Bay Area Book Festival Podcast

Joan Frank, Dorothy Lazard, and Jane Smiley, moderated by John Freeman Each of us has a different relationship with the books we read…and write. That is no less true if you've just published your first, as legendary librarian Dorothy Lazard has, than it is for Joan Frank, with a dozen publications under her belt. It's also true, of course, for Pulitzer Prize winners like Jane Smiley. Each of these authors has had a decades-long love affair with books; in this session, they'll tell you not only what they were reading, but how it affected them and their work. Buy the books here

Max Miller, interviewed by Brian Watt If you've ever read Dickens and asked yourself, "What is gruel, anyway?" or wondered what would have been served at Macbeth's infamous feast, this session is for you. Perhaps, if you're among Max Miller's 1.65 million YouTube followers on his channel Tasting History, you already know the answers to these questions—now Miller has compiled his ceaseless culinary curiosity into a beautifully illustrated new volume for the rest of us. Satiate your appetite for historical oddities in this lively session! Buy the books here

Mary Robinette Kowal, Annalee Newitz, and Megan O'Keefe, moderated by Evette Davis Get ready to take off for the far reaches of the galaxy via three very different, but equally fascinating, stories of space exploration written by superb storytellers. Buy the books here

Ashia Ajani, Aya de Leon, and Camille Dungy, moderated by Devin T. Murphy 2023 marks the thirtieth anniversary of Octavia Butler's novel, which has only grown more relevant over the past three decades. Two poets and a novelist will discuss the power of Octavia Butler's prophetic parables, placing their own writing in her lineage connecting climate justice and racial justice. Buy the books here

Mark Ciabattari, Katie Hafner, and Peter Hoey, moderated by Heather Scott Partington All the creators in this session depict a world that is just slightly off-kilter from reality. Join three inventive creators for an intellectually playful conversation about approaching the craft of fiction seriously—but with whimsy to spare. Buy the books here

Vanessa A. Bee, Camille Dungy, and Kathryn Savage, moderated by Kristin Keane In this memoir session, thoughtful considerations of home blend the authors' intimate perspectives with broader questions of racial and economic injustice, ecological harm, housing insecurity, and other systemic crises. Buy the books here

V, interviewed by Deirdre English Perhaps you're most familiar with V as the Tony Award-winning playwright (often under her former name Eve Ensler) of groundbreaking works. Or maybe you've been inspired by V's global activist movement, launched with the very first "V Day" on February 14, 1998, that creates safe, powerful spaces for survivors and others to talk openly about violence against women and girls. These intersections of art and activism are the places V explores most movingly in her new memoir. Buy the books here

Dacher Keltner, interviewed by Shawn Taylor How do we begin to quantify the goose bumps we feel when we see the Grand Canyon, or the utter amazement when we watch a child walk for the first time? How do we give words the wonder we feel while gazing at centuries-old works of art? Dacher Keltner, one of the world's foremost scientists of emotion and faculty director of UC Berkeley's Greater Good Science Center, presents his groundbreaking new book, Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life. Sponsored by Reed Schmidt. Buy the books here

Keenan Norris, Pilar Quintana, and Margaret Verble, moderated by Ethel Rohan It's undeniable that we were all once children, but that doesn't mean it's child's play for writers to center the voice and perspective of a child or teen without veering into oversimplification or preciousness. In this craft-focused session, we'll engage with the works of three writers who excel at the task, first doing a close reading of specific passages and then learning more about how that youthful perspective informs the totality of the work. With support from the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria Buy the books here

Akil Kumarasamy, Josh Riedel, Allie Rowbottom, Nina Schuyler, and Colin Winnette, moderated by Noah Stern The authors in this session aren't afraid to use their fiction to contend with the looming future of tech, but their new novels, like so much timeless fiction, are really about the pricelessness of human connection. This provocative discussion will equip attendees for a bold new future—or at least be prepared with a good book at the ready. With the support of SACHI Buy the books here