The On The Bookshelf Podcast

interview--How did the humble peanut result in slavery’s continuance in Africa?

Jori Lewis brings an incredible story of the significance of peanuts as food and for producing oil for machinery and for French soap in the mid-19th century. Its economic importance meant that French colonizers ignored the actions of African kings who enslaved babies, children, woman and men to be sure the peanut crops kept making them wealthy. There were a few heroes, including an African Christian in the Protestant tradition who hid runaway slaves until they could gain their freedom.

interview--How a pair of children’s authors from Opelika, AL help parents

Ginger Hubbard is the co-author of two new books for parents to read to their young children to address whining and lying. She explains how they arrived at these concepts and developed them for the series from New Growth Press.

interview--African-American WWII Heroes finally honored

Robert Child tells of seven amazing Black men who served in the US military during WWII with exceeding bravery. Due to the racial attitudes of the times (and in many cases, but not all, their commanding officers) they were given honored with the Congressional Medal of Honor until decades later. These are their stories, long overdue.

classic interview from a renowned journalist

Eddie Curran writes about "The Governor of Goat Hill: Don Sigelman, the Reporter who exposed his crimes, and the hoax". 

interview classic from 2011-History of the Bible

Kristin Swenson brings her book "Bible Babble: the history of the world's most-read book" from May 15, 2011.