A retired park ranger remembers falling in love with his second wife, in an award-winning radio documentary by Bente Birkeland. A reporter draws us into the complicated relations among Côte d’Ivoirians living in West Philadelphia. We draw on the expertise of reference librarians and record sellers. Also, comedy from Jonathan Katz and company, and something approaching a roundtable – among singers, writers, philosophers and people on the street – about prayer.
Conversations with two men for whom conversation is rarely a simple proposition. One’s a well-known nature writer. The other is a young man from rural Pennsylvania. Both have struggled to overcome or make peace with a stutter. Also, Rick Moody’s short story, “Boys,” adapted for radio in collaboration with composer and performer Meredith Monk.
It takes a certain amount of chutzpah to “do it yourself” - to build a rollercoaster in the backyard, persuade Billy Joel to share the stage, or rewrite the lyrics to a Cole Porter song. On the other hand, it also takes chutzpah to submit completely to someone else’s vision – for instance, by living in a Frank Lloyd Wright house that cannot be altered in any way. This week, we meet people who have done all these things, and more. Guest appearances by cognitive scientist Douglas Hofstadter, writer John Haskell, and yes, Billy Joel.
Some ways to beat the heat – with verse recommended by former Poet Laureate Billy Collins, romantic fiction from sound artist Miranda July, and a conversation in the hot kitchen of “Cakeman” Raven Patrick DeSean Dennis III. Also, André Aciman on writing in exile.
We profile a married couple who sustain their relationship by playing games. Also, the sound of one hundred motorcycles playing a symphony, as well as cellist Erik Friedlander playing in collaboration with writer Michael Greenberg. On the prayer front, we offer a search for the eleventh amendment, and a sound collage of fifteen places of worship by sound artist Ellen Band.
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