“I love finishing reading a book and thinking, I feel privileged to have read that, I feel dignified. I feel like that book sort of thought of me as sacred… I want to write the kind of books that I most love to read.”

From Paul Harding, author of Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, Tinkers, comes This Other Eden — an intricate novel inspired by the fascinating true story of Malaga, an island in Maine that held one of the first integrated communities after the Civil War. Harding joins us to talk about his vibrant cast of characters, studying with Marilynne Robinson, the authors who have influenced him and more with Poured Over’s host, Miwa Messer.

Featured Books (Episode):

This Other Eden by Paul Harding

Tinkers by Paul Harding

Enon by Paul Harding

The Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett

Moby Dick by Herman Melville

The Tempest by William Shakespeare

Featured Books (TBR Topoff):

Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn

Take My Hand by Dolen Perkins-Valdez

Poured Over is produced and hosted by Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang. Follow us here for new episodes Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays).