Author Interviews

Books

Author Lionel Shriver On Cultural Appropriation And The 'Sensitivity Police'

8:28am February 25, 2017

NPR's Scott Simon talks with author Lionel Shriver about her outspoken views on cultural appropriation and what she feels is oversensitivity of the left.

From happy Neolithic-era accident to inspiration for student protests to tabletop staple, butter has had quite the ride over the past 10,000 years. A new book tells the story.

Books
Arts

Spread The Word: Butter Has An Epic Backstory

2:34pm February 24, 2017

by Nicole Jankowski

From its origins as a happy accident 10,000 years ago, to its role as the centerpiece of a school "rebellion," the tabletop staple has had quite a life. A new book tells the story.

An illustration from 1875 depicts the survivors of the frigate Cospatrick, which caught fire off South Africa's Cape of Good Hope in November 1874. Of more than 470 people on board, just three ultimately survived, and they were reduced to cannibalism.

Cannibalism: It's 'Perfectly Natural,' A New Scientific History Argues

10:00am February 22, 2017

by Angus Chen

It's gruesome, but from a scientific standpoint, there's a predictable calculus for when humans and animals go cannibal, a new book says. And who knew European aristocrats ate body parts as medicine?

Are Cyborgs In Our Future? 'Homo Deus' Author Thinks So

5:00pm February 21, 2017

by NPR Staff

Yuval Noah Harari expects we'll soon engineer our bodies in the same way we design products. "I think in general medicine ... will switch from healing the sick to upgrading the healthy," he says.

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Gary Cooper plays the sheriff in the 1952 film High Noon. Author Glenn Frankel says the film can be viewed as a parable for the Hollywood blacklist era.

Books
Arts

What A Classic '50s Western Can Teach Us About The Hollywood Blacklist

2:58pm February 21, 2017

Author Glenn Frankel says the 1952 film High Noon was inspired by the toxic political climate of the time. "People ... felt they want to get their country back," Frankel says.

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'#Republic' Author Describes How Social Media Hurts Democracy

7:03pm February 20, 2017

NPR's Kelly McEvers speaks to Cass Sunstein about his new book, #Republic: Divided Democracy in the Age of Social Media. He says democracy needs people to come across a variety of viewpoints, and much of social media limits that exposure.

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In 'Captured,' Democratic Senator Decries Money's Role In Politics

4:43pm February 20, 2017

NPR's Ari Shapiro talks with Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island about his new book, Captured: The Corporate Infiltration of American Democracy.

Uncovering Presidential Secrets, From Washington To Trump

1:57pm February 20, 2017

Author Mary Graham discusses the confidences that presidents keep. When it comes to President Trump, she says: "I think we're seeing that it's not possible to keep policies secret in the digital age."

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Books
Arts

An Irish Immigrant Fights On The Great Plains In 'Days Without End'

1:57pm February 20, 2017

The protagonist of Sebastian Barry's new novel is conscripted right off the boat as the price of American citizenship. Eventually he finds love and companionship with one of his fellow soldiers.

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Books

Imagining The Present As The Future Of The 1950s

7:58am February 19, 2017

Elan Mastai grew up fascinated by the 1950s sci-fi books. He talks with Lulu Garcia-Navarro about his novel All Our Wrong Todays that imagines a world with jet packs and flying cars.