Best Booktalk Podcasts (2025)

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Food and Language: Rhetorical-Cultural Excavations in Arab Heritage / الطعام والكلام: حفريات بلاغية ثقافية في التراث العربي 57:47

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15h ago57:47

57:47

Seminar in English and Arabic. Professor Said Laouadi, winner of the Sheikh Zayed Book Award 2025, discusses his book ‘Food and Language: Rhetorical-Cultural Excavations in Arab Heritage’ (2023), with Professor Eugene Rogan. Seminar in English and Arabic. Professor Said Laouadi, winner of the Sheikh Zayed Book Award 2025 for Literary and Art Critic…

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225. Reading Challenge: Read a Book About Celebrations 48:15

4h ago48:15

48:15

This week on The Book Drop, we tackle the latest reading challenge to read a book about celebrations and explore how books help us reflect on the joy of coming together with friends, family and community for holidays, milestones and everything in between. This is The Book Drop. Happening at the Library: Book Clubs! Family Reading Club | Monday, Dec…

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Charlotte McConaghy found fear on the Wild Dark Shore 48:58

2h ago48:58

48:58

Nathan Maharaj spoke with the novelist Charlotte McConaghy. Her latest book is Wild Dark Shore. It's the story of the Salt family, the stewards of a vast seed bank on a remote island that's in danger of being washed over by rising sea levels. As they're making the hard decisions about what can be saved in the course of their evacuation, a vicious s…

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224. Inside Spielbound: How Games Bring Us Together 1:21:19

2h ago1:21:19

1:21:19

This week on The Book Drop, we’re on location at Spielbound Board Game Cafe to talk about the power of table top and board games to build community and spark storytelling! This is The Book Drop, featuring specials guests Kaleb Michaud and Ali Thariani. Happening at the Library Stories After Dark: Found Family | Friday, Nov. 21, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. …

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Julian Brave NoiseCat on storytelling in the trickster tradition 50:01

3d ago50:01

50:01

Nathan Maharaj spoke with the Oscar-nominated filmmaker and journalist Julian Brave NoiseCat. He co-directed the 2024 documentary Sugarcane which investigated abuses at a residential school in western Canada. He is also the author of a new book called We Survived the Night: An Indigenous Reckoning. It's about his dad, and also his upbringing, and a…

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Safe Corridor 58:52

4d ago58:52

58:52

This seminar discusses the inaugural Bait AlGhasham DarArab International Translation Prize winner, ‘Safe Corridor’; a bold, unforgettable novel of war, imagination, and survival. Kurdish-Syrian novelist, Jan Dost; translator, Professor Marilyn Booth; Director of the Bait AlGhasham DarArab International Translation Prize, Ali Al Mujaini; and Founde…

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223. Getting Ready for Nebraska Celebration of Books on Nov. 15 1:03:57

11d ago1:03:57

1:03:57

This week, we talk with Nebraska Library Commission's Tessa Timperley, and local author, Tosca Lee. Happening at the Library Imagine, Write, Explore! with Danielle Herzog | Saturday, Nov. 8, from 1 to 2 p.m. at Benson Branch Repujado Art Workshop | Saturday, Nov. 8, from 1 to 2 p.m. at South Omaha Library It’s All Relative Book Club Monday | Nov. 1…

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New Title Drop | November-December 2025 20:36

14d ago20:36

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On the latest episode of the new title drop, Angela and Melanie preview what's coming out in November and December. Check out this month's titles here or visit omahalibrary.org/podcasts. Check in with us on the first Tuesday of every month to hear about books we think you should be excited about.By Omaha Public Library

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Ep. 222 Family History Month 1:04:11

26d ago1:04:11

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This week on The Book Drop, our conversation takes us to the past and connects us to the present as we highlight Family History Month with one of our genealogy and local history librarians! This one’s for the history buffs and family researchers. All the books and resources we talk about in this episode can be found here or by visiting omahalibrary…

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Mona Awad on returning to the world of Bunny 48:06

27d ago48:06

48:06

Nathan Maharaj spoke with novelist Mona Awad. Her debut book, 13 Ways of Looking at a Fat Girl was a Giller Prize finalist. Its follow-up Bunny was set in an Ivy League creative writing program and blended horror and suspense with wicked satire. We Love You, Bunny is her fifth novel, and it's a return to that creative writing program, revisiting th…

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68: Theodore C. Van Alst, Jr., author of The El 54:45

29d ago54:45

54:45

Theodore C. Van Alst, Jr., in conversation on his new novel The El (Vintage Books, 2025). A love letter to our city of Chicago, The El follows a group of teen gang members in August 1979 as they travel across the city to a summit where gangs plan to join forces. But the reality is less like the movie The Warriors and more like the creation of a cor…

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221. Reading Challenge: Books With Non-Human Characters 51:36

1M ago51:36

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This week on The Book Drop, we talk about the Reading Challenge theme to read a book about or featuring non-human characters and explore how stories about creatures, aliens , and animals still connect to the human experience. This is The Book Drop. All the books and resources we talk about in this episode can be found here or by visiting omahalibra…

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Booktalking - Authors v. Anthropic (and Apple), indie booksellers in & out of trouble, and more 41:14

23d ago41:14

41:14

Hosts Michael Tamblyn and Nathan Maharaj caught up on a landmark legal decision about books and AI, the perils of bookstore merch, plus a whole lot more. This episode covers: Anthropic AI v. Authors and Authors v. Apple How Powell's Books' new mugs got them into hot water Barnes & Noble buying Books Inc. C-suite changes at Simons & Schuster and Har…

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Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month with UNO’s Dr. Doña-Reveco 1:11:58

2M ago1:11:58

1:11:58

This week on The Book Drop, we talk about the power of stories told in many languages, with a special guest from UNO’s Office of Latino and Latin American Studies. All the books and resources we talk about in this episode can be found here or by visiting omahalibrary.org/podcast. Happening at the Library: Hispanic Heritage Celebration | Saturday, O…

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New Title Drop | October 2025 20:24

2M ago20:24

20:24

By Omaha Public Library

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219. Celebrating Black Speculative Fiction and Omaha’s Afrocon 1:09:05

2M ago1:09:05

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This week on The Book Drop, we celebrate Black Speculative Fiction Month with a special guest from the House of Afros, Capes and Curls. This is The Book Drop. All the books and resources we talk about in this episode can be found here or by visiting omahalibrary.org/podcast. Happening at the Library: Stories After Dark | Friday, Oct. 3, 7 to 9 p.m.…

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Brian Stewart reports on the golden age of being a foreign correspondent 52:54

1M ago52:54

52:54

Michael Tamblyn spoke with journalist Brian Stewart, whose career spanned decades, covering the US-Iraq Gulf War, famine in Ethiopia, and countless other historical events for CBC and NBC. He tells us about all of it—including what was going on in his life off-camera—in a new book: On the Ground: My Life as a Foreign Correspondent. Brian Stewart re…

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218. Marking Banned Books Week with Film Streams and The Write Stuff Nebraska 51:22

1M ago51:22

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This week on The Book Drop, we’re celebrating the freedom to read and highlighting a special collaboration for Banned Books Week with Film Streams and The Write Stuff Nebraska! This is The Book Drop! All the books and resources we talk about in this episode can be found here or by visiting omahalibrary.org/podcast. Happening at the Library: Storyti…

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217. Reading Challenge: Reading a book that starts with the letter O 45:19

2M ago45:19

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This week on The Book Drop, we’re joined by Teresa Carmody, of the UNO Writer’s Workshop, as we dive into books that start with the letter O for this month’s Reading Challenge and share some standout titles you won't want to overlook. All the books and resources we talk about in this episode can be found here or by visiting omahalibrary.org/podcast…

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Antonio Michael Downing's literary journey into the South 49:06

2M ago49:06

49:06

Host Nathan Maharaj spoke with Antonio Michael Downing, author of the 2021 memoir Saga Boy: My Life of Blackness and Becoming, as well as the illustrated children's book Stars in My Crown. For just about a year now he's also been the host of CBC's The Next Chapter, where every week he talks to authors (and once in a while an opinionated bookseller)…

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216. Reading Challenge: Read a book published in the 21st Century 35:37

3M ago35:37

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This week on The Book Drop, we wrestle with the almost impossible task of choosing just one book from the 21st century for the Reading Challenge. Plus Amy and Maggie, take a nostalgic look at what people thought life would be like in the year 2000 and beyond. All the books and resources we talk about in this episode can be found here or by visiting…

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215. A Conversation with Ooh De Lally for Omaha Restaurant Week 1:32:10

3M ago1:32:10

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This week on The Book Drop, we sit down at a restaurant changing lives through culinary training and meaningful work, and we celebrate Omaha Restaurant Week with a look at the library’s historic menu collection. This is The Book Drop. All the books and resources we talk about in this episode can be found here or by visiting omahalibrary.org/podcast…

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Scott Alexander Howard on border-crossings across time 35:42

3M ago35:42

35:42

Host Michael Tamblyn spoke with novelist Scott Alexander Howard, winner of the 2025 Kobo Emerging Writer Prize and author of The Other Valley. It's the story of Odile Ozanne, a young girl who lives in a small village in a valley. In the next valley over, in the west, there is an identical village where events from 20 years ago are taking place, and…

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New Title Drop | September 2025 17:00

3M ago17:00

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On the latest episode of the New Title Drop, Angela and Melanie roll the dice and test their ability to give book recommendations on the spot. Check out this month's titles and place holds here or visit omahalibrary.org/podcast. Check in with us on the first Tuesday of every month to hear about books we think you should be excited about.…

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214. Beyond the Console: Games That Tell Stories 57:24

3M ago57:24

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This week on The Book Drop, we discuss the stories behind our favorite games and how those tales have leapt from consoles and tabletops to the big and small screen. This is The Book Drop. All the books and resources we talk about in this episode can be found here or by visiting omahalibrary.org/podcast. Happening at the Library: Repujado Art Worksh…

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67: James Shea, author of Last Day of My Face 1:05:36

3M ago1:05:36

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Our conversation with poet, writer, and translator James Shea, whose extraordinary new collection of poems Last Day of My Face (University of Iowa Press, 2025), was recently published as a winner of the prestigious Iowa Poetry Prize. James Shea's work delights in word play and unexpected images with a voice set at and considering the edges of meani…

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213. From the Runway to Reading with Guest Susan Trinkle 1:03:24

3M ago1:03:24

1:03:24

This week on The Book Drop, we explore the world of fashion and the books that bring the industry to life, and we discuss the stories our clothing can tell about who we are. Special guest Susan Trinkle, Fashion, Art & Humanities Instructor at Metropolitan Community College, joins the discussion. All the books and resources we talk about in this epi…

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Rob Franklin's upwardly-mobile, downwardly-spiraling Great Black Hope 42:20

3M ago42:20

42:20

Host Nathan Maharaj spoke with novelist Rob Franklin. His debut novel Great Black Hope is about a young man, named Smith, who gets arrested for cocaine possession on his way home from a party at the end of an oppressively hot New York summer. Smith is Black, and he's queer; he's also a Stanford graduate and his family back in Atlanta is, as they sa…

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Epilogue 212: Books Our Central Library Artists Love 44:06

3M ago44:06

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This week on The Book Drop, we dig a little deeper with our Central Library artists as they reveal the reads that have fueled their art. All the books and resources we talk about in this episode can be found here or by visiting omahalibrary.org/podcast. Happening at the Library: Stories After Dark Showcase | Friday, August 15, 6:00PM – 9:00 PM at M…

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212. Meet the Artists for OPL’s Central Library 1:39:23

4M ago1:39:23

1:39:23

This week on The Book Drop, we’re getting to know the 16 local artists who were selected to create art for the new Central Library opening in Spring 2026. All the books and resources we talk about in this episode can be found here or by visiting omahalibrary.org/podcast. Happening at the Library: Assembling Fragments: Zine-Making as Community Engag…

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Timothy Caulfield and The Certainty Illusion - Live at KoboCon 2025! 42:20

4M ago42:20

42:20

This past spring Kobo held an event for employees called KoboCon. It was an opportunity for the staff of Kobo to share interesting things they're working on and some big ideas they're grappling with. One of those big ideas was how the information ecosystem affects readers, writers, and individuals coming together at work, so we brought in expert ex…

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New Title Drop | August 2025 24:30

4M ago24:30

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On the latest episode of New Title Drop, Angela and Melanie celebrate Women in Translation Month with some international gems and preview new August releases soon to hit the library shelves. Check out this month's titles and place holds here or by visiting omahalibrary.org/podcast. Check in with us on the first Tuesday of every month to hear about …

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211. A Visit to Omaha’s Abbott House, Where Magic Lives 1:14:25

3M ago1:14:25

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This week on The Book Drop, we pull back the curtain on Omaha’s magical history and tour The Abbott House, plus books that celebrate the wonder of illusions and magic. This is The Book Drop. All the books and resources we talk about in this episode can be found here or by visiting omahalibrary.org/podcast. Happening at the Library: Willa Cather Wri…

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Wally Lamb waded into autobiography for The River is Waiting 43:25

4M ago43:25

43:25

Host Nathan Maharaj spoke with novelist Wally Lamb, the author of novels including She's Come Undone, I Know This Much Is True, and The Hour I First Believed. His new novel, his first in nearly a decade, is The River is Waiting. It's about Corbin Ledbetter, Corby to his friends, husband to Emily and father to twins Maisie and Niko. Corby's at the p…

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210. Reading Challenge: Nonfiction and Biographical Graphic Novels 50:52

4M ago50:52

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This week on The Book Drop, we're coming to you from OCon Expo, the perfect place to talk graphic novels and share nonfiction and biographical picks for this month's reading challenge! All the books and resources we talk about in this episode can be found here or by visiting omahalibrary.org/podcast. Happening at the Library: The Joy of Painting Pa…

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209. Family Reunion Season and Preserving the Past 1:03:50

4M ago1:03:50

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This week on The Book Drop, we celebrate Family Reunion Month and dig into genealogy with our guests Martha and Jess from OPL’s Genealogy & Local History Room. This is the Book Drop. All the books and resources we talk about in this episode can be found here or by visiting omahalibrary.org/podcast. Happening at the Library: Cardboard Mannequins: Bu…

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Eliza Reid on paying homage to the difficult work of diplomacy 41:12

5M ago41:12

41:12

Host Michael Tamblyn spoke with Eliza Reid, author of the novel Death on the Island. It's a mystery set on a remote island in Iceland where a dinner party of diplomats turns fatal for the deputy ambassador of Canada. And it just so happens that the elements of this story—Iceland, diplomacy, and the perils of being a Canadian out in the world—these …

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208. Summer Movie Blockbusters and Beyond with Film Streams 1:16:21

5M ago1:16:21

1:16:21

This week on The Book Drop, we explore how blockbuster movies shape pop culture and we talk with our friends at Film Streams about what it means to go to the movies! This is the Book Drop. All the books and resources we talk about in this episode can be found here or by visiting omahalibrary.org/podcast. Happening at the Library: Textile Art with M…

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Queer Poem-a-Day, Year 5 Outro Episode (with Mathew Kerbis, Lisa Hiton, and Daniel Baer) 55:38

5M ago55:38

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Our Queer Poem-a-Day "outro" episode, featuring three "extras" for Year 5! At 02:00: Mathew Kerbis, a board member of The Friends of the Deerfield Public Library, shares details about the local 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization, dedicated to enriching the Library's materials, services, and programs for the members of the community. Mathew shares …

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New Title Drop | July 2025 24:06

5M ago24:06

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On the latest episode of New Title Drop, Angela and Melanie commiserate over their bookish pet peeves, like distracting audiobook narration and genre clichés, before diving into their picks for July’s new releases. Check out this month's titles and place holds here or visit omahalibrary.org/podcast. Check in with us on the first Tuesday of every mo…

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207. Celebrating LGBTQ+ Stories with Author J.R. Dawson 1:04:37

4M ago1:04:37

1:04:37

This week on The Book Drop, we’re celebrating Pride Month and sitting down with author J.R. Dawson to talk about unlikely heroes and the magic of queer storytelling. All the books and resources we talk about in this episode can be found here or by visiting omahalibrary.org/podcast. Happening at the Library: Writers Workshop: Let's Write About Love …

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Queer Poem-a-Day, Year 5: Ocean Vuong 4:27

5M ago4:27

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Day 20: Ocean Vuong reads his poem "The Last Dinosaur." This poem first appeared in a slightly different form in The Boston Review (2021) and in his collection Time is a Mother (Penguin Press, 2022). Writer, professor, and photographer, Ocean Vuong is the author of The Emperor of Gladness. Born in Saigon, Vietnam and raised in Hartford, Connecticut…

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Queer Poem-a-Day, Year 5: Mark Doty 4:05

5M ago4:05

4:05

Day 19: Mark Doty reads his poem, "A Display of Mackerel," which first appeared in his collection Atlantis (Harper Perennial, 1995). Mark Doty is the author of nine books of poetry. Fire to Fire: New & Selected Poems, won the National Book Award for Poetry in 2008. Text of today's poem and more details about our program can be found at: deerfieldli…

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Queer Poem-a-Day, Year 5: Rose Zinnia 4:55

5M ago4:55

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Day 18: Rose Zinnia reads her poem, "I'm Like If Mary Oliver Had Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder." This poem was originally published in Poetry (April 2025). Rose Zinnia is a poet, novelist, essayist, teaching artist, editor, and designer. Born in Akron, Ohio, she is the author of Togethering (Ledge Mule Press, 2024), a chapbook of poetry …

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Aaron Kreuter finds new possibilities in summer camp 42:29

5M ago42:29

42:29

Host Nathan Maharaj spoke with poet and novelist Aaron Kreuter. His new book is Lake Burntshore, which tells the story of the summer of 2013 at a Canadian Jewish summer camp that's just fired a several camp counsellors after they're caught smoking (then-illegal) marijuana. The enterprising son of the camp's owner springs into action and comes up wi…

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Queer Poem-a-Day, Year 5: Nikky Finney 3:24

5M ago3:24

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Day 17: Nikky Finney reads her poem "Charm," originally published in her collection The World is Round (InnerLight Publishing, 2003). Nikky Finney is the author of On Wings Made of Gauze; Rice; The World Is Round; and Head Off & Split, which won the National Book Award for Poetry in 2011. Her new collection of poems, Love Child's Hotbed of Occasion…

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Queer Poem-a-Day, Year 5: Oliver Baez Bendorf 3:39

5M ago3:39

3:39

Day 16: Oliver Baez Bendorf reads his poem "What the Dead Can Do, which was originally published in West Branch (2021), reprinted in Best American Poetry 2022, and in his book Consider the Rooster (Nightboat Books, 2024). Oliver Baez Bendorf is the author of three books of poetry, including Consider the Rooster, a finalist for the 2024 National Boo…

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Reading Challenge: Read a Book Set in a Continent You Want to Visit 51:18

5M ago51:18

51:18

This week on The Book Drop, we take on the newest reading challenge theme to read a book set in a continent we want to visit and we’ll dig into the debate over how many continents there actually are. All the books and resources we talk about in this episode can be found here or by visiting omahalibrary.org/podcast. Happening at the Library: Communi…

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Queer Poem-a-Day, Year 5: Jayson P. Smith 3:08

5M ago3:08

3:08

Day 15: Jayson P. Smith reads their poem, "I Arrive in a Place with a High Level of Psychic Distress." Queer Poem-a-Day is honored to be the first publication of this poem. Jayson P. Smith is a poet, dancer, educator, & curator from the Bronx. J is the recipient of fellowships from Hawthornden Foundation, NYFA, The Poetry Project, and Callaloo. The…

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Queer Poem-a-Day, Year 5: Jessica Jacobs 5:17

5M ago5:17

5:17

Day 14: Jessica Jacobs reads her poem, "Saturday Services at the Provincetown Shore" from her book unalone (Four Way Books, 2024). Recorded with permission of Four Way Books. All rights reserved. Jessica Jacobs, a 2025 Guggenheim Fellow, is the author of unalone, poems in conversation with the Book of Genesis (Four Way Books, March 2024); Take Me w…