Volunteers are needed

Volunteers are needed at Minnesota Radio Talking Book to record books and periodicals for broadcast. Want to volunteer? Contact Roberta Kitlinski at 651-539-1423 or [email protected] to learn more. 

Learn more about Radio Talking Book 

Radio Talking Book is not just for listeners with visual disabilities. Anyone with difficulty reading or turning pages can enjoy the service. 

Enjoy programming on a hand-held mobile device, for either iOS or Android. Visit the Apple App Store for iOS, or Google Play for Android, and download the Minnesota Radio Talking Book app. 

The sampling published monthly in Access Press doesn’t represent the full array of programming. Listen to RTB’s live or archived programs online at Listen to Radio Talking Book, and learn more about programs. 

Missed a book broadcast? Access it for one week following its original broadcast in the online weekly program archive. 

For help accessing the archive, contact Ronnie Washington at 651-539-1424 or [email protected]. 

If the book’s broadcast is no longer available in the archive, contact staff librarian Dan Gausman at 651-539-1422 or [email protected]. 

Books broadcast on the Minnesota Radio Talking Book Network are available for loan through the Minnesota Braille and Talking Book Library in Faribault. The catalog is at Minnesota Braille and Talking Book Library. Click on the link Search the Library Catalog. Call the Minnesota Braille and Talking Book Library at 800-722-0550, Mon-Fri, 9 am – 4 pm CST.  

For updates, go to the Facebook site Minnesota Radio Talking Book. 

Audio information about the daily book listings is on the National Federation for the Blind (NFB) Newsline. Register for NFB Newsline by calling 651-539-1424. The NFB-NEWSLINE service provides access to more than 500 magazines and newspapers. To learn more, visit NFB-Newsline.

Chautauqua* 

Monday – Friday 6 a.m. 
Beyond Measure, nonfiction by James Vincent, 2022. A vibrant account of how measurement has invisibly shaped our world, from ancient civilizations to the modern day. Read by Roger Sheldon. 15 broadcasts; begins Tue, Oct. 10. 

For Profit, nonfiction by William Magnuson, 2022. A history of how corporate innovation has shaped society, from ancient Rome to Silicon Valley. Read by Michele Potts. 14 broadcasts; begins Tue, October 31. – L 

Past is Prologue* 

Monday – Friday 11 a.m. 

The Story of Russia, nonfiction by Orlando Figes, 2022. A brilliant account of the national mythologies and imperial ideologies that have shaped Russia’s past and politics―essential reading for understanding the country today. Read by Yelva Lynfield. 17 broadcasts; begins Mon, Oct. 9. 

Bookworm* 

Monday – Friday 12 p.m. 

Brood (rebroadcast), fiction by Jackie Polzin, 2021. An insightful meditation on life and longing, centered on keeping a small brood of chickens in Minnesota. Read by Eileen Barratt. Six broadcasts; begins Wed, Oct. 11. 

The Last Days of Terranova, fiction by Manuel Rivas, 2022. A far-reaching story of an outcast and his bookstore: a home to forbidden books, political dissidents, and cultural smugglers all brought to vivid poetic life. Read by Don Lee. Nine broadcasts; begins Thu, Oct. 19.  

Choice Reading 

Monday – Friday 2 p.m. 

I Have Some Questions For You, fiction by Rebecca Makkai, 2023. A timely, hypnotic novel that’s part true-crime page-turner and part campus coming-of-age tale. Read by Pat Muir. 17 broadcasts; begins Mon, Oct. 9. – L, V 

Afternoon Report* 

Monday – Friday 4 p.m. 

Hollywood Ending, nonfiction by Ken Auletta, 2022. A vivid biography of Harvey Weinstein—how he rose to become a dominant figure in the film world, how he used that position to feed his monstrous sexual appetites, and how it all came crashing down. Read by Jan Anderson. 18 broadcasts; begins Wed, Oct. 4. – L 

This Contested Land, nonfiction by McKenzie Long, 2022. One woman’s enlightening trek through the natural histories, cultural stories, and present perils of thirteen national monuments, from Maine to Hawaii. Read by Philip Lowry. Nine broadcasts; begins Mon, Oct. 30. 

Night Journey* 

Monday – Friday 7 p.m. 

Dive Bartender: Flowers in the Desert, fiction by T. K. O’Neill, 2022. A Minnesota bartender escapes west for the promise of California in 1977, while a cast of seedy characters seems to conspire to thwart his On The Road dream. Read by John Potts. 15 broadcasts; begins Tue, Oct. 10. – L, S, R 

Off the Shelf* 

Monday – Friday 8 p.m. 

Ordinary Monsters, fiction by J. M. Miro, 2022. A Victorian-era fantasy where children with mysterious powers are hunted by a figure of darkness in a battle of good vs. evil. Read by Karen Ray. 26 broadcasts; begins Mon, Oct. 2. 

Potpourri* 

Monday – Friday 9 p.m. 

Pompeo, 2022. An investigation of the Fabric, nonfiction by Victoria Finlay, 2022. A work of original research that unravels history through textiles and cloth—how we make it, use it, and what it means to us. Read by Lannois Neely. 22 broadcasts; begins Mon, Oct. 9. 

Good Night Owl* 

Monday – Friday 10 p.m. 

Death and the Conjuror (rebroadcast), fiction by Tom Mead, 2022. A magician-turned-sleuth in pre-war London solves three impossible crimes in this sharply drawn period piece. Read by Robb Empson. Seven broadcasts; begins Mon, Oct. 2. 

Thistlefoot, fiction by GennaRose Nethercott, 2022. An immersive fantasy saga about estranged siblings who are reunited after receiving a mysterious inheritance. Read by Dan Sadoff. 17 broadcasts; begins Wed, Oct. 11. – L 

RTB After Hours* 

Monday – Friday 11 p.m. 

Freefalling, fiction by Eme McAnam, 2023. An elderly hotel owner struggling with dementia finds love later in life. Read by Andrea Bell. Nine broadcasts; begins Wed, Oct. 18. – S 

Georgie, All Along – Fiction by Kate Clayborn, 2023. A wise and witty novel that echoes with timely questions about love, career, reconciling with the past, and finding your path while knowing your true worth. Read by Carol McPherson. 14 broadcasts; begins Tue, October 31. – L, S 

Weekend Program Books 

Your Personal World, 1 p.m. Sat, presents a rebroadcast of Good Anxiety by Wendy Suzuki, read by Beverly Burchett; followed by The Light We Carry by Michelle Obama, read by Beverly Burchett. 

For the Younger Set, 11 a.m. Sun, presents Windswept by Margi Preus, read by Laura Young. 

Poetic Reflections, noon Sun, presents The Sky Watched by Linda LeGarde Grover, read by Mary Knatterud; followed by Still Falling by Jennifer Grotz, read by Mary Knatterud; followed by Homes by Moheb Soliman, read by Mary Knatterud. 

The Great North, 4 p.m. Sun. presents Dayton’s: A Twin Cities Institution by Kristal Leebrick, read by John Potts; followed by Born of Lakes and Plains by Anne F. Hyde, read by Tony Lopez