The Literary Life with Mitchell Kaplan

Latest Episodes:

“Is there still Sex in the City?” Candace Bushnell answers this and more about her latest book Oct 04, 2019

Show notes

“Every now and then, when I’d explain to some man that I wasn’t interested in going on a date and frankly I might never be interested in going on a date ever again, he would gasp, “But what about sex? as if I had just killed a kitten,” Candace Bushnell. Compared to Edith Wharton and Dorothy Parker, Bushnell is frank, funny and so revealing… Another side of Candace on this episode of The Literary Life with Mitchell Kaplan. Recorded at Books & Books in Coral Gables, Florida.

Host: Mitchell Kaplan

Producer: Carmen Lucas

Editor: Lithub Radio

https://booksandbooks.com/

https://www.candacebushnell.com/

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Inside "The Dutch House," Ann Patchett’s New Novel Sep 27, 2019

Show notes

Ann Patchett is a storyteller of uncompromising perception. Her novels include The Patron Saint of Liars, Taft, The Magician’s Assistant, Bel Canto, Run, State of Wonder and Commonwealth. In The Dutch House, Patchett “traces acts of cruelty and kindness through three generations of a family over fifty years.” On this episode, Patchett shares “two things that happened” inspiring the various themes from The Dutch House, her road to becoming a multi-award winning author (including PEN/Faulkner Award), and life as co-owner of the independent Parnassus Books in Nashville, Tennessee. This episode of The Literary Life with Mitchell Kaplan was recorded at Books & Books in Coral Gables, Florida.g

Host: Mitchell Kaplan

Producer: Carmen Lucas

Editor: Lithub Radio

https://booksandbooks.com/

http://www.annpatchett.com/

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Talking about Banned Books Week with the ABA's David Grogan and Sydney Jarrard Sep 20, 2019

Show notes

What do The Great Gatsby, The Color Purple, Harry Potter, and even Captain Underpants have in common? These and other books were all banned at one point. For one week, starting on September 22nd, the American Booksellers Association (ABA) and several other sponsors, have designated “Banned Books Week,” celebrating the freedom to read without censorship.Mitchell’s guests, David Grogan, Director of Advocacy (ABA) and Sydney Jarrard, Content Director (ABA), also hosts of the Counterspeak podcast, will shine a light on the importance of keeping our freedom to read intact. This episode of The Literary Life with Mitchell Kaplan was recorded at Books & Books in Coral Gables, Florida.

Host: Mitchell Kaplan

Producer: Carmen Lucas

Editor: Lithub Radio

bannedbooksweek.org

https://www.bookweb.org/about-aba

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Jennine Capó Crucet: Funny, wise. and proud Cuban on her personal essays Sep 13, 2019

Show notes

Jennine Capó Crucet’s My Time Among the Whites is full of exchanges, that lay bare the ways power and money and race and class work in America in a way that’s serious but that can also be bitingly funny,” Anna North, Vox. Capó Crucet shares her American experiences growing up in Hialeah, Florida, her years as a student at the Ivy League Cornell University, her thoughts on Disney World and her new life as an associate professor (Department of English and the Institute for Ethnic Studies) at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. This episode of The Literary Life with Mitchell Kaplan was recorded at Books & Books in Coral Gables, Florida.

Host: Mitchell Kaplan

Producer: Carmen Lopez

Editor: Lit Hub Radio

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Edwidge Danticat on “Everything Inside,” her anticipated collection of vividly imagined stories about community, family, and love Sep 06, 2019

Show notes

“I have been working on these stories for a long time, some of them are more recent. I really love that in a short story you can have sort of a limited universe, there’s so much economy and so much layering. I keep working on them no matter what else I’m doing,” Edwidge Danticat. “Everything Inside” is an eight-story collection with the common themes of diaspora, love and Danticat’s birthplace, Haiti. She‘ll share how it all came together with her long-time friend, Mitchell Kaplan, on this episode of The Literary Life. Recorded at Books & Books in Coral Gables, Florida.

Host: Mitchell Kaplan

Producer: Carmen Lucas

Editor: Lit Hub Radio

Links: https://booksandbooks.com/

https://lithub.com/

https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/570151/everything-inside-by-edwidge-danticat/9780525521273/

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Ayşe Papatya Bucak on “The Trojan War Museum,” her debut story collection influenced by her beloved Turkish American heritage Aug 30, 2019

Show notes

“I was always drawn to writing. My mom loves books, my dad loved movies. They were both big story people.” Born in Istanbul, Turkey, raised in Havertown, Pennsylvania, Papatya’s stories are an intersection between her American life and the way that “Turkishness” pops up in her life. Mitchell and Papatya talk about her influential authors, the O. Henry Award, life as a professor and more. This episode of The Literary Life with Mitchell Kaplan was recorded at Books & Books in Coral Gables, Florida.

Host: Mitchell Kaplan

Producer: Carmen Lucas

Editor: Lit Hub Radio

Links: https://booksandbooks.com/

https://lithub.com/

https://www.aysepapatyabucak.com/

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Karl Marlantes on “Deep River,” the first labor movements, and World War I Aug 23, 2019

Show notes

“Deep River immerses you into the sometimes harsh world of an immigrant family … Karl Marlantes has written a masterpiece, the classic American novel.” —John Evans, Lemuria Bookstore.

Marlantes, a Yale University graduate and Oxford University Rhodes Scholar, shares fascinating stories about his grandmother, “an ardent communist,” growing up in an Oregon logging town, fishing with his grandfather, serving as a Marine in Vietnam and much more. Marlantes’ Matterhorn, his acclaimed first novel, was written over the course of 30 years. This episode of The Literary Life with Mitchell Kaplan was recorded at Books & Books in Coral Gables, Florida.

Host: Mitchell Kaplan

Producer: Carmen Lucas

Editor: Lit Hub Radio

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Leonard Pitts, Jr.; From pop music critic to Pulitzer-winning columnist, on his new novel “The Last Thing You Surrender” Aug 16, 2019

Show notes

Each week, twice a week, millions of readers seek Leonard Pitts’ insightful and passionate voice. His highly-anticipated column is syndicated in more than two-hundred newspapers across the country, including The Miami Herald. Pitts’ conversation with Mitchell reveals how he selects his stories, and sometimes, how they select him. Pitts will also talk about and read from his latest novel, The Last Thing You Surrender. This episode of The Literary Life with Mitchell Kaplan was recorded at Books & Books in Coral Gables, Florida.

Host: Mitchell Kaplan

Producer: Carmen Lucas

Editor: Lit Hub Radio

Links: https://booksandbooks.com/

https://lithub.com/

http://www.leonardpittsjr.com/index.html

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Pablo Medina on “The Cuban Comedy,” His Poetic Homage to Dissidents Aug 09, 2019

Show notes

Pablo Medina describes “The Cuban Comedy” as a love story. “It’s about poetry and poets and how they make their way in the world. It’s about revolution, war and an homage to dissidents.” On this episode of “The Literary Life,” Medina shares how how he created his characters, with Elena as the heroine, each based on composites, and how exile, oppression and poetry play a role in their way to possible salvation. Medina started writing his novel, 14 years ago. This episode of The Literary Life with Mitchell Kaplan was recorded at Books & Books in Coral Gables, Florida.

Host: Mitchell Kaplan

Producer: Carmen Lucas

Editor: Lit Hub Radio

Links: https://booksandbooks.com/

https://lithub.com/

http://www.unnamedpress.com/books/book?title=The+Cuban+Comedy

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The Art of Getting Books into Bookstores with Emily Cook Co-founder of Cursor Books Aug 02, 2019

Show notes

There are more than 200,000 books being published each year. As host Mitchell Kaplan states, “One of the questions that I’m asked more than anything else as a bookseller is: how do you find out about all the books that you carry in your stores?” His guest is publishing industry expert, Emily Cook, co-founder of Cursor Marketing Services, who along with partner Richard Nash, represent “several small presses that have a very big impact.” Hear how books are selected, how they get to the bookstores, and to you, the reader. Next time you pick up a book, you just might think about this fascinating process. On this episode of The Literary Life with Mitchell Kaplan, recorded at Books & Books in Coral Gables, Florida.

Host: Mitchell Kaplan

Producer: Carmen Lucas

Editor: Lit Hub Radio

Links: https://booksandbooks.com/

https://lithub.com/

https://www.thinkcursor.com/

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