Books

The World Doesn't Require You, by Rion Amilcar Scott

Books
Arts

Characters Shine In Powerful, Dreamy 'The World Doesn't Require You'

10:00am August 23, 2019

by Michael Schaub

Rion Amilcar Scott's second story collection returns readers to his fictional town of Cross River, Md., site of America's only successful slave uprising, and God is one of the best-known residents.

Books
Arts

'Going Dutch' Is A Charming, Well-Observed Debut

7:00am August 23, 2019

by Ilana Masad

James Gregor's novel about a gay man who falls into an intense relationship with a woman mixes old-fashioned style and contemporary setting. His observations on human nature are precisely rendered.

Books

Rion Amilcar Scott Returns To Cross River In 'The World Doesn't Require You'

4:58pm August 22, 2019

NPR's Audie Cornish talks with author Rion Amilcar Scott about his new collection of short stories entitled, The World Doesn't Require You.

Cover detail of Late Migrations, by Margaret Renkl

Books
Arts

A Perfect Summer Book, 'Late Migrations' Reminds Us Of Life's Beauty And Fragility

12:19pm August 22, 2019

by Maureen Corrigan

Margaret Renkl's vivid and original essays capture the cycle of life in a new book that will make you want to stay put, reread and savor everything about the moment.

Into the Planet: My Life as a Cave Diver, by Jill Heinerth

Books
Arts

'Into The Planet' Captures Cave Diving's Mortal Risks — And All lts Glory

10:19am August 22, 2019

by Gabino Iglesias

Jill Heinerth's memoir leads with her thoughts as she wonders if she will die underwater, setting the tone for an honest and engaging book about life as one of the world's top cave divers.

The Trojan War Museum, by Ayse Papatya Bucak

Books
Arts

'The Trojan War Museum' Is A Gorgeous Gallery Of Dreams

10:00am August 22, 2019

by Marcela Davison Avilés

Ayşe Papatya Bucak's debut collection is full of musical, lyrical stories that occupy a dreamscape of Turkish culture, art history and surprise encounters between humans, ghosts and djinns.

Books

Alexandra Fuller Turns The Lens On Her Father In Her Memoir 'Travel Light, Move Fast'

6:04pm August 21, 2019

NPR's Ailsa Chang talks with author Alexandra Fuller about her memoir, Travel Light, Move Fast. It centers on her father, Tim Fuller, a self-exiled black sheep who left England for Africa.

Queue Listen Now

Linguist Gretchen McCulloch likens emojis to digital gestures in her book, Because Internet: Understanding the New Rules of Language.

Books
Arts

Ironic, Informal And Expressive, 'New Rules Of Language' Evolve Online

12:43pm August 21, 2019

by Geoff Nunberg

A lively new book by Gretchen McCulloch dissects the common vernacular that forms the cornerstone of online communication. Because Internet parses emojis, lols and punctuation — or lack thereof.

Queue Listen Now

The Outlaw Ocean: Journeys Across the Last Untamed Frontier, by Ian Urbina

Books
Arts

'The Outlaw Ocean': A Forgotten Frontier Where Slavery And Illegal Activities Abound

11:46am August 21, 2019

by Gabino Iglesias

Ian Urbina combines stellar investigative reporting skills and straightforward writing to convey what lies on the other side of the ocean — opposite cruise-ship vacations to beautiful beaches.

Floating Coast: An Environmental History of the Bering Strait, by Bathsheba Demuth

Books
Arts

'Floating Coast' Reads Like A Eulogy To The Natural World — With A Sliver Of Hope

9:01am August 21, 2019

by Genevieve Valentine

The triumph of this book is how Bathsheba Demuth pulls seemingly disparate threads together into a net of actions and consequences from which the whales, the Yupik, and our children can't escape.