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Author Interviews

'The Thirty Names of Night': A Story Of Self-Discovery And Self-Acceptance

NPR's Ailsa Chang talks with Zeyn Joukhadar about his new novel, The Thirty Names of Night. It's about a Syrian American transgender man reckoning with the histories of his family and his homeland.

'The Thirty Names of Night': A Story Of Self-Discovery And Self-Acceptance

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Author Tracks The Life And Liberal Legacy Of Sen. Ted Kennedy

Fresh Air

A liberal voice in the U.S. Senate for decades, Kennedy led a life marked by tragedy and scandal. Historian Neal Gabler talks about the first volume of his two-part biography, Catching the Wind.

Author Tracks The Life And Liberal Legacy Of Sen. Ted Kennedy

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Politics

How To Fix The Weaknesses The Pandemic Exposed In The U.S.

NPR's Rachel Martin talks to Bloomberg Editor-in-chief John Micklethwait — coauthor of The Wake-Up Call — who says the pandemic has revealed weaknesses in the U.S., and lays out a way to fix it.

How To Fix The Weaknesses The Pandemic Exposed In The U.S.

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Peter Guralnick Is 'Looking To Get Lost' In The Stories Of American Music Icons

Peter Guralnick at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in 2015. His latest book, Looking to Get Lost: Adventures in Music and Writing, is a collection of essays. Rick Diamond/Getty Images for Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum hide caption

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Rick Diamond/Getty Images for Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum

Music Interviews

Peter Guralnick Is 'Looking To Get Lost' In The Stories Of American Music Icons

Rachel Martin speaks with the celebrated writer about Looking to Get Lost, an essay collection based on his interviews with legends of early rock and roll, blues and country.

Peter Guralnick Is 'Looking To Get Lost' In The Stories Of American Music Icons

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Misty Copeland Celebrates Ballet's Beautiful Friendships In 'Bunheads'

Misty Copeland based the characters in Bunheads on the ballet friends she grew up with. Setor Fiadzigbey/G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers hide caption

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Setor Fiadzigbey/G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers

Picture This

Misty Copeland Celebrates Ballet's Beautiful Friendships In 'Bunheads'

Copeland hopes her book will help young dancers feel comfortable in the studio and on the stage. She says illustrator Setor Fiadzigbey channeled "superhero energy" into dancers leaping off the page.

Misty Copeland Celebrates Ballet's Beautiful Friendships In 'Bunheads'

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Homeira Qaderi Reflects On Motherhood In Her New Memoir

NPR's Scott Simon speaks to Homeira Qaderi about her memoir Dancing in the Mosque: An Afghan Mother's Letter to Her Son, the story motherhood and womanhood in her native country.

Homeira Qaderi Reflects On Motherhood In Her New Memoir

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In His New Book, Declan Walsh Tells Story Of Pakistan Through Lives Of 9 Individuals

NPR's Ari Shapiro speaks with journalist Declan Walsh about his new book, The Nine Lives of Pakistan, and how Pakistan has survived decades of political and military crises.

In His New Book, Declan Walsh Tells Story Of Pakistan Through Lives Of 9 Individuals

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Malcolm X Biography Wins National Book Award

Tamara Payne won the National Book Award for a book largely written by her father, Les Payne. It's called The Dead Are Arising, a biography of Malcolm X. Payne speaks with NPR's Steve Inskeep.

Malcolm X Biography Wins National Book Award

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Remembering Travel Writer And Memoirist Jan Morris

Fresh Air

Morris, who died Nov. 20, transitioned to female in 1972 when she was 46. She later reflected on gender in her memoir, Conundrum. Originally broadcast in 1989.

Remembering Travel Writer And Memoirist Jan Morris

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Chef David Chang On Depression, Being A Dad And The Burden Of 'Authenticity'

James Beard Award-winning chef David Chang says fatherhood changed the way he cooks: "I had never been in a position where I'm trying to generally feed someone else with love and I just want to nurture them." Andrew Bezek/Penguin Random House hide caption

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Andrew Bezek/Penguin Random House

Chef David Chang On Depression, Being A Dad And The Burden Of 'Authenticity'

Fresh Air

The Momofuku chef says COVID-19 has introduced "seismic" changes to his industry. "We're doing anything and everything to stay afloat," he says. Chang's new memoir is Eat a Peach.

Chef David Chang On Depression, Being A Dad And The Burden Of 'Authenticity'

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Kwame Alexander Offers New Poems On Race And Hope As 'Psalms And Balms' For The Soul

Morning Edition poet in residence Kwame Alexander on Oct. 23, 2018 in New York City. Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images hide caption

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Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images

Books

Kwame Alexander Offers New Poems On Race And Hope As 'Psalms And Balms' For The Soul

In Light For The World To See: A Thousand Words On Race And Hope, Kwame Alexander writes of the killing of George Floyd, Colin Kaepernick's kneeling protests, and the election of Barack Obama.

Kwame Alexander Offers New Poems On Race And Hope As 'Psalms And Balms' For The Soul

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Ta-Nehisi Coates On HBO Adaptation Of 'Between The World And Me'

NPR's Audie Cornish speaks with American author and journalist Ta-Nehisi Coates about the HBO adaptation of his book Between the World and Me and what it means in 2020.

Ta-Nehisi Coates On HBO Adaptation Of 'Between The World And Me'

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'Waste' Activist Digs Into The Sanitation Crisis Affecting The Rural Poor

Catherine Coleman Flowers is the founding director of the Alabama Center for Rural Enterprise. Michael Carson/The New Press hide caption

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Michael Carson/The New Press

Shots - Health News

'Waste' Activist Digs Into The Sanitation Crisis Affecting The Rural Poor

Fresh Air

In 2017, a study reported one in three people in one rural Alabama county had been exposed to hookworm. Catherine Coleman Flowers says the study reveals big gaps in sanitation in rural America.

'Waste' Activist Digs Into The Sanitation Crisis Affecting The Rural Poor

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'Even As We Breathe': A First Novel From A Teacher Who Writes For Her Students

An archival postcard of the Grove Park Inn in Asheville, N.C., where much of the novel Even As We Breathe is set. Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images hide caption

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Books

'Even As We Breathe': A First Novel From A Teacher Who Writes For Her Students

The book is a mystery of sorts, set at an upscale North Carolina resort during World War II. Annette Saunooke Clapsaddle teaches at a high school with a student population that's 30% Native American.

'Even As We Breathe': A First Novel From A Teacher Who Writes For Her Students

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