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'The Yid' Puts A Brash, Screwball Spin On Soviet Anti-Semitism

1:27pm February 02, 2016

by Maureen Corrigan

Paul Goldberg's debut novel is an ambitious historical fantasy about Stalin's 1953 plan to purge Jews from the Soviet Union. Critic Maureen Corrigan says The Yid is a wildly inventive "what if" story.

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A Blizzard, Meth And A Missing Mom Make 'Sweetgirl' A Harrowing Read

11:15am February 02, 2016

by Michael Schaub

A story about violence, drug addiction and family dysfunction could have been too bleak, but Travis Mulhauser's Sweetgirl is nuanced, with sympathetic characters and carefully built suspense.

Cover detail from One Child, by Mei Fong.

How China's One-Child Policy Led To Forced Abortions, 30 Million Bachelors

5:16pm February 01, 2016

Journalist Mei Fong tells Fresh Air that China's one-child policy drastically reshaped the country's demographic make-up. "China has 30 million more men than women," she says. Her book is One Child.

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To Rebuild 'The Collapse Of Parenting,' It's Going To Be A Challenge

2:30pm January 31, 2016

by NPR Staff

Parents struggle with the balance of being a friend versus being a taskmaster. Their job, says Dr. Leonard Sax, is to "keep your child safe" and "give kids choices in some domains but not in others."

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Book Diagnoses Darwin With Anxiety And Warhol As A Hoarder

8:55am January 31, 2016

by NPR Staff

Journalist Claudia Kalb uses biographical material and modern-day mental health to get inside the heads of history's great personalities. Her new book is called Andy Warhol Was A Hoarder.

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A Birthday Cake for Washington has been the subject of much criticism because it portrays slaves as being happy.

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How Do We Read Books Embedded With Racism?

8:31am January 31, 2016

by NPR Staff

We received a lot of criticism for a story on reading racist and difficult material to your children, and it's clear it's a topic you'd like us to revisit.

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Diane Rehm Finds New Life In The Profound Challenge Of Being Alone

10:50am January 30, 2016

by NPR Staff

For decades, she's hosted her own talk show — but one of her toughest struggles came with the pain of her husband's death. She tells NPR's Scott Simon how it inspired her fight for assisted suicide.

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Alexander Chee's Voice Shines Through In 'Queen Of The Night'

8:30am January 30, 2016

by NPR Staff

The long-awaited novel follows a famous opera singer on her journey of constant reinvention. Despite the 19th century France setting, Chee admits there are autobiographical elements.

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In 'City Of Blades,' The Gods Are Dead. So What Happens Next?

7:00am January 30, 2016

by Jason Sheehan

Robert Jackson Bennett makes a bold move in this second volume of his Divine Cities series — he abandons (mostly) the fan favorites from volume 1, and picks up years later in a different city.

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'Good On Paper' Swings From Scholarly To Zany

3:31pm January 28, 2016

by Annalisa Quinn

Rachel Cantor's new novel tries to draw out the connections between love and scholarship in a tale of a frustrated translator looking for a new life. But it's occasionally too clever for its own good.