Words on a Wire

Daniel talks with writer & poet Howard McCord about his book “Walking to Extremes,” in which he walked the hot deserts of New Mexico, and the barren, cold deserts of Iceland. McCord has a passion for walking, and he talks about how it influences his work.

McCord also shares a recent poem, “Note in a Mailbox.”

Ben & Daniel talk with Carmen Giménez Smith, writer, poet, and professor of Creative Writing at New Mexico State University in Las Cruces NM. She talks about how her writing style is conducive to her busy life as a professional and a mother of two. She also talks about how she blends her careers as a writer and teacher, and why she sometimes has to teach what she personally doesn’t like because it presents a teachable moment.

Gimenez Smith also reads one of her poems for the Poem of the Week – “Photo of a Girl on a Beach” from the collection “Odalisque in Pieces.”

Amit Ghosh, publisher of the literary journal BorderSenses, contributes to this week’s Poetic License, with a reflection on his struggle to break away from his culture’s expectation to be a doctor, engineer, scientist, or lawyer, and follow his passion as a writer.

Ben & Daniel talk with Lee & Bobby Byrd, owners & publishers for Cinco Puntos Press in El Paso. They talk about how they were introduced to the world of publishing, and how Cinco Puntos became a home for books no one else would publish because they connected so closely with the border culture. They also talk about the poetry collection “Beauty is a Verb” which features works written by writers with disabilities.

The Poem of the Week is read by Bobby Byrd, and comes from the “Beauty is a Verb” collection. “Avoiding Rigidity” by Hal Sirowitz, who lives with Parkinson’s Disease.

Writer Denise Chávez will also be talking about the upcoming Border Book Festival, which takes place April 19-22 in Mesilla NM.

Daniel & Ben talk with novelist Tony D’Souza, author of “White Man” and “Mule.” D’Souza talks about his latest novel “Mule,” about a struggling writer who turns to drug running to make a living. He discusses the research behind “Mule,” and why the book had such a hard time getting published. D’Souza also talks about why his first book “White Man” is similar to “Mule,” and about the difficulty following up an acclaimed first novel.

Benjamin Saenz remembers poet Adrienne Rich, who passed away on March 27, by reading her poem “Tonight No Poetry will Serve.”

Writer Amy Hassigner reflects on originality in this week’s Poetic License.

Daniel interviews his co-host, Benjamin Alire Saenz, about his new young adult novel, “Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe.” The book, which is set in El Paso in the 1980s, tells the story of loner teen Aristotle who befriends fellow teen, Dante, who is the exact opposite of himself.

In this week’s Poetic License, Daniel reflects on Chicano masculinity and its different incarnations in his life.

* Daniel & Ben talk with writer Luis Alberto Urrea, who talks about his latest book “Queen of America.” The book is a follow up to “The Hummingbird’s Daughter” and was inspired by famed curandera, Teresita Urrea. He talks about the 26 years of research that went into writing the two books.

* The Poem of the Week is “Oxtail Stew” by David Dominguez, from his book “Work Done Right.” Read by Daniel Chacon.

* Benjamin Saenz contributes to this week’s Poetic License with a reflection on why he’s been a sinner since the day he was born.

* Daniel & Ben talk with writer Corrinne Clegg Hales, author of the poetry collection, “ To Make It Right.” She talks about how her work is haunted by the spirits of the dead, and how she tries to make her poetry accessible to readers who might otherwise skip over a poem.

* The Poem of the Week is “Diving Into the Wreck” by Adrienne Rich – read by Benjamin Saenz.

* This week’s Poetic License is a reflection by Daniel Chacón on how his imagination transformed his childhood.

* Daniel & Ben talk with writer Tony Diaz, novelist and leader of the Librotraficante movement, which is on a mission to smuggle banned books back into Tucson, Arizona, after the city’s school board removed a number of books from the district’s classrooms, including many books on Latino studies. The Librotraficante caravan is traveling from Houston to Tucson, and will make a stop in El Paso on March 14 at 7 p.m., at the Mercado Mayapan, 2101 Myrtle.

* Benjamin Saenz offers this week’s Poetic License, with a moving reflection on the life of his late mother.

Daniel & Ben talk with Poet Laureate of the United States, Philip Levine. Levine talks about his love of New York City, why he always wanted to be a poet, his life as the U.S. Poet Laureate, and how the Diego Rivera murals in Detroit influenced him as a young man. Levine also contributes this week’s Poem of the Week, reading his own poem, “Llanto” (for Ernesto Trejo).

Daniel and guest co-host Sasha Pimentel-Chacon talk with Melinda Palacio, author of “Ocotillo Dreams” and “Folsom Lockdown.” Palacio talks about her upcoming collection of poems, “How Fire is a Story Waiting,” and how a visit to her estranged father in prison inspired the poetry chapbook, “Folsom Lockdown.”

The Poem of the Week was written by, and is ready by, Melinda Palacio – “Abluela’s Higuera.”

Writer & educator Oscar Bermeo contributes to this week’s Poetic License, with a reflection on why he cannot label himself a “Latino writer.”