Boris Fishman, A REPLACEMENT LIFE & John Cushman, KEYSTONE AND BEYOND

Boris Fishman talks about his terrific debut novel about coming of age as an immigrant in America, A REPLACEMENT LIFE.

And Obama just announced a get-tough policy on carbon pollution from coal-fired power plants. Now the question is, will he or won’t he on the Keystone XL pipeline? John Cushman of Inside Climate News tells the story leading up to Obama’s predicament on the pipeline and where he might go in the future. Cushman’s new e-book is KEYSTONE AND BEYOND.

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Podcast

Scott Chaskey, SEEDTIME

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Poet and farmer Scott Chaskey talks about his new book, Seedtime: The History, Husbandry, Politics and Promise of Seeds.

In the book, Chaskey considers “the web of biodiversity and resilience at the heart of our cultural inheritance” by weaving history, politics, botany, literature, mythology, and memoir into his profoundly moving book.

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Podcast

James Romm, DYING EVERY DAY & Robert Knapp, INVISIBLE ROMANS

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Who was the real Seneca — the moral philosopher or the power broker to the Roman emperor? That’s what historian James Romm explores in his book, DYING EVERY DAY: Seneca at the Court of Nero.

And Nero and Seneca were the elite. But what about the other 99%? Historian Robert Knapp talks about the common people of ancient Rome in his book, INVISIBLE ROMANS.

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Jim Sterba, NATURE WARS

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Journalist Jim Sterba talks about the growing battles over wildlife in America’s cities and suburbs — about deer, beavers, geese, bears, feral cats and more. His book is NATURE WARS: The Incredible Story of How Wildlife Comebacks Turned Backyards into Battlegrounds. It’s about the resurgence of wildlife into areas of human habitation and the resulting struggles to balance human and wildlife needs.

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Web Extras

Betty Medsger (THE BURGLARY) on the FBI’s Blunder in Camden, NJ

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Betty Medsger talks about a colossal blunder committed by the FBI during its investigation of the burglary — its prosecution of what turned out to be a totally unrelated incident in Camden, NJ that left the FBI with some serious egg on its face.

It was the arrest and prosecution of a large group of antiwar activists who planned a break-in at a draft board office. The FBI was sure the break-in was linked to the burglary of the Media, PA FBI office. But it wasn’t. Find out what happens by listening to this excerpt.

Listen to this Web-only excerpt about the Camden 28Â from our longer interview with Betty Medsger about her book, The Burglary.

Podcast

Betty Medsger, THE BURGLARY & Don Mitchell, FLYING BLIND

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Betty Medsger talks about her book about the 1971 Media, PA theft of files from an FBI office, The Burglary: The Discovery of J. Edgar Hoover’s Secret FBI. And Don Mitchell tells how he got involved in the fight to protect endangered bats in his book, Flying Blind.

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David Bollier, THINK LIKE A COMMONER & Michael Shuman, LOCAL DOLLARS, LOCAL SENSE

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David Bollier talks about The Commons economy in his new book, THINK LIKE A COMMONER. But the Commons economy isn’t the only way to help communities — so can the market, if it’s in the form of investing in local and sustainable businesses. Michael Shuman’s new book, LOCAL DOLLARS, LOCAL SENSE, says that’s good for communities and investors.

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Leah Vincent, CUT ME LOOSE and Amy Dryansky, GRASS WHISTLE

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Leah Vincent talks about her memoir Cut Me Loose: Sin and Salvation After My Ultra-Orthodox Girlhood. And April is poetry month; we talk with poet Amy Dryansky about her new poetry volume, Grass Whistle, and about balancing being a mother and a poet.

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Amy Dryansky reads from Grass Whistle

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Amy Dryansky reads her poem “Lost and Found” from her poetry collection Grass Whistle.

Grass WhistleÂ has been named a “must-read” by the Massachusetts Center for the Book and is one of six finalists for the MA Book Award in Poetry.

Podcast

Robert Harris, AN OFFICER & A SPY & Francine Prose, LOVERS AT THE CHAMELEON CLUB

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Robert Harris talks about his terrific new novel about the Dreyfus Affair and the whistleblower who blew it wide open: An Officer And A Spy. And Francine Prose talks about her new historical novel about France in the 1930’s: Lovers At The Chameleon Club-Paris, 1932.

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John Rennie Short, STRESS TESTING THE USA & John Michael Greer, GREEN WIZARDRY

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John Rennie Short talks about dealing with disasters; his book is Stress Testing The USA:Â Public Policy and Reaction to Disaster Events. And could simple, affordable, appropriate technology be the solution to surviving the post industrial future? John Michael Greer says yes! His book is Green Wizardry: Conservation, Solar Power, Organic Gardening, and Other Hands-On Skills From the Appropriate Tech Toolkit.

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Podcast

M.P. Barker, MENDING HORSES & Ellen Bryson THE TRANSFORMATION OF BARTHOLOMEW FORTUNO

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M.P. Barker talks about her new historical novel for middle readers and above, Mending Horses. It’s a sequel to her wonderful first novel, A Difficult Boy. And then Ellen Bryson takes P.T. Barnum’s first circus as the setting to explore the outsider in all of us. Her novel is The Transformation of Bartholomew Fortuno. Continue reading →

Writer's Voice

Talking to writers about matters that move us

Boris Fishman, A REPLACEMENT LIFE & John Cushman, KEYSTONE AND BEYOND

Scott Chaskey, SEEDTIME

James Romm, DYING EVERY DAY & Robert Knapp, INVISIBLE ROMANS

Jim Sterba, NATURE WARS

Betty Medsger (THE BURGLARY) on the FBI’s Blunder in Camden, NJ

Betty Medsger, THE BURGLARY & Don Mitchell, FLYING BLIND

David Bollier, THINK LIKE A COMMONER & Michael Shuman, LOCAL DOLLARS, LOCAL SENSE

Leah Vincent, CUT ME LOOSE and Amy Dryansky, GRASS WHISTLE

Amy Dryansky reads from Grass Whistle

Robert Harris, AN OFFICER & A SPY & Francine Prose, LOVERS AT THE CHAMELEON CLUB

John Rennie Short, STRESS TESTING THE USA & John Michael Greer, GREEN WIZARDRY

M.P. Barker, MENDING HORSES & Ellen Bryson THE TRANSFORMATION OF BARTHOLOMEW FORTUNO

Dr. Brad Spellberg, RISING PLAGUE & Edward McClelland, NOTHIN’ BUT BLUE SKIES

Rob Okun, VOICE: MALE & Honor Moore, POEMS FROM THE WOMEN’S MOVEMENT

Dr. Jordan Metzl, THE EXERCISE CURE & Randy Davila, THINK LIKE A PUBLISHER