Podcast

The Free Library Podcast is an easy way to participate in the author events and lectures that take place at the Central Library. Visit Author Events to find upcoming events.

Recent Episodes

  • B. Janet Hibbs and Anthony Rostain | The Stressed Years of Their Lives: Helping Your Kid Survive and Thrive During Their College Years

    • Recorded Jun 25, 2020

    In conversation wth Elizabeth Mosier A longtime faculty member at Drexel University, the Family Institute, and Widener University, B. Janet Hibbs is a renowned expert on family issues and partner relationships. A professor of psychiatry and… more

    Author Events  Education  Psychology 

  • Roddy Doyle | Love

    • Recorded Jun 24, 2020

    In conversation with Liz Moore , best selling author of Long Bright River Lauded for his “marvelous” and “bloody brilliant” ( Toronto Star ) works of fiction, prolific novelist, dramatist, children’s author, and screenwriter Roddy Doyle’s work is… more

    Author Events  Fiction  Literature 

  • Ezekiel J. Emanuel | Which Country Has the World’s Best Health Care?

    • Recorded Jun 23, 2020

    Ezekiel J. Emanuel is Vice Provost for Global Initiatives and Chair of the Department of Medical Ethics and Health Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. An oncologist and author of nine books on medical ethics and healthcare, he previously… more

    Author Events  Business and Economics  Politics  General Research  Science  History 

  • Chris Wallace | Countdown 1945: The Extraordinary Story of the Atomic Bomb and the 116 Days That Changed the World

    • Recorded Jun 22, 2020

    The popular anchor of Fox News Sunday, Chris Wallace has reported on nearly every watershed national and international political event. During his 50-year career in journalism, he has earned three Emmys, the duPont-Columbia Silver Baton, and the… more

    Author Events  Politics  General Research  Science  History 

  • Inga Saffron | Becoming Philadelphia: How an Old American City Made Itself New Again

    • Recorded Jun 17, 2020

    Architectural critic for the Philadelphia Inquirer for more than 20 years, Inga Saffron won the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for her sagacious critiques of urbanism, planning, and Philly’s hyper-rapid transformation after a half-century slump. An Inquirer… more

    Author Events  Newspapers, Magazines, & Journals  Philadelphia  Philadelphia History  General Research 

  • Stacey Abrams | Our Time is Now: Power, Purpose, and the Fight for a Fair America

    • Recorded Jun 16, 2020

    In conversation with Tamala Edwards, anchor, 6ABC Action News morning edition Stacey Abrams  is the New York Times bestselling author of  Lead from the Outside , a serial entrepreneur, nonprofit CEO, and political leader. After serving eleven… more

    African American  Author Events  Biography and Autobiography   Politics  History 

  • Donna Rifkind | The Sun and Her Stars: Salka Viertel and Hitler’s Exiles in the Golden Age of Hollywood

    • Recorded Jun 11, 2020

    A prolific book critic whose reviews appear in the  Wall Street Journal , the  Washington Post , and the  New York Times Book Review , Donna Rifkind was a 2006 finalist for the Nona Balakian Citation for Excellence in Reviewing from the National… more

    Author Events  Biography and Autobiography   Movies & Television  Performing Arts  Politics  General Research  History 

  • Imani Perry In Conversation with Kiese Laymon: On the Uprising since George Floyd's Murder and Black Struggles for Freedom in the United States

    • Recorded Jun 9, 2020 Explicit Content

    Imani Perry is the Hughes-Rogers Professor of African American Studies and faculty associate in the Program in Law and Public Affairs and Gender and Sexuality Studies at Princeton. She is the author of six books, most recently the award-winning… more

    African American  Author Events  Biography and Autobiography   Literature  Politics  General Research  History 

  • Lauren Francis-Sharma | Book of the Little Axe

    • Recorded May 28, 2020

    In conversation with Erica Armstrong Dunbar ,  award-winning author of Never Caught: The Washingtons' Relentless Pursuit of their Runaway Slave, Ona Judge  and She Came to Slay: The Life and Times of Harriet Tubman. Lauren Francis-Sharma ’s… more

    Author Events  Fiction  Literature  General Research  History 

  • Karla Cornejo Villavicencio | The Undocumented Americans

    • Recorded May 21, 2020 Explicit Content

    In conversation with Andrea González-Ramírez, Senior Writer at  GEN  and an Ida B. Wells fellow at Type Investigations.  Read Ms. González-Ramírez's interview with Karla Cornejo Villavicencio. Originally from Ecuador, Karla Cornejo Villavicencio… more

    Author Events  Biography and Autobiography   Citizenship  LGBTQ  Literature  New Americans  Politics  Psychology  History 

Find More Episodes

20th & Vine - Backstage with R. Eric Thomas.

This month we're featuring R. Eric Thomas who recently visited the Free Library of Philadelphia to discuss his new memoir: Here for It: Or, How to Save Your Soul in America. The writer, playwright, and creator of Elle's "Eric Reads the News" spoke backstage with Laura Kovacs about staying current on the daily news, and how he takes a break from it. 20th & Vine features behind-the-scenes conversations from the Free Library of Philadelphia's award-winning Author Events series. Subscribe now for more videos with your favorite authors.

Top 10 Podcasts for May 2020

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  2. Frank B. Wilderson III Frank B. Wilderson III
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  4. David Wallace-Wells David Wallace-Wells
  5. Susan Choi Susan Choi
  6. Samantha Irby Samantha Irby
  7. Seanan McGuire Seanan McGuire
  8. Karla Cornejo Villavicencio Karla Cornejo Villavicencio
  9. Jennifer Steinhauer Jennifer Steinhauer
  10. Yann Martel Yann Martel

Top 10 Videos for May

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  8. Frank B. Wilderson III
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  10. Camille Paglia