Opinion

Sports

How About A Gold Medal For Human Rights For Gay People?

5:46pm August 28, 2013

by Frank Deford

Russia is pledging that the 2014 games will be free of discrimination despite its anti-gay measures. Frank Deford isn't buying it and says Olympic officials need to be accountable.

Queue Listen Now

Members of the Congress of Racial Equality leaving Brooklyn en route to the March on Washington, on April 15, 1963. At 16, Lawrence Cumberbatch (fourth from left, in back wearing a white hat) was the group's youngest member.

National

At 16, Making A Trek To Make The '63 March On Washington

6:47pm August 23, 2013

by NPR Staff

Lawrence Cumberbatch's parents thought their 16-year-old son was too young to walk from Brooklyn to the March on Washington in 1963. And enlisting Lawrence's uncle to dissuade him didn't have quite the effect they had hoped for, Lawrence tells his son, Simeon.

Queue Listen Now

Juan Gabriel Vasquez is also the author of The Informers.

Books
Arts

'Things Falling' Is A Potboiler, But One That's Set To Simmer

6:38pm August 21, 2013

by Rosecrans Baldwin

The Sound of Things Falling by Juan Gabriel Vasquez takes readers on a journey through Colombia starting in the late '60s — but it's not your average detective story. Reviewer Rosecrans Baldwin says the real mysteries in the book are in the minds of the characters.

Queue Listen Now

Sports

Pete Rose Should Enter The Hall Of Fame With Ichiro Suzuki

9:16am August 14, 2013

by Frank Deford

Don't you think that sometimes, even in baseball, with all its sacred statistics, you can round numbers off and call it equal, plus or minus a margin of admiration?

Queue Listen Now

Justin St. Germain teaches at the University of New Mexico.

Books
Arts

Heading West: The Gritty, Luminous 'Son Of A Gun'

8:17pm August 12, 2013

by Julia Keller

If the town of Tombstone, Ariz., sounds familiar, it probably has to do with what happened there in 1881 — the year of the infamous gunfight between lawman Wyatt Earp and a rival gang. A new memoir by Justin St. Germain weaves the story of the O.K. Corral into another, more personal tale.

Queue Listen Now

Choire Sicha co-runs the website The Awl. Very Recent History is his first book.

Books
Arts

Party Like It's 2009: Life And Friendship In The Great Recession

5:23pm August 11, 2013

by Alex Espinoza

When the economy's dropping like an anvil, young professionals have to find ways to make do — and having friends always helps. Reviewer Alex Espinoza says Choire Sicha's Very Recent History is an insightful tale of friends weathering a tough economy in the big city.

Queue Listen Now

Can Congress Figure Out How To Rescue The Post Office?

6:56pm August 08, 2013

by Brian Naylor

The U.S. Postal Service lost some $16 billion last year and continues to bleed red ink. Congress has been unable to agree on a plan to turn things around. The latest proposal would allow the post office to end Saturday delivery in a year, and enable it to ship wine and beer.

Queue Listen Now

Sports

Dick Kazmaier, 'A Honey Of A Guy'

5:24am August 07, 2013

by Frank Deford

Commentator Frank Deford remembers the last Ivy League football player to win the Heisman Trophy. Kazmaier, 82, died on Thursday.

Queue Listen Now

Vacation Horror Stories: Train Troubles In Budapest

7:25pm August 06, 2013

Listener Dorie Pickle tells us a Vacation Horror Story about being young, female and vulnerable on an overnight train from Prague to Budapest. She almost got arrested for smoking by mistake in the wrong car.

Queue Listen Now

According to author David Epstein, hitters like the Los Angeles Angels' Albert Pujols look at the movement of the pitcher's shoulder, torso or hand to help them hit the ball.

Talent Or Skill?: Homing In On The Elusive 'Sports Gene'

11:59pm August 05, 2013

Do big league hitters have naturally faster reflexes? Are African-Americans predisposed to be better athletes? In his new book, Sports Illustrated's David Epstein says science now has answers — or at least insights — to all these questions.

Queue Listen Now