Arts

"It's all about listening," McDowell says. "... All you need to say is, 'I'm here,' and 'I'm thinking about you,' and 'How are you doing today?' and then let the person talk."

Books
Arts

'There Is No Good Card For This': What To Say When 'Condolences' Isn't Enough

9:54am February 13, 2017

by NPR Staff

Have you ever struggled with how to be there for a friend in pain? If so, you're not alone. Illustrator Emily McDowell says her new book is a "guide for how to show up ... after you've sent the card."

Queue Listen Now

New York City's Blue Hill restaurant is the biggest buyer of "Habanadas," a habanero bred to be heatless, so the focus is on its melon-like flavor.

Science
Arts

This Heatless Habanero Packs All Of The Flavor With None Of The Burn

7:00am February 13, 2017

by Tove Danovich

Some breeders vie to grow ever more mouth-burning peppers. The guy behind the Habanada had a different goal: a habanero with no heat all. The aromatic, melon-like result is winning over top chefs.

Books
Arts

Looking For Thor's Hammer: Neil Gaiman On 'Norse Mythology'

7:00am February 13, 2017

by Petra Mayer

Author Neil Gaiman first encountered the Norse gods in the pages of old Marvel Comics reprints, when he was 6 years old. Now, he's written his own versions of these ancient tales of gods and monsters.

Monk Spreads Buddhist Philosophy With 140-Character Tweets

6:00pm February 12, 2017

Buddhist monk Haemin Sunim became Twitter-famous with his tweets about faith and mindfulness. His book, a compilation of tweets, went viral in South Korea, and the American edition is out now.

Arts

Late Playwright, August Wilson, Nominated For Academy Awards For 'Fences'

6:00pm February 12, 2017

Constanza Romero Wilson speaks about continuing the legacy of her late husband, playwright August Wilson. His play-turned-film Fences, is nominated for several Academy Awards including Best Picture.

Versatile jazz artist Al Jarreau has died at 76.

Al Jarreau, Versatile Vocalist Who 'Played His Voice,' Dies At 76

3:33pm February 12, 2017

by Colin Dwyer

Since the legendary singer began his career in the 1960s, he won Grammys in the jazz, pop and R&B categories. Just one clue that Jarreau, who died Sunday, was impossible to categorize.

In The Flame and the Flood, you'll die. A lot. (See that wolf?) But each time, you'll learn something new.

Arts

Reading The Game: The Flame In The Flood

10:00am February 12, 2017

by Jason Sheehan

In The Flame in the Flood, you play as a young girl surviving in a post-apocalyptic landscape, floating down a river on an improvised raft, with nothing but your wits and your faithful dog beside you.

What's Galentine's Day, you ask? It's only the greatest gift we've ever gotten from Leslie Knope, the unfailingly earnest bureaucrat at the helm of the NBC series Parks and Recreation

Arts

Galentine's Day: Celebrating Women, Waffles, And, OK, More Waffles

9:00am February 12, 2017

by Kristen Hartke

Monday's the day to celebrate the best unofficial holiday made just for women: Galentine's Day. And for that, we thank our lady of Parks and Recreation, Leslie Knope.

Sports
Arts

Ahead Of NBA All-Star Weekend, Looking At The Fashion-Forward Players

7:45am February 12, 2017

In addition to the games, the NBA All-Star Weekend is a bit of a fashion event. Motez Bishara of CNN tells NPR's Lulu Garcia-Navarro about basketball's biggest fashion stars.

Arts

Andrew Lloyd Webber Has 4 Musicals On Broadway — At The Same Time

7:45am February 12, 2017

by NPR Staff

Composer Andrew Lloyd Webber hit a milestone this past week. He's the first since Rodgers and Hammerstein to have four musicals running simultaneously on Broadway.