Otherppl with Brad Listi: Books & Culture

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Episode 276 — Megan Stielstra May 11, 2014

Show notes

Megan Stielstra is the guest. Her new essay collection, Once I Was Cool, is now available from Curbside Splendor. Roxane Gay says "In Once I Was Cool, Megan Stielstra is warm and open and wise. Whether she’s writing about the complex loneliness of early motherhood or failing to rise to the occasion or find the right language while living abroad, Stielstra is a masterful essayist. From the first page to the last, she demonstrates a graceful understanding of the power of storytelling. What she’s truly offering with her words, is the grandest of gifts." And Christine Sneed says "What an amazing cri de coeur Once I Was Cool is. Megan Stielstra tells us in a witty, sympathetic, confident voice who she is and what and whom she cares about most. Reading these essays, I laughed out loud and also found myself on the verge of tears so many times. This book should be read by anyone who's been in love, had a child or thought about having a child. So, probably, that's everyone." Monologue: humans, friendships, community, the fragility of human relationships, loneliness, complexity, simplicity.

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Episode 275 — Leslie Jamison May 07, 2014

Show notes

Leslie Jamison is the guest. Her new collection of essays, entitled The Empathy Exams, is now available from Graywolf Press. The New York Times Book Review calls it "Extraordinary and exacting....This capacity for critical thinking, for a kind of cool skepticism that never gives way to the chilly blandishments of irony, is very rare. It's not surprising that Jamison is drawing comparisons to Sontag....There is a glory to this kind of writing that derives as much from its ethical generosity, the palpable sense of stretch and reach, as it does from the lovely vividness of the language itself....It's hard to imagine a stronger, more thoughtful voice emerging this year." And Phillip Lopate, writing for The San Francisco Chronicle, says "[Jamison] writes consistently with passion and panache; her sentences are elegantly formed, her voice on the page intimate and insistent. Always intelligent, self-questioning, willing to experiment with form, daring to engage with the weird and thrust herself into danger spots, a patient researcher and voracious processor of literature and critical theory, she is the complete package: state-of-the-art nonfiction." Monologue topics: mail, cheering up, the struggle, expressing the subterranean.

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Episode 274 — Kathleen Rooney May 04, 2014

Show notes

Kathleen Rooney is the guest. Her new novel, O, Democracy!, is now available from Fifth Star Press. Jonathan Evison raves “O, Democracy! infuriates and inspires. Rooney has written a brilliant and fiercely readable novel of politics and ideals, both an indictment and a celebration of the American Experiment, which will leave you breathless.” And Elizabeth Crane says “With O, Democracy!, Kathleen Rooney makes a swift and seamless transition from poetry to fiction, pairing her skill for image with a fresh voice, humor, and a keen eye for the political world she navigates here. An exciting debut.” Monologue topics: panicking, whining, suffering publicly, ratings, E.T., money, picking up the tab, emotionally needy social behavior.

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Episode 273 — Juliet Escoria Apr 30, 2014

Show notes

Juliet Escoria is the guest. Her new story collection, Black Cloud, is now available from Civil Coping Mechanisms. Adam Wilson says "Juliet Escoria is like a gutter-punk Grace Paley." And Benjamin Samuel, co-editor of Electric Literature, says "Reading the stories in Black Cloud is like getting punched in the throat; Juliet Escoria leaves you speechless. Her honesty teaches us that beauty can be found in violence, truth in pain, and life where we've always been afraid to look." Monologue: travel, American Airlines, family, fatigue, weddings.

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Episode 272 — Sommer Browning Apr 27, 2014

Show notes

Sommer Browning is the guest. Her new poetry collection, Backup Singers, is now available from Birds Publishing. Mathias Svalina says "Sometimes I think Sommer Browning is a James Wright for the basic cable generation, at others the gorgeously deformed lovechild of H.D. and Groucho Marx. What I mean is I cannot categorize these poems, and that's the highest compliment I can give any poetry." Monologue topics: Birds, Bird, Charlie Parker, being pressed for time.

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Episode 271 — Josh Raab Apr 23, 2014

Show notes

Josh Raab is the guest. He is the founder of The Newer York Press, an experimental literary publisher based in Los Angeles. Its latest title, The Inevitable June, by Bob Schofield, is now available for pre-order. Monologue topics: the desert, Coachella, fish tacos, sunlight, curmudgeonliness.

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Episode 270 — Justin Hocking Apr 20, 2014

Show notes

Justin Hocking is the guest. His new memoir, The Great Floodgates of the Wonderworld, is now available from Graywolf Press. It is the official April selection of the TNB Book Club. Cheryl Strayed says "As generous as it is smart, as intimate as it is grand, as illuminating as it is dark. With grace and guts, Justin Hocking dares to go where few men have gone before: not only out to sea, but also into the depths of the human heart." And Junot Díaz says “This beautiful memoir is beyond cool. A voyage both erudite and affecting.” Monologue topics: TNB Book Club, mail, miscarriage, fatherhood, privilege, sadsploitation.

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Episode 269 — Labor Day Special Apr 16, 2014

Show notes

Today's show features conversations with multiple authors, all of whom have contributed to a new anthology entitled Labor Day: True Birth Stories by Today's Best Women Writers. Guests include the anthology's editors, Eleanor Henderson and Anna Solomon, as well as Amy Brill, Arielle Greenberg, Cristina Henriquez, Heidi Julavits, Jane Roper, Rachel Jamison Webster, Sarah Jefferis, and Sarah Strickley. Booklist says "This isn’t a how-to book, nor does it present a case for the ‘perfect birth,’ which sets it apart from the plethora of childbirth manuals and lends it broader appeal and a very different type of resonance." And Emma Straub says "Pregnancy made my body ravenous for food and my brain ravenous for stories like this, stories of how other women had crossed the great divide. In delivery rooms, in the backseats of cars, and at home, these women tell their birth stories so clearly that they must have had stenographers present on the scene. I loved reading this book with my baby asleep in the next room, and will give it to every pregnant woman I know from here on out, forever." Monologue topics: Labor Day, hard work, parenthood.

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Episode 268 — Douglas Coupland Apr 13, 2014

Show notes

Douglas Coupland is the guest. His new novel is called Worst. Person. Ever. and it is available now from Blue Rider Press. The Globe and Mail says “A satirical, misanthropic romp through reality television, environmental disaster and apocalyptic possibilities. Once again, Coupland...has asserted himself as a documenter of our times and anticipator of societal threats.... The plugged-in consumer-culture philosopher has created a brand of his own, becoming—and, over the long haul, remaining—a thinky superstar for a distracted era. More than 20 years after he became a pop-culture darling with Generation X, Coupland is still innovating—not simply cranking out words and sculptures, but making a significant contribution with astute observations.... As the country’s go-to guy for art, design, and contemporary social commentary, could Coupland be Canada’s Biggest. (Cultural). Brain. Ever?” And The Independent calls it "...a scatological bun-fight of excess and debauchery, of juvenile humour peppered with bilious rage at the state of the world...It’s riotous, frequently very funny...I can’t locate very much seriousness, but I certainly enjoyed trying.” Monologue topics: mail, age, generations, Spencer and Mira.

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Episode 267 — T. Greenwood Apr 09, 2014

Show notes

T. Greenwood is the guest. Her latest novel, Bodies of Water, is now available from Kensington Books. Publishers Weekly says "Greenwood is a writer of subtle strength...finding light in the darkest of stories." And Library Journal calls it "...intricate and tragic...This compassionate, insightful look at hope and redemption is a richly textured portrait." Monologue topics: Otherppl Premium, writing, worrying about the quality of my content.

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