Arts

Books
Arts

Finnish Authors Heat Up The Speculative Fiction World

10:00am January 24, 2016

by Jason Heller

Finland hosts the World Science Fiction Convention in 2017 — but if you can't make it to Helsinki, hit the library: more and more Finnish speculative fiction authors are getting English translations.

With the help of her aspiring young artists, Vanessa German has transformed a house in Pittsburgh's Homewood neighborhood into a work of art.

Young Artists Find Home And Healing At Pittsburgh Art House

8:53am January 24, 2016

by Erika Beras

Whenever artist Vanessa German worked on her porch, kids asked if they could help. Now, in a neighborhood struggling with poverty and crime, she's created a place where they can make art of their own.

Books
Arts

Passion And Obsession En Pointe In 'Girl Through Glass'

7:47am January 24, 2016

by NPR Staff

Author Sari Wilson's new novel follows a young dancer in New York City in the 1970s, and a grown professor of dance years later — both of whom find their lives upended by dangerous relationships.

Books
Arts

Death Memoirs: Why The Grave Subject Sells So Well

7:47am January 24, 2016

Why do we love to read about dying? NPR's Rachel Martin asks critic Michelle Dean about the enduring popularity of books like "The Last Lecture" and "Tuesdays with Morrie."

Books
Arts

'The Road To Little Dribbling' Is A (Mostly) Pleasant Journey

7:00am January 24, 2016

by Annalisa Quinn

Bill Bryson follows up his classic travelogue Notes From A Small Island 20 years later — older, grayer, and definitely crankier. It's a charming trip, though marred by a little too much grumpiness.

Books
Arts

Groucho Marx Spared No One — And His Biographer Isn't Pulling Punches, Either

7:24pm January 23, 2016

by NPR Staff

Lee Siegel, author of Groucho Marx: The Comedy of Existence, wanted his biography to uncover the real man behind the iconic mustache. What Siegel found, he says, was "a thoroughgoing misanthrope."

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Books
Arts

In First Novel, Former Hostage Ingrid Betancourt Tells A Story Of Captivity

1:43pm January 23, 2016

by NPR Staff

The Blue Line follows a woman who is detained during Argentina's Dirty War. Betancourt says writing the novel helped her process the years she spent as a captive of Colombian revolutionaries.

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From Streets To Stage, Two Dance Worlds See Harmonization And Chaos

10:32am January 23, 2016

by April Dembosky

When a San Francisco-based choreographer decided to take turf dancers off of the streets and trains of Oakland and put them on stage with ballet dancers, chaos ensued. Until she let them all improv together.

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Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez speaks at the U.S. Capitol during a stop on the "Give America a Raise" bus tour, April 3, 2014.

Arts

Not My Job: We Quiz The U.S. Secretary Of Labor On Going Into Labor

9:56am January 23, 2016

It's a little hard to play Not My Job this week because technically Thomas Perez's job is all the jobs.

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After Long-Criticized Diversity Issue, Film Academy Votes To Change

8:36am January 23, 2016

The people in charge of the Oscars have announced reforms to increase diversity in their organization and in the awards. NPR's Rachel Martin speaks to Neda Ulaby.

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