz Kaplan and Jenny Kaplan, executive produced by Jenny Kaplan, and produced by Grace Lynch, Maddy Foley, Brittany Martinez, Edie Allard, Carmen Borca-Carrillo, Taylor Williamson, Sara Schleede, Paloma Moreno Jimenez, Luci Jones, Abbey Delk, Adrien Behn, Alyia Yates, Vanessa Handy, Melia Agudelo, and Joia Putnoi. Special thanks to Shira Atkins. Follow Wonder Media Network: Website Instagram Twitter See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While Bill is on a research and writing sabbatical for the next 3 weeks we decided it's important to revisit the horrors we laid out in our Project 2025 podcast series, Trump's Project 2025: Up Close and Personal – and tie them to what's actually happened so far. Project 2025 proposed to eliminate the Department of Education and divert federal education funding into universal school voucher programs, allowing public money to be used for private and for-profit schools. This would result in cuts to critical services and programs at public schools, including mental health counseling, school resource officers, after-school programs, reading/writing specialists, and services for students with disabilities. Classroom sizes at public schools would increase substantially due to the funding cuts, hampering the ability to provide a quality education. The plan also calls for the censorship of curriculum and book banning related to topics like racial equity, LGBTQ issues, and reproductive health. Private for-profit schools receiving voucher funds have been found to use substandard or misleading curriculum, including teaching that dinosaurs and humans co-existed and that slavery was not as bad as portrayed. Overall, the goal of Project 2025 is to end public education in the United States in favor of a privatized, deregulated school system, with devastating consequences for students, especially those from lower-income families and communities.Based on the actual proposals and likely consequences above, the fictional based stories begin as Martha Sheakley, the principal of Southeast Middle School, faces the challenges of new controversial book-banning laws that require the removal of numerous classics from the library. As she meets with librarian Paige Parker, they express their frustration over the vague standards forcing them to censor popular titles, including works by Toni Morrison and Anne Frank. Martha is frustrated with the political landscape affecting education and the consequences of enforcing these new laws. Martha then attends a distressing meeting about school funding. Due to the government's shift to vouchers for private schools, public schools face severe funding cuts. She learns they must eliminate wrap-around services and support staff, including mental health counselors, after-care programs, and special education resources. These cuts threaten the well-being of students and the overall educational environment. The meeting exposes the deepening crisis in public education as more responsibilities are pushed onto families with lower income and fewer resources. After a day filled with painful decisions and meetings, Martha encounters law enforcement taking away censored books from the library, further highlighting the absurdity and tragedy of censorship in education. As the day ends, Martha reflects on the privilege of parents benefitting from the new policies while her own students and staff suffer the consequences.In parallel, Marcus and other parents share their concerns about Blue Ribbon Academy, a new school that seemed promising but delivered a disappointing reality. They discover misleading curriculum materials that trivialize serious historical issues and provide an inadequate education. As they navigate their experiences trying to advocate for better education options for their children, they are met with resistance from the Blue Ribbon administration, which has no accountability to the public.Despite their efforts, the parents ultimately face the grim reality that shifts in educational policy have sidelined their children, particularly those with special needs like Marcus's son, Jamal, who is deemed "not a good fit" for Blue Ribbon due to his ADHD. This reflects a larger trend of public schools becoming underfunded and unable to meet the needs of diverse learners as more families are funneled into less supportive educational environments.We'd like to thank all the artists who volunteered their time to make this episode: Ever Carradine and Don Cheadle who read the chapters and others who contributed character voices. Sound design by Johnathan Moser.Trump's Project 2025: Up Close and Personal is written by David Pepper and produced by Pepper, Melissa Jo Peltier and Jay Feldman and is a production of Ovington Avenue Productions and The Bill Press Pod. Today's Bill Press Pod is supported by The Laborers' International Union of North America. More information at LIUNA.orgSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Two girls from different racial backgrounds meet in a shelter and form a complicated, lifelong bond. As they reunite at various points in their lives, shifting memories and buried prejudices force them—and the reader—to confront how race, class, and personal history shape perception. The result is a reading experience as powerful as it is provocative. The short story: Recitatif by Toni Morrison Let's get LIT!  Links & Resources: Grab your Digital Reading Journal here: ETSY or Patreon Want more bookish fun? Check out our archive of episodes! (www.LITSocietyPod.com) Shop Kari's collection of luxury literary-themed candles at www.lovelitotes.com. Find Alexis and Kari online:  Instagram — www.instagram.com/litsocietypod Bluesky — https://bsky.app/profile/litsocietypod.bsky.social Our website — www.LitSocietyPod.com. Subscribe to emails and get free stuff: http://eepurl.com/gDtWCr.

Morgan and Vanessa invite you to walk in the footsteps of the late Toni Morrison, drawing inspiration from her legacy to guide a grounding meditation and self-care audit that reconnects you with the power of rest. This episode features a grounding meditation and a self-care audit, designed to reconnect you with your inner peace. Yolanda Williams brings her authentic wisdom, while sleep specialist Dr. Keith Dixon offers life-saving insights into the power of rest. Together, they explore why rest is not just a necessity, but a revolutionary act of self-preservation. Tune in for a teach-in that could change the way you care for yourself.Important Disclaimer: While this episode provides helpful information, we are not medical experts. Please consult your doctor for personalized advice.

As a longtime staff writer at The New Yorker, Hilton Als's essays and profiles of figures like Toni Morrison, Joan Didion, and Richard Pryor have redefined cultural criticism, blending autobiography with literary and social commentary. Als is also a curator. His latest gallery exhibition is The Writing's on the Wall: Language and Silence in the Visual Arts, at the Hill Art Foundation in New York. The exhibit brings together the works of 32 artists across a range of media to examine how artists embrace silence. The show asked a powerful question: What do words — and their absence — look like? The Pulitzer Prize-winning writer spoke with Tonya Mosley. Also, Ken Tucker reviews new music from Lucy Dacus and Jeffrey Lewis.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy