Big Books & Bold Ideas with Kerri Miller

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

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April 25, 2023 11:00 AM

From the archives: Insect expert Marla Spivak on how to save the bees

Next up on Animal Month: insects — and how the loss of everything from bee hives to butterfly colonies affects the entire animal ecosystem.

by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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April 21, 2023 11:00 AM

Encore presentation: Science journalist Ed Yong on how animals sense the world

Animal Month on Big Books and Bold Ideas wouldn’t be complete without an encore presentation of a conversation host Kerri Miller had last year with award-winning science journalist Ed Yong. His book, “An Immense World,” looks at how different animals see the world, based on their unique sensory abilities.

by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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April 14, 2023 11:00 AM

Veterinarian Karen Fine on the special role pets play in our lives

Animal Month continues on Big Books and Bold Ideas. This week, host Kerri Miller talks with veterinarian Karen Fine. Her new book, “The Other Family Doctor,” is a tribute to the furry, fuzzy, feathery and sometimes scaly creatures we include as members of the family.

by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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April 11, 2023 12:00 PM

From the archives: Underwater nature photographer David Doubilet

Animal Month continues on Big Books and Bold Ideas. This week’s blast from the past is a 2006 conversation host Kerri Miller had with underwater wildlife photographer David Doubilet.

by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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April 7, 2023 11:00 AM

Erica Berry on what wolves teach us about fear

April is Animal Month on Big Books and Bold Ideas, a series of conversations about our relationship with animals and our shared space in this world. We begin with an animal whose history and presence is entwined with the human psyche — wolves.

by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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March 31, 2023 11:00 AM

Diana Abu-Jaber on family myths and inheritance

For immigrants who have to start life over in a new land, home carries a powerful lure. Diana Abu-Jaber says questions of identity and displacement haunted her Jordanian father, which inspired her latest novel, “Fencing with the King.”

by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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March 28, 2023 11:30 AM

From the archives: Diana Abu-Jaber on 'Birds of Paradise'

This Friday on Big Books and Bold Ideas, author Diana Abu-Jaber returns to talk about her latest novel, “Fencing with the King,” which was just released in paperback. To get you in the mood, enjoy one of host Kerri Miller’s last conversations with Abu-Jaber — this one from 2011, about her book, "Birds of Paradise."

by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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March 24, 2023 11:00 AM

Paul Harding explores the archetype of displacement in 'This Other Eden'

In his latest novel, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Paul Harding reimagines the history of a small interracial community’s devastating eviction from their isolated, island home.

by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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March 17, 2023 12:00 PM

Professor Dacher Keltner on the significance of awe

According to professor and researcher Dacher Keltner, awe is the universal emotion we feel when we encounter vast mysteries we can’t explain. And he believes we should find more of it, in order to live happy and health lives, both individually and collectively. This week on Big Books and Bold Ideas, host Kerri Miller talks with Keltner about research that resulted in his new book, “Awe: The New Science of Every Day Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life.”

by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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March 14, 2023 1:00 PM

From the archives: Ross Gay on 'Inciting Joy'

This Friday, on Big Books and Bold Idea, host Kerri Miller talks with psychologist and researcher Dacher Keltner about the science of awe, and how this universal emotion can transform our brains and bodies. So we felt it fitting to bring you a discussion of joy for this week’s archive. Enjoy poet Ross Gay at Talking Volumes last fall discussing his book, “Inciting Joy.”

by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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