A Library Journal Best Book of 2015

Go behind the scenes of seven of today's most popular narrative radio shows and podcasts, including This American Life and RadioLab, in graphic narrative.

Every week, millions of devoted fans tune in to or download This American Life, The Moth, Radiolab, Planet Money, Snap Judgment, Serial, Invisibilia and other narrative radio shows. Using personal stories to breathe life into complex ideas and issues, these beloved programs help us to understand ourselves and our world a little bit better. Each has a distinct style, but every one delivers stories that are brilliantly told and produced. Out on the Wire offers an unexpected window into this new kind of storytelling--one that literally illustrates the making of a purely auditory medium.

With the help of This American Life's Ira Glass, Jessica Abel, a cartoonist and devotee of narrative radio, uncovers just how radio producers construct narrative, spilling some juicy insider details. Jad Abumrad of RadioLab talks about chasing moments of awe with scientists, while Planet Money's Robert Smith lets us in on his slightly goofy strategy for putting interviewees at ease. And Abel reveals how mad--really mad--Ira Glass becomes when he receives edits from his colleagues. Informative and engaging, Out on the Wire demonstrates that narrative radio and podcasts are creating some of the most exciting and innovative storytelling available today.

Author: Jessica Abel
Binding Type: Paperback
Publisher: Crown Publishing Group (NY)
Published: 08/25/2015
Pages: 240
Weight: 1.3lbs
Size: 9.10h x 7.10w x 0.70d
ISBN: 9780385348430


Review Citation(s):
Publishers Weekly 05/18/2015
Kirkus Reviews 06/01/2015
Booklist 08/01/2015 pg. 46
Library Journal 11/15/2015 pg. 72
Entertainment Weekly 11/13/2015 pg. 63
Kirkus Best Nonfiction 12/01/2015 pg. 4

About the Author
Cartoonist and writer JESSICA ABEL is the author of two textbooks about making comics, Drawing Words & Writing Pictures and Mastering Comics, written in collaboration with her husband, the cartoonist Matt Madden. She is also the author of the graphic novel La Perdida and a new science fiction comics series called Trish Trash: Rollergirl of Mars.