Books

There may be a shift occurring in our willingness to eat alone that has to do with the pleasure and power of food itself.

Books
Arts

Why Eating Out Alone Doesn't Have To Be Lonely

3:32pm November 11, 2015

by Jill Neimark

More Americans are eating alone — at restaurants and at home. Writer Simran Sethi argues in a new book that eating alone can be a courageous act that deepens appreciation of food and place.

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Arts

The Entire Soviet Union Fits Into 'The Big Green Tent'

12:03pm November 11, 2015

by Colin Dwyer

Ludmila Ulitskaya's new novel follows three childhood friends in the years after Stalin's death — and the dozens of characters their lives intersect with — in a masterpiece of detail and ambition.

"I've always been an introverted person," Shonda Rhimes says, and she found the fame that came with her television successes to be "daunting."

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Arts

For A Year, Shonda Rhimes Said 'Yes' To All The Things That Scared Her

1:37pm November 10, 2015

by NPR Staff

The creator of Grey's Anatomy and Scandal says despite the success of her shows, her life "had gotten really small," so she decided to step out of her comfort zone. Year of Yes is her new memoir.

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'Two Brothers' Tells A Passionate Tale Of Brazil In Black And White

10:03am November 10, 2015

by Etelka Lehoczky

Artists Fábio Moon and Gabriel Bá — themselves twins — have turned Brazilian author Milton Hatoum's family drama The Brothers into a deftly-shaded graphic novel, full of compelling imagery.

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Arts

'The Pickle Index' Is A Tart, Tangy Multi-Platform Romp

7:03am November 10, 2015

by Carmen Machado

Eli Horowitz's surreal story, told via smartphone app and two separate book editions, follows a sad-sack circus performer who accidentally falls afoul of his oppressive dystopian government.

Books

Why Eating Food Out Of A Bowl Makes Nigella Lawson Happy

7:12pm November 09, 2015

Steve Inskeep talks to celebrity chef Nigella Lawson about the breadth of food you can serve in a bowl. Her latest cookbook is called, Simply Nigella: Feel Good Food.

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Arts

'Arab Of The Future' Chronicles The Challenges Of A Cross-Cultural Childhood

1:43pm November 09, 2015

Former Charlie Hebdo cartoonist Riad Sattouf grew up in the Middle East and France with a French mother and Syrian father. "I hate nationalism," he says. "Comic book author [is] my first nationality."

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Arts

'Tiffany Girl' Is A Jeweled Window Into The Past

10:03am November 08, 2015

by Bobbi Dumas

Deeanne Gist's Tiffany Girl blends a charming romance with an overlooked bit of history — the women recruited by Louis Comfort Tiffany to complete his stained glass chapel at the 1893 World's Fair.

Author Michael Cunningham won the Pulitzer Prize for his previous novel The Hours.

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Arts

Beyond The Happily Ever After, Cunningham Asks: 'What's That About?'

9:18am November 08, 2015

by NPR Staff

Author Michael Cunningham was fascinated by fairy tales as a child — but he always wondered what happened after the story ended. His new collection, The Wild Swan, tries to answer that question.

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Arts

'Twain & Stanley' Finds Magic In An Unlikely Friendship

7:03am November 08, 2015

by Jason Sheehan

Oscar Hijuelos' posthumously published novel puts fictional flesh on the real-life friendship between Mark Twain and the explorer Henry Morton Stanley. Critic Jason Sheehan calls it a "great tale."