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James Salter NPR coverage of James Salter: News, author interviews, critics' picks and more.

James Salter

Books

James Salter

Books by James Salter

All That Is

There & Then

Life Is Meals

James Salter has written books about:

NPR stories about James Salter

Ghana Must Go

New In Paperback

Jan. 26-Feb. 1: Stanley McChrystal, Jeff Bridges And James Salter

January 28, 2014 • In softcover nonfiction, the four-star general describes a culture gap between the military and civilian worlds, and Bridges explains how The Dude – of The Big Lebowski – is a kind of Zen master. In fiction, James Salter chronicles betrayal, Taiye Selasi looks at a grieving Ghanaian family and Philipp Meyer delivers a multigenerational family saga.

Ghana Must Go

New In Paperback

Jan. 26-Feb. 1: Stanley McChrystal, Jeff Bridges And James Salter

January 28, 2014 • In softcover nonfiction, the four-star general describes a culture gap between the military and civilian worlds, and Bridges explains how The Dude – of The Big Lebowski – is a kind of Zen master. In fiction, James Salter chronicles betrayal, Taiye Selasi looks at a grieving Ghanaian family and Philipp Meyer delivers a multigenerational family saga.

All That Is

Opinion

Books

In Salter's Novels, The Ladies ARE Lunch

June 20, 2013 • James Salter has been acclaimed by critics as one of the greatest writers of his generation. He's been compared to Updike and Roth — but NPR's Lidia Jean Kott says Salter has trouble writing fully realized female characters, depicting them instead as meals to be devoured by the men.

All That Is

Author Interviews

After Long Wait, Novelist James Salter Shares 'All That Is'

May 12, 2013 • Salter's first book, in 1957, won the admiration of writers and critics alike. But he hadn't written a novel since 1979, until now. All That Is sets out to give a sweeping portrait of human experience, with a main character who appears suspiciously similar to Salter himself.

After Long Wait, Novelist James Salter Shares 'All That Is'

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All That Is

Review

Book Reviews

Real Writing, Real Life In Salter's 'All That Is'

April 3, 2013 • James Salter is a master prose stylist whose deceptively simple sentences reveal the sensations and truth of experience. In All That Is, he conjures the life and times of Philip Bowman, who, returning to New York after World War II, pursues love and a publishing career, with unequal success.

All That Is

First Reads

Exclusive First Read: 'All That Is' By James Salter

March 19, 2013 • Read an exclusive excerpt of All That Is by James Salter. Salter is often considered a "writer's writer"; his latest, All That Is, follows a World War II veteran through a series of drunken conversations and romantic liasons as he returns home and gets involved in the New York publishing world.

Exclusive First Read: 'All That Is' By James Salter

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End-of-Year Book Selections, 2006

Book Selections to Nourish the Mind at the Holidays

December 11, 2006 • It's the time of the year again when we're thinking about what gifts we might give to our family and friends. To our book guide Alan Cheuse, of course, "gift" means "books." Here are some of his recommendations.

Book Selections to Nourish the Mind at the Holidays

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A Time to Read: Alan Cheuse's Holiday List

December 12, 2005 • Time to read during the holidays, away from school and work, is a gift you give yourself, author and book critic Alan Cheuse says. His suggested list of 2005 holiday gifts includes tales of space, dinosaurs, music and a mystical poet.

A Time to Read: Alan Cheuse's Holiday List

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Excerpt: 'There and Then'

December 12, 2005 • Book critic Alan Cheuse includes this collection of travel writing by "one of our finest living prose writers" in his roundup of holiday books for All Things Considered.