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Big Books and Bold Ideas

Big Books and Bold Ideas is a weekly series hosted by Kerri Miller every Friday at 11 a.m., featuring conversations about books and other literary ideas. Listen to Big Books and Bold Ideas here.

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Talking Volumes

Talking Volumes is back for its 25th season. Join us at the Fitzgerald Theater for four special events with renowned authors, celebrating our anniversary with a special $25 ticket price for MPR members and Star Tribune subscribers. Buy tickets here.

Debut novelist Oscar Hokeah highlights the pain and healing power of Indigenous communities
Oklahoma writer Oscar Hokeah draws on his own upbringing in the Kiowa and Cherokee communities to paint a kaleidoscope of Native American characters who fight to retain honor and gain healing amidst cultural trauma in his new book, “Calling for a Blanket Dance.”
N. Scott Momaday reflects on how Native stories shaped his imagination
This week’s Big Books and Bold Ideas conversation is with debut novelist Oscar Hokeah about his book, “Calling for a Blanket Dance.” During his discussion with host Kerri Miller, they were both delighted to discover they share a love of Native American poet and writer N. Scott Momaday. Since Miller spoke with Momaday in 2021, we decided to pull this one from the archives for all to enjoy.
Professor Kelly Lytle Hernández explores the linked histories of the U.S. and Mexico
The history of the United States is inextricably linked with the history of Mexico — even if most Americans don’t know it. On this week’s Big Books and Bold Ideas, historian Kelly Lytle Hernández explains how the Mexican Revolution was incited by a band of rebels who set up base in the United States, and how that struggle shaped the borderlands today.
From the archives: How immigration shapes America
We’re teeing up this week’s Big Books and Bold Ideas conversation with historian Kelly Lytle Hernandez by throwing it back to 2017. That’s when Kerri Miller hosted a national call-in show called “Indivisible,” and in this episode from the archives, experts Eboo Patel and Tamar Jacoby tackle the question: Is America still a land of immigrants?