PODCAST

A Novel Idea

Non-fiction to pulp fiction, host Suzanne M. Lang explores the world of books featuring conversations with writers, academics, and readers. We all have a story to tell. It’s A Novel Idea.

arts, books

All Episodes

James Janko and Diane Botnick on

A Novel Idea ·

2025/09/21

Suzanne Lang talks with James Janko, whose remarkable novel is the Wire Walker, the story of a Palestinian Circus Girl, her friendship with a Jewish Israeli Juggler, and the realities of their lives in the current climate. Also featured is Diane Botnick with her novel Becoming Sarah, a human story that spans from a birth in Auschwitz in 1942 to the 100 th anniversary of the liberation of the camps in 2045. Expansive. It’s A Novel Idea, every first, third, and fifth Sunday at 10am, on KRCB, 104.9

Shelley Blanton-Stroud and Marilyn J. Zimmerman on

A Novel Idea ·

2025/09/07

Suzanne Lang talks with author Shelley Blanton-Stroud on the craft of writing and her latest novel, An Unlikely Prospect, set in the San Francisco publishing world near the close of WWII. Also featured is Suzanne’s conversation with Marilyn J. Zimmerman on her legal thriller, In Defense of Good Women, centered on the issue of infanticide. It’s A Novel Idea, every first, third, and fifth Sunday at 10am PT. Streaming at krcb.org.

Laurel Munson Boyers and Stanley A. Rice on

A Novel Idea ·

2025/08/31

Suzanne Lang talks with Laurel Munson Boyers on her book Across Yosemite’s Wilderness, a Trailblazing Woman’s Career Protecting the Park’s Backcountry . Also featured is Stanley A. Rice about Forgotten Landscapes, How Native Americans Created Pre-Columbian North America and What we Can Learn From It. A Novel Idea, every first, third, and fifth Sunday at 10am. Streaming at Krcb.org .

Stephen P. Huyler and Olive Senior on

A Novel Idea ·

2025/08/17

Suzanne Lang talks with artist Stephen P. Huyler, who has traveled India for just about half a century and through photographs and capturing material objects, he highlights the culture of the subcontinent; his memoir is India, a Life. Suzanne also talks with Poet Laureate emerita Olive Senior on her recent novel Paradise Once , set in 1513 on the island of Cuba during a Spanish assault on the native Taino people, whose courage and resiliency persist from then to now. It’s A Novel Idea, Sunday,

Tik Maynard and Rossana D’Antonio on

A Novel Idea ·

2025/08/03

At midlife, equestrian Tik Maynard embarks on a life journey when he prepares to compete in “Road to the Horse”, a competition to start an untamed horse over three days. Tik joins Suzanne Lang on this experience and his memoir Starting in the Middle, How Horses, Those Who Study Them, and 265 Minutes with One Colt Helped Me find Myself at Midlife. Also featured is Suzanne in conversation with Rossana D’Antonio, whose book is 26 Seconds, Grief and Blame in the Aftermath of Losing My Brother in a Plane

Honorée Fanonne Jeffers and L. Annette Binder on

A Novel Idea ·

2025/07/20

Suzanne Lang talks with Honorée Fanonne Jeffers, author of Oprah Book Club read The Love Songs of W.E.B. DuBois, on her latest book of family, legacy, and being who you are, Misbehaving at the Crossroads, Essays & Writings. Child of Earth and Starry Heaven is L. Annette Binder’s meditation on her mother’s passage to death through the labyrinth of Alzheimer’s disease. She cites Greek philosophers, literature, and modern medicine, but ultimately her experience was all about presence. Binder joins

Emely Rumble and Susan Church-Downer on

A Novel Idea ·

2025/07/06

Literature and reading as healers. Suzanne Lang talks with Bibliotherapist Emely Rumble, LCSW, about this practice and her book Bibliotherapy In The Bronx. Books are a way into who we are. Also featured is Susan Church-Downer, former owner of the Santa Rosa restaurant, Gaia’s Garden, who shares her memoir All You Care To Eat, A Novice Buys A Restaurant. It’s A Novel Idea, Sunday, July 6 th at 10:00am PT. Streaming at krcb.org .

Mark B. Perry and Beth Hahn on

A Novel Idea ·

2025/06/29

Mid Century LA with Suzanne Lang as she talks with Emmy winning writer & producer Mark B. Perry on his novel depicting the squelching of authenticity and sexual identity by the ever powerful studio system, and Introducing Dexter Gaines, a Novel of Old Hollywood. Also featured is Beth Hahn with her novel set literally in the underground of 1947 LA. It's called The City Beneath Her. It’s A Novel Idea every 1st, 3rd, abd 5th Sunday at 10am PT. Streaming at krcb.org .

Gerald Warburg and Larry Tye on

A Novel Idea ·

2025/06/15

The Point Reyes National Seashore remains in the forefront of preservation and controversy. Suzanne Lang talks with Gerald Warburg on his book Saving Point Reyes, How an Epic Conservation Victory Became a Tipping Point for Environmental Policy Action. Also featured is a new conversation with Larry Tye to mark the paperback release of his book, The Jazzmen, How Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, and Count Basie Transformed America. It's A Novel Idea, every first, third, and fifth Sunday at 10:00am on

Lizzie Wade and Manjula Martin on

A Novel Idea ·

2025/06/01

Suzanne Lang traverses history with journalist Lizzie Wade on her book Apocalypse, How Catastrophe Transformed Our World and Can Forge New Futures , a comprehensive and optimistic look at where we’ve been and where we may be going. Also featured is Suzanne’s conversation with Manjula Martin on her book The Last Fire Season, A Personal and Pyronatural History ; part memoir, part natural history, her book is a literary inquiry looking at her own experience of life during the west’s expanding wildfire

Maria Foscarinis and Chris Cabral on

A Novel Idea ·

2025/05/18

Suzanne Lang is joined by trailblazing housing advocate Maria Foscarinis in conversation on her book And Housing for All: The Fight to End Homelessness In America. Adding to the conversation is Chris Cabral, CEO of Petaluma’s COTS (Committee on the Shelterless). It’s A Novel Idea, Sunday, May 18 th at 10:00 am PDT. Streaming and podcasting at krcb.org.

Ian leslie and Arnold Levine on

A Novel Idea ·

2025/05/06

John and Paul, a Love Story in Songs is Ian leslie's remarkable book on the creative and personal friendship of John Lennon and Paul McCartney. Join Suzanne Lang in conversation with Ian Leslie on this insightful and moving book.Arnold Levine talks with Suzanne Lang about his book Banned by the BBC, How I became a Radio Pirate, a Memoir of 1970’s London. It’s A Novel Idea, Sunday, April 20th at 10am PT. Streaming and podcasting at krcb.org.

Ian leslie and Arnold Levine on

A Novel Idea ·

2025/05/04

John and Paul, a Love Story in Songs is Leslie's remarkable book on the creative and personal friendship of John Lennon and Paul McCartney. Join Suzanne Lang in conversation with Ian Leslie on this insightful and moving book. Also featured is Arnold Levine with his book Banned by the BBC, How I became a Radio Pirate, a Memoir of 1970’s London. A Novel Idea, Sunday, May 4th at 10am PT. Streaming and podcasting at krcb.org.

Nell Joslin and Susan Wiggs on

A Novel Idea ·

2025/04/18

Suzanne Lang talks with Nell Joslin on her novel set in 1863, Measure of Devotion, a frank, beautifully told story of the unbeautiful time of the Civil War, and a timely reflection on the ramifications of societal and family divisions, the utter cruelty of war, and the humanity that rises above it.Suzanne also talks with internationally best-selling author of over thirty books, Susan Wiggs, with her latest, Wayward Girls, set in northwest New York state during the 1960’s in a

Nell Joslin and Susan Wiggs on

A Novel Idea ·

2025/04/18

Jean Shinoda Bolen, plus Bremond Berry MacDougall and...

A Novel Idea ·

2025/04/06

Suzanne M Lang talks with Jean Shinoda Bolen, an internationally renowned Jungian analyst, speaker, activist for women’s empowerment, and prolific author. Her latest book is Ever Widening Circles and Mystical Moments, a deeply personal memoir of her nearly ninety years of living.Also featured is Bremond Berry MacDougall and Lisa Cooper, founders of Quite Literally Books, a small heritage press dedicated to bringing back forgotten books and authors that retain relevancy to this day and our

Terri Lewis and Janet Constantino on

A Novel Idea ·

2025/03/30

Suzanne Lang talks with author Terri Lewis on her historical novel set in the early 13th century in England, when King John abducts and marries the eleven year old Isabelle d’Angoulême to be his queen. The story, featuring a love triangle, is based on facts: Behold the Bird in Flight, a Novel of an Abducted Queen. Also featured is Janet Constantino talking about her novel spanning Sicily and San Francisco with lots of good food and wine in between. Becoming Mariella: a Novel is the story of a

Samantha Rose and Remembering Susan Swartz on

A Novel Idea ·

2025/03/13

Suzanne Lang talks with best-selling author Samantha Rose on her memoir Giving Up the Ghost, a Daughter’s Memoir. Samantha is the daughter of author and syndicated columnist Susan Swartz, who died by suicide in early 2020. Also featured is a conversation Suzanne had with Swartz on her first novel, Laughing in the Dark, which had just been released at the time of her death. It’s A Novel Idea, Sunday, March 16th at 10am PDT on KRCB 104.9.

Samantha Rose and Remembering Susan Swartz on

A Novel Idea ·

2025/03/13

CJ Cook on

A Novel Idea ·

2025/03/02

CJ Cook is an art collector, historian, publisher, rescuer of lost artists, and lover of the South Pacific. Suzanne Lang talks with CJ Cook on Edithe Beutler, who was one of the premier colorists during the days of black & white photography; the book is Edithe Beutler: Beautifying Hawaii with Color. They also talk about his previous work, Leeteg: Babes, Bars, Beaches, and Black Velvet Art on the artist Edgar Leeteg, also written about in James Michener’s Rascals in Paradise. The books are

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A Novel Idea

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