We speak with Maine author Kerri Arsenault about her new book, “Mill Town.” Part personal story and part investigative reporting, Arsenault documents how her childhood in a typical Maine mill town illustrates the plight of the working class, and the hazards brought on by the very entities that support these working-class families. The book examines the mixed feelings people have for places they call home.
Guests
Kerri Arsenault, author, “Mill Town: Reckoning with What Remains;” book critic, book editor at Orion magazine, and a contributing editor at The Literary Hub. Arsenault is also a mentor for PEN America’s Prison and Justice Writing Program
Richard Clapp, epidemiologist with more than 40 years experience in public health practice, teaching and consulting; emeritus professor of environmental health at Boston University School of Public Health; adjunct professor at the University of Massachusetts Lowell
Resources
- "Mill Town: Reckoning with What Remains," by Kerri Arsenault
- Her Town Depended on the Mill. Was It Also Making the Residents Sick?
- Unearthing the Toxic Legacy of a Maine Mill Town
- Click here for a link to the 5 books Kerri said helped her write this book
- Click here to see the Cancer yearbook Kerri mentioned on the show