Books

Books
Arts

Two summer suspense novels delight in overturning the 'woman-in-trouble' plot

1:38pm June 07, 2023

by Maureen Corrigan

Megan Abbott's Beware the Woman centers on a pregnant newlywed who finds herself isolated in her husband's family cottage. Katie Williams' My Murder is told from the perspective of a murdered woman.

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Books
Arts

In a climate rife with hate, Elliot Page says 'the time felt right' to tell his story

1:38pm June 07, 2023

by Tonya Mosley

For much of his life, the Canadian actor experienced gender dysphoria that made him extremely uncomfortable in his own body. "It's like a constant noise," he says. His new memoir is called Pageboy.

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Aisha Abdel Gawad's debut novel is a 'love letter' to Arab Americans

4:41pm June 06, 2023

NPR's Ari Shapiro talks with novelist Aisha Abdel Gawad about her new novel Between Two Moons. It's a coming of age story about teenage twins in Brooklyn and takes place during one month of Ramadan.

Demonstrators rally in support of abortion rights at the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on April 15.

Books
Arts

How the SCOTUS 'Supermajority' is shaping policy on everything from abortion to guns

1:34pm June 06, 2023

by Dave Davies

Constitutional lawyer Michael Waldman says there's a growing divide between the electorate and the Court: "the country is moving in one direction ... the Court is moving fast in another direction."

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Books

'The Last Action Heroes,' by Nick de Semlyen, focuses on 8 action stars

5:06am June 06, 2023

NPR's A Martinez speaks to film journalist Nick de Semlyen about the actors who dominated action films in the '80s and '90s — including: Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bruce Willis.

Lesbian Love Story: A Memoir in Archives by Amelia Possanza

Books
Arts

'Lesbian Love Story' unearths a century of queer romance

5:00am June 06, 2023

by Julie Depenbrock

Amelia Possanza's debut book Lesbian Love Story: A Memoir in Archives chronicles the lives of queer couples throughout the 20th century.

Lessons for living a happy life, according to science

4:58pm June 05, 2023

NPR's Ari Shapiro speaks with Dr. Robert Waldinger, one of the authors of The Good Life: Lessons from the World's Longest Scientific Study on Happiness.

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'The Red Hotel' tells the story of Western journalists who were largely confined to Moscow's Metropol Hotel as they attempted to cover the Soviet side of World War II.

'The Red Hotel': Trying to cover World War II from a 'gilded cage' in Moscow

4:58pm June 05, 2023

by Greg Myre

When Russia's Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine, he clamped down on the media. In his new book, author Alan Philps sees parallels to Soviet dictator Josef Stalin who confined reporters in World War II.

Books
Arts

'The Late Americans' is not just a campus novel

7:54am June 05, 2023

by Thúy Đinh

Brandon Taylor deftly explores the idea of youth's possibilities and the constraints of time, space, class and wealth disparities through the intersecting lives university students and townspeople.

Books

Darrin Bell's graphic memoir 'The Talk' references a shared experience among Black parents

7:49am June 04, 2023

by Ayesha Rascoe

NPR's Ayesha Rascoe speaks with Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial Darrin Bell about his graphic memoir, "The Talk." The title refers to talks about racism Black parents often give their kids.