“Life means suffering.” According to the Buddha, that is the first of four “noble truths” that together define human existence. I’m not much of a Buddhist (I’m a lapsed Catholic who owns a rarely used meditation pillow), but as a … Read more
This piece uses narrative elements in shedding light on an irony of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, as it gets worked out at one locus, one institution. The piece is narrative in the sense that it’s about “real” people and contains some … Read more
“One by one they fell away, the doctrinal pillars of the house his father built.” This is the story of Chuck Smith, Jr., and his movement away from the stern beliefs and fundamentalist community of his father’s church. The story … Read more
This piece is in some ways “just” another story about tragically ill children. But it’s also a useful exploration of ethical issues around the lengths parents will go, understandably, to save their sick children. In this case, a doctor uses … Read more
This is a fascinating, moving piece of memoir. We admired the masterly sequencing of the reader’s experience, from evocative scene to background and back to scene. But the background is also plot: Brown the character compulsively gathers information; it’s part … Read more
This piece tells the poignant story of one farm. It’s also, peripherally, a story about baseball. It’s not fully narrative in terms of structure; it uses more quotes than dialogue and scene. But it does trace the rise and fall … Read more
[Editor’s note: This essay first appeared on transom.org, “a showcase and resource for new public radio.”] Dear Transomistas, It was daunting to have Jay Allison’s invitation to be a guest on Transom.org, because I’m no insider to radio production. I … Read more