All posts by Francesca Rheannon

About Francesca Rheannon

Francesca Rheannon is an award-winning independent radio producer. In addition to hosting Writer's Voice, she's a freelance reporter for National Public Radio and its affiliates. Recipient of the prestigious Nancy Dickerson Whitehead Award for reporting on substance abuse issues for her news series, VOICES OF HIV, produced for 88.5 WFCR public radio in western Massachusetts. She is also finishing a book on Provence (PROVINCE OF THE HEART) and working on a memoir of her father, THE ARGONAUTS.

Podcast

Writer’s Voice: Frans de Waal, DIFFERENT & Richard Louv, OUR WILD CALLING

We talk with world-renowned primatologist Frans de Waal about his new book, Different: Gender Through The Eyes of a Primatologist.

Then we re-air our 2019 conversation with Richard Louv about his book Our Wild Calling. It’s about redefining the future of human-animal coexistence.

Writers Voice— in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004.
Like us on Facebook at Writers Voice with Francesca Rheannon, on Instagram @WritersVoicePodcast or find us on twitter @WritersVoice.

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Podcast

Luma Mufleh, LEARNING AMERICA & Peter Kalmus, BEING THE CHANGE

We talk with Lumah Mufleh about her spellbinding book, LEARNING AMERICA: One Woman’s Fight for Educational Justice for Refugee Children.

Then, for Earth Day, we re-air our 2017 interview with NASA climate scientist Peter Kalmus about his book, Being the Change.

Writers Voice— in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004.
Like us on Facebook at Writers Voice with Francesca Rheannon, on Instagram @WritersVoicePodcast or find us on twitter @WritersVoice.

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Podcast

NoViolet Bulaweyo, GLORY & Jennifer Haigh, MERCY STREET

We talk with NoViolet Bulaweyo about her powerful allegorical novel about the fall of Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe and the chaos and opportunity that rose in its wake. It’s called Glory.

Then, Jennifer Haigh tells us about her new novel, Mercy Street. It’s a gripping tale about abortion: its defenders and its antagonists.

We also hear Theresa Davis reading her poem “What to Do When a Politician Tries to Fall into Your Vagina Feet First.”

Writers Voice— in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004.
Like us on Facebook at Writers Voice with Francesca Rheannon or find us on twitter @WritersVoice.

Love Writer’s Voice? Please rate us on your podcast app. It really helps to get the word out about our show.

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Podcast

Oliver Milman, THE INSECT CRISIS & more

We talk with Oliver Milman about his book The Insect Crisis: The Fall of the Tiny Empires That Run the World. It’s a devastating examination of how collapsing insect populations worldwide threaten everything from wild birds to the food on our plate.

Then, we round out today’s episode with some practical advice on how to make your lawn and garden pollinator-friendly. We talk with Gail Pellett of the group ChangeEHampton.

Writers Voice— in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004.

Like us on Facebook at Writers Voice with Francesca Rheannon, on Instagram @WritersVoicePodcast or find us on twitter @WritersVoice.

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Podcast

Rosemary Sullivan, THE BETRAYAL OF ANNE FRANK

This week on Writer’s Voice we talk with Rosemary Sullivan about her book, The Betrayal of Anne Frank: A Cold Case Investigation. The book has become mired in controversy since our interview was recorded. We include links to the critique of the book and the rebuttal to those critiques, as well as Rosemary Sullivan’s statement to Writer’s Voice about the controversy. Continue reading

Podcast

Ali Noorani, CROSSING BORDERS & Andy Bowman, THE WEST TEXAS POWER PLANT THAT SAVED THE WORLD

We talk with Ali Noorani about his book Crossing Borders: The Reconciliation of a Nation of Immigrants. It’s about going beyond divisive polemics to bring a compassionate understanding of the reality of immigration to the public.

Then, we talk with Andy Bowman about how solar power is becoming the cheapest energy source. His book is The West Texas Power Plant That Saved The World: Energy, Capitalism, and Climate Change (Foreword by Katherine Hayhoe.)

Writers Voice— in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004.

Like us on Facebook at Writers Voice with Francesca Rheannon, on Instagram @WritersVoicePodcast or find us on twitter @WritersVoice.

Love Writer’s Voice? Please rate us on your podcast app. It really helps to get the word out about our show.

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Podcast

John Nichols, CORONAVIRUS CRIMINALS AND PANDEMIC PROFITEERS

We spend the hour with John Nichols talking about his latest book Coronavirus Criminals And Pandemic Profiteers.

Writers Voice— in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004.

Like us on Facebook at Writers Voice with Francesca Rheannon, on Instagram @WritersVoicePodcast or find us on twitter @WritersVoice.

Love Writer’s Voice? Please rate us on your podcast app. It really helps to get the word out about our show.

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Podcast

Lee Kravetz, THE LAST CONFESSIONS OF SYLVIA P.

We talk with Lee Kravetz about his stunning literary mystery, The Last Confessions of Sylvia P.

Then, as more states pass laws attacking transgender families, we listen back to a clip from my 2019 interview with Mimi Lemay about her memoir of her transgender son, What We Will Become.

Writers Voice— in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004.

Like us on Facebook at Writers Voice with Francesca Rheannon, on Instagram @WritersVoicePodcast or find us on twitter @WritersVoice.

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Podcast

Dana Thomas, FASHIONOPOLIS & Michael Klare on Russia and geopolitics of energy

We talk with journalist and author Dana Thomas about the Young Readers Edition of her book, Fashionopolis.

Then, we air some clips from our 2008 interview with energy and security analyst and author Michael Klare, where we speak about Russia as a petro-state, its then-war with Georgia and the geo-politics of energy. The relevance to what’s happening today with Russia’s assault on Ukraine is striking.

Writers Voice— in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004.

Like us on Facebook at Writers Voice with Francesca Rheannon, on Instagram @WritersVoicePodcast or find us on twitter @WritersVoice.

Love Writer’s Voice? Please rate us on your podcast app. It really helps to get the word out about our show.

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Podcast

Donald Cohen, THE PRIVATIZATION OF EVERYTHING

Whatever happened to public goods? And how do we get them back?

That’s the question we ponder this hour with Donald Cohen, talking about his book The Privatization of Everything: How the Plunder of Public Goods Transformed America and How We Can Fight Back.

We also remember Dr. Paul Farmer who died suddenly this week.

Writers Voice— in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004.

Like us on Facebook at Writers Voice with Francesca Rheannon, on Instagram @WritersVoicePodcast or find us on twitter @WritersVoice.

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Podcast

Malinda Lo, LAST NIGHT AT THE TELEGRAPH CLUB & Syed Masood, THE BAD MUSLIM DISCOUNT

We talk with Malinda Lo about her award winning novel, Last Night At The Telegraph Club. It’s a YA historical novel about a Chinese American lesbian.

Then Syed Masood tells us about his new novel, The Bad Muslim Discount. It’s a poignant, funny and profoundly human novel about Muslim immigrants finding their way in modern America.

Writers Voice— in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004.

Like us on Facebook at Writers Voice with Francesca Rheannon, on Instagram @WritersVoicePodcast or find us on twitter @WritersVoice.

Love Writer’s Voice? Please rate us on your podcast app. It really helps to get the word out about our show.

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Podcast

Elizabeth George, SOMETHING TO HIDE & DaMaris Hill, A BOUND WOMAN IS A DANGEROUS THING

Bestselling mystery writer Elizabeth George tackles the horror of FGM. We talk with her about her latest in the Inspector Lynley series, Something To Hide. It explores the practice of female genital mutilation in the Nigerian community in London and the fight to stop it.

Then, for Black History Month, we re-air our 2019 interview with DaMaris Hill about her narrative in verse, A Bound Woman Is A Dangerous Thing: The Incarceration Of African-American Women From Harriet Tubman To Sandra Bland.

Writers Voice— in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004.

Like us on Facebook at Writers Voice with Francesca Rheannon, on Instagram @WritersVoicePodcast or find us on twitter @WritersVoice.

Love Writer’s Voice? Please rate us on your podcast app. It really helps to get the word out about our show.

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Podcast

BLACK HISTORY MONTH: Tamara Payne on Les Payne’s THE DEAD ARE ARISING (Re-Broadcast)

For Black History Month, we re-air our conversation with Tamara Payne about her late father Les Payne’s acclaimed biography of Malcolm X, The Dead Are Arising. It won the National Book Award in 2020.

Writer’s Voice — in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004.

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Podcast

Howard Mansfield, CHASING EDEN

We spend the hour with Howard Mansfield, first talking about his new book, Chasing Eden: A Book of Seekers. It’s about those who long to build a better life for themselves and others.

Then, we replay our 2019 interview with Mansfield about his book The Habit of Turning the World Upside Down. It’s about how American society treats property rights — and who pays the price.

Writers Voice— in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004.

Like us on Facebook at Writers Voice with Francesca Rheannon or find us on twitter @WritersVoice.

Love Writer’s Voice? Please rate us on your podcast app. It really helps to get the word out about our show.

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Podcast

Thor Hanson, HURRICANE LIZARDS AND PLASTIC SQUID & Beth Shapiro, LIFE AS WE MADE IT

Today we have two fascinating interviews, both about how human beings are changing the other species with whom we share the planet.

Later in the show, we talk with evolutionary biologist Beth Shapiro about how humans deliberately change species. Her book is Life As We Made It: How 50,000 Years Of Human Innovation Refined And Redefined Nature.

But first, Thor Hanson tells us about how many species are evolving to adapt to human-caused climate change. His book is Hurricane Lizards And Plastic Squid: The Fraught And Fascinating Biology Of Climate Change.

Writers Voice— in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004.

Like us on Facebook at Writers Voice with Francesca Rheannon, on Instagram @WritersVoicePodcast or find us on twitter @WritersVoice.

Love Writer’s Voice? Please rate us on your podcast app. It really helps to get the word out about our show.

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