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Temeraire And Laurence, At Peace At Last In 'League Of Dragons'

7:00am June 14, 2016

by Jason Heller

This week, the NPR Books Time Machine travels back to the era of the Napoleonic Wars for a look at Naomi Novik's Temeraire series, which wraps up this week with the release of League of Dragons.

Cover image of Greetings from Utopia, by Claire Hoffman

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A Childhood Of Transcendental Meditation, Spent In The 'Shadow Of A Guru'

2:09pm June 13, 2016

Journalist Claire Hoffman grew up in a utopian community in Fairfield, Iowa. At first, she says, "it was entirely magical." Then doubt crept in. Hoffman's memoir is Greetings from Utopia Park.

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Physicist Stephon Alexander shares his love of science with his students at Brown University, and his love of jazz with musicians around Providence.

Scientist Stephon Alexander: 'Infinite Possibilities' Unite Jazz And Physics

3:49pm June 12, 2016

by Ari Daniel

Stephon Alexander once downplayed the connections he saw between jazz and physics, concerned that — as "the only black person" in his professional circle — his credibility would be questioned.

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'Rich And Pretty' Author Rumaan Alam Captures Lives Very Different From His Own

7:51am June 12, 2016

The new novel "Rich and Pretty" follows two women who find themselves at a crossroad. Host Linda Wertheimer talks to author Rumaan Alam about writing characters that are nothing like oneself.

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In Debut Thriller Novel, Iain Reid Delivers Shivers Without Reader Knowing Why

7:51am June 12, 2016

Iain Reid has written a creepy but enthralling new novel, "I'm Thinking of Ending Things." It's a psychological thriller that keeps readers guessing. Host Linda Wertheimer talks with the author.

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Yes, All Men (And Everyone Else) Need To Read 'Sex Object'

7:00am June 12, 2016

by Annalisa Quinn

Jessica Valenti's powerful new memoir examines the toll sexism takes on women's lives. Sex Object doesn't offer solutions; instead, it bears witness to the daily grind of harassment and hatred.

Perkins and Wolfe lean over the novelist's unwieldy manuscript.

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The Editor's Epic: Maxwell Perkins Makes For An Unlikely Big-Screen Hero

8:27am June 11, 2016

by Lynn Neary

The legendary editor nurtured the likes of Hemingway and Fitzgerald. But it was taming Thomas Wolfe's massive tomes that was perhaps his greatest feat. Now, that struggle has inspired a film.

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Wherefore Art Thou Romeo? Well, He Doesn't Have To Be

8:27am June 11, 2016

by NPR Staff

What if Romeo and Juliet had lived? In Ryan North's new "chooseable-path adventure" Romeo and/or Juliet, you can make sure the two never meet — or have them take over Verona in giant robot suits.

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The Future Of Cuban Sci-Fi Is 'Super Extra Grande'

7:00am June 11, 2016

by Juan Vidal

In Super Extra Grande, Cuban sci-fi author Yoss imagines a world where faster-than-light travel has brought humanity into contact with a vast array of strange and marvelous intergalactic creatures.

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Arts

Annie Proulx's Bloody New Novel 'Barkskins' Is About More Than Deforestation

7:26pm June 10, 2016

by NPR Staff

Barkskins follows two loggers' stories over three centuries. Proulx says the forest is the hero of her book, but it's also "one facet of larger things, like climate change and the melting of the ice."

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