Author Interviews

Madeleine Albright served as secretary of state under President Clinton from 1997-2001.

Madeleine Albright Warns: Don't Let Fascism Go 'Unnoticed Until It's Too Late'

4:17pm April 03, 2018

by Terry Gross

The former secretary of state describes President Trump as "the most anti-democratic leader that I have studied in American history." Albright's new book is Fascism: A Warning.

Queue Listen Now

Books
Arts

'Inseparable' Recounts The Unusual Lives Of Conjoined Twins Chang And Eng Bunker

1:50pm April 02, 2018

Yunte Huang's new book chronicles the lives of the "original Siamese twins," who were brought to America in 1829 and forced to perform in a freak show. They later married and fathered 21 children.

Queue Listen Now

Arts

#NPRPoetry Month: What Makes A Haiku A Haiku?

5:11pm April 01, 2018

Did you know that a haiku doesn't have to conform to a 5-7-5 syllable count? NPR's Sarah McCammon speaks with haiku master and former diplomat Abigail Friedman about where the misconception comes from.

What Drives Men To Violent Extremism

8:16am April 01, 2018

Sociologist Michael Kimmel says some white men feel their place in American society is being threatened. Kimmel talks with NPR's Korva Coleman about his new book Healing from Hate.

Queue Listen Now

Zhuang Liehong with his wife, Little Yan, and one of his sons, Kaizhi, in 2013 â a year before immigrated to the United States.

Chinese Dissident Finds Struggles, Independence In America After Immigrating

11:06am March 30, 2018

Lauren Hilgers's new book Patriot Number One: American Dreams in Chinatown charts the journey of Chinese dissident Zhuang Liehong, who immigrates to Queens, N.Y., from his village in Guangdong, China.

Queue Listen Now

'I Basically Ran On Adrenaline': A Staffer Remembers Obama's White House

11:04am March 30, 2018

by Terry Gross

Alyssa Mastromonaco worked in the West Wing for six exhilarating and exhausting years, which she describes in her memoir, Who Thought This Was a Good Idea? She spoke to Fresh Air in 2017.

Books
Arts

In 'Hey Mom,' Louie Anderson Has A Laugh With His Leading Lady

6:34am March 30, 2018

The actor and stand-up comedian has channeled his late mother in his work for years. Hey Mom is Louie's way of catching her up on everything that's been going on in his life.

Queue Listen Now

Mindfulness gurus Geneen Roth and Ed Espe Brown have long championed the idea that how we relate to food affects other aspects of our lives. In new super-personal essay collections, they reassess their past self-help advice.

Mindful Eating Authors' Secret Recipe For Cooking And Living? There Is None

2:40pm March 28, 2018

by Jean Fain

Gurus Geneen Roth and Ed Espe Brown championed the idea that how we relate to food affects other aspects of our lives. In new personal essay collections, they reassess their past self-help advice.

Books
Arts

'Americanized' Recounts What It's Like To Grow Up Undocumented

2:30pm March 28, 2018

by Terry Gross

Sara Saedi was two when her parents fled Iran to California. Her new memoir describes her 18-year-long path to citizenship, and the lingering anxiety of being undocumented.

Queue Listen Now

Books
Arts

British Travel Writer Jan Morris Weighs In On The 'Advantages Of Androgyny'

1:59pm March 27, 2018

by Terry Gross

The celebrated writer transitioned from male to female in 1972 at the age of 46. In 1989, Morris told Terry Gross that she had shed "a lot of the emotions and the experiences of both genders."

Queue Listen Now