Enoch Pratt Free Library Podcast

In Lessons of Redemption, Kevin Shird, co-founder and president of the Mario Do Right Foundation, tells his life story, from the tough streets of Baltimore City, through several years in federal prison, to rebirth as a community leader championing substance abuse prevention and helping children of addicted parents.

"I want people to know that you don't have to be defined by your mistakes," says Shird. "You can turn your life around and become a positive member in society. I did."

Recorded On: Wednesday, July 23, 2014

In Drifting, her debut collection of interlinking stories, Katia Ulysse follows the private lives of four secretiva Haitian families whose hopes for distant success are constantly challenged by the hard realities of the immigrant journey. Ulysse, a native of Haiti, lives in Baltimore. Her stores have appeared in Haiti Noir, Brassage, and other anthologies.

Tiphanie Yanique's debut novel, Land of Love and Drowning, chronicles three generations of the Bradshaw family in the Virgin Islands: stories of magic and lust, unknown connections and hidden mysteries, family legacies, an island world undergoing historical changes. Yanique is the author of the story collection, How to Escape from a Leper Colony and a 2010 Rona Jafffe Writers' Award winner.

Recorded On: Tuesday, July 22, 2014

Three Kundiman fellows with award-winning first books read and talk about their work.

Cathy Linh Che is the author of Split (Alice James, 2014), winner of the 2012 Kundiman Poetry Prize.

A Vietnamese American poet from Los Angeles and Long Beach, CA, she received her B.A. from Reed College and her M.F.A. from New York University. She has been awarded fellowships and residencies from Poets & Writers, The Fine Arts Work Center at Provincetown, Kundiman, Hedgebrook, Poets House, The Asian American Literary Review, The Center for Book Arts, and The Lower Manhattan Cultural Council’s Workspace Residency.

A founding editor of the online journal Paperbag, she is Program Associate for Readings & Workshops (East) at Poets & Writers and Manager of Kundiman. She lives in Brooklyn, New York.

Eugenia Leigh is the author of Blood, Sparrows and Sparrows (Four Way Books, Fall 2014), which was a finalist for both the National Poetry Series and the Yale Series of Younger Poets. Her writing has appeared in numerous publications including PANK Magazine, Indiana Review, The Collagist, and the Best New Poets 2010 anthology.

Eugenia earned her M.F.A. in Creative Writing from Sarah Lawrence College, where she was awarded the Thomas Lux Scholarship for her dedication to teaching creative writing, demonstrated through her workshops with incarcerated youths and with Brooklyn high school students. Eugenia has won awards from Poets & Writers Magazine and Rattle, and has received fellowships from Kundiman and The Asian American Literary Review. She serves as the Poetry Editor of Kartika Review.

Born in Chicago and raised in southern California, Eugenia lives and writes in New York City.

Sally Wen Mao is the author of Mad Honey Symposium (Alice James Books, 2014), the winner of the 2012 Kinereth Gensler Award and a Publishers Weekly Top 10 Most Anticipated Poetry Books of Spring. Her work has been anthologized in The Best American Poetry 2013 and is published or forthcoming in Guernica, Gulf Coast, Hayden’s Ferry Review, Indiana Review, Puerto del Sol, Quarterly West, Third Coast, and West Branch, among others. A Kundiman fellow, she holds a B.A. from Carnegie Mellon University and an M.F.A. from Cornell University.

This event is part of the Honey Badgers' Summer Book Tour.

Recorded On: Monday, July 21, 2014

Forgotten Sundays follows the life and relationship between Gerry Sandusky, sports director for WBAL-TV, and his father, former NFL tackle and coach John Sandusky. Gerry spent his summers at NFL training camps and his Sundays with superstars and Hall of Fame players and coaches. When John develops Alzheimer's disease, Gerry began to understand his father on a much deeper level.

Gerry Sandusky is the play-by-play voice for the Baltimore Ravens. He has won Emmy and Edward R. Murrow awards for outstanding broadcasts.

Presented in partnership with the Alzheimer's Association, Greater Maryland Chapter.

Recorded On: Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Baltimore, like many other cities, is redesigning local government policy and programs to become a more sustainable city. Sustainability encourages city officials to integrate policy and programs addressing the economic, environmental, and social health of the community. This requires collaboration between city government and neighborhood and community organizations, funders, and state and federal agencies. Collaborative Strategies for Sustainable Cities examines how cities define sustainability and form policy implementation networks to integrate sustainability into city programs.

Eric Zeemering is assistant professor in the Department of Public Policy at UMBC. Presented in partnership with 1000 Friends of Maryland and Baltimore GreenWorks.

Recorded On: Tuesday, July 15, 2014