Movies To Make You Forget The Heat: A Summer Watchlist
Chances are, it's hot out wherever you are. NPR film critic Bob Mondello talks about movies that will help you chill out on a summer day.
Arts
The Kindness Of Strangers Connects A Poet To Her Own Grief
Poet Elizabeth Alexander's new book is a memoir of her life with her husband, who died three years ago. During her book tour, readers began giving her keepsakes that help her work through her grief.
Dense, Fantastical 'Prodigies' Rewards The Patient Reader
Angélica Gorodischer's episodic, lyrical new novel follows (in a meandering sort of way) the magically tinged lives of a motley cast of boarders in a house that once belonged to a famous German poet.
'The Water Knife' Previews A Future Drought Scenario
A new novel doesn't take the easy way out but, instead, asks questions about the mutations of human institutions under the pressure of global warming, says commentator Adam Frank.
Confronting Mortality In An Unsettling, Inspiring 'Tour Of Bones'
Before her death in 2014, author Denise Inge took a spiritual journey to bone houses throughout Europe. Critic Maureen Corrigan says the resulting book, The Tour of Bones, is "strange and chaotic."
Pop Culture Happy Hour Small Batch: Fantastic Four
Glen Weldon and Chris Klimek discuss the latest attempt to turn the Marvel Comics super-team into a blockbuster film franchise.
Music Journalist Chronicles The 'Wild Obsessive Hunt' For Rare 78 RPM Records
In Do Not Sell At Any Price, Amanda Petrusich details the extreme measures collectors take in pursuit of rare 78s. "You can still find quite a few of them around at junk shops," she says.
The Basted Egg: A Foolproof Play On The Poach
This week in Do Try This at Home, we learn an unusual technique for cooking eggs. It's a cross between poached and over easy that gives you a silky, yolky sauce for huevos rancheros.
'Hominids' Is A Deeply Human Collection Of Speculative Fiction
Nalo Hopkinson's new collection mixes up her Afro-Caribbean influences with classic literature and historical fantasy. Critic Jason Heller says her stories dazzle with a hard-won sense of hope.
'Dark Days': Retracing The Steps Of A Heavy Metal Tragedy
When a stage diver died after a Lamb of God concert, singer D. Randall Blythe was arrested for manslaughter. In his memoir, Blythe unpacks the incident — and why he returned to Europe to stand trial.