Arts

The Purple Swamp Hen, by Penelope Lively

Books
Arts

Penelope Lively Ponders Pompeii — And Other Stories — In 'The Purple Swamp Hen'

7:48am May 06, 2017

by Scott Simon

Award-winning novelist Penelope Lively hasn't written short stories in decades, but, she says, the form suddenly came back to her, for a collection that ranges from Pompeii to the modern day.

Director Alrick Brown and actress Olivia Washington on the set of The Forever Tree.

Arts

In Fantasy Short 'Forever Tree,' A Black Heroine Learns To Stop Playing Small

7:12am May 06, 2017

by Scott Simon

The film is set during the Harlem Renaissance and tells the mysterious, magical story of Tawny Bennett, an antiquarian's apprentice.

Books
Arts

Actions Can Have Horrifying Consequences In 'The Boy On The Bridge'

7:00am May 06, 2017

by Genevieve Valentine

M.R. Carey follows up his zombie apocalypse thriller The Girl With All The Gifts with a standalone story set in the same world, also featuring an unusual child and a crew of determined scientists.

Chris Gethard's special, Career Suicide, comes to HBO Saturday night.

Arts

Chris Gethard Isn't Kidding About 'Career Suicide'

5:00am May 06, 2017

by Linda Holmes

Chris Gethard's new HBO special tells stories of his struggles with suicidal thoughts and his complex relationship with his psychiatrist. Funny and moving, Career Suicide premieres Saturday night.

The Muslim "identity matrix" reduces and commercializes at the same time.

I Am Not Your Muslim

4:36am May 06, 2017

by Nesrine Malik

An "identity matrix" is a trap that presents itself as the answer to broad-brush generalizations about Muslims as terrorists or radicals, but actually ends up being similarly simplistic.

Arts

Grooving To That 70s Beat, 'Guardians Of The Galaxy' Return In Volume 2

4:31pm May 05, 2017

by Bob Mondello

It was a surprise last time, but now comes volume two of the Marvel superhero team, Guardians of the Galaxy.

Clearly the players weren't the problem on May 2, when the Orioles matched up against the Red Sox.

This Week In Race: Movies, Memoirs And Fans Who Didn't Hit It Out Of The Park

2:02pm May 05, 2017

by Karen Grigsby Bates

Sometimes, the arc of the moral universe does bend toward justice. Even if it takes time, as was the case in South Carolina involving a white police officer and an unarmed black man.

Director Laura Poitras began filming WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange in 2011.

Arts

'Risk' Is A Messy, Ambitious Portrait Of WikiLeaks Founder Julian Assange

1:41pm May 05, 2017

by John Powers

Laura Poitras began filming the man known for cyber-releasing classified documents in 2011. Critic John Powers says the resulting documentary is an intimate take on an enigmatic rebel.

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Arts

For Israeli-Born Chef, Hummus And 'Tehina' Are A Bridge To Home

1:41pm May 05, 2017

Michael Solomonov won the James Beard Foundation's award for outstanding chef the year. He says his life work is connecting people to the food of his homeland. Originally broadcast Oct. 6, 2015.

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Manic And Depressed, 'I Didn't Like Who I Was,' Says Comic Chris Gethard

1:41pm May 05, 2017

Gethard's one-man show Career Suicide, which debuts Saturday on HBO, is a comedy about "suicide, depression, alcoholism and all the other funniest parts of life." Originally broadcast Oct. 24, 2016.

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