Arts & Life

Little Amal delights crowds of onlookers in Coventry, UK, on Oct. 27, 2020.

Puppet of a Syrian girl walks the path of refugees to offer hope for the future

12:09pm November 03, 2021

by Manoush Zomorodi

Amal, a 9-year-old Syrian refugee puppet, has been walking across Europe to raise visibility and empathy for the plight of refugees. Theater director Amir Nizar Zuabi spoke with TED Radio Hour.

Kristen Stewart plays Diana in a very different vision of an imagined moment in her life.

Arts

In 'Spencer,' Kristen Stewart's Princess Diana grasps for reality in order to survive

7:00am November 03, 2021

by Linda Holmes

The new film Spencer is not a Princess Diana biopic. It is, instead, an attempt to put her in a different cultural context by putting her in a different kind of film.

Artist Ai Weiwei on his father's exile and hopes for his own son

6:00pm November 02, 2021

NPR's Ailsa Chang speaks with Chinese artist Ai Weiwei about his new memoir, 1000 Years of Joys and Sorrows.

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A picture shows the headquarters of publishers Random House in Central London on October 29, 2012 before it merged with Penguin. AFP PHOTO / LEON NEAL (Photo credit should read LEON NEAL/AFP via Getty Images)

Books
Arts

The U.S. Department of Justice seeks to block a book publishing 'behemoth'

2:34pm November 02, 2021

by Neda Ulaby

The Department of Justice is suing to block a proposed merger between Penguin Random House and Simon and Schuster

Carole Baskin and her husband, Howard Baskin, is suing Netflix and the producers of an upcoming Tiger King sequel.

Arts

Carole Baskin's lawsuit says she didn't agree to be in 'Tiger King' sequel

2:23pm November 02, 2021

by Andrew Limbong

In court documents filed Monday, Baskin, who is seen in the trailer for the new show, said any sequel cannot feature any footage of her or Big Cat Rescue.

Gary Shteyngart's previous books include Super Sad True Love Story, Little Failure and Lake Success.

Books
Arts

How Gary Shteyngart's pandemic pod inspired a novel about friendship

1:56pm November 02, 2021

by Dave Davies

Our Country Friends is about the trysts and betrayals that occur within a group of friends during the pandemic. It's an exaggerated version of Shteyngart's own COVID experience.

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For years, All in the Family was the most popular show on television. It debuted in 1971. Carroll O'Connor, left, played Archie Bunker. Jean Stapleton played his wife, Edith Bunker.

Books
Arts

'All in the Family' is 50 years old. A new book looks at how it changed TV

12:43pm November 02, 2021

All in the Family creator Norman Lear, along with writer Jim Colucci, talked with NPR about Carroll O'Connor, Jean Stapleton and their roles on the groundbreaking TV show.

My Monticello, by Jocelyn Nicole Johnson

Books
Arts

'My Monticello' grapples with the past, present and future of American racism

12:34pm November 02, 2021

by Maureen Corrigan

The title novella of Jocelyn Nicole Johnson's debut is set in the near future in Charlottesville, Va., where descendants of Sally Hemings' take shelter from a racist mob in Thomas Jefferson's manor.

Both/And: A Life in Many Worlds, Huma Abedin

Huma Abedin's admiration for mentor Hillary Clinton is on full display in 'Both/And'

5:21pm November 01, 2021

by Caitlyn Kim

Abedin also reflects on her marriage to former Rep. Anthony Weiner, writing: "[Clinton] said that she did not believe I should pay a professional price for what was ultimately my husband's mistake."

Steven Roberts holds a copy of his book Cokie: A Life Well Lived at his home in Bethesda, Md. The process of writing that book, he says, has helped him feel like he gets to spend more time with his wife.

Books
Arts

A new book captures Cokie Roberts and her 'Life Well Lived'

2:16pm November 01, 2021

by Reena Advani

At the 2019 funeral for longtime NPR journalist Cokie Roberts, her husband, Steven, told personal stories about their life together. There were still more to tell, so he dove into writing about them.