Keene on Books

Tender Is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica: A Keene on Books Podcast

Keene on Books returns with an episode on Agustina Bazterrica’s 2017 novel Tender Is the Flesh (Sarah Moses's 2020 English translation). Host / Associate Professor of English Education Chris Parsons is joined by three KSC legends: Dr. Anna Schur is Professor of English at Keene State and author of the books Wages of Evil: Dostoevsky and Punishment and The Letters and the Law: Legal and Literary Culture in Late Imperial Russia; Dr. Kirsti Sandy is Interim Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at Keene State, an English professor, and author of the prizewinning book of linked memoir essays, 2017’s She Lived, and the Other Girls Died; and Dr. Lisa DiGiovanni is Professor of Modern Languages and Cultures and Holocaust and Genocide Studies at Keene State and author of the 2025 book, Militarized Masculinity in Spain and Chile: Remembering Violence through Film and Literature.

The Mighty Red by Louise Erdrich: A Keene on Books Podcast

Keene on Books returns with an episode discussing Louise Erdrich's 2024 novel, The Mighty Red. Host / Associate Professor of English Education Chris Parsons is joined by Celia Rabinowitz, Director of Keene State's Mason Library and Molly Parsons, Assistant Director of the Center for Research and Writing at KSC. Molly may have founded The Mighty Red fan club, but Celia and I are eager members.

Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid: A KoB Podcast

It is autumn, and we are back. Keene on Books returns with an episode on Taylor Jenkins Reid's 2025 novel, Atmosphere. Host / Associate Professor of English Education Chris Parsons is joined by Amber Davisson, Professor and Chair of the Communication and Philosophy Department and Meriem Pagès, Professor of English, departmental medievalist, and Director of the Medieval and Renaissance Forum. For those interested, yes, we have already sold the tv and film rights to this episode: we're all played by AI.

Margo's Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe: A Keene on Books Podcast

Keene on Books returns with an episode on Rufi Thorpe's 2024 novel Margo's Got Money Troubles. Host / Associate Professor of English Education Chris Parsons is joined by Amber Davisson, Professor and Chair of the Communication and Philosophy Department at Keene State and Molly Parsons, Assistant Director of the KSC Center for Research and Writing. A book with pro wrestling, OnlyFans, and narrative theory: I've never wished more that the intro music for Keene on Books was Stone Cold Steve Austin's entrance music. /glass breaks

Death at the Sign of the Rook by Kate Atkinson: A Keene on Books Podcast

Keene on Books returns with an episode discussing Kate Atkinson's 2024 novel, Death at the Sign of the Rook. Host / Associate Professor of English Education Chris Parsons is joined by Celia Rabinowitz, Director of Mason Library at Keene State and Molly Parsons, Assistant Director of the Center for Research and Writing at KSC. You should listen, but the TL;DL here is that we love Atkinson, and Beatrice can steal our paintings anytime.

Matrix by Lauren Groff: A KoB Podcast

Keene on Books returns with an episode on Lauren Groff's 2021 novel, Matrix. Host / Associate Professor of English Education Chris Parsons is joined by Meriem Pagès, Professor of English and Director of KSC's Medieval and Renaissance Forum as well as Molly Parsons, Assistant Director of the Center for Research and Writing. Of course, we discuss Groff's book. But Meriem also tells us about the 12th-century generally -- and Marie de France's lais "Bisclavret," which is about, to use Meriem's literary, academic language, "a really awesome werewolf." Join us! 

Redemption by Friedrich Gorenstein: A KoB Podcast

Keene on Books returns with an episode on Friedrich Gorenstein’s 1967 novel Redemption (Andrew Bromfield's 2018 English translation). Host / Associate Professor of English Education Chris Parsons is joined by Dr. Anna Schur, Professor of English at Keene State and author of the books Wages of Evil: Dostoevsky and Punishment and The Letters and the Law: Legal and Literary Culture in Late Imperial Russia as well as “Evil, Theodicy, and Jewishness in Fridrikh Gorenshtein” in Fall 2023 issue of Slavic Review. If I told you the book starts with a ball and ends with loads of babies, I don't think you'd be able to guess the middle. Read it.

All Fours by Miranda July: A KoB Podcast

Keene on Books returns with an episode discussing Miranda July's 2024 novel, All Fours. Host / Associate Professor of English Education Chris Parsons is joined by Celia Rabinowitz, Director of Mason Library and Molly Parsons, Assistant Director of the Center for Research and Writing. Discussing the New York book of the summer in January in New Hampshire is our BRAND.

Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe: A KoB Podcast

Keene on Books returns with an episode discussing Maia Kobabe's 2019 graphic memoir, Gender Queer. Host / Associate Professor of English Education Chris Parsons is joined by Eleanor Green, Teen Librarian at Keene Public Library, Alyssa Hamilton, English teacher at ConVal High School, and Ian Kaplan, Coordinator of LGBTQ+ Student Support at Keene State. Only Eleanor had the deluxe edition of the book, but our whole conversation is really pretty deluxe. 

Pachinko by Min Jin Lee: A Keene on Books Podcast

Keene on Books returns with an episode discussing Min Jin Lee's 2017 novel, Pachinko. Host / Associate Professor of English Education Chris Parsons is joined by Cindy Cheshire, biblical scholar, JEDI Faculty Fellow, and Adjunct Faculty in the Department of Communication and Philosophy at Keene State as well as Molly Parsons, Assistant Director of the Center for Research and Writing. We may not have found 100% of the biblical allusions, but 100% of the ones we did find were found by Cindy.

Out There Screaming edited by Jordan Peele: A KoB Podcast

Keene on Books returns with an episode discussing 2023's Out There Screaming: An Anthology of New Black Horror, edited by Jordan Peele. Host / Associate Professor of English Education Chris Parsons is joined by Kirsti Sandy, Provost, Vice President for Academic Affairs, and English prof at Keene State as well as illustrious KSC senior students and writers Kyla Culver and Moses Fisher. 

Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar: A KoB Podcast

Keene on Books returns with an episode discussing Kaveh Akbar's 2024 novel, Martyr!. Host / Associate Professor of English Education Chris Parsons is joined by Celia Rabinowitz, Director of Mason Library and Molly Parsons, Assistant Director of the Center for Research and Writing. Cue a dream sequence where you listen to this podcast with a family member and your favorite basketball player / cartoon character.