Wavemaker Conversations

Andrew Revkin, of the NY Times Dot Earth blog, captures "the history of our love affair with fossil fuels" with a memorable performance of his song Liberated Carbon. As for breaking news, will President Obama's latest initiatives to battle global warming move the needle? Revkin shares his nuanced take informed by nearly 3 decades of his original reporting. Recorded live, by @NCTV18, before leaders of the Organization of Biological Field Stations, the "NASA of the Earth."

Meet three emerging literary stars. Three young authors, three highly acclaimed new books. All have insights for writers and for parents who would love their children to do more reading and writing. Justin St. Germain investigates the life, and violent death, of his mother in his memoir "Son of a Gun." LaShonda Katrice Barnett, historian & student of jazz, channels two path-breaking African-American women in the field of journalism for her novel "Jam on the Vine." Belinda McKeon shares her journey from growing up on a farm in Ireland to becoming the author of two highly acclaimed novels, "Solace" and "Tender," and is thankful the Nuns from her school showed up for her explicit reading.

Schulder speaks with Harper Lee biographer Charles Shields about the To Kill A Mockingbird - Go Set A Watchman saga. Shields, author of "Mockingbird: A Portrait of Harper Lee," relays captivating stories of Lee's life including her close friendship with childhood neighbor Truman Capote, her painful relationship with her mother, who suffered symptoms of bipolar disease, the real feelings about race and segregation of her father A.C. Lee, the inspiration for Atticus Finch and the challenge that English teachers now face as a result of the dark, new depiction of Atticus.

Michael speaks with best-selling historian Nathaniel Philbrick. Philbrick identified 14 year old boys at the center of two fascinating chapters in American history, including the sinking of the whale ship Essex in 1820 by a huge whale, a true story Herman Melville drew on for Moby Dick. Director Ron Howard has turned the dramatic tale of survival into a major movie, releasing in December. This episode, the back story, and more, live from the Nantucket Book Festival, is ideal listening for the whole family.

Michael speaks with former child soldier Ishmael Beah. His best-selling memoir, A Long Way Gone, led a New York Times book reviewer to wonder "how anyone comes through such unrelenting ghastliness and horror with his humanity and sanity intact." This conversation, at the Nantucket Book Festival, at times disturbing yet thoroughly uplifting, provides us with some answers.

Schulder speaks with Azar Nafisi, Iranian-American author of the number one New York Times bestseller "Reading Lolita in Tehran" and "Republic of Imagination: America in 3 Books," in front of a live audience at this summer's Nantucket Book Festival. Nafisi insists that remaining in Iran after the Islamic Revolution and teaching the works of great western authors in ways the rulers of the Islamic Republic would consider subversive, was not an act of courage. Listen and judge for yourself.

Schulder speaks with former First Lady, Rosalynn Carter, for the National Women's Hall of Fame oral history project. Mrs. Carter shares stories from her active role in the women's rights movement, the resistance she encountered advocating for the Equal Rights Amendment, the backstory of the first federally funded National Women's Conference, the personal encounters that triggered her early advocacy of mental health coverage, the biggest disappointment in her life, her advice for young girls and boys, and her days growing up in Plains, Georgia. As you'll hear, Mrs. Carter's full immersion in the issues she cares most about continues, today, at the age of 87.

In the run-up to the Stanley Cup finals, Schulder pays a visit to hockey maven Stan Fischler. When the 83 year old historian of hockey is not fighting city traffic on his bicycle, he is analyzing games for the MSG Networks and writing books on the sport -- the count is roughly 100. Fischler provides insights on speed versus power, the best players he's ever seen, and his own journey into the world of hockey, which began with a great disappointment, on a day in 1939, when he was 7 years old ...

Miles O'Brien shares inside stories of his 15 years as CNN's science, space and aviation correspondent, his passion for piloting, how close he got to flying on a space shuttle, the unusual sequence of events that led to the amputation of his left arm, and the childhood roots of the resilience which led him to belay 12 feet beneath the surface of a glacier so soon after the accident. Miles and Michael spoke together on the island of Nantucket before a live audience of conservation leaders from the Organization of Biological Field Stations: "NASA of the Earth."

Miles O'Brien shares inside stories of his 15 years as CNN's science, space and aviation correspondent, his passion for piloting, how close he got to flying on a space shuttle, the unusual sequence of events that led to the amputation of his left arm, and the childhood roots of the resilience which led him to belay 12 feet beneath the surface of a glacier so soon after the accident. Miles and Michael spoke together on the island of Nantucket before a live audience of conservation leaders from the Organization of Biological Field Stations: "NASA of the Earth."