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. View all posts by Francesca Rheannon →

Thomas Frank on “populism” & Donna Murch on mass incarceration

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Populism — what is it really? And when we condemn it, are we missing the point? We talk with political analyst Thomas Frank about populism, real and fake. He’s the author of such books as What’s the Matter With Kansas? and Listen, Liberal, among others.

Then, Joe Biden’s record in promoting policies that led to mass incarceration of black and brown Americans is coming under scrutiny. We play excerpts from a 2016 interview we did with historian Donna Murch about those policies and how centrist Democrats like Biden joined with racist Republicans to bring them about.

Writer’s Voice — in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004. Rate us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts!

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Christina Proenza-Coles, AMERICAN FOUNDERS & Sara Collins, THE CONFESSIONS OF FRANNIE LANGTON

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We talk with Christina Proenza-Coles about her groundbreaking new history, American Founders: How People of African Descent Established Freedom in the New World.

Then, we talk with Jamaican-English author Sara Collins about her breakout debut novel, The Confessions of Frannie Langton. It’s an historical thriller about a former slave who is accused of murdering her employer and his wife in Georgian London.

Writer’s Voice — in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004. Rate us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts!

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Eve Ensler, THE APOLOGY & INSECURE AT LAST

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We spend the hour with playwright, author and activist Eve Ensler, first talking about her latest book, The Apology. It’s written in the voice of her father, who inflicted terrible emotional, sexual and physical abuse on her when she was a child.

Then we air an excerpt from our 2006 interview with her about Ensler’s book, Insecure at Last. Continue reading →

Fighting Ageism: Ashton Applewhite, THIS CHAIR ROCKS & Dr. Louise Aronson, ELDERHOOD

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We talk with Ashton Applewhite about her manifesto against ageism, This Chair Rocks.

Then, writer and geriatrician Louise Aronson tells us about her book, Elderhood: Redefining Aging, Transforming Medicine, Reimagining Life.

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Gregory Pardlo, AIR TRAFFIC and Robert Pollin on NY’s Climate and Community Protection Act

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We talk with Pulitzer Prize-winning poet and writer Gregory Pardlo about his searing family memoir, AIR TRAFFIC: A Memoir of Ambition & Manhood in AmericaÂ (Knopf, April 2019).

Then, is New York State poised to pass the most ambitious Green New Deal in the country? We talk with economist Robert Pollin about New York’s Climate and Community Protection Act.

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Eric Blanc, RED STATE REVOLT & Dale Russakoff, THE PRIZE

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Eric Blanc talks about his book, Red State Revolt: The Teachers’ Strike Wave And Working-Class Politics. (Verso, April 2019). It is an indispensable window into the changing shape of the American working class and American politics.

Then, we hear our 2015 interview with Dale Russakoff about her book, The Prize. It’s about the ambitious plan hatched by Cory Booker, Chris Christie and Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg to transform Newark’s schools system—from the top down.

Writer’s Voice — in depth conversation with writers of all genres. On the air since 2004. Rate us on iTunes or your favorite podcast app!

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Lori Gottlieb, MAYBE YOU SHOULD TALK TO SOMEONE and Bev Thomas, A GOOD ENOUGH MOTHER

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Today’s episode features two books that explore therapy from both sides of the couch. We talk with Lori Gottlieb about her bestselling memoir, Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: A Therapist, HER Therapist, and Our Lives Revealed.

Then, a novel about a therapist who finds herself crossing dangerous lines with a patient while struggling with her own grief: we talk with Bev Thomas about her debut novel, A Good Enough Mother. A breakout sensation in the UK, it was just published in the US.

Writer’s Voice — in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004. Rate us on iTunesÂ and your other podcast clients!

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Glenn Silber, THE WAR AT HOME

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Francesca talks with Glenn Silber about the acclaimed documentary he co-directed, The War At Home. It’s about the anti-war movement in Madison, Wisconsin from 1963 to 1972. First released in 1979, it’s been digitally re-mastered and re-released last year.

The War At Home chronicles the anti-war protest movement through the lens of its history in Madison, Wisconsin, with a powerful combination of rare archival footage and interviews with student leaders. Film critic Roger Ebert called it “one of the twenty greatest political films of all time.”

Writer’s Voice — in depth conversation with writers of all genres. On the air since 2004. Rate us on iTunesÂ or your podcast provider! Continue reading →

Benjamin Dreyer, DREYER’S ENGLISH & Kitty Burns Florey, SISTER BERNADETTE’S BARKING DOG

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We talk with Benjamin Dreyer, author of the surprise best seller, Dreyer’s English: An Utterly Correct Guide To Clarity And Style.

Then, we re-air our 2007 interview with Kitty Burns Florey about her book Sister Bernadette’s Barking Dog. It’s all about the arcane joy and usefulness of diagramming sentences. Continue reading →

Louise Shelley: DARK COMMERCE, Wendell Potter: Attacks on Medicare4All & Erik Grafe: Upholding the Offshore Drilling Ban

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We talk with Dr. Louise Shelley about her book Dark Commerce: How a New Illicit Economy Is Threatening Our Future. It’s a shocking exposÁ© of the links between government corruption, terrorism and international crime syndicates that’s destroying wildlife, forests and oceans.

Then,Â Wendell Potter tells usÂ about how health industry lobbyists are influencing the debate over Medicare for All.

Finally, Erik Grafe of Earthjustice talks about challenging Trump’s attempt to undo the ban on drilling in the Arctic and Atlantic oceans — and winning. Continue reading →

Damion Searls on Uwe Johnson’s ANNIVERSARIES & Peter Filkins, H. G. ADLER

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We talk today with Damion Searls about his acclaimed translation of Uwe Johnson’s landmark of 20th Century literature, ANNIVERSARIES, now in English for the first time.

Then, we welcome Peter Filkins back to Writer’s Voice; we’ve spoken with him before about his translations of the works of H.G. Adler. Now, he tells us about his biography of Adler, H.G. ADLER: A Life in Many Worlds. Continue reading →

Wendell Potter: “Democrats On The Take” fight Medicare For All

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WV host Francesca Rheannon talks with former health insurance industry executive and whistleblower Wendell Potter about how the attacks on Medicare For All are being fueled by health insurance cash to Democrats. Continue reading →

DaMaris Hill, A BOUND WOMAN IS A DANGEROUS THING & Stephen Nash, GRAND CANYON FOR SALE

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We talk 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 BlandÂ (Bloomsbury, 2019).

Then, at a time that our public lands and ocean territories are being auctioned off for exploitation by the oil and gas industries, Stephen Nash examines the case of the Grand Canyon. His book is Grand Canyon For Sale: Public Lands versus Private Interests in the Era of Climate Change. Continue reading →

Bill Henderson, ALL MY DOGS & David Lindorff on Pentagon Fraud

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The Pushcart Prize is one of the most venerable institutions in American publishing. It’s been going strong on a shoestring since 1976. We talk withÂ Pushcart Press’ founder and editor Bill Henderson about the prize and his memoir All My Dogs.

Then, Trump just proposed a massive increase to an already bloated military budget, while proposing huge cuts to Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and funding for the environment. How did the Pentagon budget get so bloated? We talk with David Lindorff about the massive Pentagon accounting fraud he exposed that’s part of the reason military spending just keeps going up. Lindorf was just awarded the

Writer’s Voice — in depth conversation with writers of all genres. On the air since 2004. Rate us on iTunes!

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Nora Krug, BELONGING & Roz Chast, GOING INTO TOWN

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We talk with Nora Krug about her memoir exploring her family’s history during Nazi Germany, Belonging: A German Reckons With History and Home.

Then, when her daughter got into college in Manhattan, celebrated New Yorker cartoonist Roz Chast wanted to give her a guide to getting around in the city. We talk with Chast about the graphic book that came out of that guide. It’s called Going Into Town: A Love Letter to New York.

Writer’s Voice — in depth conversation with writers of all genres. On the air since 2004. Rate us on iTunes!

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