Dan Libman
A lifelong Illinois resident, Dan Libman has been living near Rockford and teaching at Northern Illinois University for 20 years, where he was awarded the Excellence in Undergraduate teaching award in 2018.
His essays and stories have garnered a Paris Review Discovery Prize, a Pushcart Prize for fiction, and an Illinois Arts Council grant in prose. His debut story collection, Married But Looking, was featured on WNIJ's inaugural book series in 2012.
His history with NPR includes reading a This I Believe Essay on the Bob Edwards show, stumping the chumps on Car Talk, and winning a pink elephant on Whad'ya Know. He also was tied for being the first cyclist (along with radio's Carl Nelson) to ride the length of the Rock River, which was chronicled in a five-part Morning Edition series. He has previously reported from RABGRAI, bicycled Lincoln Highway, and has sat in bars talking politics for WNIJ. Currently, he hosts the WNIJ podcast Under Rocks.
He is a Leo and can be reached at heylibman@yahoo.com
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What do you think of when you hear the word "mead?" Vikings, Renaissance Faires, a cloying sweet nectar? The Under Rocks team discovers the joy of modern mead during a visit to downtown Elburn. -
The Culinary Historians of Northern Illinois are preserving our stories, recipes, and community cookbooks -– and putting it all into a bigger societal context. Join WNIJ’s Under Rocks team as we take a deep dive into grandma’s recipe box and serve up a big slice of chocolate kraut cake. Your ideas are welcome at rocks@niu.edu!
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Flags fly over Sycamore, Illinois as it celebrates the world’s favorite orange gourd: The Pumpkin Festival gets underway the last full weekend before Halloween. It’s those orange flags with the grinning jack-o'-lantern that drove a listener to contact WNIJ’s Under Rocks team to get answers to some burning questions. And make sure you listen ‘til the very end of the show for a special appearance by our favorite Illinois Enthusiast!
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You don't need a passport to get to a world-renowned meditation center. In fact, the Illinois Vipassana Meditation Center is just a short hop from Rockford. The Under Rocks team takes you there — but can they go ten days without speaking?
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So you've spotted a flock of huge white birds with comically-large beaks riding the Rock River surf. They couldn't possibly be pelicans, could they? They're far too exotic for the Midwest. Right?WNIJ's Under Rocks team heads out in search of the American White Pelican — and finds a festival devoted to these spring-time visitors along the way.Email us your story ideas at rocks@niu.edu!
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Dan Libman tears the Band-Aid off a grammatical challenge.
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DeKalb is known for a lot of things: corn, its university, Cindy Crawford… But one of the hidden gems of the city is the little golden pillow of fried dough known as The Beer Nugget. We explore its origins and try to answer the question, "why aren't these EVERYWHERE?"
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Farms across Illinois are serving up their own little slice of horror this time of year — corn mazes. Haunted corn mazes. The Under Rocks teams asks "Why is corn so scary? And how do I get outta here?!?"
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You're doing intergenerational email all wrong. Allow us to Dansplain'...
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Today, "Bar Beat" reporter Dan Libman wraps up our 2016 election coverage from pubs and taverns in the WNIJ area. Drinkers have been speaking their minds…
