When Leon Edel set out to write a biography of Henry James, he thought it would take him three years. It ended up taking him twenty years.  Jean Strouse chose to focus on the life of the diarist Alice James, Henry's lesser-known younger sister.  Both books are considered to be definitive biographies.*Please note: some sections have been edited out from the original recording due to copyright considerations 

Paul Wilkes discusses his book, Trying Out the Dream: a Year in the Life of an American Family, about a blue-collar worker and his family adapting to suburban life in the 1970s.  Includes a clip from an interview with steelworker Mike Lefevre.*Please note: some sections have been edited out from the original recording due to copyright considerations 

Jane Stern discusses her book, Trucker: A Portrait of the Last American Cowboy, and the life, culture, and myths of truck drivers. The program includes an excerpt from an interview with a truck driver named Paul Deitch.*Please note: some sections have been edited out from the original recording due to copyright considerations 

Temple University student and future politician and statesman Theo-Ben Gurirab discusses his homeland Namibia. Studs includes a clip of South African activist Albert John Luthuli.*Please note: some sections have been edited out from the original recording due to copyright considerations 

Pete Seeger, Cleofes Vigil, and Nimrod Workman discuss folk music and their upcoming appearance at an anthropology conference.*Please note: some sections have been edited out from the original recording due to copyright considerations 

Choreographer and dancer Amalia Hernandez discusses her influences, as the ensemble that she founded, Ballet Folklorico de Mexico, prepares for an upcoming performance at the Arie Crown Theater.*Please note: some sections have been edited out from the original recording due to copyright considerations

Former ex-nun Mary Harding was accused of being a part of a group that was going to overthrow the Bolivian government. At the first meeting with counsel from the American Embassy, Harding could barely walk because she was kicked and punched over and over for information. Harding spent four of her five weeks in prison in solitary confinement.*Please note: some sections have been edited out from the original recording due to copyright considerations 

Content Warning: This conversation includes graphic descriptions of physical abuse. A Methodist minister, Fred Morris, talks about the 11 years he lived in Brazil. Morris found it difficult to preach to the poor people whose children were dying of starvation. Morris also talks about the time he was abducted and tortured.*Please note: some sections have been edited out from the original recording due to copyright considerations

The recording includes an excerpt from an interview with a young Methodist parishioner.*Please note: some sections have been edited out from the original recording due to copyright considerations 

With his book, "Savage Inequalities: Children in America's Schools," Jonathan Kozol spent time in six different schools and concluded that the school systems are no better off than they were 20 years ago.*Please note: some sections have been edited out from the original recording due to copyright considerations