Elaine Orr’s Characters are “Swimming Between Worlds” in the Early Stages of The Civil Rights Movement in NC
Podcast: Download (Duration: 57:03 — 52.4MB)
In this episode 96, we visit with author Elaine Neil Orr, whose recent book “Swimming Between Worlds” is set in Winston-Salem, North Carolina during the early stages of the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s.
The Richmond Times-Dispatch observes that “Swimming Between Worlds” is “a novel of great humanity, . . . Conceived with compassion and rendered with grace, it scores a triumph for its author and a blessing for her readers.”
The plot focuses on Tacker and Kate and the world around them, and whether they can find a life together given Tacker’s desire for social change and Kate’s desire to go slow on race relations. It is a love story at the epicenter of change in a small southern town in the late 50s and early 60s.
We start the show with Elaine reading about the protagonist’s initial impressions upon his return home. His town of Winston-Salem had changed, but after spending two years in Nigeria, Tacker Hart had changed even more.
Connect with the author
Check out the author’s website here: www.elaineneilorr.com
On Twitter: www.twitter.com/elaineneilorr
On Facebook: www.facebook.com/elaineneilorr
Publisher of the book:
https://www.penguin.com/search/elaine-neil-orr?_qry=elaine%20neil%20orr
Reviews of the book:
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About the Author:
Elaine Neil Orr is an American writer who grew up in Nigeria. Both worlds converge in her novels, Swimming Between Worlds and A Different Sun: A Novel of Africa (Library Journal starred review) and her memoir, Gods of Noonday: A White Girl’s African Life.
Elaine is published widely in literary journals, such as The Missouri Review, Image, Blackbird, and anthologies and has been writer-in-residence at numerous universities, lecturing on writing and literature. She is on the faculty of English at N.C. State University where she won the Alumni Outstanding Research Award, 2019, for her fiction. Elaine also serves on the faculty of the Spalding University Brief-Residency MFA in Writing Program in Louisville. She lives in Raleigh with her husband and their dog, Sam.
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More reviews of “Swimming Between Worlds”
“. . . powerful, moving . . . Orr offers a beautifully wrought lesson about America’s troubled race relations and what it means to follow one’s conscience.”
—Greensboro News & Record
“Orr has crafted an intelligent book that both challenges and entertains”
—The News & Observer
“against a background of growing awareness of the need for change. . . . Orr’s novel will appeal to people looking for a thoughtful read touching on social as well as personal issues.”—Booklist
“The struggle of [the novel’s] deftly-drawn young characters to navigate the monumental changes—cultural and personal— that the civil rights movement brought to the South is rich and compelling.”
—Charles Frazier, New York Times bestselling author
Making Mid-rolls Fun
In our mid-roll this week, Landis discusses the upcoming bonus episode in honor of poetry month with five local poets, the new and improved newsletter for those who sign up for the email list, the upcoming release of Season 6, the 100th episode and our Patreon page.
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