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Food, spirituality and female African-American identity – acclaimed US writers Dr Jessica Harris and Dr Jewell Parker Rhodes reveal to the BBC’s Jo Fidgen what their grandmothers passed on to them, from culinary wisdom to a little bit of old-fashioned magic.  How have those relationships shaped their identities and how are they reflected in their work?  We also hear Parker Rhodes’ and Harris’s thoughts more generally on how female African-American identities have changed, and are shifting right now.

Culinary historian Harris is the author of 12 cookbooks documenting the foods and foodways of the African Diaspora. Her most recent book is High on the Hog: A Culinary Journey from Africa to America.  Parker Rhodes is an award-winning author of adult and children’s fiction, including The Marie Laveau Mystery Trilogy.  She is Piper Endowed Chair of the Virginia G. Piper Center for Creative Writing at Arizona State University. 

Tickets for this live BBC World Service radio event are free but must be booked through the festival box office. This event will last 45 minutes, with about 30 minutes of live broadcast. It forms part of a special two-hour live broadcast from the FT Weekend Oxford Literary Festival.

There will be a standby queue on the day for any unfilled seats at this event.