The author Esmeralda Santiago has been writing about Puerto Rico and questions of immigration and identity since the early nineties. But, in 2008, she suffered a stroke that left her unable to decipher words on a page. In the months that followed, she relied on some of the same strategies she’d used to teach herself English after moving to the United States ... Show More
Today
Molly Fischer on Waymo, the Driverless Taxi Coming to a City Near You
A Waymo offers a unique experience: you ride as a passenger behind or next to an empty driver’s seat, the steering wheel turning as though handled by a ghost. The New Yorker staff writer Molly Fischer has been reporting on Waymo, and she tells David Remnick that though the statis ... Show More
26m 18s
Oct 13
The Reporter Nicholas Lemann on California’s Battle to Pass a Billionaire Tax
In California, progressives have crafted a ballot initiative that calls for a wealth tax—a one-time, five-per-cent tax on wealth above a billion dollars, earmarked to shore up the state’s health-care system after drastic federal cuts. Wealth inequality is a vast concern, especial ... Show More
18m 29s
Aug 2023
Esmeralda Santiago is Back in the Book Case
We talked to the renowned bilingual author Esmeralda Santiago a few months about her incredible trilogy of memoirs. So when she sent us her new novel, Las Madres, we couldn’t wait. Turns out she is just as good of a fiction writer as she is a memoirist. This is a searing, funny a ... Show More
42m 47s
Mar 2023
Lesson 69: Advanced English Speaking / Idioms - Phrasal verbs
Her latest project had many LOOSE ENDS. She was half way there and had a lot to do before she FINISHED UP her book. Unfortunately, due to her horrible car accident on the i35 highway, she PASSED OUT and was severely hurt. Regrettably, Maria went into a coma. After a whole month, ... Show More
4 m
Dec 2022
Remembering a Forgotten Life (With Lina Misitzis)
When Ingrid Rojas Contreras was in her twenties and living in Chicago, she crashed her bike. A generation earlier in Colombia, her mother had tumbled into a well. Both women lost their memories, all at once. When Ingrid’s mom emerged from amnesia, she had a new power. Will Ingrid ... Show More
24m 28s
Mar 2022
'The Beauty of Dusk' and life's calamitous challenges
Journalist Frank Bruni had lots of professional success: he was a White House correspondent, food critic, and opinion columnist. But then in 2017 he suffered a rare type of stroke that left him unable to see correctly. His new memoir, The Beauty of Dusk: On Vision Lost and Found, ... Show More
8m 50s