Discussing the book "The Crown of Columbus" (published by HarperCollins) with the authors Louise Erdrich and Michael Dorris.

Love, lust, romance and heartbreak are all apart of Louise Erdrich's book, "Tales of Burning Love". Erdrich talks about the five woman in her book, who have all married Jack Mauser. The ladies all end up stuck together in a blizzard, and it's there that they all talk to one another about their love and heartache, Jack Mauser.

Discussing the book "The Beet Queen: A Novel" (published by Holt) with the author Louise Erdrich.

Discussing the book "The Bingo Palace" (published by HarperCollins) with the author Louise Erdrich.

Lastly, with his book, "The Library of Great American Writing," Louis Untermeyer talks about Mark Twain, Emily Dickinson and personal friends of his, Robert Frost and Carl Sandburg. Twain, said Untermeyer, started out as a humorist but then became more pessimistic with "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn". Emily Dickenson wrote in secret and she only gave permission for six of her poems to be published.

Interviewing Louis Untermeyer [1 of 3 parts].

In his book, "The Library of Great American Writing," Louis Untermeyer points out great writers and their works. Untermeyer believed that there was no one great piece of literature, but rather many great works from ordinary people, as well. For instance, Untermeyer explained, that when Abraham Lincoln wrote the Gettysburg Address, Lincoln didn't realize he was writing a great piece of literature.

Lois Wille caused an uproar with the story she wrote for the Chicago Daily News, "Inside a Slum High School." According to Wille's investigation, a lack of money, over crowding of students, lights that don't work in the school and no books were among some of the problems that Wille found at Crane High School. Students also had a pessimistic view, explained Wille, as she found students didn't believe the teachers and counselors cared what theyd do after they got out of high school but they just wanted them to get out and leave Crane.

Actor and author Lois Wheeler Snow discusses her book “China on Stage,” and shares her experiences in China, primarily involving ballet, opera, and plays.

Author, grassroots organizer, and activist Linda Stout discusses her book “Bridging the Class Divide and Other Lessons for Grassroots Organizing.” Growing up in a low-income family, Stout discusses poverty as “the lack of knowing about options” and how this served as the driving force in her activism. Studs plays “Bread and Roses” - Judy Collins (1976).*Please note: some sections have been edited out from the original recording due to copyright considerations 

Lillian Smith explores the responses she received from her books that address racial prejudice and discrimination, especially in the south.

Content Warning: This conversation includes racially and/or culturally derogatory language and/or negative depictions of Black and Indigenous people of color, women, and LGBTQI+ individuals. Rather than remove this content, we present it in the context of twentieth-century social history to acknowledge and learn from its impact and to inspire awareness and discussion. Lillian's Smith first book was "Strange Fruit." Smith said people that were reading that book covered up the book jacket so no one could see the title of the book.