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Mouthful of Ghosts
"Mouthful of Ghosts" - #2 - Venita Blackburn
Mouthful of Ghosts is an exploration of ghosts, grief, and the things that haunt us. Hosted by María Maddox - in conversation with writers, poets and audio storytellers.
Venita Blackburn’s debut novel, Dead in Long Beach, California, is about “the mania of grief, all of human history and a lesbian assassin at the end of the world.” In it, a successful but lonely graphic novel writer named Coral, spirals after her brother’s suicide, responding to his texts as if he were still alive—for an entire week.
María and Venita also talk about growing up in Compton in the 1990s, Sailor Moon, gendered ways of being online, the importance of holding onto our memories, and why every story is a grief story.
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This independent, ad-free episode was created, produced, and hosted by María José Maddox.
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Music by Ryan Fiegl, Moby and APM Music.
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3. "Mouthful of Ghosts" - #3 - Rachel Kaufman
43:14||Season 1, Ep. 3"Mouthful of Ghosts" is an immersive exploration of ghosts, grief and the things that haunt us. In each episode, host Maria Maddox speaks with artists and thinkers about their work—and, when it surfaces—their own encounters with loss. Poet and historian Rachel Kaufman is well-acquainted with the ghosts that haunt the archive, and with the gift—and burden—of memory-keeping. Together we discuss Kristallnacht, poetry as a way of translating historical violence, and the intertwined legacies of trauma and resilience.Best experienced through headphones 🎧Part I: 2:12- 4:50: Childhood, Sanibel Island. 4:51- 6:37: Music & poetry.6:38- 8:31: A pearl ring.08:32 -14:46: Kristallnacht.Part II:15:40-26:27: Crypto-Jews & women in the archive.26:28-28:58: “Witchcraft” poem.Part III:29:00-37:39: Ghosts, grief & historical trauma. 37:40-41:20 “From His Jewish Lover” poem. 🎵 Music by Ryan Fiegl, Epidemic Sound, Moby, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum and the Library of Congress.➡️ You can explore more of Rachel Kaufman’s work at rachel-kaufman.com.📕 Referenced:"Many to Remember" by Rachel Kaufman.Lost Highways: "From Sefarad to the San Luis Valley: Crypto-Judaism in the Southwest.""Venus in Two Acts" by Saidiya Hartman.Black Studies Podcast "Hannah Arendt: Facing Tyranny" by PBS.Created & produced by María José Maddox.📩 Subscribe to the Mouthful of Ghosts newsletter for updates, recommendations, and deeper dives into stories that don’t fit in the podcast.https://mouthfulofghosts.substack.com/
1. "Mouthful of Ghosts" - #1: Blake Pfeil
33:14||Season 1, Ep. 1"Mouthful of Ghosts" is an exploration of grief, ghosts, and the things that haunt us.In each episode, host and producer María José Maddox invites creatives and experts to discuss their work and feel all the feels.Episode #1 centers on Blake Pfeil, a multidisciplinary artist & host of the award-winning "abandoned: The All-American Ruins" podcast.Music by Ryan Fiegl, Charles Ingram, and Jared Saltiel.Cover art by Sara Lefsyk.Join the weekly "Moutthful of Ghosts" newsletter for updates, recommendations, and bonus materials. ⬇️https://mouthfulofghosts.substack.com/IG: https://www.instagram.com/allamericanruins/