Author Interviews

Lincoln in the Bardo, by George Saunders

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Arts

'Lincoln In The Bardo' Pictures An American Saint Of Sorrow

10:58am February 11, 2017

by NPR Staff

George Saunders — acknowledged as a master of the short story — moves into novel form with Lincoln in the Bardo, a supernatural tale of President Lincoln grieving the death of his son Willie.

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After A Stroke At 33, A Writer Relies On Journals To Piece Together Her Own Story

5:24am February 11, 2017

by NPR Staff

The stroke left Christine Hyung-Oak Lee unable remember things for more than 15 minutes. As she slowly got better, she was surprised to find that grief and recovery were inextricably linked.

Viet Thanh Nguyen is a Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist. His new short story collection explores the refugee experience — and draws from his own.

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'The Refugees' Author Says We Should All Know What It Is To Be An Outsider

6:35pm February 10, 2017

by NPR Staff

Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Viet Thanh Nguyen fled Vietnam with his family when he was 4 years old. His new short story collection explores the refugee experience — and draws from his own.

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Margaret Atwood says the next big dystopian novel ought to be a newspaper serial.

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What's The Next Big Dystopian Novel? Margaret Atwood Has Some Ideas

7:00pm February 07, 2017

by Petra Mayer

Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale landed on top of Amazon's best-seller lists this week, following other classics like 1984 and It Can't Happen Here. She has some thoughts on our next great dystopia.

Joyce Carol Oates' other recent books include The Lost Landscape, The Sacrifice and Lovely, Dark, Deep.

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Joyce Carol Oates' New Novel Begins With An Abortion Doctor's Murder

4:30pm February 07, 2017

by NPR Staff

A Book of American Martyrs is told, in part, from the perspective of the murderer, a man who feels he's been called by God.

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'Black Edge' Recounts The Biggest Insider-Trading Scandal In History

1:30pm February 07, 2017

Sheelah Kolhatkar discusses the investigation of billionaire hedge-fund trader Steven A. Cohen. She says the ways Wall Street elites accumulate wealth often negatively affect the rest of the country.

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Once a thriving factory town, Lancaster, Ohio is now beset by underemployment and drug abuse.

'Glass House' Chronicles The Sharp Decline Of An All-American Factory Town

9:22am February 07, 2017

Once a bustling town, Lancaster, Ohio, is now beset by unemployment, low wages and drug abuse. Brian Alexander chronicles the rise and fall of his hometown in his new book, Glass House.

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In 'Universal Harvester,' Mountain Goats Lyricist Reaps A Creepy Crop

8:47am February 07, 2017

by NPR Staff

John Darnielle used some tricks of the horror trade to write his latest novel, which is set in 1990s Iowa and involves some cornfields. What's scary about cornfields? Mostly, the unknown.

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1 Character, 4 Different Lives In Paul Auster's '4 3 2 1'

4:33pm February 06, 2017

One character, four different lives. That's the idea behind Paul Auster's new novel, 4 3 2 1. From the day Archie Ferguson is born in 1947, he follows four separate fictional paths. NPR's Robert Siegel talks to Auster about the book.

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Remembering Bharati Mukherjee, An Indian-Born American Writer

2:35pm February 06, 2017

Mukherjee, who died Saturday in Manhattan, grew up in India, Switzerland and England. Her work explores the thoughts and experiences of immigrants from many countries. Originally broadcast in 2002.

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