First Reads

Exclusive First Read: 'Big Brother' By Lionel Shriver()  

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Read an exclusive excerpt of Lionel Shriver's latest, Big Brother. Shriver is no stranger to controversial topics, from school massacres to the American health care system. Big Brother is a comedic take on obesity and its effect on an Iowa family.

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Book Reviews

American Voices On 'The Unwinding' Of America's Values()  

Cover of The Unwinding

George Packer's The Unwinding explores the social and economic upheavals that have transformed the U.S. over the past 30 years. In a nuanced work of literary journalism, colorful characters from across the class divide tell their own stories of a social contract in tatters.

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Television

Mel Brooks: 'I'm An EGOT; I Don't Need Any More'()  

Once vehemently opposed to the idea of being the subject of a documentary, Brooks had a change of heart. The result is a new American Masters episode, Mel Brooks: Make a Noise.

May 20, 2013 The screenwriter, producer, director and actor, whose name has become synonymous with American comedy, talks about his penchant for spoofs and his decades-long friendship with Carl Reiner. Brooks, who is among a handful of people who've won Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony awards, is the subject of a new documentary on PBS.

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The Two-Way

Book News: Stephen King's New Bogeyman? Digital Publishing()  

Stephen King holds a special pink Kindle given to him at a 2009 unveiling event for the Amazon Kindle 2.

Also: the legacy of Kierkegaard; the creator of Lyle Crocodile has died; Aussie airliner Qantas commissions flight-length books.

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Monkey See

Reaction Saturation And Sunday Night Television()  

Typing hands.

May 20, 2013 On Sundays, it can seem like we're a nation of critics. But we're not.

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New In Paperback

May 20-26: A Coup, An Ancient Battle And One Steamy Diary()  

Cover of 'The End of Sparta'

May 20, 2013 In softcover nonfiction, Jenny Rosenstrach examines dinnertime, Kate Summerscale recounts a scandalous Victorian trial, and John Dramani Mahama looks back on his childhood in Ghana. In fiction, Victor Davis Hanson reimagines an ancient battle, and Marie NDiaye follows three women from Senegal to Europe.

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The Two-Way

Book News: J.K. Rowling Tells 'Harry Potter' Backstories()  

J.K. Rowling.

May 20, 2013 Quidditch was invented "in a small hotel in Manchester after a row with my then boyfriend," writes the Harry Potter creator. Other book news: Ireland puts an entire short story on a postage stamp; Daniel Handler on Midwestern literature; and the best books coming out this week.

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Nostalgia For Sale As Captain Kangaroo's Pals Are Auctioned Off()  

More than 500 items from the Captain Kangaroo show — including Dancing Bear's life-sized costume.

May 20, 2013 A giant lot of Captain Kangaroo memorabilia goes on the auction block this week in Los Angeles. Among the items up for auction are several of the captain's signature jackets, Mr. Green Jeans' famous jeans and the life-sized costume worn by Dancing Bear.

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On Morning EditionPlaylist

Author Interviews

Siblings' Separation Haunts In 'Kite Runner' Author's Latest()  

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May 19, 2013 Khaled Hosseini's new novel, like his two earlier works, is set partly in Afghanistan — but this time, political turmoil isn't a major element of the plot. Instead, And The Mountains Echoed is a story of a family's loss that spans decades and continents.

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On Weekend Edition SundayPlaylist

Movie Interviews

One Couple, Nearly 20 Years, All 'Before Midnight'()  

Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke star in Before Midnight, the third film in a series that follows near 20 years of a relationship.

May 19, 2013 We've already met Jesse and Celine, twice. In the 1995 film Before Sunset, they had a romantic encounter in Vienna. Nine years later, they found each other in Paris. In this third film, their relationship has progressed another nine years. The romance hasn't left, says director Richard Linklater, it's simply changed.

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On Weekend Edition SundayPlaylist

Author Interviews

Stories Of Hope Amid America's 'Unwinding'()  

Cover of The Unwinding

May 19, 2013 When the factory she worked at closed down, Tammy Thomas reinvented herself as a community organizer; and when Dean Price's truck stop business went belly up, he became a champion of biofuel. In a new book, George Packer examines how ordinary people are adapting to a new America.

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On Weekend Edition SundayPlaylist

Code Switch

'Scandal': Preposterous, Unmissable, Important()  

Kerry Washington from ABC's Scandal is shown on a TV monitor as an iPad displays the show page.

May 18, 2013 The show has become a social event for a large and varied crowd of African-Americans and others on Twitter, for reasons mysterious, complex and worth exploring.

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Author Interviews

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

Amanda Knox enters an Italian court on Oct. 3, 2011, just before being acquitted of murdering her British roommate, Meredith Kercher.

May 18, 2013 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.

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On All Things ConsideredPlaylist

Movie Reviews

New 'Trek' Goes 'Into Darkness,' But Not Much Deeper()  

Zachary Quinto as Spock, with Chris Pine as Kirk, in Star Trek: Into Darkness.

May 18, 2013 NPR's Bob Mondello says J.J. Abrams' latest Star Trek film knows how to make the sparks and feelings fly, but doesn't bother making the sparks and feeling matter very much.

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On All Things ConsideredPlaylist

Monkey See

Working Women On Television: A Mixed Bag At Best()  

Geena Davis played the president in the 2005 ABC series Commander in Chief. Now, she works on issues involving women in media.

May 18, 2013 Research shows that prime-time television isn't a bad place to find portrayals of working women. Working moms and working women over 40 are another story.

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On Weekend Edition SaturdayPlaylist

Author Interviews

Dan Brown: 'Inferno' Is 'The Book That I Would Want To Read'()  

Cover of Inferno

May 18, 2013 Dan Brown, author of the blockbuster The Da Vinci Code, is back with his first novel in four years. Inferno follows academic hero Robert Langdon on a chase through Italy as he attempts to avert a biological catastrophe.

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On Weekend Edition SaturdayPlaylist

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The Picture Show

Nanoflowers, each smaller than the thickness of a dollar bill, sprout up spontaneously on a surface dipped in salts and silicon.

Engineers coax crystals into forming flower sculptures, each smaller than a strand of hair.

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