On Episode 1 of the Keeneland Library Lecture Series, Steve Richards talks with author Paul Halloran about CODY’S WISH — the unforgettable true story of Cody Dorman and the champion racehorse who became his best friend. A moving conversation about resilience, hope, and the bond between humans and horses.
#SpeakingOfWriters #CodysWish #PaulHalloran #HorseRacing #Keeneland #BreedersCup #MakeAWish #Books #AuthorInterview #Podcast

Ron LeFlore was serving 5-15 years for armed robbery when he played his first organized baseball game—in a prison yard. Three years later, he was starting in center field for the Detroit Tigers.His story became a bestselling book and a TV movie starring LeVar Burton. Then it all fell apart.Adam Henig (@adamhenig) joins us to discuss BASEBALL'S OUTCAST, his deeply researched biography that goes beyond the rise-and-fall narrative to explore the segregated Detroit that shaped LeFlore, the criminal justice system he navigated, and the childhood trauma that followed him from the prison cage to the batting cage.#speakingofwriterspodcast #authorpodcast #authorinterview #detroittigers #ronleflore#baseballbook #baseball

From suppressed anger to unleashed power — Sam Beckbessinger dives into the themes behind FEMME FERAL, one of 2026’s most anticipated horror debuts, on Speaking of Writers.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Sam Beckbessinger teaches creative writing at Bath Spa University, writes kids' TV and picture books, and once wrote for Marvel. She grew up on a farm near Durban, South Africa, but now lives in London.

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ELEGY IN BLUE is an unforgettable tale of love, loss, and remembrance set in Brooklyn.Mark Helprin is the internationally acclaimed, bestselling author of Paris in the Present Tense, Winter’s Tale, In Sunlight and in Shadow, A Soldier of the Great War, Freddy and Fredericka, The Pacific, Swan Lake, Ellis Island, Memoir from Antproof Case, and numerous other works. #authorpodcast #markhelprin #bookpodcast #booklovers #speakingofwriterspodcast #podcast

It’s 1985, what will soon become known as “The Year of the Spy,” and fourteen-year-old Peter Bennett is convinced his mom’s new boyfriend is a Russian agent. “Gary” isn’t in the phone book, has an unidentifiable European accent, and keeps a gun in the glove box of his convertible Porsche. Peter thinks Gary only wants to get close to his mom because she works at Scientific Atlanta, a lab with big government contracts. But who is going to believe him? He’s just a kid into BMX and MTV.Ace Atkins is an award-winning, New York Times bestselling author of more than thirty novels and numerous short stories. A former college football player and newspaper reporter, he’s a recipient of the Richard Wright Literary Excellence Award, the Harper Lee Award, and a member of the Alabama Writers Hall of Fame. He lives with his wife Angela and two children in Oxford, Mississippi.#authorpodcast #speakingofwriterspodcast #AceAtkins #SpeakingOfWriters #BookPodcast #ColdWarThriller #AuthorInterview #BookLovers

Author Mel Michalski joins Speaking of Writers to discuss his powerful new book Living in the Spiritual World—a deeply personal journey of faith, redemption, and spiritual discovery.

#SpeakingOfWriters#MelMichalski#LivingInTheSpiritualWorld#FaithJourney#ChristianBooks#SpiritualGrowth#InspirationalReads#FaithBasedBooks

Robert Polito takes us inside the creative mind of Bob Dylan with his new book After the Flood: Inside Bob Dylan’s Memory Palace. A deep dive into reinvention, artistry, and legacy.#SpeakingOfWriters#BobDylan#AuthorInterview#BookPodcast#MusicHistory#LiteraryPodcast

Emilio Pucci: The Astonishing Odyssey of a Fashion Icon . The book has received glowing reviews from The New York Times, Vogue, Publishers Weekly, and more.When people think of fashion designer Emilio Pucci, it is of his bright, swirling colors and easy, freeing fabrics, and everyone from Sophia Loren to Jackie Kennedy donning the eye-catching dresses that personify La Dolce Vita. What few know about Pucci, however, is that before creating his world-famous fashions, he played a critical role in the war against the Nazis, risking his life to smuggle out to the Allies one of the most important documents of World War II.The authors bring to life Italy’s darkest and brightest days, with the extraordinary Emilio Pucci at its center. Italy at the end of the war was broken, and Florence, which the Pucci family had called home for seven centuries, lay in ruins. Pucci returned home bruised in body and soul, having endured trials that would have broken many, but, like Italy itself, rose from the ashes, and went on to design some of the most exuberant fashion of all time. He helped usher in a new era of creativity in Italy, which again became a mecca of fashion, art, design, film, and more.About the authors:Idanna Pucci is the author of The Lady of Sing Sing and The World Odyssey of a Balinese Prince. Idanna grew up in the Pucci palace, eyewitness to her uncle's extraordinary work. She and Terence have had far flung lives, from Iran to Indonesia. They live in Florence.Terence Ward is the author of Searching for Hassan: A Journey to the Heart of Iran and The Guardian of Mercy: How an Extraordinary Painting by Caravaggio Changed an Ordinary Life.#speakingofwriterspodcast #authorpodcast #authors #stmartinspublishing #italy #florenceitaly #emiliopucci#bookpodcast