Terry Tempest Williams reads from her book, "Red," and talks about the desert with Steve Paulson.
Intelligent. Optimistic. Curious.
Audio
Louisa May Alcott was no "little woman". Biographer Harriet Reisen uncovers the fierce feminist behind "Little Women".
American Wendy Doniger holds two doctorates in Sanskrit and Indian studies from Harvard and Oxford. She’s the author of numerous books on Hinduism and has translated several Sanskrit texts. She’s widely considered one of the most important scholars on Indian religion in the world. So it might surprise you that there is one country in the world she can’t visit: India.
Doniger’s books have been targeted by Hindu Nationalists and by India’s ruling right-wing BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party). Her latest, “The Hindus: An Alternative History,” was the subject of a major lawsuit in India, and its publisher, Penguin Books India, not only pulled the book from circulation but destroyed all remaining copies. Since then, Doniger has received many death threats inside of India and no longer feels safe visiting there. But as she told Steve Paulson, her writing about Hinduism hasn’t changed in over 40 years. What has changed is India.
Salman Ahmad grew up in both Pakistan and the United States. Trained as an M.D., Ahmad has traded in his stethoscope for a guitar and performs with his group, Junoon...
John Linnel and John Flansburgh comprise the alternative rock duo They Might Be Giants. Their first album for children, "No!" is quite different.
Wendy Doniger says sexual positions are just a small part of the Kamasutra, and that the British taught the Indians to be ashamed of this book, and their bodies.
MIT Professor Sherry Turkle is fascinated by our interactions with machines. She's just released the third book in a trilogy of books on the subject.
Award-winning novelist Jane Hamilton's new novel has a setting that's close to home. "The Excellent Lombards" is a story of generational tension set on a family apple farm. Steve Paulson talks about writing, farming and apples with Jane while walking through her own family orchard.
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