Podcast appearances and mentions of Toni Morrison

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     

Pour ce 12ème épisode, on aborde une legendddd de la littérature américaine : Toni Morrison et son deuxième roman Sula (1973). Au programme : des catastrophes, des catastrophes et encore des catastrophes dans un livre qui ne nous aura pas totalement mis d'accord ; une grande première dans l'histoire de l'émission (fallait bien une prix Nobel de littérature pour réussir cet exploit. Bravo). Bonne écoute ! Notre insta : https://www.instagram.com/le.racontage.podcast/ Visuel : https://www.instagram.com/emmajbertin/

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.

We started the Fully-Booked Podcast episode with some personal updates and our latest reads. Meaghan had just finished The Housemaid by Freida McFadden, a fast-paced thriller that she found both fun and perplexing in terms of what to expect from its sequels. She mentioned how Shirin tends to dive into one author's entire catalogue when she discovers a book she enjoys, and this time it was her turn to follow suit.Shirin, on the other hand, had just wrapped up Sunrise on the Reaping, the most recent Hunger Games novel. Neither of us is a die-hard fan of the series, but we both appreciated certain elements, especially when previous entries focused on characters like President Snow.Shirin noted that while the book was fine, it felt repetitive, echoing Katniss' journey in the original trilogy. She admitted she might not have read it had the movie already been out, highlighting how closely these books and films tend to mirror each other.The ALA's 2024 Challenged Book DataThe main focus of this episode was the alarming increase in book censorship across North America, especially in the United States. Shirin had been diving into data from the American Library Association (ALA), and the numbers were staggering. In 2024 alone, there were 4,190 book titles challenged, mostly pushed by pressure groups and influenced decision-makers, not just concerned parents. For context, from 2001 to 2020, an average of only 46 titles were challenged each year.What really stood out was how the nature of these censorship efforts had shifted. Back in the early 2000s, only 6% of challenges came from organized groups. In 2024, that number skyrocketed to 72%. Most of the targeted books contained LGBTQ+ themes, racial identity, social justice, or stories of personal trauma and coming-of-age.This prompted us to ask: Why are people so threatened by lived experience, empathy, and diversity in storytelling? It seems that instead of aiming to protect children, these groups are trying to erase stories that reflect the reality of many people's lives.Exploring The Top 10 Most Challenged BooksWe broke down the top 10 most challenged books of 2024, and unsurprisingly, they shared common themes; queer identity, racial struggle, gender exploration, addiction, and trauma.Books like All Boys Aren't Blue by George M. Johnson and Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe were high on the list, both memoirs focused on LGBTQ+ identity. We also saw classic literary staples still getting flak, The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison being one of them, which surprised us because it's been around since 1970. Apparently, we're still not ready to have honest conversations about race.Titles like Looking for Alaska, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, and Me and Earl and the Dying Girl were also included, all of which cover complex teenage emotions and situations: suicide, sexuality, and death. Other books like Crank and Sold dealt with heavy, real-world issues like drug addiction and human trafficking.We asked each other: What exactly are people afraid of here? Why is it seen as dangerous to talk about these subjects when they're happening in real life? It feels absurd to ban a story about a teen struggling with meth because it might "influence" readers, when in fact these stories can educate and offer emotional insight. The irony is almost unbearable.The Situation in CanadaWhile the U.S. tends to get most of the attention in these discussions, we didn't let Canada off the hook. Meaghan brought up that even here, we're seeing a troubling rise in book challenges. In 2024, 119 titles were challenged, with another 30 already flagged in early 2025. The primary reasons echoed those in the U.S., objections to LGBTQ+ themes, “explicit” content, and gender diversity.The data came from the Canadian Library Challenges Database, which is backed by Toronto Metropolitan University's Centre for Free Expression. A lot of the concerns were about age appropriateness, but even that excuse feels like a smokescreen for discomfort with difference.However, there was a silver lining. BookNet Canada reported that LGBTQ+ fiction sales actually rose by 34% in the last quarter of 2024. Clearly, when you try to silence something, it can make people even more curious. People want stories that represent who they are, and thankfully, we're in a time where those books are being written, published, and read.The Power of Storytelling and RepresentationThis episode ultimately came down to a shared belief in the importance of storytelling and the power of representation. We reflected on how bookstores and libraries are fighting back. Displays of banned books are becoming more common, and institutions like Barnes & Noble and public libraries are leaning into the controversy by highlighting these works.Nearly half of public libraries now offer banned book displays, up 15% since 2020. Publishers also continue to support these stories, showing there's still a demand, and that matters. If publishers stopped backing these authors, then we'd really be in trouble.We ended by reaffirming that censorship doesn't protect, it stifles. If someone finds a topic uncomfortable, they can choose not to read it. That's their right. But trying to take that right away from others? That's not okay.In the end, we were fired up, but hopeful. Because for every book banned, there's a reader who finds it and feels seen. That's the kind of power stories have, and that's worth protecting.

Vendredi 6 juin 2025 Rencontre avec Houria Bouteldja et Louisa Yousfi pour présenter leurs ouvrages "Beaufs et barbares : pari du nous" et "Rester barbare" aux Éditions La Fabrique."Beaufs et barbares : pari du nous", Houria Bouteldja« Je l'avoue, c'est un bien curieux mot que ce “nous”. Et si j'ai grand-peine à me convaincre qu'une telle unité soit possible, je ne me résous pas à l'idée que tout n'aura pas été tenté. Aussi, faut-il commencer par ce qui l'empêche. »C'est peu dire que le terrain est miné : un État-nation bâti sur l'esclavage et la colonisation, des organisations politiques fidèles au pacte national-racial, un chauvinisme de gauche qui a progressivement éteint l'internationalisme ouvrier, une société civile indifférente aux ravages de l'impérialisme, et la profonde « asymétrie des affects » entre petits-Blancs et sujets postcoloniaux. Telles sont quelques manifestations de « l'État racial intégral » disséqué dans la première partie de ce livre. La seconde partie propose une réflexion stratégique sur son dépassement car, on l'a vu encore récemment, l'État racial intégral comporte des brèches, colmatées faute d'avoir été consciemment élargies. C'est là qu'il faut « enfoncer le clou et aller à la recherche de l'intérêt commun », construire une politique décoloniale, inventer une dignité blanche concurrente de celle de l'extrême droite, défendre l'autonomie indigène et accepter de se salir les mains en ferraillant contre le consensus raciste. Alors, contre le bloc bourgeois occidental ébranlé par les crises qu'il a lui-même provoquées, pourra se nouer l'alliance inédite des beaufs et des barbares. "Rester barbare", Louisa Yousfi« Je sens que j'ai tellement de choses à dire qu'il vaut mieux que je ne sois pas trop cultivé. Il faut que je garde une espèce de barbarie, il faut que je reste barbare. » Cet énoncé de Kateb Yacine, Louisa Yousfi l'entend comme une formule magique : à la fois mot d'ordre esthétique et fable politique, elle permet de convoquer ensemble Chester Himes, Toni Morrison, Booba, PNL et toute une cohorte ensauvagée à l'assaut de l'Empire.Houria Bouteldja est une militante décoloniale et cofondatrice du Parti des indigènes de la République qu'elle quitte en 2020. Elle est l'autrice de Les Blancs, les Juifs et nous (2016) et de Beaufs et barbares (2023).Louisa Yousfi est journaliste. Elle est l'autrice de Rester barbare.

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.

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

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.

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

Bentornati in Bookatini 2.0 - il podcast per chi è ghiotto di libri.Con l'episodio di oggi torna la serie dedicata ai libri che volevamo assolutamente leggere immediatamente, e che poi sono rimasti a prendere polvere sui nostri comodini. Ora li rispolveriamo e ve li proponiamo per rimetterli in cima alla lista.  In particolare abbiamo chiacchierato di questi libri:"Povere Creature", Alasdair Gray, Safarà Editore"Amatissima", Toni Morrison, Pickwick"Il grande libro di Stephen King",George Beham, Mondadori"La cronologia delll'acqua", Lidia Yuknavitch, Nottetempo Editore"Amelia", Anna Burns, Keller Editore"L'albero delle arance amare", Jokha al-Harthi, Bompiani"Demon Copperhead", Barbara Kingsolver, Neri Pozza"Il mio albero di arance dolci", José Mauro De Vasconcelos, Blackie EdizioniPotete contattarmi, scrivere commenti, suggerimenti, domande e condividre con me le vostre letture su questo tema contattandomi alla pagina Instagram Bookatini_podcast.Se volete sostenermi e godere di contenuti aggiuntivi, potete unirvi a 4 possibili livelli di Patreon che trovate al link: https://www.patreon.com/bookatiniLa sigla di Bookatini è scritta e suonata da Andrea Cerea

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

In this episode, we're diving into Toni Morrison's Sula—a haunting tale of friendship, betrayal, and Black womanhood that still cuts deep today. We're also unpacking the global crisis around Afrikan refugees and the rising tension over tariffs—because the personal is always political.THE RANT: 5th-round draft pick for Shedeur Sanders? Connect with 4 Friends & A Book Podcast:YouTube: / @4friendsandabook INSTAGRAM | / 4friendsandabook FACEBOOK | / 4-friends-a-book-104994371734599 #4friendsandabookpodcast #bookreviewers #2025reading #bookrecommendation #bookclubreads #booktok #bookpodcast #booktube #shedeursanders #tariffs #tonimorrison 4 Friends and A Book podcast centers discussions on books, life experiences, and a little bit of everything else in between. We have organic conversations which flow naturally from the book at hand, through the writer's journey, and of course, the impact it has on the culture. Our mission is to bring inspiration and reinforce the joys of literacy within our community.

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

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.

Send us a textWelcome to Celebrate Poe - Episode 372 - Dracula and DoublesBefore we go any further, I want to give you a basic definition of a double in literature or movies - first using some fairly recent examples.Now a "double" refers to a character or figure that acts as a duplicate or counterpart to another, often embodying opposing traits or hidden aspects of the original character's personality. This motif explores duality, fragmented identity, and moral conflict, serving as a reflection of the protagonist's inner struggles or desires. Doubles can represent repressed qualities (e.g., evil impulses), moral opposites, or even societal anxieties, creating tension and conflict that drives the narrative.Toni Morrison's Beloved (1987)In this Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, the ghostly figure of Beloved acts as a double for Sethe's guilt and trauma over her past actions. The motif highlights themes of memory, motherhood, and the haunting effects of slavery..Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca (1938)While not a modern work in publication date, its influence persists in contemporary Gothic fiction. The unseen presence of Rebecca acts as a psychological double for the narrator, embodying her insecurities and fears about her identity in relation to her husband's first wife.These two modern examples demonstrate how the double motif remains a powerful literary tool for exploring complex psychological and social issues while maintaining its Gothic roots in creating tension and unease.Listen to this episode to hear a theory regarding how the theme of "the double" is used in Bram Stokers Dracula!Thank you for experiencing Celebrate Poe.

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.

Dr. Michelle Hite on Mothering While Black, Everyday Courage, and the Power of Telling the Truth What happens when the world sees your child as a threat before it sees them as human? What does it cost to raise a child while defending your right to grieve, to question, to be seen? This conversation centers the weight—and the wisdom—of mothering while Black. In this featured National Black Girl Month™ 2025 episode, we're joined by Dr. Michelle Hite, Spelman College professor, public scholar, and cultural critic whose work traces the intersections of Black identity, grief, and resistance. Together with co-host Dr. Rikesha Fry Brown, we examine what it means to mother, nurture, and protect in a world that wasn't built for our safety. This episode isn't about resilience. It's about truth-telling as a form of care. You'll hear: How cultural narratives, from Mamie Till to Toni Morrison, shape our understanding of motherhood Why public strength can't replace private witnessing The difference between independence and isolation—and why communal living is the lesson we keep returning to How everyday gestures become sacred acts of protection, memory, and joy Why sharing isn't a virtue. It's a practice. And we're out of practice. Whether you're a mother by birth, bond, or assignment, this conversation invites you to return to what you know: you don't have to do it alone. Listen now and access the free toolkit at NationalBlackGirlMonth.com Access Dr. Hite's work: https://www.spelman.edu/staff/profiles/michelle-hite.html  Connect with Dr. Rikesha Fry Brown: www.instagram.com/dr.rikesha  Connect with Felicia Ford: www.threads.net/@friendscallmefe  More about Dr. Hite:  Michelle Hite, Ph.D. has been a Faculty Member Since 2004 and is an Associate Professor for English, the Honors ProgramDirector and the International Fellowships and ScholarshipsDirector. Michelle Hite earned her Ph.D. from Emory University in American/African American Studies in 2009. Her dissertation used Venus and Serena Williams as subjects whose representation in popular media, books, videos, and other texts prompted her research questions regarding what their public portrayal might suggest about the intersection of race, gender, and nationalism during late capitalism.Although Dr. Hite remains deeply interested in sports, her intellectual work now focuses on African-American life, culture, and experience in the United States during the mid-twentieth century. To this end, she is currently working on a monograph about the bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama on September 15, 1963.In addition to her work as an associate professor in the English department at Spelman, Dr. Hite is director of the Ethel Waddell Githii Honors Program and director of International Fellowships and Scholarships. #nationalblackgirlmonth

Welcome to our monthly book discussion series hosted by Marisa Serafini (@serafinitv) and me, Phil Svitek! This month, we dive into Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison — a sweeping, lyrical novel about family, memory, freedom, and finding one's true self.We follow Milkman Dead, a young man born into privilege but alienated from his roots, as he embarks on a journey that reconnects him with the strength, sorrows, and ancestral stories of his past. Along the way, Morrison weaves a tapestry rich with myth, folklore, and haunting imagery—challenging us to rethink ideas of identity, flight, love, and legacy.In this discussion, we explore major themes like generational trauma, the search for selfhood, economic and racial injustice, the transformative power of oral history, and what it really means to be free. Join us as we break down Morrison's unforgettable characters, potent symbolism, and enduring legacy—and don't forget to share your thoughts in the comments!Upcoming Reads:-1984 by George Orwell (May 2025)- Avatar: The Last Airbender – The Reckoning of Roku by Randy Ribay (June 2025)-TBD (July 2025)-James Burrow's Directed By (August 2025)Be sure to like, comment, and subscribe. And check out Marisa's podcast, Friends & Favorites w/ Marisa Serafini: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/friends-and-favorites-w-marisa-serafini/id1693327509

The more independent publishers and their authors work together on their book marketing efforts, the better chance they have of selling more books. One of the main focuses of independent publisher Wordeee is figuring out how to leverage the relationships that their authors already have to maximize the reach of their book marketing efforts. Wordeee CEO Marva Allen and COO Patrice Samara join “Inside Independent Publishing (with IBPA)” to share the interesting book marketing tactics they employ with their authors, partnerships they've created for the film and audiobook rights of their books, and more.PARTICIPANTSMARVA ALLEN, CEO WORDEEEMs. Allen was president and co-owner of USI, a multi-million-dollar technology firm that was thrice nominated for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneurship Award. She is the recipient of numerous business awards, including the IBM & Kodak Excellence Awards, and was named a Crain's 40 Under 40 Awardee for significantly achieving in business before her 40th birthday. Allen was a nominee for the Top 100 Most Influential Women in Michigan. She holds a BSN from SGI in England; a B.S in Biology from the University of Michigan; and an M.S. in Health & Business Administration. As a noted book subject matter expert, Allen has been the 'go to‘ person for books for NPR, NBC, and was the on-air book contributor and commentator for Arise TV. She has been featured in the New York Times, NYSE Diversity Magazine (she rang the closing bell for Wall Street), Time Out, and various other magazines and periodicals. She spearheaded the First Literary Festival in Anguilla and hosted major events for Toni Morrison, President Bill Clinton, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and Maya Angelou, among many others. She consults with celebrities and high-profile authors who want out-of-the-box thinking on marketing, promoting, and selling their books.Ms. Allen is also the author of several books, including If I should Die Tonight; Camouflage; Protégée; and The Pianist and Min Jade under the nom de plume, C.C. AvramPATRICE SAMARA, COOA veteran entrepreneur in the communications, media and entertainment industries, Emmy, Parent's Choice, and Cine Golden-Eagle-winner Samara brings global business skills and relationships that play heavily into Wordeee's marketing and growth. An author and publisher, she has keen insight into the day-to-day operations of a myriad of successful public, private, and non-profit organizations in her forty-year career.Ms. Samara has worked in over fifty countries, has twice been an NGO Representative to the United Nations, and was the Senior Media Advisor to the 61st President of the UN General Assembly.A cross-cultural specialist, she is the author of seven Alphabet Kids children's books, a multicultural series celebrating the similarities and applauding the differences in all of us.She is also the co-author with Marva Allen of North Star, North Star, an aspirational children's book fostering community and inspiring children to be the best they can be.Independent Book Publishers Association is the largest trade association for independent publishers in the United States. As the IBPA Director of Membership & Member Services, Christopher Locke assists the 3,600 members as they travel along their publishing journeys. Major projects include managing the member benefits to curate the most advantageous services for independent publishers and author publishers; managing the Innovative Voices Program that supports publishers from marginalized communities; and hosting the IBPA podcast, “Inside Independent Publishing (with IBPA).” He's also passionate about indie publishing, because he's an author publisher himself, having published two novels so far in his YA trilogy, The Enlightenment Adventures.LINKSLearn more about the many benefits of becoming a member of Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA) here: https://www.ibpa-online.org/page/membershipLearn more about Wordeee at https://www.wordeee.com/Follow IBPA on:Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/IBPAonlineX – https://twitter.com/ibpaInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/ibpalovesindies/

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

In this episode, Hilliard and comedy writer Myles Warden sat down for a super fun conversation with Co-Executive Producer VINCENT BROWN.Vincent recently wrapped up as co-executive producer for the FOX animated series HOUSEBROKEN, starring Lisa Kudrow. Prior to that, he served as a Co-Executive Producer on Apple TV's series LIFE BY ELLA, winner of the Humanitas Award, a WGA Award and the Emmy Award for writing.Vincent began as a teen theatre performer, moving behind the scenes after graduating from Yale and becoming Dramaturge at San Francisco's Lorraine Hansberry Theatre, which mounted his first play: a stage adaptation of Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye.He began in television on the Emmy-winning PBS children's show, WISHBONE. After moving to Los Angeles, he joined MALCOLM IN THE MIDDLE as Writer's Guild Trainee, and his first network shows were COMMITTED (NBC-Universal) and GIRLFRIENDS. He haswritten for numerous family sitcoms, including Disney series such as A.N.T. FARM and K.C. UNDERCOVER, as well as adult sitcoms like the acclaimed Latino reboot of Norman Lear's ONE DAY AT A TIME. His work on A.N.T. FARM won both a WGA Award and NAACP Image Award. He wasnominated again for a WGA award for his work on LIFE BY ELLA (AppleTV+) and won the Emmy award for the same show.He has developed shows for Disney, Nickelodeon, and Kapital Entertainment in partnership with Cedric the Entertainer's Bird and Bear. He's currently working with producers trying to bring multiple projects based on IP to market because that's where we are now.Our motto: "Keep it Game All Day!"For information, Merch (T-SHIRTS/HOODIES), and all things Rant Room!www.Screenwritersrantroom.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@Hilliard Guess on all social media@Hilliardguess.bsky.socialIG: @ScreenwritersRantRoomGuests:@VincentBrownLA@ReallyMightyWE ARE NOW OPEN TO SPONSORSHIPS AND BRANDING OPPORTUNITIES⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠: Screenwritersrantroom@gmail.com

Sigrid Nunez, one of our most celebrated literary voices, joins Rhett for a conversation about writing, adaptation, and the creative process. She shares her experience of seeing her novels adapted for the screen and reflects on how film adaptations, much like cover songs, bring a new vision to a writer's work. The two discuss her writing process, transition to short stories, and the unofficial trilogy formed by her last three novels, including "The Vulnerables." Drawing wisdom from her career and the influences of writers like Toni Morrison and Virginia Woolf, she provides a candid look at what it takes to sustain a life in writing. When asked what advice she would give her 21-year-old self, her response is simple: keep writing. Follow Sigrid Nunez https://sigridnunez.com Follow Rhett @rhettmiller Wheels Off is hosted and produced by Rhett Miller. Executive producer Kirsten Cluthe. Editing by Matt Dwyer. Music by Old 97's. Episode artwork by Mark Dowd. Show logo by Tim Skirven.  This podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. You can also ask Alexa to play it. Revisit previous episodes of Wheels Off with guests Rosanne Cash, Rob Thomas, Jeff Tweedy, The Milk Carton Kids, and more. If you like what you hear, please leave us a rating or review. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices