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Fiction, Writers on Writing

Dec 13: Lesley Crewe with Recipe for a Good Life

December 13, 2023

A story of loneliness & belonging. A love letter to the women who’ve kept kettles warm & neighbors fed in rural Cape Breton.

Recipe for a Good Life with author Lesley Crewe

National bestselling, award winning author Lesley Crewe says if she hadn’t moved to a remote island off Novia Scotia she may never have become a writer. Today, Lesley joins us to to talk about her 15th book – Recipe for a Good Life.

We discuss how Lesley adapts ordinary moments and celebrates everyday things. How she develops her characters and who inspires them. What island life is really like, including community, connection, belonging, humor, and how Cape Breton features in her storytelling. And, of course, we share Lesley’s point of view on writing and what it means to be a writer.

About Lesley Crewe

Lesley Crewe is the Globe and Mail–bestselling author of 13 novels, including Nosy Parker, named one of Indigo’s Top 100 Books of 2022; The Spoon Stealer, longlisted for Canada Reads 2022; and Relative Happiness, which was adapted into an award-winning feature film. She has also published two collections of essays, the Leacock-longisted Are You Kidding Me?! and I Kid You Not! Lesley lives in Homeville, Nova Scotia. Recipe for a Good Life is Indigo Book’s 2023 Award Winning Book of the Year.

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Journalism, Non Fiction, Social Issues

Feb 15: The Least of Us with Sam Quinones

February 15, 2023

True Tales of America and Hope in the Time of Fentanyl and Meth

Sam Quinones, The Least of US

The Least of Us by Sam Quinones

Journalist, Sam Quinones, first traveled across America to report on the opioid epidemic that’s ravaged so many people’s lives.

Since then synthetic drugs have become an even bigger problem. So Quinones hit the road again, to examine a new generation of what he calls magic-bullet drug traffickers and a painkiller more than 100 times more powerful than morphine.

We talk today about the crisis being caused by fentanyl and methamphetamine, and the counterfeit pills causing thousands of deaths. Sam also shares stories of hope — of how ordinary Americans across the nation are uniting to fight the drug epidemic in their own communities to make a difference.

About Sam Quinones

Sam Quinones is a journalist, storyteller, former LA TIMES reporter, and the author of four acclaimed books of narrative nonfiction, including The New York Times bestseller and National Book Critics Circle Award winner, Dreamland: The True Tale of America’s Opiate Epidemic. Quinones’ new book is The Least of US: True Tales of America and Hope in the Time of Fentanyl and Meth.

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Journalism, Memoir, Non Fiction

Sep 21: Rebel with a Clause – Ellen Jovin

September 21, 2022

Tales and Tips from a Roving Grammarian

Ellen Jovin‘s journey of almost 30,000 miles around America began outside her Manhattan apartment, with a folding table, and a sign saying GRAMMAR TABLE. From lawyers , couples, and families, to  writers, students, and rappers, passers-by had questions for Ellen — and she had answers.

But how did this take Ellen to 49 cities and towns, by five modes of transport? We discuss why people stopped by the Grammar Table, how that led to the  documentary film and Ellen’s book. And why this isn’t just about words, language, and grammar, but connection, community and — yes — sometimes just wanting to be right.

About Ellen Jovin

Ellen Jovin is the author of four books on language, and a cofounder of Syntaxis, a communication skills training consultancy. She has a B.A. in German studies, an M.A. in comparative literature …  and studied 25 languages just for fun. Her latest book is Rebel with a Clause: Tales and Tips from a Roving Grammarian.

 

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Health & Wellness, Non Fiction, Self-help

SEP 29: You Are Not Alone with The Anxiety Sisters’ Survival Guide

September 29, 2021

How You Can Become More Hopeful, Connected, and Happy

More than one in three of us suffer from anxiety, and despite anxiety being highly treatable, only 36% of suffers seek help says the Anxiety and Depression Association of America.

Today’s guests have lived with anxiety their entire adult lives, so much so that it shaped the work they were driven to do.  Abbe Greenberg and Maggie Sarachek, aka The Anxiety Sisters, say you are NOT alone–even though it may feel that way.

We discuss what living with anxiety is like, what we can do about it, and how feelings of isolation are often accompanied by shame, which stops people from seeking help.

About The Anxiety Sisters

Co-founders of The Anxiety Sisters online community, and co-authors of The Anxiety Sisters’ Survival Guide.

Maggie Sarachek’s expertise is counseling, and teaching people to find strength through community. As a social worker in a New York City high school, she specialized in the development of youth leadership, as well as counseling individuals and families.

Abbe Greenberg has two degrees in the communication field, a certificate in Adult Education, and a Masters in Creative Writing. In addition to a 25-year career as a professor, Abbe has been a divorce mediator, a Myers-Briggs trainer, and communication consultant.

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Non Fiction, Self-help, Sustainability

APR 29: Simplify—How to Stay Sane in a World Going Mad with Bob Hillary

April 29, 2020

Written pre-COVID-19 days, Bob Hillary’s newly released book Simplify: How to Stay Sane in a World Going Mad couldn’t come at a better time. He describes it as a simple survival guide to help you stay sane and thrive during these chaotic times.

Today Bob tells us his biggest takeaway from living totally off the grid for over two years in the Welsh mountains. We look at technology addiction and digital detox. Bob shares thoughts  on SLOW living, living from the heart, spirituality — and why this is a good time to look inward, so that when the Corona Virus pandemic is over, you can make different choices.

Bob Hillary is a singer-songwriter, author, earth protector, and permaculturist. He’s a passionate advocate of the Live Simply movement spreading around the globe. And a keen practitioner of yoga, meditation, and living naturally.

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Journalism, Non Fiction

Apr 22: Death in Mud Lick with Eric Eyre

April 22, 2020

Death In Mud Lick BookWhy would a  small town called Kermit, with a population of just 382 people, need 12 million pills in 3 years? In his new book, Pulitzer Prize winning journalist, Eric Eyre investigates the mysteries, tragedies, and government corruption behind the opioid crisis in West Virginia.

The counties where the story unfolds have the highest overdose rates in our country and Eric joins us to share some of his investigative journey to Death in Mud Lick. We discuss the importance of strong independent journalism, and community journalism in particular. The concept of sustained outrage. And how small actions can make a big difference.

Eric Eyre was a reporter for the Charleston Gazette-Mail more than 20 years. In 2017, his  series of investigations into massive shipments of opioids to West Virginia’s southern coalfields was awarded a Pulitzer Prize. His new book, Death in Mud Lick: A Coal Country Fight against the Drug Companies That Delivered the Opioid Epidemic.

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