February/March 2013

Chautauqua

Tuesday – Saturday 4 a.m.

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The Social Conquest of Earth

Nonfiction by Edward O. Wilson, 2012.

11 Br. Began February 19. The fundamental questions of “Where did we come from? What are we? and Where are we going?” can never be sufficiently answered by religion, philosophy, and introspection alone. Read by Myrna Smith.

La Seduction, Nonfiction by Elaine Sciolino, 2012. 15 Br. Begins March 6. Seduction plays a crucial role in how the French fall in love, but also how they conduct business, enjoy food and drink, define style, engage in intellectual debate, elect politicians, and project power around the world. L - Read by Judith Johannessen.

Consider the Fork, Nonfiction by Bee Wilson, 2012. 14 Br. Begins March 27. Since prehistory, humans have braved sharp knives, fire, and grindstones to transform raw ingredients into something edible, and sometimes delicious. The tools and tricks we’ve learned have shaped modern food culture. Read by Yelva Lynfield.

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Past is Prologue

Monday – Friday 9 a.m.

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Past to Present, Nonfiction by William Stevenson, 2012. 11 Br. Begins March 4. William Stevenson was a World War II British naval Fighter pilot, a distinguished journalist, a war correspondent, and a spy. He shares stories of his life before and after the war. Read by Alvin Apple.

Former People, Nonfiction by Douglas Smith, 2012. 18 Br. Begins March 19. Two aristocratic families were caught in the maelstrom of the Bolshevik Revolution and the creation of Stalin’s Russia. Some survived. L - Read by John Potts.

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Bookworm

Monday – Friday 11 a.m.

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The Dressmaker, Fiction by Kate Alcott, 2012. 11 Br. Begins March 4. Tess and her employer, Lady Duff Gordon, are rescued from the Titanic, but it seems her employer may have saved herself at the expense of others. Tess is torn between loyalty for her employer and the search for the truth.  Read by Pat Lelich.

Léon and Louise, Fiction by Alex Capus, 2012. 9 Br. Begins March 19. In 1918, Léon and Louise fall in love. Wounded and separated, each believes the other dead. Reunited decades later, they are torn apart again. L - Read by John Mandeville.

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The Writer’s Voice

Monday – Friday 2 p.m.

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Most of Me, Nonfiction by Robyn Michele Levy, 2012. 8 Br. Began February 28. Robyn Michele Levy was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease at age forty-three and, eight months later, with breast cancer. She chronicles her life dealing with her diverse disease portfolio. Read by Diane Ladenson. 

Floyd Patterson, Nonfiction by W.K. Stratton, 2012. 8 Br. Begins March 12. In 1956, Patterson became the youngest boxer to claim the title of world heavyweight champion at age twenty-one. Known as “the Gentle Gladiator,” he was overshadowed by Ali’s theatrics and Liston’s reputation. Read by Jim Gregorich.

Louis Agassiz, Nonfiction by Christoph Irmscher, 2012. 17 Br. Begins March 26. 150 years ago, Swiss immigrant Louis Agassiz launched American science, focusing on zoology while also discovering how Ice Age glaciers formed. Invited to lecture in Boston, he never left. Read by Lannois Neely.

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Choice Reading

Monday – Friday 4 p.m.

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Overseas, Fiction by Beatriz Williams, 2012. 15 broadcasts. Begins March 4. When Wall Street analyst Kate Wilson attracts the notice of legendary Julian Laurence, she is baffled by his interest. Why would this handsome British billionaire pursue a bookish young banker who hadn’t had a boyfriend since college? But the answer may lie with an incident in France during World War I. Read by Natasha DeVoe.

The Life of an Unknown Man, Fiction by Andrei Makine, 2012. 7 Br. Begins March 25. Shutov, a disenchanted writer, is inspired by Volsky, an old man he meets in St. Petersburg. Shutov feels like just another unknown man, but Volsky has known great happiness in spite of a life of suffering. L -

Read by Phil Rosenbaum.

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PM Report

Monday – Friday 8 p.m.

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Time to Start Thinking, Nonfiction by Edward Luce, 2012. 12 broadcasts. Begins March 4. America’s politics are more polarized than ever, its public education system is failing to produce people with the skills the country needs, its manufacturing industry is dwindling, and even in technology and innovation, it is struggling to compete with other countries. Read by John Demma.

The Passage of Power, Nonfiction by Robert A. Caro, 2012. 36 broadcasts. Begins March 20. By 1958, Lyndon Johnson had become the greatest Senate Leader in history. He traded that to become the powerless vice-president under John F. Kennedy in an administration that disdained and distrusted him.  But it was that role that put him in line for the presidency. L - Read by Leila Poullada.

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Night Journey

Monday – Friday 9 p.m.

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Harbor Nocturne, Fiction by Joseph Wambaugh, 2012. 12 Br. Begins March 4. Dinko Babich, a young longshoreman, delivers Lita Medina, a young Mexican dancer, from the harbor to a Hollywood nightclub, and their lives are forever changed. L - Read by Dan Kuechenmeister.

You Don’t Want to Know, Fiction by Lisa Jackson, 2012. 18 Br. Begins March 20. Ava’s son, Noah, has been missing for two years but his body was never found. But she still hears him crying in the nursery and has seen him walking near the dock. Read by Amy Morris.

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Off the Shelf

Monday – Friday 10 p.m.

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The Ordinary Truth, Fiction by Jana Richman, 2012. 13 Br. Began February 18. When Nell buried her husband, she also buried her relationship with her daughter and a number of secrets. Now her granddaughter wants to unbury the past and repair those relationships. Read by Connie Jamison. 

Ghosting, Fiction by Kirby Gann, 2012.

12 Br. Begins March 7. Fleece Skaggs has disappeared with Lawrence Gruel’s reefer harvest. To learn what happened to his brother, James Coles takes his place as a drug runner, and plunges into the underworld of drugs, violence, and long hidden family secrets. L - Read by John Marsicano.

The Technologists, Fiction by Matthew Pearl, 2012. 20 Br. Begins March 25. In 1868, the latest war is one between tradition and technology. There is resistance as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology opens its doors to harness science for the benefit of all. L - Read by Neil Bright.

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Potpourri

Monday – Friday 11 p.m.

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Presumed Guilty, Nonfiction by Jose Baez, 2012. 17 broadcasts. Began February 14. Caylee Anthony was reported missing in July, 2008. Jose Baez captured national attention when he won a not-guilty verdict for Casey Anthony, a woman the nation had assumed was guilty of her daughter Caylee’s death. Read by Tom Speich.

Dangerous Ambition, Nonfiction by Susan Hertog, 2011. 23 broadcasts. Begins March 11. Born on opposite sides of the Atlantic but friends for more than forty years, Rebecca West and Dorothy Thompson lived strikingly parallel lives, placing them at the center of social and historical upheavals of the twentieth century in a pre-feminist era, when speaking truth to power could get anyone blacklisted. Read by Sally Browne.

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Good Night Owl

Monday – Friday midnight

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The Frozen Rabbi, Fiction by Steve Stern, 2010. 18 broadcasts. Began February 13. Teenaged Bernie Karp discovers a secret in a block of ice that has survived pogroms, a trans-Atlantic voyage, a New York ice-house fire, and a train ride to Tennessee. The discovery will have miraculous and disastrous consequences. L,S - Read by Tony Lopez.

Thunder and Rain, Fiction by Charles Martin, 2012. 10 broadcasts. Begins March 11. Tyler is a retired Texas Ranger with a strong moral sense but a hard outer shell which ends his marriage. When Samantha and her daughter appear, it gives Ty a reason to help and a motivation to change his life. L - Read by Steve Hebert.

It’s Fine by Me, Fiction by Per Petterson, 2012. 7 broadcasts. Begins March 25. Audun Sletten, working-class teen in Oslo, sees himself like the tough characters in Jack London and Ernest Hemingway novels. He chafes at the limitations of school and looks forward to a time of greater independence. Audun lives with his mother and delivers papers to keep the family solvent. When his alcoholic father reappears in his life, Audun sets out to see what else life has to offer. Read by Arlan Dohrenburg.

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After Midnight

Tuesday – Saturday 1 a.m.

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Sidney Sheldon’s Angel of the Dark, Fiction by Tilly Bagshawe, 2012.

12 broadcasts. Begins March 1. Danny’s first big murder case had a unique footprint: elderly multi-millionaire murdered, while tied to his beautiful young wife. Wife survives, and disappears, with millions left to charities. Now, the son of that first murder points out that there are killings like this around the globe. L,S - Read by Joy Fogarty.

Shades of Desire, Fiction by Virna DePaul, 2012. 11 broadcasts. Begins March 19. Natalie Jones, lucky survivor of a killer who preys on young women, is now paralyzed by fear and failing vision. Special Agent Liam “Mac” McKenzie has scars of his own. Despite the attraction between the two of them, he needs Natalie’s help to catch a predator. She uses her camera and imagines a life with Mac, never guessing that the clues in her photographs are drawing them into a confrontation with a madman. L,S - Read by Beth Marie Hansen.

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

March/ April 2013

Chautauqua

Tuesday – Saturday 4 a.m.

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Consider the Fork, Nonfiction by Bee Wilson, 2012. 15 Br. Began March 27. Since prehistory, humans have braved sharp knives, fire, and grindstones to transform raw ingredients into something edible, and sometimes delicious. The tools and tricks we’ve learned have shaped modern food culture. Read by Yelva Lynfield.

What Are You Looking At? Nonfiction by Will Gompertz, 2012.

16 broadcasts. Begins April 17. Art historian Will Gompertz is also the BBC Arts editor, and probably the world’s first art-history stand-up comedian. In What Are You Looking At?, his goal is to change the way people look at modern art, from Claude Monet to Andy Warhol. Gompertz does not want to tell people if a work of art is good; he wants to give people the knowledge to decide for themselves. Read by Leila Poullada.

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Past is Prologue

Monday – Friday 9 a.m.

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Former People, Nonfiction by Douglas Smith, 2012. 18 Br. Began March 19. Two great aristocratic families were caught in the maelstrom of the Bolshevik Revolution and the creation of Stalin’s Russia. Yet there were some who survived and overcame the psychological wounds of losing their world. 

L - Read by John Potts.

Rise to Greatness, Nonfiction by David Von Drehle, 2012. 18 Br. Begins April 15. When 1862 began, it seemed likely that the Confederacy was going to win the Civil War. By the end of 1862, Abraham Lincoln had changed that and the blueprint for modern America had been indelibly inked.  Read by Art Nyhus.

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Bookworm

Monday – Friday 11 a.m.

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Those We Love Most, Fiction by Lee Woodruff, 2012. 11 Br. Begins April 1. One day, Maura Corrigan begins with a loving husband and three healthy children. By the end of the day, her world and everything she knows will have changed. In the aftermath of tragedy, the fractures and fissures in her life and marriage become clear. A sudden twist of fate can force people to confront their choices, examine mistakes, fight for their most valuable relationships, and ultimately, find their way back to each other.  Read by Marie Dick.

Two-Part Inventions, Fiction by Lynne Sharon Schwartz, 2012. 9 Br. Begins April 16. When Suzanne, a widely-admired pianist, dies suddenly, her record-producer husband, Philip, becomes deeply agitated. Suzanne’s reputation is based on a fraud about to be exposed in the classical music world. Philip has built Suzanne’s career by altering her CDs, using portions from recordings of other pianists. He has created a wide repertoire of flawless music with Suzanne getting sole credit. L –

Read by Esmé Evans.

The Book of Summers, Fiction by Emylia Hall, 2012. 12 Br. Begins April 29. What began as a vacation to Hungary, ended with nine-year-old Beth’s parents separating with her mother, Marika, left behind. For the next seven summers, Beth left her distant father at home to be with Marika in Hungary. But at sixteen, she discovered a secret which brought the summers to an end. As an adult, Beth gets a scrapbook of her summers with Marika, and is forced to confront the betrayal that destroyed her and to search her heart for forgiveness. Read by Kristi Sullivan.

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The Writer’s Voice

Monday – Friday 2 p.m.

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Louis Agassiz, Nonfiction by Christoph Irmscher, 2012. 17 Br. Began March 26. 150 years ago, Louis Agassiz, a Swiss immigrant took America by storm, launching American science. Agassiz focused on zoology while also making a name for himself discovering how Ice Age glaciers formed. Invited to deliver lectures in Boston, he never left. Read by Lannois Neely.

Opium Fiend, Nonfiction by Steven Martin, 2012. 13 Br. Begins April 18. While researching an article on opium in Southeast Asia, Steven Martin began collecting rare 19th century opium equipment, amassing a valuable collection. Then he starting putting it to use. His recreational use grew into a thirty-pipe-a-day habit that left him incapable of work, exacting a frightful physical and financial toll. Read by Don Lee.

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Choice Reading

Monday – Friday 4 p.m.

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The Ruins of Lace, Fiction by Iris Anthony, 2012. 8 Br. Begins April 3. The passion for forbidden lace has infiltrated France, pulling all into its web. For Lisette, lace begins her downfall; but for Katharina, lace is her salvation. The most lucrative contraband in Europe threatens to cost them everything. Read by Jenny O’Brien.

Wife 22, Fiction by Melanie Gideon, 2012. 12 Br. Begins April 15. Alice Buckle answered an e-mail about an anonymous study about marriage and shortly started to question all she assumed to be true about her own marriage. Her anonymous correspondence as Wife 22, her online identity, has begun to take a very personal turn. L - Read by Laura Rohlik.

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PM Report

Monday – Friday 8 p.m.

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The Passage of Power, Nonfiction by Robert A. Caro, 2012. 36 broadcasts. Began March 20. By 1958, Lyndon Johnson had become the greatest Senate Leader in our history. But he traded that in, in 1960, to become the powerless vice-president under John F. Kennedy in an administration that disdained and distrusted him. Yet it was that position by which the presidency, the goal he had always pursued, would be thrust upon him in the moment it took an assassin’s bullet to reach its mark. L –  Read by Leila Poullada.

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Night Journey

Monday – Friday 9 p.m.

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You Don’t Want to Know, Fiction by Lisa Jackson, 2012. 18 Br. Began March 20. In Ava’s dreams, her son, Noah, looks the way she remembers him: a sweet two-year-old in jeans and sweatshirt. When she wakes, the truth hits her: Noah went missing two years ago and his body has never been found. But Ava is sure she’s heard Noah crying in the nursery and seen him walking near the dock. Is she losing her mind, or is Noah still alive? L - Read by Amy Morris.

The Woman Who Died a Lot, Fiction by Jasper Fforde, 2012. 12 Br. Begins April 15. The Bookworld’s leading enforcement officer, Thursday Next has been forced into semiretirement following an assassination attempt. Her new assignment is chief librarian of the Swindon All-You-Can-Eat-at-Fatso’s-Drink-Not-Included Library. But where Thursday goes, trouble follows. Impressively engineered synthetic Thursdays called Day Players are not only waking up in the stacks, they are downloading her very consciousness. Read by Pat Kovel-Jarboe.

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Off the Shelf

Monday – Friday 10 p.m.

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The Technologists, Fiction by Matthew Pearl, 2012. 20 Br. Began March 25. In 1868, the latest war is one between tradition and technology. There is resistance as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology opens its doors to harness science for the benefit of all. L - Read by Neil Bright.

Sutton, Fiction by J.R. Moehringer, 2012.

15 Br. Begins April 22. Born in the squalid Irish slums of Brooklyn, Willie Sutton seemed trapped in a cycle of panics, depressions, and soaring unemployment. He saw only one way out, and only one way to win the girl of his dreams. So he became America’s most successful bank robber. L - Read by John Beal.

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Potpourri

Monday – Friday 11 p.m.

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Dangerous Ambition, Nonfiction by Susan Hertog, 2011. 23 broadcasts. Began March 11. Born on opposite sides of the Atlantic but friends for more than forty years, Rebecca West and Dorothy Thompson lived parallel lives, placing them at the center of social and historical upheavals of the twentieth century in a pre-feminist era, when speaking truth to power could get anyone blacklisted. Read by Sally Browne. 

The Unconquered, Nonfiction by Scott Wallace, 2011. 19 broadcasts. Begins April 11. There are tribes in the Amazon rainforest that have avoided contact with modern civilization. Deliberately hiding from the outside world, they are the unconquered, the last survivors of a culture that predates Columbus in the New World. They greet intruders with showers of deadly arrows. But those who would protect them need to enter their world. Read by Andrea Bell.

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Good Night Owl

Monday – Friday midnight

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The Chocolate Money, Fiction by Ashley Prentice Norton, 2012. 8 Br. Begins April 3. Babs is an impossibly rich heiress who enjoys breaking all rules. Her daughter, Bettina, is sensitive and bookish. What she wants more than anything is her mother’s affection and approval. L,S - Read by Natasha DeVoe.

What Comes Next, Fiction by John Katzenbach, 2012. 18 Br. Begins April 15. A retired professor is diagnosed with a disease leading him to lose his memory and die in a few years. On the way home from the doctor’s, he sees a young girl kidnapped and he realizes if he doesn’t act, the girl may never be found alive. V,L,S - Read by Dan Sadoff.

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After Midnight

Tuesday – Saturday 1 a.m.

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Harvesting Ashwood – Minnesota 2037, Fiction by Cynthia Kraack, 2012.

10 broadcasts. Begins April 3. Hard work and determination have brought a sense of security to Anne and her family. Anne’s greatest concern is finding people who can harvest the crops in 2037, now that government-assigned labor is no longer available. L,S - Read by Carol Lewis.

Illusion, Fiction by Frank Peretti, 2012.

17 Br. Begins April 17. Mandy, supposedly dead from a crash, awakens as the girl she was in 1970 and finds she can pass through time and space. She uses this power to eke out a living performing magic. Dane sees her and is transfixed by the magic he sees and by this woman identical to the one he married forty years earlier. L - Read by Steve Hebert.

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