ARTS & CULTURE

We chat with John Sayles about his new book, Mr. Universe tells us about science on screen at Amherst Cinema, and NEPM's Nirvani Williams talks to the authors of a new children's book on gender.

The survey reveals not only deep arts, culture and humanities engagement across the state, but also a desire to support it.

Michael Stinson and Johnny Irion join us ahead of their show at the Egremont Barn, we continue our tour at the Clark Art Institute, and we take the Wine Thunderdome to Table & Vine in West Springfield, Mass.

John Hodgman, former western Mass. resident, stops by to chat on his new tv show, we take a tour of the Clark Museum in Williamstown, and Rep. Jim McGovern gives us the Capitol Hill rundown.

We begin our "Meet the Mayors" segment with Mayor Joshua Garcia of Holyoke, Mass., get to the core definitions of love with The Word Nerd, Emily Brewster, and have law professor Jennifer Taub explain the mess of grand juries and former presidents within which we are currently entrenched.

Artistic director Jane Eilber and dancer Anne Souder of The Martha Graham company chat with us on legacy and evolution ahead of their show at Umass, and we hang out with Laurie Cuevas of Thomas Farm & Dairy in Sunderland, who lets us hug it out with all the baby goats.

We chat with local astronomer Salman Hameed and astronaut Cady Coleman about space things! But that's not all Coleman does; she also plays flute! So we brought her bandmate Chris Devine of Minstrels in the Gallery along to give us some cosmic music.

Smith College professor Matt Donovan's new collection of poems is called "The Dug-Up Gun Museum."

Rosemary Caine brings her harp and her band. Emer Maguire and Gerald Costello of Elms College help us learn a little Irish. And Sean Barry of Four Seasons Wine brings us to the whiskey thunderdome.

Louise Dunphy of Celtic Crossings gives us a rundown of Celtic happenings in western Massachusetts this weekend. Kristen van Ginhoven, artistic director of WAM Theater, joins us to talk about their mission and their upcoming show. And since it's Thursday, we mcgovern with the one and only Rep. Jim McGovern.