Arts & Life 'Seventh Function' Is A Postmodern Mashup Of Fact, Fiction And Philosophy August 1, 2017 • Laurent Binet's new novel starts with the death of French literary critic Roland Barthes and spins out a postmodern mystery packed with philosophical heavy hitters — and one bemused detective.
Corporate Bungling And Political Scandal Abound In Jesse Eisinger's New Book July 30, 2017 • Why don't crooked corporate CEO's go to jail anymore? Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jesse Eisinger uncovers culture of cowardice, incompetence, and corruption in both government and finance.
A 'Portable' Overview Of A Complex, Compelling History July 30, 2017 • The Portable Nineteenth-Century African American Women Writers, thoughtfully edited by Henry Louis Gates, Jr. and Hollis Robbins, is a rewarding read that reminds us the past isn't a single story.
'Curse Words' Proves You Can Never Have Too Much Mystical Fire July 29, 2017 • Charles Soule and Ryan Browne's neon-drenched comic is giddily over-the-top, featuring a buffed-up wizard named Wizord, his talking koala sidekick and many, many glowing blasts of mystical fire.
The Zoo Is A Terrifying Place In 'Fierce Kingdom' July 27, 2017 • Gin Phillips' new novel — which follows a young mother trying to keep her child safe during a mass shooting at a zoo — explores the way violence can be a safe abstraction for kids, or cruelly real.
3 Supernatural Noir Tales That Reflect The Inhuman Condition July 27, 2017 • Some great noir fiction has been written about Los Angeles, but what happens when a different genre bleeds through? We've got three tales of murder, magic and robot detectives to cool your summer.
New Chester Himes Biography Reveals A Life As Wild As Any Detective Story Fresh Air July 26, 2017 • Lawrence P. Jackson's biography tracks the writer's course from prison to published novelist. Critic Maureen Corrigan says Himes' life story is well worth reading. New Chester Himes Biography Reveals A Life As Wild As Any Detective Story Listen · 6:11 6:11 Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/539487052/539538614" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
New Chester Himes Biography Reveals A Life As Wild As Any Detective Story Listen · 6:11 6:11 Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/539487052/539538614" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
'Strange Practice:' The Doctor Is In July 26, 2017 • In Strange Practice, Vivian Shaw kicks off a new series about Dr. Greta Helsing, descendant of the famous Professor Abraham Van Helsing and general practitioner to the ghouls and ghasts of London.
'The World Broke In Two': Four Writers, One Transformational Year July 25, 2017 • Using excerpts from letters and diaries, historian and critic Bill Goldstein follows writers Virginia Woolf, E. M. Forster, D. H. Lawrence and T. S. Eliot through the tumultuous literary year of 1922.
Books 'Caesar's Last Breath' Is A Breezy History Of Our Atmosphere July 23, 2017 • Sam Kean's funny, conversational new book reminds us not to take the air we breathe for granted — our atmosphere can tell stories about everything from dinosaurs and Julius Caesar to space flight.
Books Life Lessons (With Zombies) In 'Minecraft: The Island' July 22, 2017 • Max Brooks' latest novel is set in the world of the popular video game Minecraft — and once you get past that, it has a lot of valuable ideas for young readers, cleverly disguised with plenty of fun.
Penguin 2 Smart New Novels Find Humor In Fantasies Of Escape Fresh Air July 20, 2017 • These terrific comic novels — The Last Laugh by Lynn Freed and Who Is Rich? by Matthew Klam — will have you laughing at the many ways we all try to run away from the realities of life. 2 Smart New Novels Find Humor In Fantasies Of Escape Listen · 6:07 6:07 Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/538300572/538346385" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
2 Smart New Novels Find Humor In Fantasies Of Escape Listen · 6:07 6:07 Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/538300572/538346385" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Books In 'Fetch,' A Memorial To A Beloved Dog Raises Hard Questions July 20, 2017 • Do you deserve your pets? Do you deserve the people in your life? In her new graphic memoir, Nicole Georges suggests the two questions are closely related — and you may not like the answers.
Books We All Live In The Dark, But Some Of Us Live In 'The Dark Dark' July 19, 2017 • Samantha Hunt's new story collection dissects the unique strangeness of women's lives, mixing eerie fantasy with solid literary sensibility and a knack for strange and lovely set pieces.
Books 'Arbitrary Stupid Goal' Is Neither Arbitrary Nor Stupid July 18, 2017 • Tamara Shopsin's quirky, lively memoir of her unconventional Greenwich Village childhood is packed with vivid details about the cast of characters who populated her parents' corner store-turned-diner.
Taut Spy Action Takes Place Over Tea 'At The Table Of Wolves' July 18, 2017 • Kay Kenyon's new thriller is set in an alternate-history version of World War II, where the traumas of the previous war caused a bloom of psychic talents — talents the Nazis want to exploit.
Jet-Setting Vacationers Find Trouble In Paradise In 'Beautiful Animals' Fresh Air July 17, 2017 • Two entitled young women vacationing on a chic Greek island get involved with a mysterious stranger in Lawrence Osborne's new novel. Critic John Powers calls it a "seductively menacing new thriller." Jet-Setting Vacationers Find Trouble In Paradise In 'Beautiful Animals' Listen · 5:06 5:06 Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/537697393/537735788" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Jet-Setting Vacationers Find Trouble In Paradise In 'Beautiful Animals' Listen · 5:06 5:06 Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/537697393/537735788" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Graceful 'Hollow' Is Solid All The Way Through July 16, 2017 • The title of Owen Egerton's new novel refers — mostly — to the old fable that the earth is hollow. But there's nothing hollow about this suspenseful tale of a religion professor's fall and rise.
For July, 3 Romance Heroines Who Want It All July 15, 2017 • So many romances explore what we'd do for love — but as summer heats up we're bringing you three heroines who'd do a lot for love, and even more to keep their business ventures going.
In 'Meddling Kids,' The Scooby Gang Grows Up — Hard July 15, 2017 • Edgar Cantero's head-kick of a novel about damaged adults who used to be spunky kid detectives mixes bright, pulpy cartoon nostalgia with some seriously dark trauma-survivor subtext.
Truth Is A Fragmentary Thing In 'American Fire' July 13, 2017 • The rural Virginia county of Accomack was plagued by arson in the winter of 2012. The arsonist was caught, and in American Fire, Monica Hesse tries to tease out the elusive truth of why he did it.
'Goodbye, Vitamin' Is Sweet — But Not Sugarcoated July 12, 2017 • Rachel Khong's first novel is a heartwarming account of family devotion and dementia — which sounds sickly, but her offbeat sensibility and flair for wordplay keep the story from becoming saccharine.
I, Booger: Actor Curtis Armstrong's Affable Memoir, 'Revenge Of The Nerd' July 11, 2017 • In Armstrong's autobiography, the classically trained actor humorously makes peace with the fact that the first line of his obituary will reference his nose-picking character from an '80s sex comedy.
