Big Books & Bold Ideas with Kerri Miller

Conversations on books and ideas, Fridays at 11 a.m.

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The feminists who built America
Many of their names are unknown, but early American feminists fought hard for the freedoms that are cornerstones to democracy. This week on Big Books and Bold Ideas, historian Elizabeth Cobbs and our new series, “Big Books, Bold Americans.”
Can the fabric of a friendship be rewoven?
In her new novel, “Village Weavers,” author Myriam J. A. Chancy draws on her Haitian roots to share a story about friendship, family and what can stitch us back together after we are ripped apart.
Kao Kalia Yang channels her mother in the memoir ‘Where Rivers Part’
Hmong author Kao Kalia Yang concludes her family trilogy by sharing her mother’s remarkable story in the new memoir, “Where Rivers Part.”
What the deepest ocean reveals and how to save it
Journalist Susan Casey descended to some of the deepest parts of the ocean in tiny submersibles while researching her new book, “The Underworld.” What she saw is astounding.
How memory works
Why is music so evocative? Why do some memories stick and others fade? How important is slow-wave sleep to the way memory works? One of the country’s leading neuroscientists joins MPR News host Kerri Miller on Big Books and Bold Ideas this week to talk about why memory isn’t so much who we were as who we are.
Tommy Orange’s new ‘Wandering Stars’ traces a long trail of trauma and belonging
Best-selling author Tommy Orange brings unrecognized history into contemporary stories with his new eagerly awaited novel, “Wandering Stars.”
A prescription to modernize public health
The pandemic was a crucible for public health. What are the key takeaways? Epidemiologist Dr. Sandro Galea offers his diagnosis and a prescription for public health going forward in his new book, “Within Reason: A Liberal Public Health for an Illiberal Time.”
Heather Cox Richardson on 'Democracy Awakening'
This week, Big Books and Bold Ideas is launching an election year series that asks: What is American democracy in 2024? Our first guest is historian Heather Cox Richardson, whose latest book is “Democracy Awakening.”
Memorable moments with women of faith
Big Books and Bold Ideas looks back at memorable conversations with women who practice and share their faith through different denominations and in different ways.