Human Voices Wake Us

The second in a series of four episodes on the atomic bomb, from its development to the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, drawn from the words of those who were there. The full text of the quotations used here can be found in the blog versions of these podcasts.

The books used to make these episodes are:

John Else's documentary, The Day After Trinity, can be watched here.

John Bradley's anthology of poets writing about the bomb is Atomic Ghosts: Poets Respond to the Atomic Age.

My essay, "Blindness, War & History," first published in the Concho River Review in 2014, can be read here.

Any comments, or suggestions for readings I should make in later episodes, can be emailed to [email protected].

I assume that the small amount of work presented in each episode constitutes fair use. Publishers, authors, or other copyright holders who would prefer to not have their work presented here can also email me at [email protected], and I will remove the episode immediately.

The first in a series of four episodes on the atomic bomb, from its development to the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, drawn from the words of those who were there. The full text of the quotations used here can be found in the blog versions of these podcasts.

The books used to make these episodes are:

John Else's documentary, The Day After Trinity, can be watched here.

John Bradley's anthology of poets writing about the bomb is Atomic Ghosts: Poets Respond to the Atomic Age.

Any comments, or suggestions for readings I should make in later episodes, can be emailed to [email protected].

I assume that the small amount of work presented in each episode constitutes fair use. Publishers, authors, or other copyright holders who would prefer to not have their work presented here can also email me at [email protected], and I will remove the episode immediately.

A reading of my poems "Song of the Smith" and "A Song to Stone," from the book Bone Antler Stone.

You can buy the book here, and read reviews and essays about the book here.

Any comments, or suggestions for readings I should make in later episodes, can be emailed to [email protected].

I assume that the small amount of work presented in each episode constitutes fair use. Publishers, authors, or other copyright holders who would prefer to not have their work presented here can also email me at [email protected], and I will remove the episode immediately.

A reading from James Garbarino's 1999 book on violent young men, Lost Boys: Why Our Sons Turn Violent & How We Can Save Them. Garbarino has written many other books on the topic, and this one especially can both continue to speak to us today, as well as seem like a time capsule before the internet went crazy, before smartphones, and before social media. 

For these reasons & others, this episode is a good companion to only the third episode of Human Voices Wake Us, where I read from Mary Pipher's 1994 book on teenage girls, Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves of Adolescent Girls.

Any comments, or suggestions for readings I should make in later episodes, can be emailed to [email protected].

I assume that the small amount of work presented in each episode constitutes fair use. Publishers, authors, or other copyright holders who would prefer to not have their work presented here can also email me at [email protected], and I will remove the episode immediately.

The latest episode of The Poet Speaks, where I talk about storytelling with examples from James Joyce, Thomas Hardy, John Hawkes, Geoffrey Hill, and William Trevor. 

James Joyce's 1906 letter to his brother can be found here.

Thomas Hardy's short story, "On the Western Circuit," can be found here.

The two volumes of William Trevor's short stories can be found here and here. 

The short story collection of mine that I mention during the episode is called The Lonely Young & the Lonely Old. 

Any comments, or suggestions for readings I should make in later episodes, can be emailed to [email protected].

I assume that the small amount of work presented in each episode constitutes fair use. Publishers, authors, or other copyright holders who would prefer to not have their work presented here can also email me at [email protected], and I will remove the episode immediately.

A reading of my poem "The Sun Sets Into the Sea," from the book Bone Antler Stone.

You can buy the book here, and read reviews and essays about the book here. 

Any comments, or suggestions for readings I should make in later episodes, can be emailed to [email protected].

I assume that the small amount of work presented in each episode constitutes fair use. Publishers, authors, or other copyright holders who would prefer to not have their work presented here can also email me at [email protected], and I will remove the episode immediately.

A reading and commentary from interviews Seamus Heaney gave on the writing of his 1991 book Seeing Things, taken from Dennis O'Driscoll's Stepping Stones: Interviews with Seamus Heaney.

Seeing Things can be purchased here.

Any comments, or suggestions for readings I should make in later episodes, can be emailed to [email protected].

I assume that the small amount of work presented in each episode constitutes fair use. Publishers, authors, or other copyright holders who would prefer to not have their work presented here can also email me at [email protected], and I will remove the episode immediately.

A 13 poems from Seamus Heaney's 1991 collection, Seeing Things. The poems are:

Seeing Things can be purchased here.

Any comments, or suggestions for readings I should make in later episodes, can be emailed to [email protected].

I assume that the small amount of work presented in each episode constitutes fair use. Publishers, authors, or other copyright holders who would prefer to not have their work presented here can also email me at [email protected], and I will remove the episode immediately.