Migration is one of the oldest human experiences — and one of the most misunderstood.

In this episode, we follow three powerful journeys: a mother guiding her children out of Kabul in When the Moon is Low by Nadia Hashimi, a child’s solo border crossing in Solito by Javier Zamora, and a sweeping historical view in Migration: The Movement of Humankind from Prehistory to the Present by Robin Cohen.

These are stories of flight, fear, and quiet resilience — and of what it means to leave not just a place, but a life.

Some histories are not recorded — they’re endured.

In this episode, we trace the lingering shadows of the Armenian Genocide. Through The Gendarme by Mark T. Mustian, we confront a fictional reckoning with guilt and memory. In Armenian Golgotha, we hear the firsthand account of survival from priest Grigoris Balakian. And with Remnants by Elyse Semerdjian, we explore how trauma lives on — not just in stories, but in bodies.

This is a story of silence, survival, and the marks history leaves behind.

Before she became a legend, Maria von Trapp was a woman with a story — complicated, grounded, and not always in harmony with the myth.

In this episode, we explore how The Sound of Music reshaped a life into a legacy. Through Michelle Moran’s novel Maria, Maria von Trapp’s own memoir, and a behind-the-scenes look at the film that turned her into a symbol, we trace what was remembered, what was rewritten, and what remains when the music fades.

In this episode of Gateway Books by Crestance, we explore the life and legacy of Egypt’s last pharaoh through three powerful works: The Memoirs of Cleopatra by Margaret George, Cleopatra: A Life by Stacy Schiff, and When Women Ruled the World by Kara Cooney. From historical fiction to scholarly biography, we uncover a story of strategy, sovereignty, and survival — and examine how power, when wielded by a woman, is remembered… and rewritten.

Gateway Books by Crestance turns to Argentina during the years of dictatorship, where silence and faith collided with fear and disappearance. In The Jacarandas by Mark Whittle, fiction follows Daniel, a young man swept into the federal police, whose choices lead to betrayal, collapse, and an uneasy path toward atonement.

The story deepens with Gustavo Gutiérrez’s A Theology of Liberation: History, Politics, and Salvation, a groundbreaking call for a faith rooted in justice and solidarity with the oppressed. Finally, Gustavo Morello’s The Catholic Church and Argentina’s Dirty War examines how church leadership often remained silent, even complicit, as the regime carried out abductions, torture, and killings. Together, these works ask: when faced with violence, is silence neutral — or is it its own kind of answer?

⏱️ Timestamps00:00 – Teaser00:35 – Intro Music (Gateway Books by Crestance)00:45 – Episode Introduction01:58 – The Jacarandas by Mark Whittle06:41 – A Theology of Liberation: History, Politics, and Salvation by Gustavo Gutiérrez12:40 – The Catholic Church and Argentina’s Dirty War by Gustavo Morello18:59 – Reflection: Faith, Silence, and Responsibility21:03 – Closer & Crestance.com22:16 – Outro Music

Gateway Books by Crestance explores colonial legacies, belonging, and identity. In Palm Trees in the Snow by Luz Gabás, fiction carries us to Equatorial Guinea during Spanish colonial rule, where love and loyalty cross cultural boundaries — and where the scars of empire echo for generations.

Albert Memmi’s The Colonizer and the Colonized sharpens the lens, offering a searing analysis of how colonial systems shape both oppressor and oppressed. Finally, Trevor Noah’s memoir Born a Crime brings us to apartheid South Africa, where a childhood lived across boundaries of race and identity shows how systemic divisions imprint daily life. Together, these works reveal how colonial histories linger — shaping nations, families, and the search for belonging.

⏱️ Timestamps00:00 – Teaser00:36 – Intro Music (Gateway Books by Crestance)00:46 – Episode Introduction02:04 – Palm Trees in the Snow by Luz Gabás10:05 – The Colonizer and the Colonized by Albert Memmi16:36 – Born a Crime by Trevor Noah21:59 – Reflection: Who Belongs, and Who Decides?23:46 – Closer & Crestance.com24:22 – Outro Music

Gateway Books by Crestance turns to Iran and the lives of women who refuse to fade into silence. In The Lion Women of Tehran by Marjan Kamali, fiction carries us into a city of shifting rules and fragile freedoms, where women navigate tradition, friendship, and resistance.

The story deepens with Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi, a memoir of secret book clubs and the power of literature to create space for dissent under authoritarian rule. Finally, Nobel laureate Shirin Ebadi’s Until We Are Free: My Fight for Human Rights in Iran bears witness to the price of defiance — and the courage it takes to keep fighting. Together, these works illuminate the persistence of women’s voices in the face of repression.

📍 Timestamps00:00 – Teaser00:38 – Intro Music (Gateway Books by Crestance)00:48 – Episode Introduction02:24 – The Lion Women of Tehran by Marjan Kamali06:28 – Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi14:19 – Until We Are Free by Shirin Ebadi21:07 – Reflection: The Power of Presence22:41 – Closer & Crestance.com23:22 – Outro Music

Gateway Books by Crestance explores the world through food — and the stories, histories, and powers behind what we eat. In The Hundred-Foot Journey by Richard C. Morais, fiction follows Hassan, a young chef whose journey from India to France becomes a tale of migration, taste, and belonging.

The kitchen expands with Anthony Bourdain’s Kitchen Confidential, a candid, behind-the-scenes look at the restaurant world that reshaped how we think about chefs, grit, and creativity. Finally, Mark Kurlansky’s Salt: A World History reminds us that even the simplest ingredient can carry the weight of empires, trade, and survival. Together, these works reveal how food connects us across borders, generations, and histories — shaping culture as much as it nourishes us.

🕒 Timestamps:00:00 – Teaser00:25 – Intro Music00:35 – Episode Introduction02:36 – The Hundred-Foot Journey08:30 – Kitchen Confidential13:55 – Salt: A World History21:13 – Reflection: What We Taste, What We Carry23:05 – Closer & Crestance.com23:56 – Outro Music