Celebrated local writer and performer Nelson Simon graced Greenlight's (virtual) stage to share his new book, Soul of the Hurricane, the unlikely and harrowing true account of his experience sailing into Hurricane Grace, the southern end of the “Perfect Storm.” It was October 1991, and Simon didn’t exactly want to sign up as a last-minute crew member transporting a Norwegian schooner from Brooklyn to Bermuda. But one thing led to another, and there he was. What began with an unexpected invitation and ended far from home in a dark, angry sea makes for an epic true story of grit and courage. Writer, journalist, and longtime All Things Considered contributor Amy Eddings joined Simon for a scintillating conversation on surviving near-death experiences and the power of storytelling. Recorded October 28, 2021.

For the better part of a decade, Uli Beutter Cohen rode the subway through New York City’s underground to observe society through the lens of our most creative thinkers: readers of books. Greenlight welcomed the acclaimed creator of Subway Book Review to our (virtual) stage to launch her new book Between the Lines, a timely collection of beloved and never-before-published stories that reflect who we are and where we are going in the form of over 170 interviews. In an ebullient, lively conversation with Glory Edim (Well-Read Black Girl) and Lupita Aquino (aka Lupita Reads), Beutter Cohen discussed the history of the Subway Book Review project, the power of community and its status in the book industry and in the age of social media, and the importance of the interview as an act of co-creation between interviewer and subject—a principle the three put into practice with aplomb! (Recorded October 20, 2021)

New Yorker staff writer and acclaimed music journalist Kelefa Sanneh joined Greenlight virtually to launch Major Labels, his debut book of nonfiction and a deeply researched, expansive study of popular music over the past fifty years, refracted through the big genres that have defined and dominated it: rock, R&B, country, punk, hip-hop, dance music, and pop. Interviewed by Zoe Chace of This American Life, Sanneh discussed the status, politics, and stakes of musical genres in an age replete with streaming and multimedia crossovers, “hipsterdom”, the influence of social media on music criticism, his “nostalgia for a time when people were less nostalgic,” and so much more. (Recorded October 19, 2021)

In his memoir Never Silent, Peter Staley shares the untold story of his journey from closeted Wall Street bond trader to one of the leading AIDS and LGBTQ rights activists of his generation. Infusing personal chronicle with what Tony Kushner (Angels in America) praises as an “incisive, precise, and revelatory insider’s history of ACT UP” and “an electrifying primer for anyone who’s thinking/worrying/wondering about how to change/save the world,” Staley’s firsthand experience at the frontlines of AIDS activism generated a fascinating conversation full of insight and reminiscence with Ann Northrop, veteran journalist and fellow longtime ACT UP member. Staley and Northrop joined Greenlight virtually to discuss the trajectory of their activism, sex positivity and white privilege within the movement, and the present political climate concerning public health, and much more. (Recorded October 18, 2021)

PEN/Faulkner Award-winning author of literati darlings Call Me Zebra and Fra Keeler took to Greenlight’s virtual stage to launch her third novel, Savage Tongues—a personal and political exploration of desire, power, domination, and human connection that’s equal parts Marguerite Duras and Shirley Jackson, Rachel Cusk and Clarice Lispector, tracing a young woman’s search for healing in the fall-out of an affair with a much older man. Joined by the inimitable poet Eileen Myles, Oloomi discussed the kaleidoscopic thinking propelling her book, the power of women’s retelling, the practice of transcribing life, and how life eludes transcription. (Recorded October 12, 2021)

Episode QS79: Caoilinn Hughes + Diane Cook (December 23, 2021)(Recorded September 30, 2021)Award-winning authors Caoilinn Hughes and Diane Cook took to the Greenlight virtual stage to discuss their recent novels, The Wild Laughter (winner of the Royal Society of Literature's Encore Award 2021) and The New Wilderness (shortlisted for the 2020 Man Booker Prize). Along with exploring shared themes of legacy, climate change, “generational robbery”, and the ever-changing challenges of parenting, Hughes and Cook bantered spiritedly about the mystery & process of writing and pondered together the impulse to build new worlds in fiction—to look elsewhere—in order to tell the stories we need to tell.

Mina Stone, author of the cult-favorite Cooking for Artists, joined Greenlight (virtually!) to launch her stunning new cookbook, Lemon, Love & Olive Oil—featuring 80 Mediterranean-style recipes rooted in the traditions passed to her by preceding generations. Stone learned to cook from her Yiayia, who taught her that food doesn’t have to be complicated to be delicious—and that almost any dish can be improved with judicious amounts of lemon, olive oil, and salt. Stone’s friend, collaborator, and world-renowned artist Urs Fischer joined her for a charming conversation on the ways in which food and cooking touches off from our lives, families, and creative urges—and the secret importance of knowing how to make an ice cream cake! (Recorded September 14, 2021)

In a heartrending and deeply moving evening, two Asian-American literary luminaries, Qian Julie Wang and Charles Yu (Interior Chinatown) welcomed Wang’s incandescent debut, Beautiful Country--an essential American story about a family fracturing under the weight of invisibility, and a girl coming of age in the shadows, who never stops seeking the light. Wang and Yu discussed the emotional journey that led her to write this searing memoir and the hard-won process by which she realized it; the transformative powers of education, therapy, and the affection of animals; and the complex, fierce resilience of immigrant parents. A conversation—and book—not to be missed! (Recorded September 13, 2021)

Jai Chakrabarti graced our virtual stage to launch his debut novel, A Play for the End of the World--an unforgettable love story set in early 1970's New York and rural India, a provocative exploration of the role of art in times of political upheaval, and a deeply moving reminder of the power of the past to shape the present. Chakrabarti, joined in conversation by Brigid Hughes of A Public Space (where he was previously a writing fellow!), discussed the entwining of place and personhood, how one moves and exists in the city versus in the country, and the differences between who we are in moments of turmoil and in moments of abundance. (Recorded September 8, 2021)

When acclaimed author Yiyun Li and A Public Space magaine invited people to read War and Peace together at the start of the pandemic, thousands around the globe joined for an 85-day journey through Tolstoy’s epic novel. Tolstoy Together, based on this experiment, is a book about the art of reading and an invitation to the collective act of book discussion, with contributions from fellow readers and such writers as Tom Drury, Garth Greenwell, Elliott Holt, Sara Majka, and many others. In a conversation moderated by A Public Space editor Brigid Hughes, Yiyun Li and Alexandra Schwartz spoke before a robust (remote) audience of the comfort of connecting with others during lockdown, resonances between Tolstoy’s novel and the present, and the evergreen argument for the power of communal reading. (Recorded August 31, 2021)