Ann Patchett’s newest book “Whistler” is a love story born from grief. In this TED Talks Daily Book Club interview, Patchett tells host Elise Hu about her writing process for the novel, where she finds inspiration and her unlikely second life as a bookstore owner. (This conversation was part of an exclusive TED Membership event. TED Membership is the best way to support and engage with the big ideas you love from TED. To learn more, visit ted.com/membership.) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What if your city could borrow money from its own bank instead of private lenders? TED Fellow Trinity Tran is leading the push for public banks — which are owned by the people through their local governments — and shows how this model could ensure your local tax dollars stay in your community. (Following the talk, Lily James Olds, director of the TED Fellows program, interviews Tran on how a public bank works and why it’s an ideal solution to reinvesting funds into local communities.) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Musician Maria Telesheva plays the accordion like a second set of lungs, showcasing this powerhouse instrument and its impressive 226 buttons — whether she’s playing Bach or the Beatles. In this talk and performance, she discusses how she fell in love with this musical acrobat and plays two beautiful songs. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dolly Parton's hit songs — like "9 to 5," "Jolene" and "I Will Always Love You" — have captured generation after generation. In this episode, recorded around the release of "Run, Rose, Run" (her novel co-written with James Patterson and paired with a full-length companion album), host Adam Grant talks with Dolly about her creative process, how she balances getting things right with getting things done and how she manages the hefty cup of ambition she pours herself each morning.(This episode originally aired in 2022.) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Does the fix for a fragmented world begin with a shared bookshelf? Photographer Rebecca Toh traces how she joined with 180 other people to build a community-funded library where strangers rent shelves, fill them with their personal collections and forge something rare: real connection. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

By 2030, nearly half the world's young people will be African. Yet for decades, the continent's learning crisis was treated with systems unfit for reality on the ground. Social entrepreneur Rapelang Rabana shows how homegrown leadership and technology designed for African classrooms can deliver foundational skills to millions of children — and shape a new future of education across the continent. (This ambitious idea is part of The Audacious Project, TED's initiative to inspire and fund global change.)(Following the talk, Elise Hu interviews Rabana on what makes the Imagine tablet so effective and engaging for students. Rabana also reiterates how using solar-powered tablets in a controlled setting can empower students and the limitations of applying Western standards of education to Sub-Saharan Africa.) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.