Gabrielle Hamilton, author of "Blood, Bones & Butter: The Inadvertent Education of a Reluctant Chef," talks about the annual lamb roast at her familial home that her parents held every year. The full interview from a 2011 episode of "Conversations On The Coast with Jim Foster" can be heard now wherever you get your podcasts.…

Stephen S. Hall, author of "Wisdom: From Philosophy to Neuroscience," talks about the ability we have to change the activity in our brain by exercising it like a muscle. The full interview from a 2010 episode of "Conversations On The Coast with Jim Foster" can be heard now wherever you get your podcasts.…

Roya Hakakian, author of "Journey from the Land of No: A Girlhood Caught in Revolutionary Iran," talks about what it was like to live through the Iran revolution, how everything changed later on, and how difficult it was for her father to leave everything behind in coming to America. The full interview from a 2004 episode of "Conversations On The C…

Jennifer Haigh, author of "The Condition," talks about how a woman named Gwen with Turner's syndrome overcomes unusual obstacles that come along with the diagnosis, and how her mother and father struggle to protect and raise their daughter. The full interview from a 2008 episode of "Conversations On The Coast with Jim Foster" can be heard now where…

Lev Grossman, author of "The Magicians," talks about the difference between Quentin Coldwater, the main character in his novel, from that of Harry Potter. The full interview from a 2009 episode of "Conversations On The Coast with Jim Foster" can be heard now wherever you get your podcasts. Photo: levgrossman.com.…

Linda Greenlaw, author of "Seaworthy: A Swordboat Captain Returns to the Sea," reads an expert from the book illustrating her relationship with swordfish and what they are all about. The full interview from a 2010 episode of "Conversations On The Coast with Jim Foster" can be heard now wherever you get your podcasts. Photo: lindagreenlawbooks.com.…

Amy Greene, author of "Bloodroot," reads several short excerpts from the novel set on remote Bloodroot Mountain within the eastern Tennessee mountains. The full interview from a 2010 episode of "Conversations On The Coast with Jim Foster" can be heard now wherever you get your podcasts.Jim Foster: Conversations On The Coast

Peter Greenberg, author of "Hotel Secrets from the Travel Detective: Insider Tips on Getting the Best Value, Service, and Security in Accomodations from Bed-and-Breakfasts to Five-Star Resorts," talks about how a traveler can find the best deal for a hotel room by calling hotels directly. The full interview from a 2005 episode of "Conversations On …

Joe Gores, author of "Glass Tiger," discusses an excerpt of the novel in which an assassination was attempted on a newly-elected President, and how American politics changed over the years in how many elected officials stay in public office for their entire lives. The full interview from a 2006 episode of "Conversations On The Coast with Jim Foster…

Linda Gordon, American Historian and Author of "Dorothea Lange: A Life Beyond Limits," talks about how photographer Dorothea Lange helped show that documentary photography could also be art, and also discusses Lange's unique ability to capture her subject's natural state. The full interview from a 2009 episode of "Conversations On The Coast with Ji…

On this special episode, host and producer Jim Foster speaks with technical producer Robert Costa about how "Conversations On The Coast with Jim Foster" became a long-running program airing on various radio stations in the San Francisco Bay Area for several decades, and also speaks about how the book publishing world has changed over the years, whe…

In "The Whole World Over," author Julia Glass writes a novel about all the little accidents in life that come together to determine our choices in love and connections to others in the world. This second discussion about the book took place on a 2007 episode of "Conversations On The Coast with Jim Foster" originating in San Francisco, California. P…

In "Perfidia," author James Ellroy writes a historical novel and the first volume of his second L.A. Quartet series, set in Los Angeles in 1941 that follows the story of several very different people who come together to investigate the murder of a Japanese family as America is at the brink of World War II. This discussion with the author took plac…

In "The Death of Innocents: An Eyewitness Account of Wrongful Executions," author Sister Helen Prejean talks about her first-hand experiences witnessing the execution of Dobie Gillis Williams in 1999 and Joseph Roger O'Dell in 1997, how poor people are primarily affected by wrongful executions, and why the execution of Michael Morales was postponed…

In "Dorchester Terrace: A Charlotte and Thomas Pitt Novel," the late author Anne Perry writes the next novel in a series in which Thomas Pitt is now the head of Britain's Special Branch, and follows the story of him and his wife trying to get information from two women in order to prevent an international catastrophe. This conversation took place o…

In "Her Wild Oats," the late author Kathi Kamen Goldmark writes a novel about two people at very different points in their lives who develop an unlikely friendship, a thirteen-year-old boy who plays the harmonica, and a young woman who recently discovered her husband was having an affair. In this discussion, the late author's husband Sam Barry talk…

In "And the Dark Sacred Night," author Julia Glass writes a novel about a man's quest to find his biological father and what he discovered along the journey about himself and the world. This discussion took place on a 2014 episode of "Conversations On The Coast with Jim Foster" originating in San Francisco, California. Photo: Robert Costa.…

In this episode, Jim Foster shares his thoughts on the publishing scandal surrounding James Frey's memoir "A Million Little Pieces" and why a memoir by Heather King entitled "Parched" is more meaningful surrounding the subject of alcoholism and addiction, especially considering the fact that many things written as personal experiences in Frey's mem…