Author Interviews

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Graphic Novelist Marjorie Lui On How Rejection Shaped Her Writing

4:32pm July 22, 2016

by Mallory Yu

Author Marjorie Liu is nominated for two Eisners, the most prestigious awards in comics. She writes young adult fantasy books that cover topics that include war, women and steam punk gadgetry.

Susan Faludi had been estranged from her father, Steven Faludi, for two decades when she learned he had had gender reassignment surgery and was going by Stefánie.

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In 'The Darkroom,' A Writer Comes To Grips With Her Dad's Gender Transition

3:02pm July 22, 2016

by NPR Staff

Susan Faludi says that, growing up, her father was a "domineering, hyper-masculine patriarch." In her new book, she tries to understand his past and his decision to become a woman.

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'The Battle For Home' Traces Syria's History Through Architecture

6:00pm July 20, 2016

NPR's Kelly McEvers speaks with Homs-based architect Marwa al-Sabouni, about her new book The Battle for Home, which traces Syria's past, present and possible future through the lens of architecture.

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Novelist Grapples With The Conflicted Feelings Of Caring For Aging Parents

1:54pm July 18, 2016

Author Cathleen Schine says that living far away from an elderly parent can create feelings of guilt as well as those of relief. Her darkly comic new novel is They May Not Mean To, But They Do.

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Critics, Monsters, Fanatics, and Other Literary Essays.

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Why Does Cynthia Ozick Write? 'I Simply Must,' She Says

8:30am July 17, 2016

by NPR Staff

The versatile author says that, like queens, writers are born into their profession. In her new book, Critics, Monsters, Fanatics, and Other Literary Essays, she examines current and past literature.

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'Missing, Presumed' Chronicles Ups And Downs Of Dating ... And Detective Work

8:28am July 16, 2016

by NPR Staff

At the beginning of Susie Steiner's new thriller, a detective is on a date with a man whose name she can't remember. Not long after, a well-connected university student goes missing.

An Opera Percussionist Traces Her Path 'From Juilliard to the Orchestra Pit'

3:22pm July 14, 2016

Patti Niemi has been a percussionist for the San Francisco Opera Orchestra since 1992. She speaks with Fresh Air's Sam Briger about performance anxiety, muscle memory and her memoir, Sticking it Out.

Books

Egypt's Repressive Government Frames Yasmine El Rashidi's First Novel

10:14am July 14, 2016

Steve Inskeep talks to journalist Yasmine El Rashidi about her debut novel, Chronicle of a Last Summer. It follows a young Egyptian whose life and country change over three turbulent summers.

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Gay-straight alliance school bus at Seattle Pride, 2008.

For LGBTQ Students, Author Says, Safety Is 'Not Enough'

6:00am July 14, 2016

by Kendra Yoshinaga

Safety for LGBTQ students is critical, but inclusive policies shouldn't stop there, author Michael Sadowski argues in his new book.

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Arts

'The War At Home' Recounts The Tension Of Being A Military Spouse

2:42pm July 13, 2016

As the wife of a Navy fighter pilot, memoirist Rachel Starnes has had much of her life — including where she lives and how often she gets to live with her husband — determined by his career.

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