Books

Books
Arts

Fictional 'Mothers' Reveal Facts Of A Painful Adoption Process

4:38pm May 22, 2013

After years trying to conceive, novelist Jennifer Gilmore and her husband decided to adopt. What they thought would be a relatively simple process was instead a long and painful one. In her latest novel, Gilmore channels these autobiographical experiences into fiction.

Queue Listen Now

Climate Change Takes Flight in New Novel

3:11pm May 21, 2013

Writer Barbara Kingsolver is one of a handful of novelists with a science background, and she puts it to use in her new novel Flight Behavior. Kingsolver discusses the book and why she chose to look at the the issue of climate change in a fictional work set in rural Tennessee. This interview was originally broadcast on November 9, 2012.

Queue Listen Now

Oliver Sacks: Hallucinations

3:11pm May 21, 2013

In his latest book Hallucinations, neurologist Oliver Sacks collects stories of individuals who can see, hear and smell things that aren't really there--such as strange voices, or collages of unrecognizable faces--and explores the disorders and drugs that can produce such illusions. This interview was originally broadcast on November 9, 2012.

Queue Listen Now

Courtside Chemistry: How NBA's Phil Jackson Won 'Eleven Rings'

11:13am May 21, 2013

by NPR Staff

Jackson is famous for his philosophical take on basketball and for the many stars he led to championship triumphs. He taught his players yoga and gave them assigned reading — but also pushed them to intensely practice fundamental skills. His new book looks back on a legendary coaching career.

Queue Listen Now

Books
Arts

After Crashing In Canadian 'Abyss,' Four Men Fight To Survive

11:13am May 21, 2013

by NPR Staff

On an icy night in 1984, a commuter plane crashed in the wilderness. Six passengers died, but four survived: the pilot, a politician, a policeman and a prisoner. Carol Shaben's Into the Abyss describes their fight to make it through that frigid night alive.

Queue Listen Now

Books
Arts

Three-Minute Fiction: 'Ten Ring Fingers' And 'Ghost Words'

6:18pm May 19, 2013

NPR's Bob Mondello and Susan Stamberg read excerpts of two of the best submissions for Round 11 of our short story contest. They read Ten Ring Fingers by Tamara Breuer of Washington, D.C., and Ghost Words by Matheus Macedo of Winthrop, Mass.

Queue Listen Now

Books
Arts

Unacceptable Anger From 'The Woman Upstairs'

6:18pm May 19, 2013

by NPR Staff

"Women's anger is very scary to people," author Claire Messud says. Her new novel, The Woman Upstairs, features a seething main character, a young woman whose anger is unsettling.

Queue Listen Now

Books
Arts

Decades Later And Across An Ocean, A Novel Gets Its Due

6:18pm May 19, 2013

by NPR Staff

John Williams' Stoner sold just 2,000 copies when it was originally published in 1965. It's now acknowledged as a classic work, is a best-seller across Europe and the No. 1 novel in the Netherlands.

Queue Listen Now

Books
Arts

Three-Minute Fiction Reading: 'Plum Baby'

7:47pm May 18, 2013

NPR's Susan Stamberg reads an excerpt of one of the best submissions for Round 11 of our short story contest. She reads Plum Baby by Carmiel Banasky of Portland, Ore.

Queue Listen Now

Books
Arts

'Waiting To Be Heard' No More, Amanda Knox Speaks Out

7:47pm May 18, 2013

by NPR Staff

Less than two months into her study abroad program in Italy, Amanda Knox was accused and eventually convicted of murdering her roommate, Meredith Kercher. After her conviction was overturned, Knox returned home to Seattle — and now faces a potential retrial. Knox tells her story in a new memoir.

Queue Listen Now