Books

A daguerreotype of Jack-Be-Little Squash, an heirloom variety from plant conservationist Amy Goldman's farm in New York's Hudson Valley.

Books
Arts

In 'Heirloom Harvest,' Old-School Portraits Of Vegetable Treasures

3:50pm January 06, 2016

by Morgan McCloy

A leading expert of the daguerreotype started photographing a gardener's collection of heirloom vegetables 15 years ago. They've published a book to honor the unusual varieties in the collection.

The New York Public Library's Labs team developed a visualization of all 180,000-plus public domain items now available to the public as high-resolution downloads.

Books
Arts

New York Public Library Makes 180,000 High-Res Images Available Online

1:37pm January 06, 2016

by Camila Domonoske

Maps, posters, manuscripts, sheet music, drawings, photographs, letters, ancient texts: Thousands of items in the public domain are now offered as high-resolution downloads. No library card necessary.

Former paramedic Kevin Hazzard says he received "zero training" before driving an ambulance for the first time.

Paramedic Shares His Wild Ride Treating 'A Thousand Naked Strangers'

5:15pm January 05, 2016

Kevin Hazzard, who worked as an Atlanta paramedic, rescued people from choking, overdoses, cardiac arrest, gunshot wounds and a host of other medical emergencies. Respiratory calls were his favorites.

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Graphic Novelist Named National Ambassador For Young People's Literature

2:30pm January 05, 2016

NPR's Kelly McEvers talks with Gene Yang about becoming the first graphic novelist to be named the Library of Congress' National Ambassador for Young People's Literature.

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Books
Arts

Glittering 'Past' Channels Chekhov

1:43pm January 05, 2016

by Heller McAlpin

Tessa Hadley's new novel follows four siblings as they gather at a dilapidated family cottage for a bittersweet summer together. Critic Heller McAlpin praises Hadley's "wry compassion."

Author Gene Luen Yang is the author of books including American Born Chinese and Level Up.

Books
Arts

The War Over Comics For Kids Is Nearly Over, And Kids Are Winning

12:13pm January 05, 2016

by Glen Weldon

The selection of graphic novelist Gene Luen Yang as the latest National Ambassador for Young People's Literature signals an important shift in the effort to reunite kids and comics.

Books
Arts

Food Culture Gives Rise To New 'Eatymology'

8:01pm January 04, 2016

by NPR Staff

From brogurt to gastrosexual, humorist and food writer Josh Friedland has collected many of the new words born of our current foodie culture in a new food dictionary, Eatymology.

To mark the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare's death, the Folger Shakespeare Library is sending the first printed collection of all his plays out on tour.

Books
Arts

400 Years After His Death, Shakespeare's First Folio Goes Out On Tour

2:38pm January 04, 2016

by Susan Stamberg

The First Folio is the first printed collection of all of Shakespeare's plays, assembled by two of his buddies after he died. Without it, plays like Macbeth and Twelfth Night might not have survived.

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Author Profiles The 'Traumatized People' Living In The World's Largest Refugee Camp

2:35pm January 04, 2016

Founded in 1991 as a temporary shelter for Somalis, the Dadaab complex in Kenya now houses nearly half a million refugees. Ben Rawlence profiles nine of its residents in his new book, City of Thorns.

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Books
Arts

In A Dark Time, The Eye Begins to See: A 2016 Poetry Preview

11:16am January 03, 2016

2016 brings with it an exciting crop of poetry books. Here are our picks for the best verse of the new year.