The PRH Speakers Bureau is excited to introduce several new speakers to our audiences! On the roster are an elite group of novelists, scientists, journalists, and activists who, via both virtual and in-person engagements, use their speaking platforms to raise awareness about important issues of our time. Please help us welcome our newest speakers!

Literary Voices

Kali Fajardo-Anstine is an author and National Book Award Finalist. Her debut story collection, Sabrina & Corina, has made waves in the literary community for its honest, provocative look at life in the American West for women of Latina and Indigenous descent. In her talks, she puts intersectional Chicana narratives at the center, highlights the importance of identity, and breaks down her approach to the craft of writing.

Ariel Lawhon is the author of several bestselling historical fiction novels such as Code Name Hélène, I Was Anastasia, Flight of Dreams and The Wife, the Maid, and the Mistress. Seamlessly blending fiction with history in her writing, Lawhon explores the ambiguities behind famous historical figures and crafts narratives that leave readers fascinated. A lively and engaging speaker, she is a favorite with audiences who want to learn more about the engrossing true-life stories behind her page-turners.

Megha Majumdar is an editor at Catapult whose novel, A Burning, is one of the most highly anticipated debuts of 2020. Set in a contemporary India spinning toward extremism, A Burning relentlessly traces the lives of three characters whose fates become irrevocably intertwined in the wake of a devastating act of domestic terrorism. An extraordinary voice at the start of a brilliant career, Majumdar is a powerful advocate for fiction’s capacity to tackle issues of class, gender, justice, corruption, and political upheaval.

Health and Medicine

Dr. W. Lee Warren is a brain surgeon, writer, and Iraq War veteran. His memoir, I’ve Seen the End of You: A Neurosurgeon’s Look at Faith, Doubt, and the Things We Think We Know, offers a glimpse into the physician’s perpetual struggle of maintaining hope while treating patients when he knows they will most likely not survive. Dr. Warren’s compelling lectures have inspired religious, corporate, and academic audiences, and range from discussions of the intersection of faith and science, creativity as a form of wellness, and the effects of negative and positive thinking on the brain and body.

Diane Shader Smith is a dynamic speaker, writer, cystic fibrosis fundraiser and advocate for bioethics and phage therapy. After her daughter, Mallory Smith, died at age twenty-five from a superbug infection secondary to her cystic fibrosis, Diane compiled and edited Mallory’s diary entries and had them published as Salt in My Soul: An Unfinished Life. Diane has traveled the country speaking passionately and perceptively about her daughter’s writing, sharing profound insights about the hardships of living with chronic illness, the patient experience, organ transplant and phage therapy.

Social Justice

Eduardo Porter is a New York Times economics reporter and author. His latest book, American Poison, examines how racism has stunted America’s development of crucial institutions necessary for a healthy society. Drawing from two decades of worldwide business and financial reporting, Porter delivers persuasive and insightful speeches to academic and corporate audiences about social justice, economic inequality, and the crucial role of immigration and diversity in a healthy economy.

Rachel Cargle is an activist, speaker, and public academic whose work centers on the intersection of race and womanhood. Her upcoming book, I Don’t Want Your Love and Light (June 2021), is an examination of the feminist movement through the lens of race. Drawing from her personal experience as well as her activism and academic work, Cargle’s dynamic lectures speak on issues of race, intersectional feminism, and how we exist within ourselves and with each other.

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