Strong Sense of Place | Travel Through Books

In this episode, we get excited about two new book releases: 'The Most Likely Club' by Elyssa Friedland and 'The English Understand Wool' by Helen DeWitt. Then Mel tells the twisty story of 'Rebecca The Musical' on Broadway.  BOOKS The Most Likely Club by Elyssa Friedland https://bit.ly/3dSlbnG The English Understand Wool by Helen DeWitt https://bit.ly/3y4cr4J ** DISTRACTION OF THE WEEK ** Reddit explainer https://bit.ly/3RnFZkP The Guardian on the fraud https://bit.ly/3RnEiU8 Documentary https://youtu.be/roIueOG7_N4 Promo video for Broadway https://youtu.be/B-SZOwrhTds Promo video for Vienna https://youtu.be/W_zJ0vOWQRg Transcript of this episode https://bit.ly/3SpYkPe The Library of Lost Time is a Strong Sense of Place Production! https://strongsenseofplace.com Do you enjoy our show? Want access to fun bonus content? Please support our work on Patreon. Every little bit helps us keep the show going and makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside - https://www.patreon.com/strongsenseofplace Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Do you ever feel like Italy is just showing off just a bit? It's literally got the best of both worlds, surrounded by the sea and graced with mountains (hello, Italian Alps, Dolomites, and Apennines), woodlands, and hills, including the famous seven of Rome.The climate is ideal for growing lovely things like figs, almonds, olives, grapes, and... romance. What's more romantic than sweethearts riding a Vespa under the moonlight? Or a spritz sipped under a beach umbrella on the Italian Riviera? A dip in the Adriatic, a stroll in the Tuscan sunshine, a run down a slope in the Italian Alps — these are the things of which dreams are made.Which leads us to this fact: Italy has the third highest life expectancy in Europe: 83.5 years of living la dolce vita, the sweet life. The food, the wine, the weather, the language, the history; it's an embarrassment of riches, and we're all the better for it.In this episode, we discuss everything that makes Italy one of the most enchanting places on Earth. We get curious about the world's largest rock band and a possibly cursed village, daydream about eating pasta carbonara in Rome, and cross the sea to Sicily. Then we recommend great books that took us there on the page:The Invitation by Lucy Foley - https://bit.ly/3QYEd9lTrieste and the Meaning of Nowhere by Jan Morris - https://bit.ly/3QZu7FpCinnamon and Salt: Ciccheti in Venice by Emiko Davies - https://bit.ly/3xFjJvIGalileo's Daughter: A Drama of Science, Faith and Love by Dava Sobel - https://bit.ly/3Lv5nDzStill Life by Sarah Winman - https://bit.ly/3Sf2jxGA Room with a View - https://bit.ly/3DOFhd5For more on the books we recommend, plus the other cool stuff we talk about, visit show notes at http://strongsenseofplace.com/podcasts/2022-09-26-italyDo you enjoy our show? Do you want access to awesome bonus content? Please support our work on Patreon! Every little bit helps us keep the show going and makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside - https://www.patreon.com/strongsenseofplaceAs always, you can follow us at: Our web site at Strong Sense of Place Patreon Twitter  Instagram Facebook   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we get excited about two new book releases: 'Duran Duran: Careless Memories' by Denis O'Regan and 'The Slow Road to Tehran: A Revelatory Bike Ride Through Europe and the Middle East' by Rebecca Lowe. Then Dave highlights three books he was excited to see honored with Hugo Awards for sci-fi. BOOKS Duran Duran: Careless Memories by Denis O'Regan https://bit.ly/duranduranbook The Slow Road to Tehran: A Revelatory Bike Ride Through Europe and the Middle East by Rebecca Lowe https://bit.ly/3RgZvPX DISTRACTION OF THE WEEK Complete list of 2022 Hugo Award winners https://bit.ly/3Lu4Zp7 A Desolation Called Peace by Arkady Martine https://bit.ly/3xGUUj3 A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers https://bit.ly/3xJ9ir0 Beowulf: A New Translation by Maria Dahvana Headley https://bit.ly/3duURzV Never Say You Can't Survive by Charlie Jane Anders https://bit.ly/3DIprR1 On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King https://bit.ly/3DGtwoS Watch 25 literary luminaries (Neil Gaiman, Robin Sloane, Felicia Day, Alan Cumming!) read the new translation of _Beowulf_ by Maria Dahvana Headley https://bit.ly/3favljW Transcript of this episode https://bit.ly/3DLZKz8 The Library of Lost Time is a Strong Sense of Place Production! https://strongsenseofplace.com Do you enjoy our show? Want access to fun bonus content? Please support our work on Patreon. Every little bit helps us keep the show going and makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside - https://www.patreon.com/strongsenseofplace As always, you can follow us at: Our web site at Strong Sense of Place Patreon Twitter  Instagram Facebook   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we get excited about two new book releases: 'Ten Things I Hate About Me' by Joe Tracini and 'Thistlefoot' by Gennarose Nethercott. Then Mel explains how the Sleep Stories in the Calm app have taken her on adventures around the world.  BOOKS Ten Things I Hate About Me by Joe Tracini https://bit.ly/3LhYXYH Thistlefoot by Gennarose Nethercott https://bit.ly/3LeUF4f ** DISTRACTION OF THE WEEK ** Follow Joe Tracini on Twitter - https://twitter.com/joetracini Enjoy his rap about bipolar personality disorder - https://bit.ly/3LfjNYx Watch a dance video on YouTube - https://youtu.be/a5AUetoXKMo Listen to a podcast interview with Joe - https://apple.co/3LeYia8 Read a profile of Joe in The Guardian - https://bit.ly/3Upig6z Learn more about the Calm app - https://www.calm.com/ Visit the website for Erik Braa - https://www.erikbraa.com Transcript of this episode https://bit.ly/3RKsWKV The Library of Lost Time is a Strong Sense of Place Production! https://strongsenseofplace.com Do you enjoy our show? Want access to fun bonus content? Please support our work on Patreon. Every little bit helps us keep the show going and makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside - https://www.patreon.com/strongsenseofplace As always, you can follow us at: Our web site at Strong Sense of Place Patreon Twitter  Instagram Facebook   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Secret corridors, hidden rooms, and trapdoors are the stuff of adventure and romance. Egyptian pyramids riddled with underground chambers and booby traps. An English country house with a priest hole and a trick bookcase. A speakeasy with a sliding panel that leads to a brothel and a gambling parlor. Who wouldn't want to go exploring?!And where would Gothic storytelling be without the secret passage in Horace Walpole's 'The Castle of Otranto?' Or the hidden door to the attic in 'Jane Eyre' that's protecting an epic secret?If your childhood was shaped by reading the enchanting adventures in 'The Secret Garden' and 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland,' or by solving the mystery of 'The Hidden Staircase' with Nancy Drew, this show is for you.In this episode, we discuss an amazing book heist from an ancient French monastery, debate if Ben Franklin was a werewolf hunter, get lost in the Mansion on O Street, and daydream about living in the New York Public Library. Then we recommend great books that lured us into magical portals, dangerous tunnels, secret passages, and other hidden spaces that prove irresistible. Here are the books we discuss in the show:A Dangerous Collaboration by Deanna Raybourn https://bit.ly/3cLkQm3The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow https://bit.ly/3AGfsJ7Tunnel 29 by Helena Merriman https://bit.ly/3Ry21liUnderground by Will Hunt https://bit.ly/3CQjyB5The Kingdoms by Natasha Pulley https://bit.ly/3TG18ZRFor more on the books we recommend, plus the other cool stuff we talk about, visit show notes at http://strongsenseofplace.com/podcasts/2022-09-12-secret-passagesDo you enjoy our show? Do you want access to awesome bonus content? Please support our work on Patreon! Every little bit helps us keep the show going and makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside - https://www.patreon.com/strongsenseofplaceAs always, you can follow us at: Our web site at Strong Sense of Place Patreon Twitter  Instagram Facebook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we get excited about two new book releases: 'Killers of a Certain Age' by Deanna Raybourn and 'Fairy Tale' by Stephen King. Then Mel takes us around Europe with the Polish street artist Nespoon.  BOOKS Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn https://bit.ly/3RBg1dW Fairy Tale by Stephen King https://bit.ly/3AVh01I DISTRACTION OF THE WEEK The Library of Lost Time https://bit.ly/3PIqMd8 NeSpoon on Instagram https://bit.ly/3ql5GHj NeSpoon on YouTube https://bit.ly/3BeS6M8 NeSpoon website https://nespoon.art Video of the mural at the Museum of Lace and Fashion https://youtu.be/XeFNYiYC0VE More about the square in Belorado, Spain https://bit.ly/3RmCL1s German video (with some English) featuring NeSpoon's various works https://youtu.be/ehh5A0AW-p4 Colossal magazine https://bit.ly/3etn6PC Five questions with NeSpoon https://bit.ly/3euaeZD Transcript of this episode https://bit.ly/3cNqmoy The Library of Lost Time is a Strong Sense of Place Production! https://strongsenseofplace.com Do you enjoy our show? Want access to fun bonus content? Please support our work on Patreon. Every little bit helps us keep the show going and makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside - https://www.patreon.com/strongsenseofplace As always, you can follow us at: Our web site at Strong Sense of Place Patreon Twitter  Instagram Facebook   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we get excited about two new book releases: 'these are the words' by Nikita Gill and 'Daisy Darker' by Alice Feeney. Then Dave explains the delightful tradition of newcomers to Newfoundland being ScreechedIn. BOOKS these are the words by Nikita Gill https://amzn.to/3q2wY5f Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney https://bit.ly/3Q64Etd DISTRACTION OF THE WEEK  The Library of Lost Time https://bit.ly/3PIqMd8 Newfoundland Screech on Wikipedia https://bit.ly/3wO9SmO On Atlas Obscura https://bit.ly/3R9n3qB Two excellent videos https://youtu.be/-bEPBx4E1aY https://youtu.be/3cI4vSqbMLE Video of Conan O'Brian getting screeched by Natasha Henstridge https://youtu.be/d3bD7427Nqc Our podcast episode about Atlantic Canada https://bit.ly/3CPgwwN Transcript of this episode https://bit.ly/3cHjfxS The Library of Lost Time is a Strong Sense of Place Production! https://strongsenseofplace.com Do you enjoy our show? Want access to fun bonus content? Please support our work on Patreon. Every little bit helps us keep the show going and makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside - https://www.patreon.com/strongsenseofplace As always, you can follow us at: Our web site at Strong Sense of Place Patreon Twitter  Instagram Facebook   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Close your eyes and imagine it: Craggy coastlines with the rumble of crashing surf, sand dunes shaped by the wind off the Atlantic, maybe a lonely lighthouse, and lots of green. The air is bracing, carrying the scent of pine and the sea.Atlantic Canada comprises four provinces: Newfoundland and Labrador, plus the three Maritime provinces of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island, also known as PEI.Lumped together for convenience, each province has its own quirks and charm. You might visit the colorful fishing villages in Nova Scotia or go kayaking in the Bay of Fundy. If Anne Shirley tops your list of best literary heroines, you'll definitely want to make a pilgrimage to PEI. And for Viking lore and teeth-rattling wind — plus puffins, iceberg sightings, and the northern lights — Newfoundland is the place to be.Wherever you land, you're enveloped in the fathomless blue of the sky and sea. It's a dramatic landscape with hardy people and a long history of compelling stories.In this episode, we talk about the lure of buried treasure, pick up a bit of Newfoundland slang, plan a getaway to a posh island hotel, and discuss practically sentient weather. Then we recommend five great books that took us to Atlantic Canada on the page:Crow by Amy Spurway https://bit.ly/3QBrD0rGalore by Michael Crummy https://bit.ly/3PtOrhhMy Darling Detective by Howard Norman https://bit.ly/3waEWNoThe Boat Who Wouldn't Float by Farley Mowat https://bit.ly/3pr2Y2UThe Shipping News by Annie Proulx https://bit.ly/3wd40mRAs always, you can follow us at: Our web site at Strong Sense of Place Patreon Twitter  Instagram Facebook   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we get excited about two new book releases: 'Portrait of an Unknown Woman' by Daniel Silva and 'A Dreadful Splendor' by B.R. Myers. Then Mel explains why she's smitten with Detective Inspector Jimmy Pérez and the Shetland TV series, based on the books by Ann Cleeves. BOOKS Portrait of an Unknown Woman by Daniel Silva https://bit.ly/3PCaF0I A Dreadful Splendor by B.R. Myers https://bit.ly/3CuX6gN DISTRACTION OF THE WEEK The Library of Lost Time https://bit.ly/3PIqMd8 Raven Black by Ann Cleeves https://bit.ly/3wqCSRj Interview with Ann Cleeves https://bit.ly/3pEs0LW Shetland: An Epic Landscape with a Viking Soul https://bit.ly/3Cq55M3 Video: Ann Cleeves' Shetland  https://youtu.be/AAInlBT32w8 'Shetland' on Amazon Prime https://amzn.to/3Kb59AS Transcript of this episode https://bit.ly/3PIqMd8 The Library of Lost Time is a Strong Sense of Place Production! https://strongsenseofplace.com Do you enjoy our show? Want access to fun bonus content? Please support our work on Patreon. Every little bit helps us keep the show going and makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside - https://www.patreon.com/strongsenseofplace As always, you can follow us at: Our web site at Strong Sense of Place Patreon Twitter  Instagram Facebook   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Perched where East meets West, Turkey was once a stopover on the Silk Road, connecting the cultures of Europe and the Balkans to exotic Eastern locales. That explains why its history has as many layers as a piece of baklava.The invaders are a greatest hits list of big names: the Greeks, the Byzantine Empire, the Fourth Crusade, and the Ottoman Empire (and its Janissaries). Then WWI and the birth of a new nation: The Republic of Turkey, with westward-gazing Atatürk at the helm.Now, this stunningly beautiful country is a dreamy holiday destination. There are beaches on the Black, Aegean, and Mediterranean Seas to immerse you in soothing waters. Enjoy colorful Turkish cuisine with strong tea and coffee to fuel your adventures. Listen to slinky, rhythmic folk music, have a soak at a hammam (Turkish bath), and meet friendly locals with a charming predilection for chit-chat.For centuries, travelers have been enchanted by the Istanbul skyline and the romantic Bosphorous Strait. But don't sleep on sights outside that fabled city, like the hot air balloons and otherworldly terrain of Cappadocia, the ancient ruins of the Library of Pergamum, and Gaziantep with the sweet scent of baklava bakeries floating in the air.In this episode, we romp through the Byzantine Empire, get gossipy about the Turkish language, and celebrate sweet words of devotion. Then we recommend five books that took us to Turkey on the page: Three Daughters of Eve by Elif Shafak Dare to Disappoint: Growing Up in Turkey by Özge Samancı The Janissary Tree by Jason Goodwin  My Name is Red by Orhan Pamuk, Erda M. Göknar (translator) Black Amber by Phyllis A. Whitney As always, you can follow us at: Our web site at Strong Sense of Place Patreon Twitter  Instagram Facebook   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices