The Free Bin

Harrison shares some historical fiction selections, struggles with his microphone levels, and drinks nothing. In this episode: "The Armor of Light" by Ken Follett "Berlin" by Jason Lutes "Bone Walker" by Kathleen O'Neal Gear and W. Michael Gear "His Majesty's Dragon" by Naomi Novik "The Glutton" by A.K. Blakemore "The Memoirs of Cleopatra" by Margaret George "The Pillars of the Earth" by Ken Folle...

Denyse brings some titles to celebrate Juneteenth, and Harrison brings a red beverage! In this episode: "An American Story" by Kwame Alexander "Box" by Carole Boston Weatherford "How Do You Spell Unfair?" by Carole Boston Weatherford "Indigo Dreaming" by Dinah Johnson "Moses" by Carole Boston Weatherford "One Crazy Summer" by Rita Williams-Garcia "The Real History of Juneteenth" by Elliott Smith "...

Harrison quickly shares some nonfiction recommendations to commemorate the 80th anniversary of D-Day. In this episode: "The Allies" by Winston Groom "Citizen Soldiers" by Stephen E. Ambrose "D-Day" by Stephen E. Ambrose "Easy Company Soldier" by Sgt. Don Malarkey with Bob Welch "June 6, 1944: The Longest Day" by Cornelius Ryan  "Smithsonian World War II Map By Map" edited by Rupa Rao "X Troop" by...

Muriel King from the Lincoln County Genealogical Society (LCGS) stops by to talk about her work and share some events and resources!  In this episode: Lincoln County Genealogical Society

Local author Ricky Dyson shares an original short story about a very special dog.

Denyse and Harrison are joined by Susan Vaslev from Enchanted Forest theme park in Salem, Oregon. As the eldest daughter of park creator Roger Tofte, Susan has tended the family business from its very first day through the challenges of COVID and beyond. In this casual chat, Susan shares details of the park's early days, her process for creating all the stage shows and music for the park, the role...

Harrison shares a five-question true-or-false quiz about Smokey Bear, who turns 80 this year! In this episode: "Decades" Smokey Bear PSA

April is National Poetry Month! Denyse and Harrison share a few favorite poems and poets. Denyse serves an opaque, brown liquid. In this episode: "Beneath a Blue Umbrella" by Jack Prelutsky "8 Mile" dir. by Curtis Hanson "The Essential Rumi" by Jelaluddin Rumi (translated by Coleman Barks with John Moyne) "Follow the Recipe" by Marilyn Singer "A Maze Me" by Naomi Shihab Nye "Smoke From This Altar"...

Harrison reads the humorous short story, " The Eyes Have It, " by Philip K. Dick .

Harrison reads " The Bee-Man ," by Alice Dunbar Nelson ( née Alice Ruth Moore) .

Denyse and Harrison share the cultural works that held their attention this week. Denyse dissects a pop star's corpus. Harrison loses an old game. Swifties affect the bead economy, and also the regular economy. A werewolf falls repeatedly. Bus drivers hit the jackpot. Danny's mysterious condition worsens.  In this episode: Killer Instinct (1994) Metalocalypse Taylor Swift

Denyse and Harrison celebrate Women's History Month with a selection of books for readers of all ages! In this episode: "Agent Sonya" by Ben MacIntyre "Amerlia Earhart: The Legend of the Lost Aviator" by Shelley Tanaka "Amazons of Black Sparta" by Stanley B. Alpern "Dangerous Jane" by Suzanne Slade "Daniela and History's Women Pirates" Susanna Isern "Finish the Fight!" by Veronica Chambers "Empres...

Denyse and Harrison discuss one of the 20th century's most fascinating cases of cultural exchange. No spoilers!   In this episode: "Chemirocha (I)" by Cherwo Arap Korogorem and Bekyibei Arap Mosonick "Chemirocha (II)" by Charondet Arap Ng'asura and Kipsigis men "Chemirocha (III)" by Chemutoi Ketienya with Kipsigis girls "In a Kenyan Village, A 65-Year-Old Recording Comes Home" (June 28, 2015) by R...

Harrison regales Denyse with the story of the Antiqua-Fraktur dispute. A dog wears a crown. Hitler gets mad. Due consideration is given to Comic Sans, mechanical typewriters and Frumpy Tuba Guys. The Library has one fish. In this episode: Antiqua (Wikipedia) Fraktur (Wikipedia) Gothic Textualis (HMML School)    

Denyse and Harrison share some books celebrating Black history and bid Deb a fond farewell. In this episode: "African Samurai" by Thomas Lockley and Geoffrey Girard "Afrofuturism" by Ytasha L. Womack "The Black Count" by Tom Reiss "Black is a Rainbow Color" by Angela Joy "Black Boy" by Richard Wright "Brother Robert" by Annye C. Anderson "Brown Girl Dreaming" by Jacqueline Woodson "Carter Reads th...

In this short episode, Deb and Harrison introduce the phenomenon of clandestine "bone music" in the Soviet Union, and also learn what "CoQ10" is. In this episode: X-Ray Audio - by the Bureau of Lost Culture

Deb and Harrison share their favorite "cozy" titles. In this episode: "American Gods" by Neil Gaiman "A Common Life" by Jan Karon "Crooked House" by Agatha Christie "Death of a Green-Eyed Monster" by M.C. Beaton "Espresso Tales" by Alexander McCall Smith "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" by J.K. Rowling "The Haunt of Fear Vol. 1" edited by Daniel Chabon "The Hobbit" by J.R.R. Tolkien "The...

The Free Bin concludes its outsider art series with a lively discussion of a few notable outsider musicians. Discussed in this episode: "Cousin Mosquito #1" by Congress-Woman Malinda Jackson Parker "Demon Angel: A Day and Night with Roky Erickson" (1984) "El Touchy" by Luie Luie "If You Have Ghosts" by Roky Erickson "Paralyzed" by the Legendary Stardust Cowboy "Rock N Roll McDonald's" by Wesley Wi...

Content warning: This episode contains discussions of hate crime and physical injuries. Happy New Year! Deb, Denyse and Harrison drink some cordyceps and explore the world(s) of outsider visual artists. In this episode: Hawkins Bolden Ferdinand Cheval's Palais Ideal (from Atlas Obscura) Mark Hogancamp Vivian Maier Joe Minter

Deb and Harrison introduce a new series on outsider art with a discussion of outsider literature. Along the way, they touch on psychobilly pioneers The Cramps, science fiction luminary Philip K. Dick, former United States Poet Laureate Kay Ryan, and the loaded implications of the term "outsider art" itself. In this episode: Henry Darger (from Down the Rabbit Hole) Philip K. Dick Friedrich Nagler "...

Deb and Harrison discuss the work of recently-departed author John Nichols, focusing on his novels "The Sterile Cuckoo" and "The Milagro Beanfield War," as well as their film adaptations. In this episode: "The Milagro Beanfield War" by John Nichols "The Milagro Beanfield War" (1988) directed by Robert Redford "The Sterile Cuckoo" by John Nichols "The Sterile Cuckoo" (1969) directed by Alan J. Pacu...

Deb and Harrison discuss and debate  The awkward poetry most do hate And other flawful arts in turn That public ridicule did earn   Deb holds the line for formal writing standards as Harrison condemns laughing at bad writing (while also, kind of, totally doing it). Deb plays devil's advocate, and Harrison plays super-devil's advocate. What is bad writing? What are the consequences of putting down...

Denyse and Harrison share some useful and informative books about cooking and culinary heritage. In this episode: "The Cooking Gene" by Michael W. Twitty "Fry Bread" by Kevin Noble Maillard "Hello, Cupcake!" by Karen Tack and Alan Richardson "Honest Pretzels" by Mollie Katzen "Jubilee" by Toni Tipton-Martin "Meet the Latkes" by Alan Silberberg "100 Recipes from Japanese Cooking" by Hata Koichiro a...

Deb and Harrison talk about Robin Hood ballads, from the traditional to Bryan Adams. Along the way, they encounter talking animals, a fraudulent decapitation, the Red Scare, Tex Cobb , and more!  "The Adventures of Robin Hood" (1938) directed by Michael Curtiz " (Everything I Do) I Do It For You " by Bryan Adams " The English and Scottish Popular Ballads " (5 volumes) by Francis James Child " A Ge...

Deb gives her review of Brandon Sanderson's wonderful stand-alone novel "Tress of the Emerald Sea," and Harrison shares a bit about the renowned author.  In this episode: "EUOlogy: Goodbye, Mr. Jordan" by Brandon Sanderson " The Wheel of Time " series by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson "Tress of the Emerald Sea" by Brandon Sanderson