New Books Network Podcast

Grinnell College: Authors and Artists December 20, 2022

The Ghost of Craven Snuggs

A Midwestern Murder Mystery

Sandy Moffett

Hosted by Marshall Poe

Today I talked to the wonderful Sandy Moffett. Sandy joined the Grinnell faculty in 1971 and teaches Acting, Directing and American Theatre. Although now Emeritus, he continues to teach and …

Grinnell College: Authors and Artists December 7, 2022

Anthropological Lives

An Introduction to the Profession of Anthropology

Virginia R Dominguez and Brigittine M. French

Hosted by Marshall Poe

Anthropological Lives: An Introduction to the Profession of Anthropology (Rutgers UP, 2020) introduces readers to what it is like to be a professional anthropologist. It focuses on the work anthropologists …

Grinnell College: Authors and Artists November 21, 2022

All the Comfort Sin Can Provide

Grant Faulkner

Hosted by Marshall Poe

Today I had the pleasure of talking to Grant Faulkner. We discuss National Novel Writing Month, of which Grant is the executive director, 100 Word Story, of which Grant is …

Grinnell College: Authors and Artists November 1, 2022

Tomorrow in Shanghai and Other Stories

May-lee Chai

Hosted by Marshall Poe

In a vibrant and illuminating follow-up to her award-winning story collection, Useful Phrases for Immigrants, May-lee Chai's latest collection Tomorrow in Shanghai (Blair, 2022) explores multicultural complexities through lenses of class, wealth …

Grinnell College: Authors and Artists October 17, 2022

Athena Itonia

Geography and Meaning of an Ancient Greek War Goddess

Gerald Lalonde

Hosted by Marshall Poe

In Athena Itonia: Geography and Meaning of an Ancient Greek War Goddess (Brill, 2019) Gerald V. Lalonde offers a comparative study of the social, political and military aspects of the …

Grinnell College: Authors and Artists September 15, 2022

Lessons from Plants

Beronda L. Montgomery

Hosted by Marshall Poe

We know that plants are important. They maintain the atmosphere by absorbing carbon dioxide and producing oxygen. They nourish other living organisms and supply psychological benefits to humans as well …

Grinnell College: Authors and Artists August 31, 2022

The Violence Project

How to Stop a Mass Shooting Epidemic

Jillian Peterson and James Densley

Hosted by Marshall Poe

Using data from the writers' groundbreaking research on mass shooters, including first-person accounts from the perpetrators themselves, The Violence Project: How to Stop a Mass Shooting Epidemic (Harry N. Abrams …

Grinnell College: Authors and Artists August 15, 2022

Modern Mathematical Logic

Joseph Mileti

Hosted by Marshall Poe

Today I had the pleasure of talking to Joe Mileti, associate professor of mathematics at Grinnell College. Even if you are not "into" math, you will enjoy this conversation. We …

Grinnell College: Authors and Artists August 1, 2022

Tasting Paradise on Earth

Jiangnan Foodways

Jin Feng

Hosted by Marshall Poe

Today I talked to Jin Feng of Grinnell College about her fascinating book Tasting Paradise on Earth: Jiangnan Foodways (U Washington Press, 2019). Preparing and consuming food is an integral part …

Grinnell College: Authors and Artists July 15, 2022

Signs of the Spirit

Music and the Experience of Meaning in Ndau Ceremonial Life

Tony Perman

Hosted by Marshall Poe

In 2005, Tony Perman attended a ceremony alongside the living and the dead. His visit to a Zimbabwe farm brought him into contact with the madhlozi, outsider spirits that Ndau people …

Grinnell College: Authors and Artists July 1, 2022

From Biological Bench Science to Teaching at Grinnell College

A Chat with Charvann Bailey

Charvann Bailey

Hosted by Marshall Poe

Today I chatted with Charvann Bailey, assistant professor of biology at Grinnell College. We discussed her route to a Ph.D. in biology, the struggles of post-docing and bench science, and her …

Grinnell College: Authors and Artists June 15, 2022

All About Dwarf Galaxies

A Conversation with Astronomer Charlotte Christensen

Charlotte Christensen

Hosted by Marshall Poe

Today I talked to astronomer Charlotte Christensen of Grinnell College. She studies (among other things) dwarf galaxies. Dwarf galaxies, galaxies with masses about 10% that of the Milky Way or …

Grinnell College: Authors and Artists June 2, 2022

The Many Faces of Political Islam, Second Edition

Religion and Politics in Muslim Societies

Mohammed Ayoob and Danielle N. Lussier

Hosted by Marshall Poe

Analysts and pundits from across the American political spectrum describe Islamic fundamentalism as one of the greatest threats to modern, Western-style democracy. Yet very few non-Muslims would be able to …

Grinnell College: Authors and Artists May 17, 2022

Collecting Lives

Critical Data Narrative as Modernist Aesthetic in Early Twentieth-Century Us Literatures

Elizabeth Rodrigues

Hosted by Marshall Poe

On a near-daily basis, data is being used to narrate our lives. Categorizing algorithms drawn from amassed personal data to assign narrative destinies to individuals at crucial junctures, simultaneously predicting …

Grinnell College: Authors and Artists May 3, 2022

Otto Dix and the First World War

Grotesque Humor, Camaraderie and Remembrance

Michael Mackenzie

Hosted by Marshall Poe

Otto Dix fought in the First World War for the better part of four years before becoming one of the most important artists of the Weimar era. Marked by the …

Grinnell College: Authors and Artists April 15, 2022

A Conversation with Autumn Wilke about Disability in Higher Education

Autumn Wilke

Hosted by Marshall Poe

Today I talked to Autumn Wilke of Grinnell College about her book (co-authored with Nancy J. Evans, Ellen M. Broido, and Kirsten R. Brown) Disability in Higher Education: A Social Justice Approach (Jossey-Bass, 2017) …

Grinnell College: Authors and Artists April 1, 2022

Growing Out of Communism

Russian Literature for Children and Teens, 1991-2017

Andrea Lanoux, Kelly Herold, and Olga Bukhina

Hosted by Marshall Poe

Growing Out of Communism: Russian Literature for Children and Teens, 1991-2017 (Brill, 2021) explores the rise of a new body of literature for children and teens following the collapse of …

Art March 25, 2022

Mongol Court Dress, Identity Formation, and Global Exchange

Eiren L. Shea

Hosted by Tanja Tolar

The Mongol period (1206-1368) marked a major turning point of exchange - culturally, politically, and artistically - across Eurasia. The wide-ranging international exchange that occurred during the Mongol period is …

Grinnell College: Authors and Artists March 15, 2022

To Live More Abundantly

Black Collegiate Women, Howard University, and the Audacity of Dean Lucy Diggs Slowe

Tamara Beauboeuf-Lafontant

Hosted by Marshall Poe

Today I talked to Tamara Beauboeuf-Lafontant about her book To Live More Abundantly: Black Collegiate Women, Howard University, and the Audacity of Dean Lucy Diggs Slowe (University of Georgia Press, 2022). How …

Grinnell College: Authors and Artists March 1, 2022

How High We Go in the Dark

A Novel

Sequoia Nagamatsu

Hosted by Marshall Poe

Today I talked to Sequoia Nagamatsu about his novel How High We Go in the Dark (William Morrow, 2022).In 2030, a grieving archeologist arrives in the Arctic Circle to continue the work of …