All Of It with Alison Stewart

After the sensational success of her last novel, Demon Copperhead, Barbara Kingsolver returns with a novel that draws on her past experience as a classical pianist. Partita tells the story of Livia, and exceptionally gifted pianist on a scholarship to an elite music conservatory. Her life is soon upended by a love affair that will change the course of her future, and her relationship to music, forever. Kingsolver discusses the novel, out today. Kingsolver will be speaking Wednesday, October 7 at Tarrytown Music Hall, and on October 28 at St. Ann's Church in Brooklyn with Amor Towles. Both events will feature live piano performances from pieces mentioned in the novel.

In the new film "Fjord," Sebastian Stan stars as Mihai Gheorghiu, a Romanian immigrant to Norway who moves to a remote village with his family. When the family's devout and unusual educational practices come to the attention of the local community, Mihai finds himself pressed into defending his family, and their way of life. Stan and writer and director Cristian Mungiu discuss "Fjord," in theaters on October 9.

Cover art courtesy of the publisher

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New York State does not require that schools teach sex education. A new report from the NYCLU details that, depending on where you live in New York State, the quality of sexual education in local public schools can vary widely, including many districts that the NYCLU finds to be significantly lacking. Aliyah Ansari, NYCLU senior education strategist, and Donna Lieberman, executive director, discuss the report and the state of Sex Ed in New York, and listeners share their experiences as parents and students in school.

Two new exhibits have opened this fall at the Brooklyn Museum. First, curator Nicole Coolidge Rousmaniere discusses Art of Manga, an exhibition dedicated to the craft of Japanese comics and graphic novels. Then, curator Dare Turner discusses Hopi Kachina Dolls: Blessings for a Balanced World, an exhibition displaying dolls traditionally carved by the Hopi indigenous tribe. Both exhibits are open now and run into 2027.

Image: Takahashi Rumiko.Inuyasha, 1996–2008. Hand drawing, color on paper.

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Author George Saunders was already considered a modern master of the short story in 2017 when he published his debut novel, Lincoln in the Bardo. Told through an experimental form, the novel is follows Abraham Lincoln as he grieves the loss of his son, Willie, as told by the ghosts in the graveyard who witness his grief. Saunders discussed the novel, which has now been adapted into an opera, for our September "Get Lit!" book club event.

Note: The live performances from the event have been removed from this recording at the request of The Met.

Event photo by Robert Krevolin

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Bobby Finger and Lindsey Weber, the beloved hosts of the "Who? Weekly" podcast, have made a career out of analyzing C-list celebrity culture. They discuss their new book on the subject, I Want to Be Famous: When Everybody and Nobody Is a Celebrity.

Tom Morello just released Everyone Gets Everything They Want. Coming from a career of making political hardcore music in Rage Against the Machine and Audioslave, and protest folk as The Nightwatchman, this is his first solo rock album. And it is no less political. He also previews his Power to the People Festival at the Merriweather Post Pavilion on October 3.

Image: Tom Morello (Courtesy of Grandstand Media)

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In his latest book, author and journalist Anand Giridharadas reflects on the 2023 New York City subway chokehold case involving 30-year-old Black homeless man Jordan Neely and 24-year-old White United States Marine Corps veteran Daniel Penny. It also explores fears for public safety and the limitations of our social safety net. It's titled, Man in the Mirror: Hope, Struggle, and Belonging in an American City. He discusses th events, ahead of a book signing Wednesday evening at the The 92nd Street Y.

In her latest novel Exit Party, author Emily St. John Mandel presents two different dystopian visions for the future of America. In one version, the country has splintered in the aftermath of a civil war. In another, the country is unified under an authoritarian surveillance state. Mandel discusses the novel, out now.

Photo by Alex Kent/Getty Images: Jordan Neely's Uncle Christopher Neely joins demonstrators rallying outside the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse waiting for Daniel Penny to arrive for jury deliberations on December 9, 2024 in New York City.

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When a family of 9 siblings noticed their mother acting strangely, they chalked it up to depression and alcoholism. But after some of the siblings began to exhibit the same behavior, the family learns that they are carriers of a rare gene mutation that causes frontotemporal dementia, and have a 50/50 chance of inheriting the same condition and passing it on to their kids. Journalist and author Robert Kolker tells the story of this family in his new book, The Vanishing Family: Love, Fate, and the Quest to End Dementia.

Alex Strada is the inaugural Public Artist in Residence with the NYC Department of Homeless Services and the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs. In that role, Strada created a project called Public Address, in which she engaged with New Yorkers living in the shelter system to create logs that compiled their testimony and expression. Some of that testimony has now been created into signs, designed by the Department of Transportation, that have been on view throughout the city in 2026. The installation is now on view at Joyce Kilmer Park in the Bronx, and other components of the projects will be on view at the Bronx Museum on October 9. Strada discusses her role as an artist in city government, and the idea behind the Public Address project.

Image courtesy of the artist

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In his new one man show, actor Jacob Ming-Trent recalls the story of his life through his relationship with the Bard, and his love of poetry. He discusses "How Shakespeare Saved My Life," running at the Public Theater through October 25.

Deesha Philyaw burst onto the literary scene with her hit short story collection, The Secret Lives of Church Ladies. Now, she treads familiar ground in her hotly anticipated debut novel, The True Confessions of First Lady Freeman. The novel follows Scharisse Freeman, the wife of a megachurch pastor who is threatened when secrets from her past threaten to come to light. Philyaw discusses the novel, set to publish on September 29.

Photo by HanJie Chow: Jacob Ming-Trent in HOW SHAKESPEARE SAVED MY LIFE at The Public Theater. 

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Singer-songwriter Jensen McRae is known for her deep voice and confessional songwriting. She performs live in studio from her latest album, "I Don't Know How but They Found Me!" ahead of her set at All Things Go at Forest Hills Stadium on Saturday September 26. (NOTE: After the conversation, the event organizer announced that All Things Go is cancelled due to weather)

Writer and director Paula González-Nasser worked as a location scout for movies and television like "Russian Doll" and "Never Rarely Sometimes Always" before turning those experiences into her first feature film. "The Scout" follows a location scout as she searches for the perfect NYC location for a TV pilot. González-Nasser discusses the film alongside actor Mimi Davilla. "The Scout" premieres in theaters on September 25.

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In "School Girls: Or, the African Mean Girls Play," a group of students are competing to be selected for the Miss Ghana 1986 beauty pageant. Paulina (Denée Benton) thinks she is the shoe-in, and she lets everyone else know. But her reign as queen bee is threatened when a new student, Ericka, transfers in from the United States. Benton discusses the Broadway revival of the play alongside playwright Jocelyn Bioh and director Whitney White. "School Girls: Or, the African Mean Girls Play" is running now at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre.

The Bowery has a long history in New York. The neighborhood's reputation has evolved with the city, as one of the world's most recognized slums, to later as a thriving downtown artistic community. The New Museum has organized a new exhibit, The Bowery: Devil’s Mile, that traces the cultural and artistic history of the neighborhood. Lisa Phillips, curator and New Museum director emerita, discusses what's on view in the show, and what makes The Bowery stand out in New York history.

Photo by Matthew Murphy: Jordan Rice, Denée Benton, Nia Otchere-Sarfo, and Erin Morton in "School Girls: Or, the African Mean Girls Play" 

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Musician Suki Waterhouse stops by Radio City Music Hall tomorrow night in support of her latest album Loveland. She joins us for a listening party.

New York artist Taryn Simon's new solo show at the Guggenheim is titled "Taryn Simon: Father Country I Do Love You." The show marks the largest display of new work ever to exhibit at the Guggenheim. Simon uses photography to weave the story of her father's life with the story of an unnamed federal agent in 42 different "chapters." Simon discusses the exhibit, which is open through March 14, 2027.

Photo by Miles Aldridge

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