Enoch Pratt Free Library Podcast

Launched by CityLit Project in 2010, CityLit Press publishes quality books often overlooked by larger publishers due to their regional focus or literary nature. In two years, the press has released five individual titles, three chapbooks under its Harriss Poetry Prize series, and four specialty books as part of CityLit Project's youth programming. Although the publishing business is undergoing unprecedented changes, and reading hhabits fluctuate, CityLit Press is dedicated to championing the art and voice of creative writers.

Join local authors of CityLit Press -- Jen Michalski, Laura Shovan, Leonora "Peachy" Dixon, Bruce Sager, Jennifer Wallace, and Neil Didriksen -- and publisher Gregg Wilhelm as they share their wonderful literary art and discuss the dynamic state of publishing.

Recorded On: Thursday, October 18, 2012

In a voice caught somewhere between speech and singing, ‘moonstruck’ Pierrot, the sad, lovelorn clown, takes a darkly comic journey through music colored by the smoky decadence of Berlin cabarets. Paul Mathews, co-author of the book Inside Pierrot Lunaire, speaks about the significance of Arnold Schoenberg's cornerstone 20th century work, followed by a performance of the piece by the Baltimore-based LUNAR Ensemble.

Recorded On: Saturday, October 6, 2012

Kate and Zoe are British Olympic cyclists and friends. Kate's family duties keep her away from the 2004 Olympics in Athens as Zoe goes for the gold. Fast forward to 2012, as Kate and Zoe train for their last Olympics in London. Meanwhile, Kate copes with her seriously ill daughter and Zoe contends with loneliness. Chris Cleave's captivating novel explores friendship, rivalry, and the private cost of public victory.

Chris Cleave is the author of Incendiary and the international bestseller Little Bee. Incendiary won numerous awards, including the 2006 Somerset Maugham Award. Little Bee has sold more than two million copies worldwide. Cleave lives in London.

(www.chriscleave.com)

Recorded On: Tuesday, October 2, 2012

The relationship between Barack Obama's White House and John Roberts' Supreme Court has been rocky from the start, when Chief Justice Roberts flubbed the Oath of Office at President Obama's inauguration. Both men are young, brilliant, charismatic, determined to change the course of the nation -- and completely at odds on almost every major constitutional issue. Award-winning journalist and author Jeffrey Toobin offers an insider's account of this ideological war in his latest book, The Oath.

Jeffrey Toobin, staff writer at The New Yorker and legal analyst at CNN, is the author of The Nine, Too Close to Call, A War Conspiracy, and The Run of His Life.

Recorded On: Friday, September 21, 2012

According to Harold Kwalwasser, former general counsel of the Los Angeles Unified School District, it is the parents' duty to drive school reform. Parents who participate in their children's school activities are able to see clearly a school's strengths and weaknesses better than Washington or the states. Parents and taxpayers can play a key role in the reform of public education, but they must know what a well-managed, high-performing school looks like.

Kwalwasser visited 40 high-performing schools to see what it takes for an education system to succeed. He found that high performance and improvement in schools is possible given commitment to institute change. His book can be used as a guide for parents and taxpayers to drive reform locally.

Harold Kwalwasser is an expert on school management and education policy and politics. He served on the staffs of three U.S. Senators and was Deputy General Counsel/Legal Counsel for the Department of Defense during the Clinton administration.

Recorded On: Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Tuerk House, Baltimore's groundbreaking drug and alcohol rehab center, opened in 1970 after Maryland reclassified alcoholism from a criminal offense to a disease. In The Tuerk House, author and former newspaperman Rafael Alvarez covers the institution's founding and changes in the philosophy of treatment over the years. It also includes a biography of Dr. Isadore Tuerk, the University of Maryland psychiatrist and alcoholism expert for whom the rehab center is named. Operating in west Baltimore since the 1990s, Tuerk House treats as many as 1,200 addicts a year at little or no cost.

Recorded On: Tuesday, September 18, 2012

What we don't know can hurt us and others -- and unconscious bias along with racial anxiety can unwittingly affect our responses and behavior. The examples revealed in provocative new research may surprise you: embedded stereotypes, it concludes, are experienced by people of color and whites alike. Understanding these biases is critical, especially for people in positions of power where critical decisions are made -- in the classroom, in the court room, and in the doctor's office.

Rachel Godsil, Director of Research at the American Values Institute, and Alan Jenkins, Executive Director of The Opportunity Agenda, will present some of the most recent research and reports on this topic.

This event is part of the "Talking About Race" series sponsored by Open Society Institute-Baltimore and the Pratt Library.

Recorded On: Thursday, September 13, 2012

Millions of people got their introduction to Baltimore by watching "The Wire." The show examined some very difficult urban problems. For example, did Omar Little die of lead poisoning? Can children like Wallace and Dukie be saved? Tapping Into "The Wire" uses the television series as a road map for exploring connections between inner-city poverty and drug-related violence. Dr. Peter Beilenson and Patrick McGuire have written a compelling, highly-readable examination of urban policy and public health issues impacting cities across the nation. Each chapter recounts scenes from "The Wire," placing the characters' challenges into the broader context of public policy.

Dr. Peter Beilenson is Howard County's health officer. From 1992 to 2005 he served as Baltimore City's health commissioner. Patrick McGuire is a journalist with more than 20 years' experience, fourteen of which were at the Baltimore Sun.

Recorded On: Tuesday, September 11, 2012

The 2012 Mencken Memorial Lecture - "The Scopes Trial: How the Letter Kills," presented by Richard J. Schrader, professor emeritus of English, Boston College. Dr. Schrader taught at Princeton University and at Boston College from 1975 to 2009. His publications include H. L. Mencken: A Descriptive Bibliography (1998) and H. L. Mencken: A Documentary Volume (2000).

This lecture was part of the Mencken Society annual meeting.

Recorded On: Saturday, September 8, 2012

The poets will perform and join with the audience in a discussion of the differences and commonalities between poems made for the page and poems performed on the stage.

Performance poet, writer, percussionist, and amateur photographer, Linda Joy Burke is a 2002 Distinguished Black Marylander Award recipient for Art from Towson University’s Office of Diversity; a 2004 Poetry for the People Baltimore Legacy Award recipient; and a 2007 Columbia Festival of the Arts Poetry Slam winner. She is currently a consulting editor to Little Patuxent Review and a Maryland State Arts Council coordinator for the Poetry Out Loud National Recitation Competition. Burke’s poetry has appeared in numerous publications including Little Patuxent Review, Obsidian II, Beltway, Passager, Thy Mother’s Glass, Gargoyle 54, and When Divas Laugh. In 2011, she released the first in a series of chapbooks – Moods, Minds and Multitudes - Somewhere Between There and Here, a collection of photographs and poetry.

Michelle Antoinette Nelson, also known as LOVE the poet, is a prominent indie artist/author on the national performance and literary art scenes and in the field of creative writing education. She has appeared on CNN as a speaker at the Jena Six rally in Washington, D.C., authored the book Black Marks on White Paper, received the 2011 Baker b-grant award, released multiple spoken word CDs, and performed at the Smithsonian and college campuses nationwide. Michelle is also a guitarist, a Punany Poet (as seen on HBO), an active member of the Maryland Speakers Bureau, a host at Busboys and Poets, the creator of Live Lyrics! creative writing workshops, founder/host of BE FREE Fridays (a monthly open mic series), and an active member of Poetry for the People Baltimore.

Linda Joy Burke photo credit: David Hobby.

Recorded On: Wednesday, August 8, 2012