Leigh Edwards teaches in the English Department at FSU, where she specializes in nineteenth- and twentieth-century U.S. literature and popular culture. Her book, Johnny Cash and the Paradox of American Identity (Indiana University Press, 2009), examines how Cash’s work and image illuminate key foundational tensions in the history of American thought. Described as “nothing short of fascinating” (Jason Buel, PopMatters), Edwards’ study presents a compelling portrait of Cash and his significance as a cultural icon.
David Kirby is the author or co-author of twenty-nine books, including the poetry collections The House on Boulevard St.: New and Selected Poems, The Ha-Ha, The House of Blue Light, and The Travelling Library, in addition to the collection of essays, Ultra-Talk: Johnny Cash, The Mafia, Shakespeare, Drum Music, St. Teresa Of Avila and 17 Other Colossal Topics Of Conversation. His many awards include the Guy Owen Prize, the Kay Deeter Award, the James Dickey Prize, the Brittingham Prize, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and the Millennium Cultural Recognition Award. Kirby’s latest book, Little Richard: The Birth of Rock ‘n’ Roll (Continuum, 2009), has already been been hailed as a “light-footed but profound little book” that “beats all the professional rock scribes hollow” (Ray Olson, Booklist). Kirby is the Robert O. Lawton Distinguished Professor of English at Florida State University, where he has taught since 1969.
Listen as both authors read from their new books. [download]
