Anne here. My conversation with Turkish writer Elif Şafak back in April still sticks with me as the year comes to a close. In many parts of the world, 2016 was the year of the populist leader—especially in Turkey, where Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan launched a crackdown on free speech and all forms of opposition. 120 journalists have been jailed, more than 2,000 academics have been dismissed from universities, and more than 100,000 public workers have been fired. How did Turkey—once a model of new democratic nations—become such a different place? Not only did Şafak see this coming, she warned that the West should not consider itself immune.
Intelligent. Optimistic. Curious.
Audio
Danny Wallace is the author of “Join Me.” He’s also the leader of a cult of the same name.
Christopher Moore talks with Steve Paulson about the world’s most untranslatable words.
Elaine Scarry's a defender of beauty. She says not only does beauty thrill and compel us, it also inspires us to make the world more just. Here's our extended interview with her.
Brad Kessler was a writer in New York City. He's still a writer, but now he lives on 75 acres in Vermont with a small herd of goats.
Choying Drolma began her life as a Buddhist nun in Nepal. As she tells Steve Paulson, Drolma is now bringing music to the West with American guitarist Steve Tibbetts.
Norwegian writer Karl Ove Knausgaard recommends a chilling read: "The Flame Alphabet" by Ben Marcus.
Listen in on this UNCUT interview from the Into the Woods show. He tells Jim Fleming about what twigs have to teach us about climate change, and the poetry of the forest.
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