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Spy Reporter Works Her 'Sources' To Write A Thriller()
Mary Louise Kelly used to cover national security for NPR, but lately she's turned her attention to fiction. Her new novel, Anonymous Sources, draws on Kelly's own reporting experiences, including things she couldn't say when she was a journalist.
'Cows Save The Planet': Soil's Secrets For Saving The Earth()
June 17, 2013 Journalist Judith Schwartz believes that the key to addressing carbon issues and climate change lies beneath our feet. In her book Cows Save The Planet, she argues that proper management of soil could solve a long list of environmental problems.
WWII 'Deserters': Stories Of Men Who Left The Front Lines()
June 17, 2013 In his new book, journalist Charles Glass explores the little-known history of thousands of American and British soldiers who deserted during World War II. Glass describes how the strain of war can push a soldier to the breaking point — and how the line between courage and cowardice is never simple.
Crime In The City
In Neville's Thrillers, Belfast's Violent Past Still Burns()
June 17, 2013 The capital of Northern Ireland is no longer the city of snipers that it was before the Good Friday Agreement, but novelist Stuart Neville still draws inspiration from the decades of violence. In The Ghosts of Belfast, he examines the shattered life of an IRA killer in the aftermath of The Troubles.
A Posthumous Tribute To Guns From A Sniper Shot To Death()
June 16, 2013 Considered by many to be the most deadly sniper in American military history, Chris Kyle was killed on a Texas gun range in February. He was an outspoken advocate for both veterans and gun rights, and his book, American Gun, has just been published.
Dr. Brazelton On Guiding Parents And Learning To Listen()
June 16, 2013 Dr. T. Berry Brazelton has been studying babies for the better part of the last century. Now 95 years old, the renowned pediatrician is the author of more than 30 books on child development. He talks about his latest book, and how babies themselves can teach us how to be better parents.
'Children' Of Iran's Activists Inherit Love, Loss And Longing()
June 16, 2013 Sahar Delijani was born in an Iranian prison, where her parents were held as political activists. Her debut novel, Children of the Jacaranda Tree, is inspired by true stories of the post-revolutionary Iran she was born into and follows the rippling effects of oppression forward into the present.
Telling Stories About Ourselves In 'The Faraway Nearby'()
June 15, 2013 "Stories are compasses and architecture," says author Rebecca Solnit. "We navigate by them, we build our sanctuaries and prisons out of them, and to be without a story is to be lost in the vastness of the world."
Family Tragedy With A Hollywood Connection In 'Run, Brother, Run'()
June 15, 2013 Laywer David Berg's new memoir reveals the story of his most dramatic case. Run, Brother, Run is about the 1968 murder of Berg's brother, Alan, allegedly by Charles Harrelson — the father of actor Woody Harrelson — who was ultimately acquitted.
Gaiman's New 'Ocean' Is No Kiddie Pool()
June 15, 2013 Neil Gaiman says his latest novel, The Ocean at the End of the Lane, started out as a short story that just didn't stop growing. Originally, it was also a simple story about a young boy — but morphed into a much darker tale about being a child in dangerous territory.
Failed Attempts At Spanking And Other Tales Of Fatherhood()
June 14, 2013 Audie Cornish talks to Drew Magary about his new book on parenthood, Someone Could Get Hurt.
Mantel Takes Up Betrayal, Beheadings In 'Bodies'()
June 14, 2013 Hilary Mantel is the first woman to win the Man Booker Prize twice, first for her 2009 novel, Wolf Hall, and then for that book's 2012 sequel, Bring Up the Bodies. The novels are part of a historical fiction trilogy about Tudor England and the events surrounding the reign of King Henry VIII.
NPR's Backseat Book Club
Meet 'Ivan': The Gorilla Who Lived In A Shopping Mall()
June 13, 2013 Katherine Applegate's The One and Only Ivan was inspired by a real-life gorilla who lived in a mall in Tacoma, Wash. The author says humans have "a real obligation" to care responsibly for animals in captivity.
Florida-Grown Fiction: Hiaasen Satirizes The Sunshine State()
June 13, 2013 Novelist and Miami Herald columnist Carl Hiaasen writes with passion and purpose about the state he loves. His latest book, Bad Monkey, is an offbeat murder mystery set in Key West.
With Space-Bound Hubbies, 'Astrowives' Became 'First Reality Stars'()
June 12, 2013 On April 9,1959, the U.S. introduced its first astronauts, and then launched their wives into the spotlight. In The Astronaut Wives Club, Lily Koppel looks at how seven women coped with the attention and anxiety that came with being married to the space race.
