02

Mar

Heather McGhee’s specialty is the American economy—and the mystery of why it so often fails the American public. From the financial crisis to rising student debt to collapsing public infrastructure, she found a common root problem: racism. But not just in the most obvious indignities for people of color. Racism has costs for white people, too. It is the common denominator of our most vexing public problems, the core dysfunction of our democracy and constitutive of the spiritual and moral crises that grip us all. But how did this happen? And is there a way out?

Presented in partnership with Black Mountain Institute, Literary Arts, and The Loft's WordPlay, Heather McGhee will appear live on Crowdcast in conversation with Anand Giridharadas, author of Winners Take All, to discuss her new book, The Sum of Us. Join us at: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/wbf-sum-of-us.

03

Mar

Presented in partnership with the University of Wisconsin Program in Creative Writing, this edition of Wisconsin Wednesdays features UW Alumni James Crews, Chekwube Danladi, Rachel Swearingen, and Angela Voras-Hills for their newest books, Bluebird, Semiotics, How To Walk on Water, Louder Birds. Join the event at: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/wbf-wisc-weds-3-3. Before the event begins, you will see a countdown and the event image. 

About Bluebird: Bluebird is wide-ranging and open-hearted, mining wisdom from meditation, prayer, and the simple acts of kindness that reunite us as neighbors. Written with clarity and attention to the mindful moments that make life memorable, James Crews urges us in his newest collection "To live unbound by time/and mind—to grow, speak, touch and taste/at a pace that feels more real."

10

Mar

An exquisite new literary voice--wryly funny, nakedly honest, beautifully observational, in the vein of Jenny Offill and Elizabeth Strout--depicts one woman's attempt to keep her four chickens alive while reflecting on a recent loss. Jackie Polzin will appear live via Crowdcast. Join the event at: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/wbf-brood. Before the event begins, you will see a countdown and the event image. 

14

Mar

Presented in partnership with the Virginia Festival of the Book and The Back Room, crime writers S.A. Cosby, Chris Harding Thornton, David Heska Wanbli Weiden, and Heather Young discuss their highly-acclaimed books in conversation with international bestselling authors Karen Dionne and Hank Phillippi Ryan. Each of these novels presents a complicated story of secrets and crimes that involve generations within a rural noir framework, including Virginia-based drag races, lost souls in rural Nebraska, criminal injustice on a North Dakota reservation, and the explosive effects of opioid abuse in a small town in Nevada. Join us at: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/virginia-festival-of-the-book-special-presentation-tickets-138591237121

15

Mar

Presented in partnership with the UW Program in Creative Writing, a reading from the graduating MFA cohort in poetry. This event will feature the work of Gabriella Balza, Adrienne Chung, Miriam Huettner, Itiola Jones, Alison Thumel, Ajibola Tolase. Join the event at: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/2021-uw-poetry-mfa​. Before the event begins, you will see a countdown and the event image. 

23

Mar

Raft of Stars is a fresh spin on the classic adventure novel that delves into the heartbeat of rural America. Set over the course of a few days in the summer of 1994, this is a story of two young boys, a violent confrontation with an abusive father, and their flight into the Wisconsin Northwoods. Andrew J. Graff will appear live via Crowdcast in conversation with Nickolas Butler. Join the event at: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/wbf-raft-of-stars. Before the event begins, you will see a countdown and the event image.

25

Mar

Presented in partnership with the Virginia Festival of the Book, Ayad Akhtar discusses his latest novel, a deeply personal work about identity and belonging in a nation coming apart at the seams. Homeland Elegies blends fact and fiction to tell an epic story of longing and dispossession in the world that 9/11 made. Part family drama, part social essay, part picaresque novel, at its heart it is the story of a father, a son, and the country they both call home. Ayad Akhtar forges a new narrative voice to capture a country in which debt has ruined countless lives and the gods of finance rule, where immigrants live in fear, and where the nation’s unhealed wounds wreak havoc around the world. Akhtar attempts to make sense of it all through the lens of a story about one family, from a heartland town in America to palatial suites in Central Europe to guerrilla lookouts in the mountains of Afghanistan, and spares no one—least of all himself—in the process.

26

Mar

Presented in partnership with the Virginia Festival of the Book, authors John Grisham and Ian Rankin discuss their new books, revisiting long-time characters, writing crime novels, and frankly, anything else they’d like to discuss. Join us at: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/dark-times-and-mercy-john-grisham-and-ian-rankin-in-conversation-tickets-138803199105. The video recording from this event will also be available to watch after the event concludes on VaBook.org/Watch. Please note that this event is being broadcast from the Eastern timezone at 7/6 Central.

30

Mar

An intimate, heart wrenching portrait of one small hospital that reveals the magnitude of America’s health care crises. Brian Alexander will appear live on Crowdcast to discuss his newest book, The Hospital. Join the event at: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/wbf-the-hospital. Before the event begins, you will see a countdown and the event image. 

06

Apr

Billy Miller is back! The stand-alone companion to two-time Newbery Honor author Kevin Henkes’s award-winning, acclaimed, and bestselling The Year of Billy Miller, Billy Miller Makes a Wish is a laugh-out-loud funny and accessible story about summer, family, and wishes that (almost) come true. A great choice for young middle grade readers. Billy Miller Makes a Wish is illustrated in black-and-white throughout by the author, and is perfect for fans of the Ramona books and the Clementine series. Kevin Henkes will appear on Crowdcast to discuss his newest book, Billy Miller Makes a Wish. Join the event at: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/wbf-billy-miller-wish. Before the event begins, you will see a countdown and the event image. 

07

Apr

Presented in partnership with the University of Wisconsin Program in Creative Writing, this edition of Wisconsin Wednesdays features UW Professor, Jesse Lee Kercheval, and UW Alumnus, Mark Wunderlich, for their newest books, Love Poems & God of Nothingness. Join the event at: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/wbf-love-poems-nothingness. Before the event begins, you will see a countdown and the event image. 

08

Apr

An explosive, character-driven odyssey through the world of baseball from Emily Nemens, the editor of The Paris Review. Jason Goodyear is the star outfielder for the Los Angeles Lions, stationed with the rest of his team in the punishingly hot Arizona desert for their annual spring training. Handsome, famous, and talented, Goodyear is nonetheless coming apart at the seams. And the coaches, writers, wives, girlfriends, petty criminals, and diehard fans following his every move are eager to find out why—as they hide secrets of their own. Emily Nemens will appear live on Crowdcast to discuss her newest book, The Cactus League, in conversation with Porter Shreve, UW Professor and author of The End of the Book. Join the event at: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/wbf-cactus-league. Before the event begins, you will see a countdown and the event image. 

14

Apr

Presented in partnership with the University of Wisconsin Program in Creative Writing, this edition of Wisconsin Wednesdays features UW Professor, Amaud Johnson, and UW Almnus, John Murillo, for their newest books, Imperial Liquor & Kontemporary Amerikan Poetry. Join the event at: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/wbf-imperial-kontemporary. Before the event begins, you will see a countdown and the event image. 

19

Apr

Presented in partnership with the UW Center for the Humanities as part of the 2020-2021 Great World Texts in Wisconsin program, Yan Lianke is a Chinese novelist frequently mentioned for the Nobel Prize for Literature; he’s often called the country’s most controversial writer. In this special virtual Humanities Without Boundaries talk, Yan will discuss his experiences researching and writing Dream of Ding Village, the prescient story of a public health crisis of the 1990s when rural villages selling their blood led to an AIDS outbreak. He will reflect on the novel’s perspective on pandemic profiteering, government corruption, as well as trauma and hope. Join us at: https://uwmadison.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJ0vf--tqD4vHdQh_XLxX7l3Rt1NR0NpL1Se

21

Apr

Presented in partnership with the Program in Creative Writing, poetry and fiction from the 2020-21 Wisconsin Institute for Creative Writing Fellows.  This event will feature the work of Emma Binder, Jari Bradley, Sasha Debevec-McKenney, Victoria C. Flanagan, Sandra Hong, and Taylor Koekkoek. Join the event at: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/2021-wisconsin-institute​. Before the event begins, you will see a countdown and the event image. 

26

Apr

Packed with real-life tales of adventure, breathtaking illustrations, and practical tools, this handbook is an inspiring guide for the next generation of climate activists, conservationists, and nature lovers. The wonder of the natural world surrounds us—from the Amazon rainforest to the snowy peaks of Mount Everest to the green spaces in big cities. And as the threat of climate change grows, it’s more important than ever to show appreciation for our planet by taking action. Andrea will appear on Crowdcast to discuss her new book, The Wild World Handbook. Join us at: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/wbf-the-wild-world-handbook. Before the event begins, you will see a countdown and the event image.

19

May

Presented in partnership with the University of Wisconsin Program in Creative Writing, this edition of Wisconsin Wednesdays features UW Alumnus, Barrett Swanson, for his newest book, Lost in Summerland. Join the event at: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/wbf-lost-in-summerland. Before the event begins, you will see a countdown and the event image.