We get some recommendations for books that challenged norms in their day and can still challenge us now.

Plus, an English professor at Wellesley College talks about the struggles to present LGBTQ themes in literature over the last hundred years.

Next week marks a year since the last US troops were withdrawn from Afghanistan. We check back in with two sisters from the country, who are now living in Worcester, about the last 12 months. Then we turn to Congressman Jake Auchincloss, a marine corps veteran, about what should come next for the region.

Plus, incoming Boston Public Schools Superintendent Mary Skipper talks about the new school year and in-person learning.

WBUR Senior arts and culture reporter Cristela Guerra joins Radio Boston to preview events happening this weekend in Boston and beyond.

We talk about the impending Orange and Green line closures and what's next for the MBTA with a panel of experts.

This weekend, a bronze statue of Elizabeth Freeman, a formerly enslaved person in Sheffield, will be unveiled. Freeman sued for her freedom and won the case decades before the Emancipation Proclamation. We learn more about her life and legacy.

Plus, Elizabeth Freeman was the first African American to sue for her freedom and win in Massachusetts. Nearly 250 years later, she is honored with a statue in Sheffield.

Plus, the landscape is changing for people looking to buy electric vehicles after Massachusetts and the federal government both signed significant climate legislation. And the Berklee Indian Ensemble's released its first album.

The state's Board of Elementary and Secondary Education's vote on Monday raises the passing score on the 10th grade MCAS, with another score hike scheduled for the class of 2031.