Writer's Voice with Francesca Rheannon

Les Leopold talks about his new book, Runaway Inequality: An Activist’s Guide to Economic Justice. It's about how wealth and income inequality are strip-mining our economy and destroying communities across America. Then — with massive voter purges and hackable voting machines, are American elections really clean and fair? We hear a clip from a recent speech from election integrity expert Robert Fitrakis. He’s got a new book out, co-authored with Harvey Wasserman — The Strip And Flip Selection of 2016.

George Hodgeman talks about his wonderful memoir of taking care of his mother in her declining years, Bettyville, first published in 2015 and now out in paperback. Then we re-air our 2011 interview with Dr. Allan Teel about his innovative approach to caring for seniors, called Full Circle. His book is Alone and Invisible No More.

Novelist Jennifer Haigh talks about her powerful new book, Heat and Light. It’s about what happens to a small Pennsylvania community when the frackers come to town. Then Andrew Nikiforuk tells the true story of Jessica Ernst, a Canadian oil patch consultant turned anti-fracking activist. We talk with him about his book, Slick Water: Fracking and One Insider’s Stand Against the World’s Most Powerful Industry.

Peter Blood and Annie Patterson, co-creators of Rise Up Singing, talk about the sequel, Rise Again (Hal Leonard Publishing June, 2015). We talk with them about both songbooks, their work with Pete Seeger and their long collaboration as a musical couple. Then we talk with journalist and anti-fracking activist, Maura Stephens.

We talk with political scientist Patrick Barrett about his article, “Can We Change the Political System? Strategic Lessons of the Bernie Sanders Campaign”. Then we re-air our 2008 interview with muckraking reporter Greg Palast about his book Steal Back Your Vote.

Francesca Rheannon of Writer's Voice speaks with journalist and fractivist Maura Stephens of the Coalition to Protect New York and FrackBustersNY.org.

We talk with Elizabeth Marshall Thomas about her memoir, Dreaming of Lions: My Life In The Wild Places. And wildlife conservationist Dale Peterson discusses his latest book, Where Have All The Animals Gone? My Travels with Karl Ammann.

Rutgers University historian Donna Murch speaks with Francesca about the impact of the 1994 crime bill passed by President Clinton and its devastating impact on communities of color.

Liza Featherstone talks about the collection of essays she's edited, False Choices: The Faux Feminism of Hillary Rodham Clinton (Verso Press, June 2016). Then we talk with one of the contributors to False Choices, Rutgers history professor Donna Murch. Her essay is titled, “The Clintons’ War on Drugs: When Black Lives Didn’t Matter.”

David and Jean Stiles talk about their latest book, Backyard Buildings: Tree Houses, Sheds, Arbors, Gates and Other Garden Projects. Then we replay our 2013 interview with Howard Mansfield about his profound and delightful book, Dwelling in Possibility: Searching for the Soul of Sh

Ellen Meeropol talks about her new novel, On Hurricane Island. It’s about what happens when an innocent American citizen is abducted to a domestic black site and tortured. Meeropol also discusses how being married to one of the sons of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg has influenced her writing. Then, a look back at one of the greatest writers and critics of America’s first Gilded Age and his relevance for today, Jack London: Cecelia Tichi talks about her biography of the great writer and democratic socialist, Jack London: A Writer’s Fight For a Better America.

Katy Simpson Smith talks about her new novel, Free Men. Then in the second half of the show, we replay our 2014 interview with Smith about her acclaimed first novel, Story of Land And Sea. Also, we review Academy Street by Mary Costello and hear two poems by Amy Dryansky.

We talk with novelist Robert Harris about the last book in his trilogy about the Roman statesman Cicero, Dictator. Then, economist James Galbraith tells us why he disagrees with the attacks on Gerald Friedman’s analysis of Senator Bernie Sanders’ economic plan. And finally, we pay tribute to Dr.Quentin Young, who passed away this week, with a clip from an interview Francesca did with him in 2009.

Lauret Savoy reads from Trace: Memory, History, Race, and the American Landscape and talks about her work as a scientist.

We talk with environmental earth scientist and writer Lauret Savoy about her stunning new book, Trace: Memory History, Race & The American Landscape.