Episodes
Wednesday Jul 29, 2020
RePlay Ep. 30 Not All Superheroes Wear Capes with William Sutton
Wednesday Jul 29, 2020
Wednesday Jul 29, 2020
**Our replay this week is an episode that was our first of Season 2 back in January before Covid hit. We talked with children’s librarian with the Louisville Free Public Library system William Sutton. If you are anything like Carrie and I, you are sorely missing your libraries and the dedicated people who staff them. In fact, our library system in Louisville KY furloughed the majority of its librarians for 3 months and only in the last month have patrons been able to do curbside pickup for book holds. In fact I think I have requested more books from the library than usual just so I have a reason to go to my local library, even if I can’t go inside. Just this week, many of our furloughed librarians have been called back. So in honor of libraries, their people, and what libraries mean to our lives, we give you this library episode with William. We will be back next week with all new episodes. Subscribe on your favorite podcast platform so you never miss a show.
Our guest today is what Mr. Rogers would call a “helper”. I first saw William Sutton on Metro TV, where he was interviewed about his work with children and it was obvious that he was something special. William works in the children’s department of the Portland branch of the Louisville Free Public Library system. Portland is one of the largest neighborhoods in Louisville and one that has a long and rich history. In the late 1800s it had the first trolley line from downtown and was the welcoming home to many waves of immigrants including Irish and German. In recent years this neighborhood has hit hard times; it has one of the lowest income levels in the city, but it is experiencing a rebirth with numerous art galleries, stores, and restaurants coming to the area. Nowhere is the small community spirit more evident though than in its neighborhood library. William Sutton is a favorite face there and you will see why. His joy in his work is infectious. He talks to us about why being a black male in a female heavy field is important for children to see, how comic books built the basis for his literary life, and why black superheroes can be an inspiration for teens to find the strength in themselves.
Books discussed in this episode:
1- Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler
2- The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis
3- Storm by Eric Jerome Dickey
4- The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley
Wednesday Jul 22, 2020
RePlay Ep. 27 A "Meat" and Greet with the Past with Mick Sullivan 7-22-20
Wednesday Jul 22, 2020
Wednesday Jul 22, 2020
Carrie and I are still on vacation this week but you can find us with all new interviews and episodes August 5. But Today we have a replay of our interview with Mick Sullivan. Mick is a friend of the show. He helped us begin our adventure in broadcasting and podcasting by giving us the tools and the confidence to get started. He is the creator of the award winning children’s history podcast, The Past and the Curious, which was recently named by the New York Times as one of the best children’s podcasts. In this time of quarantine and virtual learning, children’s podcasts have seen their downloads soar, including Mick’s. If you are doing any roadtrip travel with your kids this summer, give his podcast a listen. I promise the adults will enjoy it just as much as the kids. He sat down with us to talk about his new children’s book that had been published, The Meatshower. But Mick has another children’s book in the works.
Our guest today is a history buff who has taken his interest in the past to a whole new level. Mick Sullivan is a history educator at the Frazier History Museum and is in charge of their youth and family programs. But he is also the creator of the children’s history podcast, The Past and the Curious, which Common Sense Media lists as one of the best podcasts for kids. His quirky combo of humor and music keeps both kids and adults interested and sneaks in a little history in the process. His podcast includes a bit of an earworm song about local coffee shop Heine Bros Coffee So even if history isn’t your jam, check it out just for that tune.
The success of his podcast has led to the publishing of his first children’s book, The Meat Shower, which is a fun telling of the historical event of meat (yes I just said meat) literally raining down on a Kentucky farm in the 1800s. In fact what is even more curious, there is still no explanation of this unusual event today.
Mick tells us how his podcast grew out of the stories he tells kids at the Frazier’s children’s programs, how his background in musical performance has served him well when creating the variety of music for his podcast, what huge role vultures play in his new book, and all about his vision to have a series of books featuring quirky history for every reading level.
Books discussed in this episode:
1- The Meatshower by Mick Sullivan
2- Spying on the South by Tony Horwitz
3- Confederates in the Attic by Tony Horwitz
4- Life of Pi by Yann Martel
5- American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang
You can find us on FB, instagram (@perksofbeingabookloverpod) and on our blog site at www.perksofbeingabooklover.com
Perks airs on Forward Radio 106.5 FM and forwardradio.org every Wednesday at 6 pm, Thursdays at 6 am and 12 pm. We have purchased the rights to the theme music used.
Wednesday Jul 15, 2020
RePlay Ep. 4 Shakespeare Summertime with Amy Attaway 7-15-20
Wednesday Jul 15, 2020
Wednesday Jul 15, 2020
Carrie and I are on vacation this week. We are getting refreshed, renewed, and most importantly Reading for our upcoming season 3 beginning August 5. So today we have a rebroadcast.
We reached way back in the archives to our first season and one of our very early guests, Amy Attaway of the Kentucky Shakespeare Theater. If you are a book nerd like us, it just doesn’t seem like summer in Louisville without seeing one of the great free performances under the stars in Central Park of one of the Bard’s plays. Kentucky Shakespeare recently announced that their summer season in person is canceled for 2020. But in September they will present a digital season filmed on the Central Park stage to celebrate their 60th year. They also have been presenting all nine productions of the 2017-2019 seasons available for viewing on their Facebook Page and Youtube channel.
In this episode. Amy talks about directing last year’s history play, King Henry 4, part 2. To see a version of this on the big screen, you can stream The King starring Timothe Chalamet on Netflix which came out late last year.
Books Discussed in this Episode
1- Henry IV, Part 2 by William Shakespeare
2- Shakespeare's English Kings by Peter Sacchio
3- Dark Matter by Blake Crouch
4- Death Comes For The Archbishop by Willa Cather
5- The Year of the Fat Knight: The Falstaff Diaries by Anthony Sher
Wednesday Jul 08, 2020
Ep. 53 Building The Table For Diverse Authors with Julia Royston 7-8-20
Wednesday Jul 08, 2020
Wednesday Jul 08, 2020
When they think about the publishing industry, many readers can immediately call to mind the big outfits: HarperCollins, Random House, and MacMillan. But there are many small publishing companies scattered all across the country, and even locally.
Our guest today, Julia Royston, is a former school librarian who began her first publishing company as a way to publish her own books in the exact way she wanted them. She jokes that she has “control issues”. But those issues led her to become an entrepreneur who now owns and operates two publishing companies that have been around for over 12 years, in an age when most businesses are lucky to make it past the 3-5 year mark. BK Royston Publishing and Royal Media and Publishing, located in Southern Indiana, are her two full service imprints that primarily publish black authors; one focusing on children’s, inspirational, and religious books and the other publishing more mainstream fiction such as mysteries, urban fiction, and romance.
In this week’s episode, she talks to us about why it’s so important to have more diverse books in libraries and schools, what the biggest challenge was to starting her publishing company, and how she looks for creative ways such as virtual book fairs to try to promote her authors in the COVID era.
Books and Links Discussed in this episode:
1- Little House on the Prairie series by Laura Ingalls Wilder
2- Are You There God, It's Me Margaret by Judy Blume
3- A Bag of Marbles by Joseph Joffo
4- Marianne the Librarian by Julia Royston
5- The Book of David: My East Harlem Love Story by Betty Winston Baye'
6- Terrance the Terrific by Julia Royston
7- Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
8- Traffic Secrets: The Underground Playbook for Filling Your Websites and Funnels with Your Dream Customers by Russell Brunson
9- Grace Over Grind: How Grace Will Take Your Business Where Grinding Can't by Shae Bynes
10- Whiskey and Ribbons by Leesa Cross-Smith
Julia Royston's podcast on BuzzSprout:
Live Your Best Life
YouTube Channel:
BK RoystonPublishing
Wednesday Jul 01, 2020
Ep. 52 Jane Is For Everyone with Amanda Beverly
Wednesday Jul 01, 2020
Wednesday Jul 01, 2020
“In vain have I struggled. It will not do. My feelings will not be repressed. You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you.”
These words, from Mr. Darcy in Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice are, perhap, some of the reasons why many readers swoon over his character and develop a love for Austen and her works. Other readers, though, like our guest this week, Amanda Beverly, see their families or people they know in the quirky individuals who make up Austen’s communities.
Whatever your reason for liking Austen’s world, there is a way you can immerse yourself in it, which is through The Jane Austen Festival, an annual event that, due to COVID, is virtual this year. Running from July10-12, the festival includes a variety of workshops, author talks, and Q&A that helps attendees get a taste of what the Regency Period and Austen are like.
In our episode this week, Amanda talks about how she became involved with the Jane Austen Society of North America--Greater Louisville Region and what their meetings are like, how it seems the things she can learn about Jane Austen’s books and her time period are endless, and why newbies shouldn’t feel intimidated, and why the Louisville chapter of the society is known as the Fashion region.
Book Discussed in This Episode
Jane Austen books
1- Pride and Prejudice
2- Sense and Sensibility
3- Emma
4- Persuasion
5- Northanger Abbey
Other books discussed
1- Little House on the Prairie Series by Laura Ingalls Wilder
2- The Redwall series by Brian Jacques
3- The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis
4- Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
5- Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Seth Grahame-Smith
6- Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters by Ben H. Winters
7- Among the Janeites : A Journey Through the World of Jane Austen Fandom by Deborah Yaffe
8- Unmarriageable by Sonia Kamal
9- This is Major: Notes on Diana Ross, Dark Girls, and Being Dope by Shayla Dawson
10- Miss Buncle's Book by D. E. Stevenson
11- Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward
12- Good Boy: My Life in Seven Dogs by Jennifer Finney Boylan
13- This is How it Always Is by Laurie Frankel
Movies mentioned:
1- Pride and Prejudice with Colin Firth - 1995 miniseries
2- Bride and Prejudice (Bollywood) - 2004
3- Clueless - 1995
Podcasts mentioned:
1- Bonnets at Dawn
You can find us on FB, instagram (@perksofbeingabookloverpod) and on our blog site at www.perksofbeingabooklover.com
Perks airs on Forward Radio 106.5 FM and forwardradio.org every Wednesday at 6 pm, Thursdays at 6 am and 12 pm. We have purchased the rights to the theme music used.