Kristin Swenson is an associate professor of religious studies at Virginia Commonwealth University, and she joins us to talk about approaching the Bible anew with a sense of wonder and context.
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A Mom, A Daughter And The Ocean In-Between
Author Elizabeth Miki Brina joins host us to talk about her efforts to reframe her life’s experiences through her mother’s eyes, and her attempts to understand the pain and loneliness of what it was like for her to leave her homeland behind.
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Ida B. Wells Is As Relevant As Ever
Michelle Duster is a great-granddaughter of Wells, and she joins us to talk about the Civil Rights icon’s strategies for giving a voice to the voiceless and how they might be used in present-day America.
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A Dissident Egyptian Comic Takes On Middle School Bullies
Bassem Youssef, the heart surgeon turned political satirist, joins us to talk about the unique experiences of immigrant children and what he learned from observing his own family.
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David Sedaris’ Greatest Hits
David Sedaris joins host Krys Boyd to discuss his essays on family, falling in love, relationships, aging, and the weird ways life’s struggles make us all the more rich.
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George Saunders On What Makes A Great Short Story
Novelist George Saunders is the recipient of the Man Booker Prize and many other literary honors, and he joins host Krys Boyd to discuss his book of seven essays about what makes great writing and how readers connect with a page of words.
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Is Appropriation In Art Always Wrong?
Paisley Rekdal, Distinguished Professor of English at the University of Utah and the state’s poet laureate, joins us to discuss the places where identity intersects with politics, and why it’s important to confront the language we use when defining cultures.
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Where Do You Go For Advice – Novels Or Self-Help?
Beth Blum, assistant professor of English at Harvard University, joins us to discuss how classic authors talked to audiences about themes of self-actualization, and how writers today still draw from that well of tips and tricks for better living.
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A Novel Plumbs An Immigrant Family’s American Dream
Simon Han joins host Krys Boyd to talk about his story about assimilation and the struggle for immigrants to reach that fabled “shining city upon a hill.”
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A Conversation With John Grisham
John Grisham joins us to talk about his prolific pace of writing a book a year – and about the art of the legal thriller.
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A Fictional Character’s Very Real Asian-American Experience
Charles Yu, author and writer for shows on FX, AMC and HBO, joins us to discuss his book “Interior Chinatown: A Novel.”
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He Died, Their Love Survived
Tembi Locke talks to us about love and loss: from finding her soulmate in Florence to his death from cancer, to the decision to travel back to her husband’s Sicilian hometown to find herself — and her family — again.
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