Books

Books
Arts

'Leave The World Behind' Is A Signature Novel For This Blasted Year

1:27pm September 29, 2020

by Maureen Corrigan

A family on vacation opens the door of their remote Airbnb rental one night to an older couple who claims to be the home's owners. Rumaan Alam's thrilling novel is about race, class and self-delusion.

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Trump Nominee Could Solidify Supreme Court's Conservative Direction

8:26am September 29, 2020

Steve Inskeep talks to Republican Sen. Ted Cruz about Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett. Cruz is a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which begins confirmation hearings next month.

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Books

David S. Reynold's Book 'Abe' Reveals New Information About Lincoln

6:13am September 29, 2020

NPR's Steve Inskeep speaks with historian David S. Reynolds about his biography of Abraham Lincoln entitled Abe. In it, the acclaimed author reveals new information about the 16th president.

The LatinxPitch for Kid Lit group just held their first Twitter event where writers and illustrators pitched ideas.

Books
Arts

New Groups Aim To Get More Latinx Stories To Young Readers

4:37pm September 28, 2020

by Mandalit del Barco

Kids don't often get to read stories about Latinos; statistics show the American publishing industry is overwhelmingly white. Several new groups of writers, editors and agents are out to change that.

'The Bomb' Presents A 'Secret History' Of Nuclear War Planning In America

2:21pm September 28, 2020

by Dave Davies

Author Fred Kaplan reveals how U.S. presidents, their advisers and generals have thought about, planned for — and sometimes narrowly avoided — nuclear war. Originally broadcast Jan. 27, 2020.

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Rev. Al Sharpton speaks at the 2020 March on Washington, officially known as the Commitment March: Get Your Knee Off Our Necks, at the Lincoln Memorial on Aug. 28 in Washington.

Al Sharpton: Policing In America Will Change Because Of George Floyd's Death

12:35pm September 28, 2020

by Steve Inskeep

Rev. Al Sharpton spoke with NPR about his new book Rise Up. Of George Floyd's death, he said: "I had begun to see, by the time of the funeral, there had been a movement that was unlike others."

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All About the Story: News, Power, Politics, and the Washington Post, by Leonard Downie, Jr.

'All About The Story' Is A History Of Newspapering — And A Primer On Media Ethics

4:38am September 28, 2020

by Annalisa Quinn

Former Washington Post leader Len Downie is well-placed to offer a look at 50 years in news — but he also writes of times he had to weigh the public's right to know against national security.

Books

Juan Felipe Herrera Paints Portrait Of America In New Poetry Collection

7:42am September 27, 2020

NPR's Lulu Garcia-Navarro speaks with former U.S. poet laureate Juan Felipe Herrera about his latest collection, Every Day We Get More Illegal.

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Bunheads, by Misty Copeland and Setor Fiadzigbey

Books
Arts

You Can't Send Your Kids To Dance Class Right Now, But You Can Read Them 'Bunheads'

7:00am September 27, 2020

by Juanita Giles

Renowned ballerina Misty Copeland's new kids' book Bunheads draws on her own childhood experiences — if your kids love dance, it's just the thing to keep them going until classes come back.

The cover of Kwana Jackson's Real Men Knit.

Books

Romance Meets The Real World In 'Real Men Knit'

6:18am September 27, 2020

by Karen Grigsby Bates

This week, Code Switch is talking about the books that are getting us through the pandemic. Today's conversation is with Kwana Jackson, author of a romance that doesn't leave real life behind.