Author Interviews

Cutter Kinseeker, chief of the Wolfriders, and his lifemate Leetah.

Books
Arts

After 'Forty Years Of Pointed Ears,' 'ElfQuest' Ends Its Legendary Run

4:06pm September 26, 2018

by Petra Mayer

ElfQuest is a comics industry institution — this saga of, yes, elves on a quest has been running since 1978. But now, creators Wendy and Richard Pini have brought the quest to an end.

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Books
Arts

In 'Waiting For Eden,' Grief With No Guarantee Of Closure

2:38pm September 25, 2018

by Rachel Martin

Author Elliot Ackerman is a veteran, and his latest novel is about an injured soldier just regaining consciousness. But it's really about something else. "This book really isn't about war," he says.

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Derek Black was following in his father's footsteps in the world of white nationalism until he had a change of heart.

How A Rising Star Of White Nationalism Broke Free From The Movement

8:32am September 25, 2018

by Terry Gross

Derek Black once promoted a racist agenda by making speeches, hosting a radio show and starting a website. His change of heart is the subject of a new book, written by journalist Eli Saslow.

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This did not really happen. Cows' heads did not emerge from the bodies of people newly inoculated against smallpox. But fear of the vaccine was so widespread that it prompted British satirist James Gillray to create this spoof in 1802.

New Book: Vaccines Have Always Had Haters

2:55pm September 23, 2018

by Susan Brink

That's one of the themes in the new book 'Between Hope and Fear: A History of Vaccines and Human Immunity.'

Books

'Luckiest Girl Alive' Author On Kavanaugh Nomination, MeToo Era

7:53am September 23, 2018

NPR's Renee Montagne asks Jessica Knoll, author of Luckiest Girl Alive, about her experience with sexual assault and her thoughts on the accusations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.

cover detail from Transcription by Kate Atkinson

Books
Arts

Secrets Of A Teenage WWII Spy In 'Transcription'

7:53am September 23, 2018

by Renee Montagne

The young protagonist of Kate Atkinson's latest historical novel finds herself working for British intelligence during the war — and suddenly confronting that experience years later.

The Personality Brokers: The Strange History of Myers-Briggs and the Birth of Personality Testing by Merve Emre.

How The Myers-Briggs Personality Test Began In A Mother's Living Room Lab

5:26pm September 22, 2018

by Melissa Block

"The language of type can be immensely clarifying," says author Merve Emre. In The Personality Brokers she describes how a mother-daughter duo started a multi-million dollar "people sorting" industry.

Books

Ashley Toliver's 'Spectra' Is Her First Major Book Of Poems

7:54am September 22, 2018

NPR's Scott Simon talks to Ashley Toliver about her collection of poems entitled Spectra. It examines the writer's experiences with relationships, giving birth and living with cancer.

Muhammad Ali Biography Reveals A Flawed Rebel Who Loved Attention

1:40pm September 21, 2018

by Terry Gross

"I don't think we do Ali any good by treating him as a saint," says biographer Jonathan Eig. "He was a human being, and he was deeply flawed." Originally broadcast Oct. 4, 2017.

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Enric Marco stands next to a Spanish Republican flag at Mauthausen camp in Austria in May 2003. Marco, who was chairman of an association of Spanish Republicans deported from France to Nazi concentration camps during World War II, admitted in May 2005 tha

Books

Javier Cercas Uncovers The Truth Behind Spain's 'Impostor'

12:01am September 21, 2018

by Ari Shapiro

In his new book, The Impostor, Javier Cercas unravels the lies that created the life of Enric Marco — a man who for years portrayed himself as a Holocaust survivor and Spanish Civil War hero.

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