Books

Books
Arts

Memory Is Mutable, Understanding Elusive In 'Memento Park'

7:00am March 14, 2018

by Heller McAlpin

Mark Sarvas' new novel is dedicated to his own father and grandfathers — it's the story of a C-list movie actor and the valuable heirloom that leads him to dig into his family's history.

cover of The Sparsholt Affair by Alan Hollinghurst

Books
Arts

Author Alan Hollinghurst On Secret Affairs, Narrative Gaps And Writing Gay Sex

4:58pm March 13, 2018

by Ari Shapiro

The Man Booker Prize-winning author's new novel, The Sparsholt Affair, follows a father and son over decades of social change and sexual liberation.

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President Trump meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the G-20 Summit in Hamburg, Germany, last July.

'Russian Roulette' Authors Seek To Connect The Dots Between Trump And Putin

2:55pm March 13, 2018

by Terry Gross

Journalists Michael Isikoff and David Corn have been at the forefront of the investigation of the Trump campaign's ties to Russia. Their new book attempts to put all the pieces of the story together.

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Books
Arts

Evil, Antic And Modern, 'The Merry Spinster' Puts A Dark Spin On Fairy Tales

7:00am March 13, 2018

by Annalisa Quinn

Mallory Ortberg's hyperliterate new story collection turns familiar fairy tales inside out to comment on gender, relationships and the way people manipulate each other.

In Islandborn, Lola asks her grandmother what she remembers most about the Dominican Republic.

Books
Arts

In Junot Diaz's 'Islandborn,' A Curious Child Re-Creates Her Dominican Roots

3:11pm March 12, 2018

by Steve Inskeep

The Pulitzer Prize-winning author's new children's book follows Lola, a young Dominican-American who is "haunted by the fact that she was born on an island that she can't remember," Díaz says.

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Blacklisted From Syria, A Journalist Says: 'I Couldn't Imagine Staying Away'

2:59pm March 12, 2018

by Terry Gross

Rania Abouzeid has been covering Syria since 2011 — despite the fact that she's been called a spy, placed on wanted lists by Syrian intelligence and banned from entering the country.

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Books
Arts

'The Sparsholt Affair' Confirms Alan Hollinghurst's Status As A Literary Master

2:21pm March 12, 2018

by John Powers

Hollinghurst's new domestic epic leapfrogs across seven decades to examine how the laws of social propriety shape the destinies of a father and son. Critic John Powers says the novel is fascinating.

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Sherman Alexie Postpones Memoir's Paperback Release Amid Sexual Harassment Claims

9:08pm March 11, 2018

by Lynn Neary

After several women have accused Alexie of sexual harassment, his publisher says it's shelving its plans to release You Don't Have to Say You Love Me in paperback, at the author's request.

Books

'The Woman's Hour' Documents Pivotal Leaders In The Fight For Suffrage

5:49pm March 11, 2018

NPR's Michel Martin talks to Elaine Weiss about her new book, The Woman's Hour: The Great Fight to Win the Vote, which looks at a decisive moment in the women's suffrage movement.

Books
Arts

Partition, Through A Child's Eyes, In 'The Night Diary'

8:16am March 11, 2018

by Renee Montagne

Veera Hiranandani's new book is a coming of age story, for both her half-Muslim, half-Hindu heroine, 12-year-old Nisha, and Nisha's country — which is about to split into India and Pakistan.