Arts & Life

Finding Meaning In The Mosh Pit Among Often-Reviled Groupies

12:49pm July 12, 2013

by NPR Staff

Pop-culture writer Nathan Rabin introduces us to some obsessive fans in his new book, You Don't Know Me But You Don't Like Me, which chronicles his experience following the followers of the bands Phish and Insane Clown Posse.

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Books
Arts

Lessons In Bigotry And Bravery: A Girl Grows Up In 'Glory Be'

5:55pm July 11, 2013

by NPR Staff

It's the summer of 1964, and everything's changing for 11-year-old Glory. She was looking forward to celebrating her 12th birthday at the local pool, but the town has shut it down to avoid integration. Members of NPR's Backseat Book Club share their questions with author Augusta Scattergood.

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Jay-Z's previous albums include Reasonable Doubt and The Blueprint. He collaborated with Kanye West for Watch the Throne.

Jay-Z Swings Triumphant Then Trivial On 'Magna Carta Holy Grail'

4:19pm July 11, 2013

by Ken Tucker

The rapper's new album is his first collection since becoming a father with singer Beyonce. Rock critic Ken Tucker says the album is an uneven but intriguing collection of songs that tries to navigate a path between parenthood and an obsession with commercial success.

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Mexican homicide detective Marco Ruiz (played by Demián Bichir) must work with his American counterpart, Sonya Cross (Diane Kruger), to solve a murder on the U.S.-Mexico border in FX's new series The Bridge.

Arts

New Series 'The Bridge' Seeks An Audience In Two Languages

8:53pm July 10, 2013

by Hansi Lo Wang

The crime drama, which airs Wednesday night on FX, code-switches between American English and Mexican Spanish. The network is trying to lure viewers who speak both languages.

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Author Kate Christensen weaves her love of food and cooking into a new memoir.

Books
Arts

'Blue Plate Special': A Generous Helping Of Life

3:56pm July 10, 2013

Novelist Kate Christensen makes a plot line of her own life in a memoir that describes her struggles to come to terms with her family, her relationships and her sometimes violent father. A passionate lover of food, Christensen weaves recipes into a story of survival.

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Books
Arts

Chuck Klosterman On Batman, Bad Guys And Wearing 'The Black Hat'

6:00pm July 09, 2013

by NPR Staff

From Darth Vader's grown-up fan base to why people like mysterious vigilantes, Klosterman's I Wear The Black Hat is a meditation on villainy, both real and imagined.

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In his new book, Alfredo Corchado writes about the escalating violence in Mexico.

Drugs, Chaos And Violence Darken Mexico's 'Midnight'

2:11pm July 09, 2013

Journalist Alfredo Corchado covers Mexico for the Dallas Morning News. His new book, Midnight In Mexico, is part memoir and part recent history of the upheaval in the country. He talks to Fresh Air about the power of the cartels, the rampant corruption and the hopes for the future of Mexico.

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Rich Halley and his quartet play with Bobby Bradford at the Penofin Jazz Festival.

Two New Jazz Albums Recall The Wide Open Spaces of The West

2:11pm July 09, 2013

by Kevin Whitehead

Oregon saxophonist Rich Halley takes inspiration from the Wallowa mountain range on his new album Crossing the Passes. On Boss of the Plains, Chicago-based trio Wheelhouse makes music that evokes the Great Plains and wind chimes on a porch when the weather changes.

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Performance artist Miranda July's new project, We Think Alone, blasts a set of random emails from some well-known names on intimate topics to anyone who signs up for them.

Arts

Miranda July: From The Outboxes Of The Noteworthy

1:16pm July 09, 2013

by NPR Staff

Filmmaker and artist Miranda July's new project, We Think Alone, blasts emails from some well-known names on intimate topics to anyone who signs up for them.

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Arts

Fizz And Fireworks: Make A Patriotic Homemade Soda For The Fourth

12:38pm July 09, 2013

by Serri Graslie

Homemade sodas are hot these days: Americans bought more than 1.2 million home carbonators last year. For the Fourth of July, we asked mixologist Gina Chersevani to help us tap into the trend with a soda float inspired by Independence Day.

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