Bay Area Book Festival Podcast

Alyssa Songsiridej, Shruti Swamy, Anita Felicelli How do writers represent the physicality of the human body, in all its frailty and its grace? Explore this question with electrifying debut novelists Shruti Swamy (“The Archer”) and Alyssa Sonsiridej (“Little Rabbit”), whose coming-of-age novels share a thoughtful consideration of the intersections of the body with creativity and self-expression.

Gabriela Garcia, Masha Rumer, Shugri Said Salh, Susie Meserve How do immigrant mothers navigate the world, and what do they leave their daughters when they go? Join Susie Meserve in conversation with three writers focusing on matrilineal lineages: Gabriela Garcia (“Of Women and Salt”); journalist Masha Rumer (“Parenting with an Accent”); and Shugri Said Salh (“The Last Nomad: Coming of Age in the Somali Desert”). We’ll discuss the power of storytelling to connect grandmothers to mothers to daughters even when they no longer share a nationality.

Jen Ferguson, Laura Gao, Cinnamongirl Kailynn These gifted authors offer historical and contemporary narratives of growing up queer.  Jen Ferguson’s “The Summer of Bitter and Sweet” features a Métis teen facing racism, sexual identity, and first love. Laura Gao’s graphic memoir “Messy Roots” grapples with queerness and the author’s identity as a Chinese immigrant to America. With support from the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria.

Raquel Kelley, Meredith Rose Essalat, Kaitlin Soulé, Josephine Wai Lin, Cindy DiTiberio A heartfelt and funny session about the joys and absurdities of modern motherhood. Raquel Kelley’s “Where’d I Go?” is a lift-the-flap book—not for babies, but for their tired moms. Josephine Wai Lin offers a modern take on the baby book, focusing on an open-minded approach to gender. In “A Little Less of a Hot Mess,” family therapist Kaitlin Soulé urges moms to embrace their imperfections. And educator/school administrator Meredith Essalet (“The Overly Honest Teacher”) distills her best tips.

Dale Berry, Steve Hockensmith, Catriona McPherson, Gary Phillips, Laurie R. King Four experts in suspense unravel the secrets to making pages turn. Your mentors in mystery are Dale Berry (“Tales of the Moonlight Cutter,” set in medieval China); Catriona McPherson, with the historical crime novel “In Place of Fear;” Steve Hockensmith, author of mysteries for adults and children; and Gary Phillips (“One Shot Harry”), critically acclaimed author of mystery, noir, and graphic novels. Moderated by the newly minted Mystery Writers of America Grand Master, Laurie R. King. Sponsored by Mystery Writers of America–NorCal.

Kate Folk, James Kennedy, Claire Stanford, Vauhini Vara, Lucile Culver Four fiction writers, each with an exquisite ear for the tender absurdities of humanity, bring their craft to bear on tech. Kate Folk (“Out There”) looks at intimacy through a futurist lens. Vauhini Vara (“The Immortal King Rao”) examines technological capitalism and climate change. Claire Stanford’s “Happy for You” is set in a tech company developing a “happiness app,” and James Kennedy’s “Dare to Know” in one that has developed the technology to predict death.

Karen Joy Fowler, Lee Kravetz Two novelists channel the worlds and minds of two mythologized historic figures. With “Booth,” Karen Joy Fowler (“The Jane Austen Book Club,” “We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves”), conjures the origins of a villain who changed America’s trajectory: John Wilkes Booth. Lee Kravetz’s “The Last Confessions of Sylvia P” reimagines a chapter in the life of poet Sylvia Plath, through three perspectives.

Peter Richardson, Sam Quinones Why is the wild, woolly writing of Hunter S. Thompson (“Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas”) still so relevant today? By inventing a whole new genre—”Gonzo journalism”—he forever changed the fourth estate. With “Savage Journey,” Peter Richardson, in an interview with Sam Quinones (“The Least of Us”) takes us for a ride through Thompson’s weird journey to Gonzo: one that took its first steps in San Francisco.

Kekla Magoon, Jetta Martin, Waldo Martin Jr., Cinnamongirl Olivia, Kimberly Cox Marshall The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense rocked the world with a revolutionary vision whose legacy still burns bright. Get to know the stories behind the movement with three renowned authors: Kekla Magoon (“Revolution in Our Time”) and Jetta Martin and Waldo Martin, Jr. (“Freedom! The Story of the Black Panther Party”).

Forrest Gander, Christina MacSweeney, Megan McDowell, Achy Obejas, Nathan Scott McNamara To translate an author’s work—staying faithful to their vision, style, and message, in a language not their own—is to assume an awesome responsibility: one that hasn’t always gotten its just due as an art form. Four of today’s most noteworthy and acclaimed translators of Latin American contemporary literature will shed light on the origins, rewards, pitfalls, and complexities of their discipline. Christina MacSweeney, a recipient of the Valle Inclan prize, has translated the works of leading Spanish-language authors including Valeria Luiselli, Jazmina Barrera, and Elvira Navarro. Megan McDowell, who received the English PEN award and whose works in translation have been nominated four times for the International Booker Prize, has translated many of the most important Latin American authors working today, including Samanta Schweblin, Alejandro Zambra, and Mariana Enriquez. Havana-born translator Achy Obejas, who has worked with Wendy Guerra, Rita Indiana, Junot Díaz, and Megan Maxwell, is also the author of a recent collection of poetry written in a mostly gender-free Spanish and English. And Pulitzer Prize–winning poet Forrest Gander, also a renowned translator, will share insights from his distinguished career. Find out why translation is a journey of never-ending discovery, creativity, and lessons in cross-cultural sensitivity and communication.Sponsored by the Center for the Art of Translation.