The Broadcast
“The brilliant thing about the medium is to hear poets reading, speaking and singing their works and the extra impact that it makes on the listener.”
~Cambridge University Press
quiddity (n.) ~ the real nature or essence of a thing; that which makes it what it is
A Few Previous Episodes...
Poetry & the "Discourse of Last Recourse"
Featuring conversations with Sena Jeter Naslund (Abundance), Maya Angelou (Letter to My Daughter), and Peter Ramos (Please Do Not Feed the Ghost)
*quote attribution: Allen Grossman vis-à-vis Peter Ramos
Poetry of War
"Poetry tells the deepest truths about war.” ~James A. Winn
Quiddity’s Poetry of War episode turns its attention to the soldier-poets of war and what they reveal about the essence of honor and memory, shame and slaughter. Features James A. Winn, author of The Poetry of War (Cambridge UP), Pulitzer Prize winner Tyehimba Jess ("The War Speaks") , and fiction from Asha Vose ("Vietnam Visits Uncle Bill")
Better Angels: Abraham Lincoln as Poet
Quiddity’s Better Angels episode features a celebration and exploration of the life of Abraham Lincoln, statesman and poet. Features the poetry of Lincoln and poems about America's 16th president—plus a conversation with poet Dan Guillory, whose works include Living with Lincoln and The Lincoln Poems
The Intersection of Earth & Body Health
Quiddity’s Earth and Body Health episode features a steady but unsettling exploration of what we know and don't know about the intersection of environmental and human health, featuring conversations with Elizabeth Kolbert, author of Field Notes from a Catastrophe, and Barbara Italia Mendez, as well as commentary on works by Alan Weisman (The World Without Us) and Susan Casey ("Our Oceans Are Turning into Plastic...Are We?")
Poetry & Prison
Quiddity’s Poetry and Prison episode examines the results of the Tamms Supermax Poetry Project, including its impact on inmates. Features poetry from participants as well as a conversation with Laurie Jo Reynolds, Reginald “Akkeem” Berry, and Rep. Julie Hamos
Life in Flash
Quiddity’s Life in Flash episode features a conversation with Pulitzer Prize-winning author Robert Olen Butler about flash fiction; it also features short prose from Roy William Scranton, winner of the Teresa A. White Literary Award.
First City of Literature
Quiddity's First City of Literature episode features the streets and stories of Edinburgh, Scotland, UNESCO’s first City of Literature, speaking with those who call the city home and writers who are drawn to its enduring significance as a center for literary activity and discourse. Featured are Anna Burkey (UNESCO Trust), John Man (author of Alpha Beta and The Gutenberg Revolution, among other books), Tom Jackson (Mary King’s Close), and Jan-Andrew Henderson (author and founder of Black Hart Entertainment).