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Maureen Corrigan Maureen Corrigan is a book critic for Fresh Air.
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Maureen Corrigan
Thanksgivukkah Stress Getting You Down? Here's A Literary Escape Plan
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Thanksgivukkah Stress Getting You Down? Here's A Literary Escape Plan

Fresh Air

For critic Maureen Corrigan, this year's hybrid family holiday may be best celebrated by escaping into a book. Her recommendations include a kids' book about Russian Jews who identify with the Pilgrims, and a novel that contemplates class divides during wartime through the lens of a football game.

Thanksgivukkah Stress Getting You Down? Here's A Literary Escape Plan

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A 'Marriage', A Divorce, A Dying Dog And Essays Done Right
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A 'Marriage', A Divorce, A Dying Dog And Essays Done Right

Fresh Air

Essay collections are underrated and often ignored in favor of short stories or novels. But in the hands of a writer as practiced as Ann Patchett, critic Maureen Corrigan says the essay becomes an expansive storytelling vessel. Patchett's new book is This Is The Story Of A Happy Marriage.

A 'Marriage', A Divorce, A Dying Dog And Essays Done Right

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'Self-Help Messiah' Dale Carnegie Gets A Second Life In Print
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'Self-Help Messiah' Dale Carnegie Gets A Second Life In Print

Fresh Air

In the many decades since the publication of How to Win Friends and Influence People, Dale Carnegie's self-help classic has been both celebrated and mocked, but it's still selling plenty of copies. Steven Watts' new biography of the man may feel overstuffed, but, as Maureen Corrigan notes, Carnegie's relentless positivity always shines through.

'Self-Help Messiah' Dale Carnegie Gets A Second Life In Print

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Dickensian Ambition And Emotion Make 'Goldfinch' Worth The Wait

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Dickensian Ambition And Emotion Make 'Goldfinch' Worth The Wait

Fresh Air

Donna Tartt is a writer who takes her time — she's published just one novel per decade since her debut in 1992. But critic Maureen Corrigan says she'd gladly wait another 10 years for a book as extraordinary as Tartt's latest work, The Goldfinch, an "exuberantly plotted triumph."

Dickensian Ambition And Emotion Make 'Goldfinch' Worth The Wait

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If You're Looking To Read 'Lady Things,' Choose Jezebel Over Jones

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If You're Looking To Read 'Lady Things,' Choose Jezebel Over Jones

Fresh Air

Bridget Jones hasn't aged well. At 51, she's the "geriatric mum" of two small children, and finds herself yearning to plunge back into dating. Critic Maureen Corrigan says if you're looking for jolly feminist cultural commentary, you'd be better off reading a witty "encyclopedia of lady things" from the creators of the website Jezebel.

If You're Looking To Read 'Lady Things,' Choose Jezebel Over Jones

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Meet Ben's Sister Jane, History's Forgotten Franklin

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Meet Ben's Sister Jane, History's Forgotten Franklin

Fresh Air

For centuries, the memory of Jane Franklin has languished in brother Benjamin's shadow. While Ben is on currency and splashed across textbooks, Jane's life of curiosity and hardship has been forgotten. In Book of Ages, historian Jill Lepore draws a portrait of one of the American Revolution's "little women."

Meet Ben's Sister Jane, History's Forgotten Franklin

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Out Of Lahiri's Muddy 'Lowland,' An Ambitious Story Soars
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Out Of Lahiri's Muddy 'Lowland,' An Ambitious Story Soars

Fresh Air

Jhumpa Lahiri's new novel, The Lowland, is on the long list for the National Book Award and the shortlist for the Man Booker. Critic Maureen Corrigan says Lahiri should start making room in her trophy cabinet; The Lowland is a beautiful tale of a family transformed by political violence.

Out Of Lahiri's Muddy 'Lowland,' An Ambitious Story Soars

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Introducing 'Miss Anne,' The White Women Of A Black Renaissance

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Introducing 'Miss Anne,' The White Women Of A Black Renaissance

Fresh Air

That's the collective nickname Harlem-ites used for them: white women who risked family exile and social ostracism to be part of the movement. They were philanthropists and thrill seekers,educators and artists, hostesses and lovers. Carla Kaplan tells their stories in Miss Anne in Harlem.

Introducing 'Miss Anne,' The White Women Of A Black Renaissance

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From McDermott, An Extraordinary Story Of An Ordinary 'Someone'

The main character of Alice McDermott's Someone grew up in 1920s and '30s New York. Hulton Archive/Getty Images hide caption

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From McDermott, An Extraordinary Story Of An Ordinary 'Someone'

Fresh Air

Alice McDermott's characters can often be described as average, and Marie, the heroine of her latest novel, is no exception. But critic Maureen Corrigan says the power of McDermott's writing is that she can make even Marie's run-of-the-mill life one for the record books.

From McDermott, An Extraordinary Story Of An Ordinary 'Someone'

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A Gossipy, Nostalgic History Of A Publishing 'Hothouse'
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A Gossipy, Nostalgic History Of A Publishing 'Hothouse'

Fresh Air

The prestigious publishing company Farrar, Straus and Giroux helped define the intellectual life of post-World War II America. Boris Kachka's book explores the company's history, from its founding in 1946 to its sale to a German conglomerate in 1994 and beyond.

A Gossipy, Nostalgic History Of A Publishing 'Hothouse'

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'Love Affairs' Of A Hip, Young Literary Hound Dog
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'Love Affairs' Of A Hip, Young Literary Hound Dog

Fresh Air

The Love Affairs of Nathaniel P. is a debut novel about a sharp and assured young man living among young, aspiring literary types in Brooklyn. Book critic Maureen Corrigan says never before has a novel made her feel so grateful to be middle-aged.

'Love Affairs' Of A Hip, Young Literary Hound Dog

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With 'Arrangements' And 'The Rest,' Two Debut Novelists Arrive

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With 'Arrangements' And 'The Rest,' Two Debut Novelists Arrive

Fresh Air

Maggie Shipstead mocks the pretensions of New England WASPs, while Jessica Lott executes unexpected riffs on the student-professor relationship plot. Critic Maureen Corrigan reviews two stellar fiction newcomers.

With 'Arrangements' And 'The Rest,' Two Debut Novelists Arrive

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The Only Surprise In Rowling's 'Cuckoo's Calling' Is The Author

J.K. Rowling recently revealed herself to be the author of the mystery novel The Cuckoo's Calling. Ben Pruchnie/Getty Images hide caption

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The Only Surprise In Rowling's 'Cuckoo's Calling' Is The Author

Fresh Air

After "Robert Galbraith" was revealed to be the pen name for J.K. Rowling, many readers have been circling back to a "debut" novel they'd initially overlooked. Critic Maureen Corrigan says the mystery is respectable, but she will shelve it in the "I've read worse, but I've read better" category.

The Only Surprise In Rowling's 'Cuckoo's Calling' Is The Author

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American Mystery Finds A New Voice On 'The Bohemian Highway'

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American Mystery Finds A New Voice On 'The Bohemian Highway'

Fresh Air

This is the second mystery in Sara Gran's series featuring 40-ish bad-girl detective Claire DeWitt. Critic Maureen Corrigan says that reading a noir novel written by a Brooklyn-born author gave her a rush of private-eye, patriotic pride.

American Mystery Finds A New Voice On 'The Bohemian Highway'

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In 'TransAtlantic,' The Flight Is Almost Too Smooth

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In 'TransAtlantic,' The Flight Is Almost Too Smooth

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Colum McCann won the National Book Award for his 2009 novel, Let the Great World Spin, about a high-wire artist. Critic Maureen Corrigan says McCann's new novel, TransAtlantic, also has its head in the clouds.

In 'TransAtlantic,' The Flight Is Almost Too Smooth

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