Books

Bob Dylan performs in Chicago in 1978. He is the first American to claim the Nobel Prize in literature since Toni Morrison won in 1993.

Bob Dylan, Titan Of American Music, Wins 2016 Nobel Prize In Literature

10:33am October 13, 2016

by Colin Dwyer

The prolific musician is the first American to win the prize for lifetime literary achievement in 23 years. While Dylan long enjoyed favor as an outside shot for the award, few expected him to win.

In a recent series of photographic drawings, David Hockney, shown above in his studio, plays with the relationship between painting and photography.

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Arts

Artist David Hockney Says The Drive To Create Pictures 'Is Deep Within Us'

9:08am October 13, 2016

by Susan Stamberg

The nearly 80-year-old artist has written a book called A History of Pictures. It's chock-full of art he's loved looking at, including one painter he credits with inventing Hollywood lighting.

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The Humor In 'Crosstalk' Gets Lost In The Hubbub

7:00am October 13, 2016

by Amal El-Mohtar

Connie Willis' near-future tale of oversharing gone wrong follows a woman whose fiance wants to get an empathy-inducing brain operation for couples. The book aims for frothy farce, but falls flat.

After losing her family, Sarah Winchester became convinced that ghosts were haunting her; so she built an enormous, maze-like mansion — now known as the Winchester Mystery House — to ward them off. (At least that's how the story goes.)

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Skeletons In The Closet: What Ghost Stories Reveal About America's Past

5:47pm October 12, 2016

by NPR Staff

Why are so many ghosts unmarried women? And why doesn't Richmond, Va., have ghost stories about slavery? Writer Colin Dickey explores all that and more in a new book called Ghostland.

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Former Nobel Laureates React To Winning Literature Prize

4:33pm October 12, 2016

by Lynn Neary

The 109th Nobel Prize for Literature will be awarded Thursday morning. The Academy is known for its cloak-and-dagger methods to prevent leaks about its choice. NPR has a look at past winners and their reactions to winning.

How The 'Cannabis Catch-22' Keeps Marijuana Classified As A Harmful Drug

4:18pm October 12, 2016

Author John Hudak says federal law makes it hard to prove the medicinal value of marijuana. "As a Schedule 1 drug, it is very difficult to do research on the plant," he explains.

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In 'Singing Bones,' An Artist Recasts The Grimm Tales — Literally

7:00am October 12, 2016

by Etelka Lehoczky

Illustrator Shaun Tan puts his skills to a new test in The Singing Bones. He's taking the familiar Grimm fairy tales and condensing each one down to a single, wordless photo of one of his sculptures.

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Jonathan Safran Foer On Marriage, Religion And Universal Balances

1:51pm October 11, 2016

Safran Foer's new novel, Here I Am, is told from the points of view of different members of a Jewish family. He says it's about things falling apart — but also about "people trying to mend things."

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A Coming-Of Age Melodrama Is Steeped In Social Politics In 'The Mothers'

1:51pm October 11, 2016

by Maureen Corrigan

Britt Bennett's debut novel centers on three African-American friends dealing with their community's expectations and their own mistakes. Critic Maureen Corrigan says it is full of "mini epiphanies."

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American Philosophy by John Kaag (Raquel Zaldivar/NPR)

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A Neglected Library Leads To Love In 'American Philosophy'

7:00am October 11, 2016

by Heller McAlpin

John Kaag's new memoir-slash-philosophical treatise begins at a low point in his life, and follows his quest for answers to a dusty old library that proves to be a treasure trove of American thought.