Happy New Year from Radio Talking Book!

On New Year’s Day and every day we wish you joy, fulfillment, and treasured moments. Best wishes for a happy 2018 from everyone at Radio Talking Book.

 

Weekend Program Books

Your Personal World (Saturday at 1 p.m.) presents “The Power of Meaning” by Emily Esfahani Smith, followed by “Hallelujah Anyway” by Anne Lamott, both read by Beverly Burchett. For the Younger Set (Sunday at 11 a.m.) presents “Flying” by Carrie Jones, read by Stevie Ray. Poetic Reflections (Sunday at noon) presents “A Doll for Throwing” by Mary Jo Bang, read by Robb Empson. The Great North (Sunday at 4 p.m.) presents “The Big Marsh” by Cheri Register, read by Nan Felknor, followed by “The Women of Mayo Clinic” by Virginia M. Wright-Peterson, read by Mitzi Lewellen.

 

Books Available Through Faribault

Books broadcast on the Minnesota Radio Talking Book Network are available through the Minnesota  Braille and Talking Book Library in Faribault, MN. Their phone is 1-800-722-0550 and hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Their catalog is also online, and you can access it by going to the main website, www.mnbtbl.org, and then clicking on the link Search the Library Catalog. If you live outside of Minnesota, you may obtain copies of our books via an inter-library loan by contacting your own state’s Network Library for the National Library Service.    

Listen to the Minnesota Radio Talking Book, live or archived programs from the last week, on the Internet at www.mnssb.org/rtb. Call the staff at the Radio for your password to the site.  

Audio information about the daily book listings is also on NFB Newsline. Register for NFB Newsline by calling 651-539-2363.

Donate to the State Services for the Blind at mn.gov/deed/ssbdonate.

 

Chautauqua Tuesday,  Tuesday – Saturday 4 a.m

The Brain Defense. Nonfiction by Kevin Davis, 2017. A 1991 murder case began the precedent of using brain damage as a crime defense. Nearly thirty years later, questions remain about responsibility and free will. Read by Brenda Powell. 13 broadcasts, began Tuesday, January 2.

Confessions of a Recovering Environmentalist. Nonfiction by Paul Kingsnorth, 2017. Former green activist Paul Kingsnorth believes the environmental movement has gone wrong, and advocates for “uncivilization.” Read by Mike Piscitelli. 11 broadcasts, begins Friday, January 19.

 

Past is Prologue, Monday –  Friday 9 a.m

Boston’s Massacre. Nonfiction by Eric Hinderaker, 2017. When British soldiers fired into a crowd at Boston’s Custom House in 1770, it became the incident that put Boston in the front of the Patriot movement. Read by John Potts. 11 broadcasts, began Wednesday, January 3.

The Tunnels. Nonfiction by Greg Mitchell, 2016. Network news reports of tunnels under the Berlin Wall were quashed by the Kennedy White House to ease nuclear tensions. Read by Jan Anderson. 14 broadcasts, begins Thursday, January 18.

 

Bookworm, Monday – Friday 11 a.m.

180 Seconds. Fiction by Jessica Park, 2017. Sixteen-year-old Allison gets involved in a social experiment and embarks on a journey to trust herself, others, and love. Read by Janelle Mattson. 10 broadcasts, begins Thursday, January 11.

Startup. Fiction by Doree Shafrir, 2017. Everyone in the tech world wants good publicity. But an errant text message may ruin a person’s reputation and establish another’s. Read by Pat Muir. 11 broadcasts, begins Thursday, January 25. – L, S

 

The Writer’s Voice, Monday, Monday – Friday 2 p.m.

Charlotte Brontë. Nonfiction by Claire Harman, 2016. In the mid-1800s writer Charlotte Brontë wrote of intelligent women and transformed English literature. Read by Jan Anderson. 18 broadcasts, began Wednesday, January 3. – V, L, S

Flock Together. Nonfiction by B.J. Hollars, 2017. Fascinated with extinct American birds, a professor began a year-long vigil. Read by Tom Speich. 7 broadcasts, begins Monday, January 29.

         

Choice Reading, Monday, Monday – Friday 4 p.m.

Perfume River. Fiction by Robert Olen Butler, 2016. When their father’s life comes to an end, a fractured relationship intensifies between the estranged Quinlan brothers. Read by Don Gerlach. 10 broadcasts, began Monday, January 8.

Signs for Lost Children. Fiction by Sarah Moss, 2017. Shortly after they marry, physician Ally and architect Tom become absorbed in their interests in different parts of the world. Read by Rachael Freed. 16 broadcasts, begins Monday, January 22

 

PM Report, Monday – Friday 8 p.m.

The Aisles Have Eyes. Nonfiction by Joseph Turow, 2017. Retail executives seek to understand in-store shoppers with data mining, in-store tracking, and predictive analytics to manipulate the way we shop. Read by Robb Empson. 10 broadcasts, begins Thursday, January 11.

Unwarranted. Nonfiction by Barry Friedman, 2017. Our police departments play an indispensable role in our society. Yet, a failure to supervise them can leave us all in peril. Read by Judy Woodward. 16 broadcasts, begins Thursday, January 25.

 

Night Journey, Monday – Friday 9 p.m.

Lie To Me. Fiction by Jess Ryder, 2017. An old VCR tape leads Meredith Banks to question her life. She explores a murder scene from thirty years before, but she’s not the only one searching. Read by Neil Bright. 12 broadcasts, began Monday, January 1. – V, L, S

The Watcher in the Wall. Fiction by Owen Laukkanen, 2016. An Internet suicide chat group for teenagers is led by an anonymous presence, who appears to goad the others. Read by Joe Sadowski. 11 broadcasts, begins Wednesday, January 17. – V, L, S

 

Off the Shelf, Monday – Friday 10 p.m.

Journeyman. Fiction by Marc Bojanowski, 2017. Nolan Jackson is a wanderer by nature, but a workplace accident makes him settle in one place and try to build a meaningful life. Read by Don Gerlach. 9 broadcasts, begins Tuesday, January 16.      

Broken River. Fiction by J. Robert Lennon, 2017. A family moves into a home in upstate New York, where a seemingly unrelated crime from years before suddenly affects their lives. Read by Tom Speich. 11 broadcasts, begins Monday, January 29.      

 

Potpourri, Monday – Friday 11 p.m.    

Nabokov’s Favorite Word is Mauve. Nonfiction by Ben Blatt, 2017. A statistician and journalist provides a new appreciation for the classics, as he reveals the numbers behind the works of the world’s greatest writers. Read by Carol McPherson. 8 broadcasts, began Monday, January 8.

Madame President. Nonfiction by Helene Cooper, 2017. In 2005 Ellen Johnson Sirleaf won the Liberian Presidential election and became the first female head of state in Africa’s history. Read by Yelva Lynfield. 16 broadcasts, begins Thursday, January 18.

 

Good Night Owl, Monday – Friday midnight

Sherlock Holmes and the Eisendorf Enigma. Fiction by Larry Millett, 2017. Legendary detective Sherlock Holmes leaves Minnesota’s Mayo Clinic, but learns an adversary has followed him there. Read by Don Lee. 10 broadcasts, began Monday, January 1.  

No One Can Pronounce My Name. Fiction by Rakesh Satyal, 2017. Two Indian immigrants, recently moved into a Cleveland suburb, form a friendship that brings to light their shared passions and fears. Read by Connie Jamison. 15 broadcasts, begins Monday, January 15. – L, S

 

After Midnight, Tuesday – Saturday 1 a.m.

The Weight of This World. Fiction by David Joy, 2017. Three people in a small town find their lives blown apart when a drug dealer dies and leaves them with drugs, weapons, and money. Read by Jim Tarbox. 8 broadcasts, began Friday, January 5. – L, S

Same Beach, Next Year. Fiction by Dorothea Benton Frank, 2017. Two couples begin a friendship one summer that will last more than twenty years and transform their lives with unexpected attractions. Read by Sue McDonald. 11 broadcasts, begins Wednesday, January 17. – L, S (explicit)

 

 

Abbreviations: V – violence, L – offensive language, S – sexual situations