This episode brings together four acclaimed poets to reflect on the state of the New Orleans and the world of poetry in the years since Hurricane Katrina. We will begin the evening with Brad Richard to discuss the new edition of his collection Motion Studies. Throughout the hour poets Mona Lisa Saloy, Alison Pelegrin and Karisma Price will join the conversation to share their work and insights.

Together, these poets will share work that grapples with memory, loss, survival, and the role of poetry in giving voice to what cannot be forgotten. Through verse and conversation, they will explore how the storm shaped not only their writing, but also the larger story of New Orleans and its communities.

About the Poets

📚 Purchase these poet's books at BookBanterBooks.com or your favorite indie bookstore.

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Subscribe to Book Banter with Rayna wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/@Book_Banter 

This episode of Book Banter with Rayna takes you right into the buzz of a live event at Blue Cypress Books! I had the joy of sitting down with award-winning author Robert Fieseler to dive into his riveting new book, American Scare: Florida’s Hidden Cold War on Black and Queer Lives. It was an unforgettable night of history, storytelling, and community.

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Robert W. Fieseler is a journalist investigating marginalized groups and a scholar excavating forgotten histories. A National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association "Journalist of the Year" and recipient of the Pulitzer Traveling Fellowship, his debut book Tinderbox won seven awards, including the Edgar Award, and his reporting has appeared in Slate, Commonweal, and River Teeth, among others. Fieseler graduated co-valedictorian from the Columbia Journalism School and is pursuing a PhD at Tulane University as a Mellon Fellow. His highly anticipated second book, American Scare: Florida's Hidden Cold War on Black and Queer Lives, has been declared a "masterwork" by ALA Booklist, and he lives with his husband on the gayest street in New Orleans.

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A vital exposé for both our history and our present day, American Scare tells the riveting story of how the Florida government destroyed the lives of Black and queer citizens in the twentieth century. Fieseler describes the heartbreaking ramifications for citizens of Florida whose lives were imperiled, profiling marginalized residents with compassion and a determination to bring their devasting experiences to light at last. A propulsive, human-centered drama, with fascinating insight into Florida politics, American Scare is a page-turning reckoning of our racist and homophobic past—and its chilling parallels to today.

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What if choosing love meant risking the friendship you’ve always relied on? In this episode of Book Banter, we talk with Darby Baham about A Risk Worth Taking—a charming and emotionally layered friends-to-lovers romance that throws a love triangle into the mix. Set in New York, this novel explores connection, loyalty, and the complicated choices we make when the heart and head don’t quite agree.

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Darby Baham is an author and storyteller on a mission to make women like herself feel seen and believe that love is possible for them, yes them. The former Times Picayune and Washington Post contributor often uses her doubts, hopes, and fears to connect with her readers and inform the themes in her Harlequin romance series, The Friendship Chronicles. The sixth book in the series, A Risk Worth Taking, releases July 29, 2025, continuing her love letter to female friendships and offering an intimate look into the dynamic love lives of Black women.

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Her Best Friend...

After years of failed romances, Giselle Lewis has decided to play it safe. She's given up on getting swept off her feet or falling head over heels. These days, she'd much rather keep her feet on the ground as she tiptoes cautiously into love with someone sensible. Someone reliable and predictable. Someone who definitely isn't Brandon Clark, her friend and secret crush. Taking a chance on something more with Brandon could end in disaster, ruining their friendship. On the other hand...turning her back on all they could have together might be the biggest risk of all.

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Subscribe to Book Banter with Rayna wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/@Book_Banter 

What if finding a vampire was your last shot at saving someone you love? In this episode of Book Banter, we sink our teeth into Margie Fuston’s emotionally charged and darkly magical YA novel Vampires, Hearts, and Other Dead Things. It’s a story about grief, girlhood, and the desperate hope that maybe—just maybe—the impossible might be real.

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Subscribe to Book Banter with Rayna wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/@Book_Banter 

Ever wonder how home ec went from baking pies to building parachutes? In this episode of Book Banter, we chat with Danielle Dreilinger about The Secret History of Home Economics—a fierce, fascinating, and wildly underrated slice of feminist history. From the classroom to the cosmos, the women behind home economics changed the world in ways you’ve probably never heard.

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Subscribe to Book Banter with Rayna wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/@Book_Banter 

In this episode of Book Banter we talk with Madi Hannan about art, pets and her children's picture book, Scrim on the Run.

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Author/Illustrator of Scrim on the Run, Madi Hannan, known as “Madicat” in her art career, is a high school science teacher by day and an avid creative by night. When she’s not busy bringing characters to life with her signature whimsical charm, you can find her wrangling her mischievous pets: Jacques, the agility-loving Aussie; Butters, the cat with a lot of opinions; and Dante, the black cat who may or may not be plotting world domination. She’s also working on perfecting her sourdough bread recipe. Madi’s artistic journey has taken her from painting pet portraits to crafting door hangers and anything else she can put her doodles on. She firmly believes that life’s too short for boring art and that every story deserves a touch of humor (and maybe a hidden cat silhouette or two). Born and raised in New Orleans, Madi draws inspiration from the swamp and city that have given so much to her, especially her love of crawfish and snowballs. Madi has previously illustrated one children’s book, Fird the Bish, and is currently working on several more children’s books after her success of Scrim on the Run!

Scrim the dog got loose in the Big Easy, and New Orleans may never be the same. Known for his wiry fur and mischievous antics, Scrim has become a beloved figure in the city, darting through neighborhoods, dodging potholes, and leaving a trail of smiles wherever he goes.

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Purchase a copy of Scrim on the Run here: https://bookshop.org/a/106612/9781455628537

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Book Banter is a laid-back conversational interview with authors, illustrators, creators and other bookish folks.

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Subscribe to Book Banter with Rayna wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/@Book_Banter 

In this episode of Book Banter with Rayna, we talk with poet M. A. Nicholson about her luminous debut collection, Around the Gate. Set against the vivid backdrop of New Orleans, her poems blend the personal and the communal, inviting readers to slow down and look closely at the world—and at themselves. We explore how place and history shape her work. Plus we discuss what we are reading now and our summer plans.

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M.A. Nicholson is a New Orleans poet, editor, educator, journalist, and a co-founder of LMNL Arts. An alumna of Loyola University and a M.F.A. graduate from the University of New Orleans—where she served as Associate Poetry Editor for Bayou Magazine—M.A. was the recipient of the 2021 Andrea-Saunders Gereighty Academy of American Poets Award and has work featured in Best New Poets 2022. Her debut poetry collection Around the Gate (Word Works Books, 2024) was selected by judge Carolyne Wright for the 2023 Hilary Tham Capital Collection prize.

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M. A. Nicholson's poems engage the ghosts and lives of New Orleans through the experiences and memories of the female speaker. Says Dr. Mona Lisa Saloy, Louisiana Poet Laureate, "Nicholson's verse artfully engages the enigma of New Orleans, keeping hearts in a parade of memorable wordplay. Nicholson captures innocent eyes observing world stories, crafting the present where traditions are passed as gifts. These poems unveil the preciousness of days, as readers see life flip and unfold with the unexpected. From birthdays, saints' days, and barbecues to river horizons and storms-from skies or hearts-these poems entice readers to return again and again."

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Purchase Around the Gate here: https://bookshop.org/a/106612/9781944585815 

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Book Banter is a laid-back conversational interview with authors, illustrators, creators and other bookish folks.

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Subscribe to Book Banter with Rayna wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/@Book_Banter 

In this episode of Book Banter with Rayna, we talk with author David Valdes about his fun, heartfelt YA novel Spin Me Right Round. We dive into the book’s time-travel twist, its celebration of queer identity, and how David brings both humor and heart to stories about being seen and finding your place. Plus, he shares what inspired the book and why writing for teens means so much to him.

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David Valdes is the author of the nonfiction books Homo Domesticus, The Rhinestone Sisterhood, and Today Show pick A Little Fruitcake, as well as a dozen produced plays. A former Boston Globe columnist and HuffPo blogger whose posts have received over a million hits, he currently blogs on Medium, and was recently featured in the New York Times’ Modern Love. He also teaches writing at Boston Conservatory and Tufts. David lives in the Boston area. davidvaldeswrites.com - From lauded writer David Valdes, a sharp and funny YA novel that's Back to the Future with a twist, as a gay teen travels back to his parents' era to save a closeted classmate's life.

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Purchase David Valdes' books here: https://bookshop.org/beta-search?keywords=David+Valdes

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Book Banter is a laid-back conversational interview with authors, illustrators, creators and other bookish folks.

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Subscribe to Book Banter with Rayna wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/@Book_Banter 

In this episode of Book Banter with Rayna, we talk with Aaron Reynolds, the creator of Effin’ Birds, the wildly funny and delightfully irreverent comic that blends vintage illustrations with modern-day snark. We dive into the origins of his foul-mouthed feathered phenomenon, how he turns frustration into hilarity, and why swearing birds have struck such a chord with readers.

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Aaron Reynolds is a Webby Award–winning humorist, aprofessional speaker, and the man behind the Effin’ Birds and Swear Trek social media accounts. When he’s not on Twitter, you can find him producing a series of podcasts and at ComicCons dressed as George Lucas. He has been a baseball writer, a fine art printer, and a mall Santa Claus photographer. Aaron was raised in Mississauga, Canada, a suburb where they cut down all the trees and named the streets after them. He currently splits his time between Toronto and Ottawa.

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Get your copy of Effin' Birds: A Field Guide to Identification - https://bookshop.org/a/106612/9781984856289

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Book Banter is a laid-back conversational interview with authors, illustrators, creators and other bookish folks.

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Subscribe to Book Banter with Rayna wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/@Book_Banter 

In this episode of Book Banter with Rayna, we talk with author Bethany Mangle about her witty and heartfelt YA novels. We explore how she balances humor with emotional depth, the relatable teen experiences that inspire her stories, and the way she writes strong, complicated characters finding their way. Plus, she shares what draws her to writing about family, friendship, and the chaos of growing up.

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Bethany Mangle is the author of the Prepped, All the Right Reasons, and Conditions of a Heart. When she isn’t writing, she enjoys spoiling her dogs, playing video games, and spending time with her unbearably nerdy husband. She moves too much to put a location in her bio ever again. Visit her at BethanyMangle.com.

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Purchase Bethany's books here: https://bookshop.org/lists/book-banter-guests

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Book Banter is a laid-back conversational interview with authors, illustrators, creators and other bookish folks.

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Subscribe to Book Banter with Rayna wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/@Book_Banter