Javier Zamora is the author of Unaccompanied, a poetry collection, and Solito, a memoir. “There was something that I felt eating away at me, which made me a very angry and volatile teenager. And I think I was an angry teenager because I had this trauma that nobody around me could talk about, and that … Read moreLongform Podcast #546: Javier Zamora
Things our dads taught us, whether they intended to or not. Prologue: Ira talks about the time his dad taught him to shave, and how unusual that was. (5 minutes) Act One: When Jackie read the obits for the man who had invented the famous Trapper Keeper notebook, she was very surprised. As far as … Read more815: How I Learned to Shave
Evan Hughes is a journalist whose work has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, GQ, The Atlantic, The Atavist and many others. His book, just out in paperback, is Pain Hustlers: Crime and Punishment at an Opioid Startup. “It should be called slow-form journalism…. It is heavily edited. It’s heavily fact checked. And chances … Read moreLongform Podcast #555: Evan Hughes
Yet another testimony to the power chickens have over our hearts and minds. Jack Hitt reports on an opera about Chicken Little. It’s performed with dressed-up styrofoam balls, it’s sung in Italian and, no kidding, able to make grown men cry. (14 minutes)The official website for the opera “Love’s Fowl” by Susan Vitucci and Henry Krieger … Read more241: 20 Acts in 60 Minutes
~~~~ Amy Tan Teaches Fiction, Memory, and Imagination – MasterClass page “Amy Tan was 33 before she first explored her voice as a fiction author. A few years later, her debut novel, The Joy Luck Club, spent 40 weeks on The New York Times bestseller list. Now she’s showing you her approach to the challenges … Read moreAmy Tan on Writing and Depression, and Using What is Beyond Our Ordinary Senses
(Dear Life Records) Ironically enough, Florry’s ultra-charming The Holey Bible reaches its most ascendant moment after the false ending of its closing track, From Where You Are. Here, the Francie Medosch-led alt-country collective fully gels with a hot guitar lead, desperately sawed strings, and an assured bass line. Like the book upon which the album’s … Read moreMusic Review: The Holey Bible – Florry
Reginald Dwayne Betts is a poet, lawyer, and founder of the nonprofit Freedom Reads. His New York Times Magazine article “Could an Ex-Convict Become an Attorney? I Intended to Find Out” won the National Magazine Award. His new podcast is Almost There. “I felt like I had to own becoming something and intuitively understood that … Read moreLongform Podcast #549: Reginald Dwayne Betts
Susan Burton is an editor at This American Life, the author of the memoir Empty, and the host of the podcast The Retrievals. “I know I have much more anger than I reveal, and I don’t think that’s uncommon. Especially for women. There’s been a lot of attention to that in recent years—the anger of … Read moreLongform Podcast #548: Susan Burton
In SherryBaby (2006), Maggie Gyllenhaal portrayed Sherry Swanson, who returns home after serving a prison sentence to reestablish a relationship with her young daughter. Gyllenhaal described for Interview magazine her experience with the character, and the big change in her attitude toward appreciating roles that are “not so wayward.” Maggie Gyllenhaal: “We shot Sherrybaby in … Read moreMaggie Gyllenhaal on working with the dark and light
In the last year and a half, New York City has scrambled to try and provide shelter and services to over 150,000 migrants. We take a look at how that’s going. Prologue: In the middle of the night, host Ira Glass meets a woman on a mission at Port Authority bus station. (13 minutes) Act One: … Read more818: Stand Clear of the Closing Doors