Tag Archives: history

Podcast

Larry Tye, DEMAGOGUE & Ellen Meeropol, HER SISTER’S TATTOO

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

With Trump’s paramilitary goon squads assaulting peaceful protestors in American cities, things are looking pretty grim for democracy in America.

But Joe McCarthy biographer Larry Tye is optimistic. He says: “The lesson of Joe McCarthy and our other demagogues is that they fell even faster than they rose — once America saw through them and reclaimed its better self.“

We talk with Larry Tye about his acclaimed new book, Demagogue: The Life and Long Shadow of Senator Joe McCarthy.

Then, a novel that asks the question: how do we balance the risks of political protest with the consequences, especially when those protests turn violent? Ellen Meeropol tells us about her new novel, Her Sister’s Tattoo.

It’s about two sisters whose lives are marked by the choices they make during an antiwar demonstration in 1968. Meeropol uses history to explore the personal dimension of activism —and the thorny intersection of sibling loyalty and political beliefs.

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!

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

Continue reading →

Podcast

Emma Copley Eisenberg, THE THIRD RAINBOW GIRL & Diane Gilliam Fisher, Kettle Bottom

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

Today, we hear two stories about Appalachia, a region that’s long been subject to exploitation and prejudice.

First, we talk with Emma Copley Eisenberg about her book The Third Rainbow Girl: The Long Life of a Double Murder in Appalachia. It’s about the killing of two young women in West Virginia in 1980, how cultural bigotry against the region kept the murders from being solved — and the trauma inflicted on the community as a result.

Then, we re-air our 2004 interview with Diane Gilliam Fisher about her wonderful poetry volume Kettle Bottom. It’s about the West Virginia Mine Wars of the 1920s. Continue reading →

Podcast

Writers Voice: David Silverman, THIS LAND IS THEIR LAND & Native American scholar Marge Bruchac

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

We talk with historian David Silverman about his book This Land Is Their Land: The Wampanoag Indians, Plymouth Colony, and the Troubled History of Thanksgiving.

Then, we continue our Thanksgiving week tradition of hearing Native American storyteller and ethnohistorian Marge Bruchac talk about Thanksgiving from the Native point of view — and her re-telling of the Story of Corn.

Please make sure to like us on Facebook at Writers Voice with Francesca Rheannon or find us on twitter at WritersVoice. And if you are listening to our podcast, give us some love on iTunes or whatever podcast app you use.

Continue reading →

Podcast

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

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

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!

Continue reading →

Podcast

Glenn Silber, THE WAR AT HOME

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

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 iTunes or your podcast provider! Continue reading →

Podcast

Paul Kaplan, LILIAN WALD & Susan Bohan, TWENTY YEARS OF LIFE

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

Paul Kaplan talks about his biography, Lillian Wald: America’s Social and Healthcare Reformer. Wald was one of the most influential but least known people of the early 20th century. She founded the Visiting Nurse Service, but realized that to really tackle poverty, the conditions immigrants and their kids lived in needed to change. In treating the whole person, Wald changed the whole notion of social service for the poor.

Then, health and science journalist Susan Bohan talks about her book, Twenty Years of Life: Why the Poor Die Earlier and How to Challenge Inequity. It’s about how your zip code determines your health.

Continue reading →

Podcast

David Treuer, THE HEARTBEAT OF WOUNDED KNEE

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

Native American writer and critic David Treuer talks about his latest book, The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee: Native America from 1890 to the Present. It’s a sweeping history of the resilience of Native America in the face of oppression and injustice. (Riverhead Books, January 2019.)

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

Continue reading →

Podcast

Lawrence Goldstone, UNPUNISHED MURDER & Susan Wood, ELIZABETH WARREN

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

Today, we feature two books aimed at children and teens. We talk with Lawrence Goldstone about his book, Unpunished Murder: Massacre at Colfax and the Quest for Justice. It’s about a massacre of African Americans that occurred almost 150 years ago and the Supreme Court verdict that overturned their convictions. The case centered around an interpretation of the 14th Amendment — an amendment that is under attack today by our president and his Republican allies.

Then, we talk with children’s book author Susan Wood about her picture book biography, Elizabeth Warren: Nevertheless, She Persisted.  It is charmingly illustrated by Sarah Green. Continue reading →

Podcast

Tatjana Soli, THE REMOVES & Charles Mann, 1491

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

Tatjana Soli talks about her new novel, The Removes. It takes place during the so-called “Indian Wars” in the American West. Then, we air our interview from 2005 with Charles Mann about his acclaimed study of the Americas before Columbus, 1491. Continue reading →

Podcast

James Loewen, LIES MY TEACHER TOLD ME & Lois Lowry, FUN AND GAMES

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

We talk with James E. Loewen about his bestseller Lies My Teacher Told Me and why teaching history the right way is so important to our democracy.

Then, the celebrated author of The Giver is writing a play about school shootings. We speak with Lois Lowry about her work-in-progress, currently titled Fun and Games. Continue reading →

Podcast

Carl Hoffman, THE LAST WILD MEN OF BORNEO & Dale Peterson, THE GHOSTS OF GOMBE

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

Carl Hoffman talks about his book The Last Wild Men of Borneo: A True Story of Death and Treasure. Then we talk with Jane Goodall’s biographer Dale Peterson about his new book, The Ghosts of Gombe: A True Story of Love and Death in an African Wilderness. Continue reading →

Podcast

Steven Stoll, RAMP HOLLOW & Rachel Cleetus, Underwater

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

We talk with Steven Stoll about his brilliant history of Appalachia: Ramp Hollow: The Ordeal of Appalachia. Then, coastal property values are threatened by sea level rise. We talk with Rachel Cleetus of the Union of Concerned Scientists about the report she co-authored, Underwater, Rising Seas, Chronic Floods, and the Implications for US Coastal Real Estate. Continue reading →

Podcast

T. J. English, THE CORPORATION & HAVANA NOCTURNE

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

We talk with T.J. English about his latest book, The Corporation. It’s an epic story of the Cuban American Underworld and what that story tells us about the American political economy. We also air a clip from our 2008 interview with T.J. English about his book about the Mafia and the Cuban Revolution, Havana Nocturne.

Please do us a favor: rate us on iTunes or whichever podcast app you use. It helps to spread the word about #WritersVoice. Thanks!

Continue reading →

Podcast

David Margolick, THE PROMISE AND THE DREAM & Alex Perry, THE GOOD MOTHERS

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

We talk with David Margolick about his groundbreaking examination of the relationship between Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr. The book is The Promise and the Dream.

Then, Alex Perry discusses his book, The Good Mothers: The True Story of the Women Who Took on the World’s Most Powerful Mafia. It’s a feminist saga of true crime and justice that shows the power of women, even against the most ruthless of enemies. Continue reading →

Podcast

Larry Tye, BOBBY KENNEDY & Stephen Kiernan, THE BAKER’S SECRET

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

This week, we commemorate two momentous June 6 anniversaries. First, we explore the life of Bobby Kennedy, a life cut short on June 6, 1968. We talk with Larry Tye about his superb biography of Robert F. Kennedy, Bobby Kennedy: The Making of a Liberal Icon.

Then, we honor D-Day (June 6, 1944) by talking with Stephen Kiernan about his novel The Baker’s Secret. It tells the story of a remarkable young woman who keeps her neighbors alive until the D-Day invasion liberates their Normandy town from Nazi Occupation.

Continue reading →