Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

Louise Erdrich says she worked on her latest work of fiction, [amazon-product text=”A PLAGUE OF DOVES” type=”text”]0060515139[/amazon-product] for nineteen years before publication. It was worth the wait. This week Francesca talks with Louise Erdrich and journalist Jeremy Scahill about his book, [amazon-product text=”BLACKWATER: The Rise of the Worlds Most Powerful Mercenary Army” type=”text”]156858394X[/amazon-product].

[amazon-product align=”right”]0060515139[/amazon-product]

In this masterful tale, Erdrich explores themes of violence, revenge, secrets, and the postponement of justice. The novel centers around a murder and lynching that occurred almost a century ago and how they reverberate through the generations of Native Americans and whites in a fictional town in a North Dakota reservation. It is both lyrical in its language and unsparing in its emotional truth. In our conversation, Erdrich talks about the historical, personal and contemporary wellsprings from which the book takes its inspiration.

If you’re interested in audio books, please check out Louise Erdrich’s The Red Convertible: Selected and New Stories, 1978-2008: Thalia Book Club.

We also air an archived interview with independent journalist Jeremy Scahill about his book, [amazon-product text=”BLACKWATER: The Rise of the Worlds Most Powerful Mercenary Army” type=”text”]156858394X[/amazon-product]. It’s just out in paperback from Nation Books.