Author: Marianne Barisonek

PPT Episode 13 How could so many people get it so wrong? That’s the question Vincent Bevins answers in his book If We Burn Beginning in 2010 and lasting for a decade popular uprisings all over the world bround unprecedented numbers of people out in the streets. Images of repression and brutality, spread by social […]

Tune in to WSLR at 6:30 Friday June 21 or click on the link below to hear the latest episode of the Progressive Page Turner With the recent decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization revoking abortion protections, we are in a political moment in which adoption is, increasingly, being revealed as an institution […]

Tensions have been growing between Mainland China and Taiwan. Like a lot of current political situations it’s difficult to understand without historical context. My guest today is Eve J. Chung. Her book, Daughters of Shandong, is fiction but it’s based on her grandmother’s flight from Communist China to the Island of Taiwan. PPT: Episode 11

In this episode of The Progressive Page Turner we talk about the debut novel of Sadi Muktadir, Land of No Regrets, which follows four boys in an Islamic boarding school. The novel examines the meaning of friendship, the expectations of immigrants and the ways belief is tested. PPT: Episode 10

Laura Schmidt and Aimee Lewis Reau founded the Good Grief Network to help people rediscover meaning, joy, and connection as the tumult around us increases. In this episode of the Progressive Page Turner we talk about their book How to live in a Chaotic Climate which unpacks the social, political, and spiritual nuances of the […]

COVID-19 spread unchecked for months before there was a reasonable response from the Trump administration. Nina Burleigh’s book Virus: Vaccinations, the CDC and the Hijacking of America’s Response to the Pandemic goes over many points we’re prefer to forget but need to remember before the next election and the next pandemic. Click here to listen: […]

Manatees are an icon of Florida wildlife but over the last few years the population has seen a steep decline. Craig Pittman wrote Manatee Insanity in 2010 but it’s been re-released. His book covers the history of manatee protections and controversies that span more than 100 years. https://www.podomatic.com/podcasts/podcast42124/episodes/2024-01-30T14_29_02-08_00

All families have secrets and even when we don’t know what they are, they shape us and our view of the world. My guest on Monday, Jan 1, 2024 is Karen E. Osborne. She’s written a novel based on her family’s secrets. Osborne’s grandmother, Grace, was born in the Congo, immigrated to Jamaica and was […]