Ep.17 'MADISON' — Our 'Hood Has a Coffee Table Book!

Our little town of Madison, Tennessee gets the big-city treatment with a new coffee table book! On this episode, Kelli and Sue sit down with author — and neighbor — Laura Amaral to talk about the new book MADISON: Portraits of Our Neighbors, created with award-winning photographer (and yes, neighbor) Stacie Huckeba. This luscious book captures nearly a hundred Madisonians — artists, business owners, farmers, musicians, and longtime locals — in a visual time capsule of this historic community on the north side of Nashville, Music City USA. The episode highlights how the project came together, the importance of preserving local stories, the character—and characters—that make Madison, and The Bend, unique. And of course, where listeners can find the book and see images online. Published by Vanderbilt University Press, MADISON debuts at the Southern Festival of Books, October 19, 2025. Full disclosure: Front Porch AF host Kelli is one of the cool kids featured in the book, along with her power tools, of course! There’s also a Bonus Porch Talk video with our neighbor, singer-songwriter-farmer Nicki Bluhm at her barn down the Bend. Nicki, along with horses Mo and Omega and blue heeler Birdie, are featured in MADISON. But no episode of Front Porch AF would be complete without Neighborhood Notes—including Sue’s Wrestling Adventures and Kelli’s new friends from Down Under. Oh, Sue also raps. Yes. You gotta hear it to believe it. Come join Kelli and Sue on their audio front porch, grab a drink, share a story, and solve ... all the problems of the world. Cheers, y’all! For more, visit FrontPorchAF.com.