Russell Banks (1999)

Acclaimed author of numerous books set in contemporary America, Russell Banks talks about his first historical novel, Cloudsplitter, which captures the life of the notorious abolitionist, John Brown, through the fictionalized vision of his son Owen. This well-researched and ambitious novel received rave reviews and was chosen as the “Editor’s Choice” by The New York Times Book Review. Banks reads from the work and discusses his inspiration for writing it, and how it fits in with the rest of his novels. Programs with Russell Banks from 1986 and 2019 are also available in our audio archives.