The PRH Speakers Bureau is proud to represent speakers who keep us connected and make powerful progress toward change. As we continue to have conversations about challenging the status quo, actively fighting for justice in BIPOC communities, and grappling with COVID-19, we’ve compiled these recent articles, media, and essays from our speakers about the changing personal, political, and cultural landscapes.

We are also happy to include a roundup for you here of upcoming virtual events that are open to the public from our speakers for the upcoming week.

Virtual Events with Our Speakers

Tune in to these virtual Penguin Random House speakers’ book events, author Q&A’s and more that are happening this week.

Tuesday, August 4 

• David Allen Sibley joins Jennifer Ackerman for a live, interactive presentation on birds at Browseabout Books (5:00pm EST)
• Yaa Gyasi speaks with her editor, Knopf Editorial Director Jordan Pavlin, about her best-selling, award-winning debut novel HOMEGOING (7:00pm EST)

Check out #BooksConnectUsLive for more live virtual events.

News and Media from PRHSB Speakers

Black Lives Matter Movement
Below are some recent dialogues from our speakers on systemic racism and the Black Lives Matter movement.

• Isabel Wilkerson’s Caste Is an ‘Instant American Classic’ About Our Abiding Sin | The New York Times: Isabel Wilkerson’s latest book is about how brutal misperceptions about race have disfigured the American experiment.
• Dr. Ibram X. Kendi and “AntiRacism” and Scholarship | Karen Hunter Show: Dr. Ibram X. Kendi shares his thoughts on antiracism, scholarship, and the importance of teaching young people real history.  
• Isabel Wilkerson Loves Books. That Doesn’t Mean She Treats Them Gently. | The New York Times: Isabel Wilkerson talks about her reading list, her upcoming book, and America’s caste system.
• A new bestselling novel scrutinizes colorism and standards of beauty in America | CNN: Brit Bennett explores another layer of discrimination experienced by people within Black communities.
• An ER doctor shares lessons in first book, The Beauty in Breaking | MPR News: Dr. Michele Harper details what she’s learned about life, death, and self-healing as a Black emergency room physician in the United States.
• Will White People Forget About George Floyd? | The Atlantic: Richard Russo offers a cautionary tale of a parable embedded in The Maltese Falcon.

Books Connect Us 
With their imaginative, impactful pieces of literature, our speakers provide incredibly valuable perspectives to be read by all.

• Book Club Friday: Colson Whitehead and James McBride | WNYC: Colson Whitehead discusses his novel, THE NICKEL BOYS.
• Art Critic Jerry Saltz on Why It’s Time to Build a New Art World | The Art Angle Podcast: Jerry Saltz has a frank discussion about his book, HOW TO BE AN ARTIST, the precarious state of the current art world, and the need to create its successor.
• The Books Briefing: And the Winner Is | The Atlantic: Kiley Reid’s SUCH A FUN AGE is longlisted for the Booker Prize.
• John Burnham Schwartz on the Remarkable Life of Stalin’s Daughter | LitHub: John Burnham Schwartz recreates the story of an extraordinary, troubled woman’s search for a new life and a place to belong in his novel.
• ‘My next book is a gay slacker dramedy’ | The Guardian: Bryan Washington speaks on the politics of restaurants, diversity in his home town of Houston, and why coming out is a constant process.
• Love, Our Only True Adventure | Hello Sunshine: The Reese’s Book Club pick is EVERYTHING INSIDE. Author Edwidge Danticat provides on the power of stories and storytelling.

COVID-19 
These articles from our speakers highlight practical advice and news about the current pandemic.

• When Can We Expect a COVID-19 Vaccine? | Amanpour and Co.: Carl Zimmer speaks with Walter Isaacson on when we can expect a vaccine and break down the biology.
• Facebook, Amazon Came Out of Hearing Looking Bad, Says McNamee | Bloomberg: Roger McNamee gives his opinion on the hearings and how the pandemic has placed a spotlight on the big tech companies.
• What Big Tech Wants Out of the Pandemic | The Atlantic: Franklin Foer speaks about how the firms are all too eager to help the government manage the coronavirus crisis.
• Johnson & Johnson’s Coronavirus Vaccine Protects Monkeys, Study Finds | The New York Times: Carl Zimmer reports on the experimental coronavirus vaccine developed by Johnson & Johnson. This is the second study in a week to report promising results in monkeys for a vaccine candidate.
• 5 key demands for the new coronavirus bill | Salon: Robert B. Reich talks about the five key demands for the new bill that is necessary to help stave off economic catastrophe.
• The Postal Service Is In Crisis Right Before We May Need It The Most | WAMU: Casey Cep writes about how the coronavirus, which has decimated the global economy, has not spared the Postal Service.