Books

American author James Alan McPherson, photographed in 1984.

Books
Arts

Writer James Alan McPherson, Winner Of Pulitzer, MacArthur And Guggenheim, Dies At 72

8:08pm July 27, 2016

by Glen Weldon

McPherson, the first African-American to win the Pulitzer Prize for fiction, has died at 72. His work explored the intersection of white and black lives with deftness, subtlety and wry humor.

Black Leadership In The Age Of Obama: A Look Back

4:07pm July 27, 2016

PBS NewsHour co-anchor Gwen Ifill joins All Things Considered from the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, to discuss her 2009 book The Breakthrough. Ifill is re-examining the book's conclusions about black political leadership as President Obama prepares to leave office.

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Schwinners and Losers: The cast of Netflix's Stranger Things.

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Kids On Bikes: The Sci-Fi Nostalgia Of 'Stranger Things', 'Paper Girls' & 'Super 8'

2:19pm July 27, 2016

by Glen Weldon

Three recent properties - a Netflix series, a comic book and a 2011 Hollywood film - borrow key elements from Steven Spielberg and Stephen King to comment on adolescence in very different ways.

Monica Gallagher's Bonnie N. Collide is a roller-derby skater with a dull day job and a tumultuous private life.

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Arts

Minicomics May Be Small, But They Pack Big Thrills

12:02pm July 27, 2016

by Etelka Lehoczky

Minicomics are kind of a relic — few artists now want to go to the trouble of printing and distributing paper comics. But there are still a few out there that are worth the trouble of hunting down.

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A Hemingway Who Looks Just Like Ernest

5:15am July 27, 2016

A Key West bar holds an annual Ernest Hemingway look-alike contest. For the first time, an actual Hemingway won. Dave Hemingway (no relation) says he also likes to fish, drink and have a good time.

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Can Serialized Fiction Convert Binge Watchers Into Binge Readers?

5:54pm July 26, 2016

by Lynn Neary

As TV dramas get better and better, publishers are getting into the game with serialized fiction. Some are even referring to what they publish as "episodes" and "seasons" rather than "books."

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Cover detail of The Natural Way of Things, by Charlotte Wood

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Dystopian Novel Challenges Misogyny As 'The Natural Way Of Things'

2:11pm July 26, 2016

by John Powers

Charlotte Wood's short, gripping book focuses on 10 women who have been sent to a prison camp after various sex scandals. Critic John Powers calls The Natural Way of Things a ferocious novel.

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Helen Gurley Brown in her office at Cosmopolitan magazine in the 1960s .The legendary editor, subject of two new biographies, knew sex sells – and food brings in ad money. She cannily combined them with features like "After Bed, What? (a light snack for

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Collards And Canoodling: How Helen Gurley Brown Promoted Premarital Cooking

10:37am July 26, 2016

by Nina Martyris

The legendary Cosmo editor, subject of two new biographies, knew sex sells – and food brings in ad money. She cannily combined them with features like "After Bed, What? (a light snack for an encore)."

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Arts

'Sunlight Pilgrims' Is More Than Just A Chilling Tale Of Climate Change

7:00am July 26, 2016

by Jason Heller

Jenni Fagan's latest follows a transgender girl and her mother in a near-future world that's slowly freezing to death. Fagan makes potent but subtle links between climate change and personal change.

Books
Arts

What If You Hadn't Gotten Married? 'Dark Matter' Imagines An Alternate Life

7:55am July 24, 2016

by NPR Staff

Blake Crouch's new science fiction novel tells the story of Jason Dessen, a father and physics professor who suddenly finds himself in a parallel universe — in which he's unmarried and famous.