Banned Books Conversations: This Is Kind of an Epic Love Story by Kacen Callender (2018)
Download MP3Season 5, Episode 3
October 6, 2026
Today’s book: This Is Kind of an Epic Love Story by Kacen Callender (2018)
Banned Books Conversations: Where Radical Readers Discuss Prohibited Prose
Banned books are works that have been removed from a library shelf or school curriculum. Over the course of Banned Books Week, this series covers seven different books, the reasons they were banned, and the value in reading them.
Guest Links:
Wendy Wimmer
Website: https://www.wendywimmer.com/
The Doomscroller’s Companion: https://www.wendywimmer.com/the-doomscrollers-companion/
Gregory A. Kompes
Shards: https://www.flexiblepub.com/shards
Website: https://kompes.com/
Newsletter: https://kompes.com/the-newsletter/
Alyson Shelton
Website: https://alysonshelton.com/
Get a Grip: https://west44books.com/books/get-a-grip/
Where I'm From Series: https://www.alysonshelton.com/where-im-from.html#/
Instagram: @byalysonshelton
Reburn: https://www.reburncomic.com/
Host: Tonya Todd
Audio & Video Producer: Dan Brazier
Graphics: Mike Burton
Catch the video version at https://www.youtube.com/@mstonyatodd
Other resources:
Creators and Guests
Host
Alyson Shelton (she/her)
Alyson Shelton writes about women across mediums + genres. She’s written about a superpowered and multi-faceted heroine in her comic Reburn, and uncovering childhood secrets in Eve of Understanding, the award winning feature she wrote and directed. In her award winning screenplay, The Night We Met, she tackles a psychological thriller through fractured realities and self-invention. She is working on a memoir in essays and her writing has been published widely at outlets including The New York Times, Ms., The Rumpus and more. Her generalist knowledge and approach make her the perfect fit for her podcast, Fine Cut, in which she and a guest take a deep dive into one scene of the guest’s choosing. You can learn more about her through her website, www.alysonshelton.com and her Instagram @byalysonshelton where she hosts a weekly Instagram Live series inspired by George Ella Lyon’s poem, Where I’m From, where she’s hosted over 100 writers and creatives.
Host
Tonya Todd
Author | Actress | Activist ~ Fairy Queen ~Sapiosexual | Cinephile Writing Linguistic Sensuality (she/her) Repped by @askamycollins & @OpaqueMgt UK
