In this highlight from Rattlecast #42, Meg Eden reads "Things to Do in My Hometown: Higashimatsushima," and discusses what motivated the research for her new book, "Drowning in the Floating World." ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eVox9eguvFw

Rattlecast #57 features Alejandro Escudé. Alejandro has appeared often in both Rattle's print issues and Poets Respond, and was interviewed for issue #59. Alejandro Escudé’s first book of poems, "My Earthbound Eye," was published in September 2013 upon winning the 2012 Sacramento Poetry Center Award. He received a master’s degree in creative writing from UC Davis, where he was taught by such notable poets as Gary Snyder and Sandra McPherson. Alejandro works as an English teacher, having taught in a variety of school systems at the secondary level for over fifteen years. Originally from Córdoba, Argentina, he immigrated to California many years ago at the age of six. A new book, “The Book of the Unclaimed Dead,” published by Main Street Rag Press, is now available on the MSR website. Alejandro is a single dad of two wonderful kids and lives in Los Angeles with his dog, a feisty yet lovable Jack Russell named Jake. For more information, visit: https://escudepoetry.com/ As always, we'll also include live open mic for responses to our weekly prompt. For details on how to participate, either pre-recorded, via Skype, or by phone, go to: https://www.rattle.com/rattlecast/ This Week's Prompt: Look out your window. Write a poem about what you see. Next Week's Prompt: September is Classical Music Month. Listen to a piece of classical music and let it inspire your poem. The Rattlecast livestreams on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and Periscope, then becomes an audio podcast. ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PiYBh5Nahb8

Recorded on September 21, 2022, and published in Rattle #78, this conversation is a deep dive into the divided brain, exploring the role the two unique hemispheres play in creativity. We also discuss how the modern world has come to be dominated by the left hemisphere’s narrow focus and how poetry might be an antidote to “the matter with things.” Dr. Iain McGilchrist is a psychiatrist, philosopher, and literary scholar. He is a Quondam Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford, a Fellow of the Royal College of Psychiatrists and of the Royal Society of Arts, as well as a former Clinical Director of the Bethlem Royal & Maudsley Hospital, London. His previous book, The Master and His Emissary: The Divided Brain and the Making of the Western World reached international recognition and acclaim and has marked him out as one of the greatest thinkers and philosophers of our time. His latest publication is a two-volume work, The Matter with Things, which was published in 2021 by Perspectiva Press. A sustained critique of reductive materialism, it concerns the questions of who we are and what is the world? What do we mean by purpose, value, and the divine? And how do we most reliably set about finding out? Find more at: channelmcgilchrist.com ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOPxnJWh_fI

Episode #31 welcomes Rachel Custer to the Rattlecast. Rachel has appeared in three issues of Rattle and three times in Poets Respond, including with "How I Am Like Donald Trump," perhaps the most-read and most-discussed poem in the entire series. Rachel Custer is the author of The Temple She Became (Five Oaks Press, 2017) and the recipient of a 2019 NEA Fellowship in Poetry. She has previously published poetry, personal essays, and flash fiction in many literary journals. She lives in Indiana, and her work is constantly informed by and wrestles with the values and struggles of the rural Rust Belt. Her Christian faith is vital to her understanding of the world and her art. For more information, visit: https://rachelcuster.wordpress.com/ Prologue: "Siege Machinery" by Craig van Rooyen This Week’s Prompt: President Trump goes to the arcade. Bonus suggestion: Villanelle. Prompt poems by: Tim Megan Shaun Hines Kathy Gibbons Corinne O'Reilly Next Week’s Prompt: An addiction to soap operas. Suggestion: Epigram (short and witty). ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bed5earH0Wc