Jennifer Haigh on 'Mercy Street'
18 February 2022 - 54 minsJennifer Haigh’s new novel, “Mercy Street” — which Richard Russo calls “extraordinary” in his review — is about a woman named Claudia who works at a women’s clinic in Boston. It’s also about the protesters outside. On this week’s podcast, Haigh says the novel was inspired in part by her own time working on a clinic’s hotline.
“Obviously I am strongly pro-choice or I wouldn’t have been volunteering at this clinic,” Haigh says. “But until this experience, I knew very little about what abortion actually means in a person’s life. And I think that’s true for many people who have strong convictions about abortions. Most people don’t know very much about it. It’s ironic when you consider, this is...
Series Episodes
Book Club: Let's Talk About 'The Renovation,' by Kenan Orhan
Dilara, the heroine of Kenan Orhan’s debut novel, is a Turkish exile living in Italy and undergoing a routine bathroom renovation that turns out to be not so routine: When the contractors leave, she steps in and finds herself somehow transported to an actual cell in Istanbul’s infamous Silivri Prison. On this week's episode, host MJ Franklin discusses “The Renovation” with fellow Book Review editors Joumana Khatib and Dave Kim.
42 mins
24 April Finished
The Time Loop Book Series You Should Be Reading
The Book Review editors discuss Solvej Balle’s seven-book series, “On the Calculation of Volume.” Plus, a selection of translated fiction to put on your reading list.
35 mins
17 April Finished
Patrick Radden Keefe on the Mystery at the Center of ‘London Falling’
The author discusses his newest book, about a 19-year-old’s curious death and the investigation that followed.
34 mins
10 April Finished
23 Books We Are Looking Forward to This Spring
The Book Review editors discuss fiction and nonfiction that caught their eye. Plus, Ada Limón on the power of poetry.
47 mins
3 April Finished
Book Club: Let's Talk About 'Kin,' by Tayari Jones
On this week’s episode, book club host MJ Franklin leads a discussion about Tayari Jones's latest novel, "Kin."
47 mins
27 March Finished
