Arts

Arts

Leap Day Babies: Just How Good (Or Bad) Is It To Have A Birthday Every 4 Years?

8:21am February 29, 2020

NPR's Scott Simon speaks with Raenell Dawn, co-founder of the Honor Society of Leap Year Day Babies, about the pros and cons of having a birthday on Feb. 29.

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Books
Arts

'Finna' Warns: Beware Of The Fuzzy Chairs

7:00am February 29, 2020

by Amal El-Mohtar

Nino Cipri's magical multiworld adventure is set in a Swedish big box furniture store — no, not that one — where the showroom floor is prone to interdimensional wormholes that swallow shoppers.

Arts

Aidy Bryant On 'Shrill,' 'SNL' Thrills, And Not Feeling Bad About Her Body

1:20pm February 28, 2020

by Terry Gross

Bryant co-writes and stars in the comedy series Shrill. Now in its second season on Hulu, it's based on Lindy West's book about identifying as fat and a feminist. Originally broadcast March 14, 2019.

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Cover photo of The Resisters, by Gish Jen

Books
Arts

Dystopian Novel 'The Resisters' Drives Home The Perils Of Our Wired World

1:20pm February 28, 2020

by Maureen Corrigan

Gish Jen weaves baseball into her inspired vision of how Americans bought into the fantasy of less stress and more free time. As speculative fiction goes, The Resisters hits close to the bone.

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Strung Out: One Last Hit and Other Lies That Nearly Killed Me, by Erin Khar

Books
Arts

'Strung Out' Tackles Pain, Stigma And Shame Of Drug Use

11:44am February 28, 2020

by Ilana Masad

Erin Khar's son, at 12, asked her if she'd ever used drugs; this book is her answer: "When we write the truth, when we write about our experiences, we reflect back what it means to be a human being."

Plácido Domingo at an event in Madrid, Spain in 2016.

Plácido Domingo Backpedals On Public Apology; Meanwhile, Union Seeks Leakers

6:15pm February 27, 2020

by Anastasia Tsioulcas

"I never behaved aggressively" towards women, the opera star says, while the performers' union that investigated his alleged behavior attempts to ferret out who provided information to the press.

Sir Richard McCreadie (Steve Coogan) displays the veneer(s) of pleasantness in Michael Winterbottom's Greed.

Arts

'Greed': A Scabrous Satire Of A Megalomaniacal Mogul

5:56pm February 27, 2020

by Ella Taylor

Michael Winterbottom's sardonic tale of an amoral British businessman (Steve Coogan) who throws himself a shameless birthday party goes for the jugular.

Celia (Elisabeth Moss) can't see ya, in The Invisible Man.

Arts

'The Invisible Man': When Danger Is Present — And Clear

5:00pm February 27, 2020

by Scott Tobias

Leigh Whannell's update of the H.G. Wells novel traffics in a "psychological realism that's unusual for the genre," which effectively transforms it into "Gaslight with a horror twist."

Gilda (Catrinel Marlon) threatens to send bullets whistling through the air in The Whistlers.

Arts

Romanian Caper 'The Whistlers': A Surprisingly Fast, Peppy, Complex Tune

5:00pm February 27, 2020

by Mark Jenkins

Writer-director Corneliu Porumboiu's crime flick is "brighter and literally more colorful" than the slow-burn, gray-palette fare you might be expecting.

The Hidden Girl and Other Stories, by Ken Liu

Books
Arts

'The Hidden Girl' Is Smart, But Not Entirely Human

10:00am February 27, 2020

by Jason Sheehan

Ken Liu is an acclaimed author, translator and poet who's won multiple awards for his short fiction. But his new collection doesn't come together — some stories are gorgeous, while others fall flat.