Additions to the Archive with Sullivan Summer cover art

Additions to the Archive with Sullivan Summer

Additions to the Archive with Sullivan Summer

By: New Books Network
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About this listen

 Conversations with authors, academics, readers, and thinkers committed to the preservation and expansion of our collective archive.New Books Network
Episodes
  • Twelve Lives: Creating Literary Community with Raymond Williams, PhD

    Twelve Lives: Creating Literary Community with Raymond Williams, PhD
    Apr 19 2026
    From the moment I began working with the New Books Network, my vision was bigger than author interviews. I envisioned my platform one where people could connect what they were hearing about the past to their own lives in the present and, in that way, perhaps see themselves as an important part of a continually-evolving community. Through this work, I have been fortunate to connect, not only authors, but also with readers and thinkers who, like me, are committed to the preservation and expansion of our collective archive. Raymond Williams is one such person. Raymond has a PhD in Government and Politics from the University of Maryland, College Park. He was an executive board member of Black Readers Con, and is currently an administrator of the Black Men Read Book Club sponsored by Resist Booksellers. I was thrilled to have Raymond on the podcast to talk about the creation of literary community around reading challenges, including those centering Zora Neale Hurston, James Baldwin, and, for 2026, what Raymond calls, “The 12 Lives Challenge.” Listen in as we discuss the work he is doing to cultivate an intellectually curious community of real-life readers in the virtual world. You can find Raymond on Instagram, and the 12 Lives Challenge on StoryGraph. Subscribe, like, follow, and rate Additions to the Archive with Sullivan Summer on Instagram, Substack, and wherever you get your podcasts.
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    41 mins
  • Danielle Bainbridge, "Currencies of Cruelty: Slavery, Freak Shows, and the Performance Archive" (NYU Press, 2026)

    Danielle Bainbridge, "Currencies of Cruelty: Slavery, Freak Shows, and the Performance Archive" (NYU Press, 2026)
    Apr 3 2026
    Currencies of Cruelty: Slavery, Freak Shows, and the Performance Archive (NYU Press, 2026) is a bold and incisive reconsideration of the relationship between enslavement, disability, and performance in 19th- and early 20th-century America; a time when transition from slavery to legal freedom became entangled with the spectacle of the freak show stage, where disabled and racialized performers became lucrative attractions. At the heart of this powerful study are conjoined twins Millie Christine McKoy, born into slavery and later emancipated, and the so-called “original Siamese Twins,” Chang and Eng Bunker, who navigated the freak show circuit not only as performers but also as enslavers. Their stories reveal how archival practices surrounding enslavement and performance labor worked in tandem, creating a system where unfree and newly freed bodies were simultaneously valued and devalued—exploited for their spectacle yet rendered abject within traditional labor economies. Blending historical analysis with innovative archival theory, Currencies of Cruelty challenges conventional narratives of labor, freedom, and human worth. A gripping exploration of race, commerce, and bodily spectacle, this book sheds crucial light on how histories of subjugation continue to shape our understanding of value and visibility today. Author Danielle Bainbridge is an Assistant Professor of Theatre at Northwestern University, where she also holds courtesy appointments in Performance Studies and Black Studies. You can find her at the Northwestern University website, on Instagram, and on Bluesky. Subscribe, like, follow, and rate Additions to the Archive with Sullivan Summer on Instagram, Substack, and wherever you get your podcasts.
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    56 mins
  • Additions to the Archive Trailer

    Additions to the Archive Trailer
    Mar 26 2026
    Sullivan Summer presents conversations with authors, academics, readers, and thinkers committed to the preservation and expansion of our collective archive.
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    1 min
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