A virtual talk with Academy Award-winning actress Natalie Portman for her new picture book Natalie Portman’s Fables, joined by Gregory Maguire, author of Wicked and a 1976 UAlbany graduate. This event is brought to you in partnership with Porter Square Books, an independent bookstore located in Cambridge, Mass. Event date: 7 p.m. Wednesday, October 21 Event address: Your computer screen via Crowdcast. * Tickets may be purchased at www.portersquarebooks.com/NataliesFables * Yo

Were you part of the packed Page Hall crowd that greeted poet Allen Ginsberg nearly 30 years ago on November 29, 1990? After his appearance at UAlbany, Ginsberg took the crowd to QE2 on Central Avenue in Albany and continued reading his poetry into the wee hours of the morning. Here's a photo by poet Dan Wilcox taken outside QE2 from that 1990 event. (photo posted on the Albany Group Archive site on Flickr.) At the time, he spoke out against war, intolerance, racism, homophob

NYS Writers Institute Director Paul Grondahl talks with author Dennis Mahoney, whose newest novel Ghostlove recently received a positive review in the New York Times Book Review. In this wide-ranging interview, they discuss ghost stories, writing influences, bookstores, the "death of the novel," and the significance of the national and local protests. Dennis grew up in Lansingburgh, NY, and was a literary major at the College of Saint Rose. He currently lives in the city of T

In this new #indiebookstoreboost post, WAMC Northeast Public Radio's Joe Donahue and NYS Writers Institute Director Paul Grondahl talk with sisters Lucy Lang, below left, and Grace Lang, below right, about their new book March On! March On! celebrates the history of American women's suffrage and the iconic 1915 New York City women's march, as told in rhyme by a grandmother to her granddaughter at bedtime. All proceeds from sales will be donated to Fair Fight, an organization

A conversation with Madeline Miller, international bestselling author of Circe and The Song of Achilles, about re-imaging mythology and balancing motherhood and writing. We caught up with Madeline Miller to coincide with the recent paperback release of Circe, a wildly original reconstitution of Homer’s epic poem, the Odyssey, through the eyes of a woman who harnesses the power of witchcraft to transform rivals into monsters and to menace the gods themselves. Circe was an inst

Samantha Cotterill wishes there were picture books when she was growing up four decades ago that depicted someone like her, a young person on the autism spectrum. Now the mother of two teenage sons, she created the Little Senses series that will allow kids on the spectrum to recognize themselves in a playful, fun, and therapeutic way. Samantha, who lives in Niskayuna, has joined the Writers Institute and WAMC collaboration #IndieBookstoreBoost to support her favorite local in

More news on our #IndieBookstoreBoostinitiative to support the Capital Region’s indie bookstores... Have you read Jack Rightmyer's story about indie bookstores? Headlined "Indie bookstores in Capital Region staying afloat, for now," you can find the full story online at timesunion.com -- here's a link -- It will be featured in the Sunday Times Union. on Sunday, May 10. Here is an excerpt *. Check back next week for more author interviews with Writers Institute Director Paul G

An #indiebookstoreboost post to support independent bookstores in the Capital Region during the time of coronavirus An #indiebookstoreboost post. A NYS Writers Institute / WAMC Northeast Public Radio initiative to support independent bookstores in the Capital Region during the time of coronavirus. Purchase Living in the Long Emergency at The Book House of Stuyvesant Plaza using this link. Read more about #indiebookstoreboost. In his 2005 book, The Long Emergency, James Ho

#IndieBookstoreBoost Independent bookstores are communal gathering places that are central to a vibrant village, town or city. They are the heart and soul of local communities for everyone who loves good books. They are a beacon of possibility and escape where patrons of all ages can browse the shelves, talk with experienced booksellers, and discover new voices that will transport readers to unimagined places. The coronavirus pandemic has forced indie bookstores, like other s