Strong Sense of Place | Travel Through Books

If you’ve ever wanted to go behind the scenes of the best theme parks in the world — Hello, Disney! — you’re going to love today’s bonus episode.We were thrilled to talk to friend-of-the-podcast Tasha Sounart about her job as Creative Director in the Theme Parks group of Pixar.In this delightful conversation, we talked to Tasha about what a day at Pixar is like, what inspires her creativity, and which Pixar world she’d like to visit.For more on Tasha, plus the other cool stuff we talk about, visit our show notes. Find Tasha on Mastodon: @tashasounart@worldkey.io Tasha recommended the book Dying Fall by Elly Griffiths. Lauren Passell’s excellent podcast recommendation newsletter Podcast the Newsletter. Easy Homemade Caramel Popcorn. SSoP — Amusement Parks: Wheeeeeeeeeeeee! Transcript of this episode.Do you enjoy our show? Do you want access to awesome bonus content? Please support our work on Patreon! Every little bit helps us keep the show going and makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we’re excited about two new books — ‘Silver Nitrate’ by Silvia Moreno-Garcia and ‘The Skull: A Tyrolean Folktale’ by Jon Klassen — then Dave shares a fascinating art project about phantom islands.Links Silver Nitrate by Silvia Moreno-Garcia Visit Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s website, Twitter, and Instagram. Gods of Jade and Shadow by by Silvia Moreno-Garcia Certain Dark Things by Silvia Moreno-Garcia Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia The Skull: A Tyrolean Folktale by Jon Klassen Follow Jon Klassen on Instagram. Jon Klassen’s Hat Box by Jon Klassen (the trilogy) I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen We Found a Hat by Jon Klassen This Is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen The scoop on phantom islands from Wikipedia, Atlas Obscura, and Explorers Web. Andrew Peckler’s Phantom Islands — A Sonic Atlas. The album Sounds from Phantom Islands. (The vinyl is sold out, but mp3s are available.) Andrew Peckler’s new musical release Cue. Transcript of this episode. The Library of Lost Time is a Strong Sense of Place Production! https://strongsenseofplace.comDo you enjoy our show? Want access to fun bonus content? Please support our work on Patreon. Every little bit helps us keep the show going and makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside - https://www.patreon.com/strongsenseofplaceAs always, you can find us at: Our site Instagram Facebook Twitter Patreon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The gates of an amusement park are a portal to a magical realm of thrill rides and fantasy worlds, larger-than-life characters, and the best portable foods on the planet. (We’re looking at you, corn dogs and kettle corn!)And it’s been that way since the beginning. The first quasi-amusement park entertained revelers in 1133 with merry-go-rounds, extravagant stage shows, gingerbread, sausages, and dancing in the streets. All that merriment made it easy to forget it was all meant to honor St. Bartholomew.Eventually, the rides got bigger (and faster and more hair-raising), the shows more over-the-top, and the spectacle more spectacular. Roller coasters! Carousels! Tilt-a-Whirls! Mickey and Donald and Cinderella! Legos! Quidditch! Funnel cakes! Turkey legs! And fireworks!In this episode, we take a fast romp through the history of amusement parks, revel in an essay by Russian writer Maxim Gorky, and celebrate the magical world of Walt Disney. Then we recommend five books that took us to amusement parks on the page, including a comedy-thriller set in Helsinki, a nonfiction exploration of delight, a dystopian disaster tale, and historical mysteries set in 1915 Chicago and 1911 Coney Island.Here are the books about amusement parks we recommend on the show: The Rabbit Factor by Antti Tuomainen, David Hackston (translator) Curious Toys by Elizabeth Hand Dreamland by Nancy Bilyeau Wonderland: How Play Made the Modern World by Steven Johnson Fantasticland by Mike Bockoven For more on the books we recommend, plus the other cool stuff we talk about, visit our show notes.Transcript of Amusement Parks: Wheeeeeeeeeeeee!.Do you enjoy our show? Do you want access to awesome bonus content? Please support our work on Patreon! Every little bit helps us keep the show going and makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is a replay of an episode featuring books from beloved authors that are excellent summer reads: 'Killers of a Certain Age' by Deanna Raybourn and 'Fairy Tale' by Stephen King. Then Mel takes us around Europe with the Polish street artist Nespoon.BOOKSKillers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybournhttps://bit.ly/3RBg1dWFairy Tale by Stephen Kinghttps://bit.ly/3AVh01IDISTRACTION OF THE WEEKThe Library of Lost Timehttps://bit.ly/3PIqMd8NeSpoon on Instagramhttps://bit.ly/3ql5GHjNeSpoon on YouTubehttps://bit.ly/3BeS6M8NeSpoon websitehttps://nespoon.artVideo of the mural at the Museum of Lace and Fashionhttps://youtu.be/XeFNYiYC0VEMore about the square in Belorado, Spainhttps://bit.ly/3RmCL1sGerman video (with some English) featuring NeSpoon's various workshttps://youtu.be/ehh5A0AW-p4Colossal magazinehttps://bit.ly/3etn6PCFive questions with NeSpoonhttps://bit.ly/3euaeZDTranscript of this episodehttps://bit.ly/3cNqmoyThe Library of Lost Time is a Strong Sense of Place Production!https://strongsenseofplace.comDo you enjoy our show? Want access to fun bonus content? Please support our work on Patreon. Every little bit helps us keep the show going and makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside -https://www.patreon.com/strongsenseofplace Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we get excited about two new books — ‘The Only One Left’ by Riley Sager and ‘The Art Thief’ by Michael Finkel — then Dave shares the amazing story of the gilded age socialite Ida Wood.LINKS The Only One Left by Riley Sager. Visit Riley Sager’s website and Instagram. Riley talked about his book in this video from The Poisoned Pen bookshop. Smithsonian magazine: Why 19th-Century Axe Murderer Lizzie Borden Was Found Not Guilty. The Art Thief: A True Story of Love, Crime, and a Dangerous Obsession by Michael Finkel. Our podcast episode Maine: Lighthouses, Lobster Rolls, and the King of Horror. The Stranger in the Woods: The Extraordinary Story of the Last True Hermit by Michael Finkel. Smithsonian magazine on Ida Wood: Everything Was Fake but Her Wealth. Wikipedia entires for Ida Wood and her husband Benjamin Wood. A personal essay: My Crazy Aunt Ida. Transcript of this episode. The Library of Lost Time is a Strong Sense of Place Production! https://strongsenseofplace.comDo you enjoy our show? Want access to fun bonus content? Please support our work on Patreon. Every little bit helps us keep the show going and makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside - https://www.patreon.com/strongsenseofplaceAs always, you can find us at: Our site Instagram Facebook Twitter Patreon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we get excited about two new books — ‘100 Places to See After You Die’ by Ken Jennings and ‘What the Dead Know’ by Barbara Butcher — then Mel gets excited about postcards from around the world.LINKS 100 Places to See After You Die: A Travel Guide to the Afterlife by Ken Jennings. Brainiac: Adventures in the Curious, Competitive, Compulsive World of Trivia Buffs by Ken Jennings. Maphead: Charting the Wide, Weird World of Geography Wonks by Ken Jennings What the Dead Know: Learning about Life as a New York City Death Investigator by Barbara Butcher. Visit the Postcrossing.com website, Twitter, and Instagram. Transcript of this episode. The Library of Lost Time is a Strong Sense of Place Production! https://strongsenseofplace.comDo you enjoy our show? Want access to fun bonus content? Please support our work on Patreon. Every little bit helps us keep the show going and makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside - https://www.patreon.com/strongsenseofplaceAs always, you can find us at: Our site Instagram Facebook Twitter Patreon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Argentina is so alluring. Rugged gauchos riding the pampas, the percussive heartbeat of the tango, the otherwordly beauty of Tierra del Fuego, the friendly passing of the yerba maté gourd. This South American country invites you to connect, to linger, to relax, and to explore.A blend of old-world Europe — Buenos Aires is known as the ‘Paris of South America’ — and local flair, Argentina is like nowhere else. City skylines boast neoclassical, art nouveau, art deco, and baroque architecture. The streets are filled with the seductive melodies of cumbia and tango. Cafés buzz with conversations in Spanish, Italian, German, and Arabic. And the food! Empanadas and dulce de leche and milanesa and the best beef in the world drizzled with chimichurri.There are breathtaking waterfalls, shockingly blue lakes, steppes, volcanoes, and glaciers that invite you to jump on a horse or bicycle, lace up your hiking boots, or bundle up for an ice climb. There are whales, seals, penguins, and the Train at the End of the World.In this episode, we talk about all the adventures that await in Argentina’s various geographical regions and learn the secret past of one of the most famous Argentines. Then we recommend five books that took us there on the page, including a historical novel set in the world of tango, a spy novel with feelings, a noir thriller set in 1950 Buenos Aires, an eerie short story collection, and a modern crime novel about the Buenos Aires elite.Here are the books about bookshops we recommend on the show: The Gods of Tango by Carolina De Robertis Who is Vera Kelly? by Rosalie Knecht A Quiet Flame by Philip Kerr Seven Empty Houses by Samanta Schweblin Betty Boo by Claudia Piñeiro, Miranda France (translator) For more on the books we recommend, plus the other cool stuff we talk about, visit our show notes.Transcript of Argentina.Do you enjoy our show? Do you want access to awesome bonus content? Please support our work on Patreon! Every little bit helps us keep the show going and makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we get excited about two new books — ‘Return to Valetto’ by Dominic Smith and ‘National Dish’ by Anya von Bremzen — then Dave shares a delightful poem about wonder by Reina del Cid.LINKS Return to Valetto by Dominic Smith. The Last Painting of Sara de Vos by Dominic Smith. Strong Sense of Place podcast: Museums: A Gathering of Muses, A Clutch of Curators. National Dish: Around the World in Search of Food, History, and the Meaning of Home by Anya von Bremzen. Mastering the Art of Soviet Cooking: A Memoir of Food and Longing by Anya Von Bremzen. The CrashCourse YouTube Channel. Video: Hank Green talks about the Big Bang. Reina del Cid’s website, Twitter, and Instagram. Video: Reina del Cid reciting her poem ‘Big Bang’. Strong Sense of Place podcast: New Orleans: Pass a Good Time. Transcript of this episode. The Library of Lost Time is a Strong Sense of Place Production! https://strongsenseofplace.comDo you enjoy our show? Want access to fun bonus content? Please support our work on Patreon. Every little bit helps us keep the show going and makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside - https://www.patreon.com/strongsenseofplaceAs always, you can find us at: Our site Instagram Facebook Twitter Patreon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we get excited about two new books — ‘Unpacking for Greece’ by Sally Jane Smith and the new DK Eyewitness title ‘Europe by Train’ — then Mel gets excited about adaptations of ’Around the World in 80 Days.LINKS Unpacking for Greece by Sally Jane Smith. Sally Jane Smith’s website, Twitter, and Instagram. Europe by Train by DL Eyewitness. The super-handy train travel website The Man in Seat Sixty-One. Lonely Planet’s Guide to Train Travel in Europe. 80 Days website. Video: Why 80 Days is a perfect game. Around the World in 80 Days TV show and the show trailer. Strong Sense of Place podcast: Newsroom: From Clacking Typewriters to Viral Video. Eighty Days: Nellie Bly and Elizabeth Bisland’s History-Making Race Around the World by Matthew Goodman. Transcript of this episode. The Library of Lost Time is a Strong Sense of Place Production! https://strongsenseofplace.comDo you enjoy our show? Want access to fun bonus content? Please support our work on Patreon. Every little bit helps us keep the show going and makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside - https://www.patreon.com/strongsenseofplaceAs always, you can find us at: Our site Instagram Facebook Twitter Patreon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Located on the east coast of Africa, Kenya is a fantastic place to explore Swahili culture and get close to exotic wildlife — lions, elephants, cheetahs, giraffes, impalas, gazelles, warthogs, wildebeests, and so many birds.The capital city of Nairobi sits on a plateau between the Indian Ocean (hello, picturesque beaches!) and the Great Rift Valley (lush green hills, blue lakes, hot pink flamingoes). Nairobi hums with energy and everything you’d expect in a major capital. The city also gets a little wild — literally — with Nairobi National Park inside the city limits.As you might expect in Africa, Kenyan history is basically two big buckets: before colonialism and after. The rich influences that led to the Swahili culture — Arab, Persian, Indian, and African — are all on display in cities like Mombasa. Wander the narrow alleys and take in the romantic architecture, then cruise on a white-sailed dhow to the nearby island of Zanzibar. Outside the cities, get ready for outdoor adventures with a jeep safari, a hike on Mt. Kenya, a cycling tour through Hell’s Gate (!), or a visit to a Maasai village to experience their traditional lifestyle.In this episode, we daydream about safari animals, listen to African music, and explore why Kenyans are such fantastic runners. Then we recommend five great books that transported us to Kenya on the page.Here are the books about Kenya we recommend on the show: Dust by Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor West with the Night by Beryl Markham The Perfect Nine: The Epic of Gĩkũyũ and Mũmbi by Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o — and the audiobook When Stars Are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson & Omar Mohamed — and the audiobook A Guide to the Birds of East Africa: A Novel by Nicholas Drayson For more on the books we recommend, plus the other cool stuff we talk about, visit our show notes.Transcript of Kenya: Hurrying Has No Blessing.Do you enjoy our show?Do you want access to awesome bonus content? Please support our work on Patreon! Every little bit helps us keep the show going and makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices