James McBride won the National Book Award for "The Good Lord Bird," his novel about the abolitionist John Brown. He explains why he doesn't like most fictional portraits of slavery and how he tried to tell a different story.
Intelligent. Optimistic. Curious.
Audio
The French satirical magazine, Charlie Hebdo, was presented with a Freedom on Expression award from the PEN American Center this week. Six high-profile writers boycotted the awards ceremony at PEN's big annual gala. Hundreds more protested, while others gave the magazine's editors a standing ovation. The chariman of the PEN World Voices Festival is Colm Toibin, the celebrated Irish novelist. Toibin shares his thoughs on the controversy.
British composer John Tavener tells Steve Paulson that he merely records the music that God created, and that he scorns music like Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony which celebrates humanity rather than the Divine.
Rachel Naomi Remen tells Steve Paulson it’s important to treat the whole person, not just the disease and says she has no idea what happens at the end of life.
Joseph Lekuton was born in Kenya to a tribe of Maasai nomads. Later, he came to America and eventually got a master’s in educational policy from Harvard.
Many things can evoke a memory. Like a smell. Or a touch. When Mamek Khadem wanted to evoke the memory of her native Iran during the Islamic revolution in 1979, she did it with music.
Mitchell Joaquim and the Terreform 1 team are looking for new, organic ways of building homes… and cities. He says part of the answer might be tree houses and… meat houses. Yes, you heard that right, MEAT houses.
Mark Anthony Neal considers himself a feminist and thinks that the traditional stereotypes of the Strong Black Man have contributed to the problems that Black men face today.
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