Books

Books
Arts

In 'Doubter's Almanac,' Troubled Math Genius Tries To Solve The Unsolvable

6:25pm February 17, 2016

by NPR Staff

Author Ethan Canin says two odd talents contributed to his main character becoming a mathematician: He can always tell where he is on Earth and he can draw things perfectly.

Queue Listen Now

The Wilhelm Gustloff sank after being hit by Russian torpedoes on Jan. 30, 1945. More than 9,000 people died.

Books
Arts

More Died On This WWII Ship Than On The Titanic And Lusitania Combined

2:25pm February 17, 2016

by NPR Staff

On its final voyage, Germany's Wilhelm Gustloff carried soldiers and thousands of civilians, many of them children. Young adult author Ruta Sepetys revisits the ship's 1945 sinking in Salt to the Sea.

Queue Listen Now

Bibimbap is one of the best-known Korean dishes. According to chef Deuki Hong and writer Matt Rodbard, there really isn't a definitive recipe. "The name translates to 'mixed rice,' and, in practice, rice is the dish's only constant," the authors write in

Books
Arts

Welcome To 'Koreatown,' A Cookbook To Tempt American Taste Buds

2:18pm February 17, 2016

by Joel Rose

From LA to New York, Chef Deuki Hong and writer Matt Rodbard spent two years eating in Korean-American communities. Their new cookbook captures both well-known and obscure flavors of this cuisine.

Queue Listen Now

Polish nuns do most of the cooking at the Vatican. Here, they prepare sweets for the Feast of St. Nicholas.

Holy Ravioli! Cookbook Reveals The Vatican's Favorite Recipes

1:34pm February 17, 2016

by Tove Danovich

We all have comfort foods — even Pope Francis and the men who guard him. The Vatican Cookbook is a tour of life and food in the world's smallest country, as told by members of the Swiss Guard.

'Strange Gods' Chronicles The History Of Secularism And Conversion

1:27pm February 17, 2016

Journalist Susan Jacoby tells Fresh Air that more than half of Americans will change religion at least once in their adult life time. Her new book is Strange Gods: A Secular History of Conversion.

Queue Listen Now

Books
Arts

Book Review: 'The Darkening Trapeze,' Larry Lewis

5:10pm February 16, 2016

Tess Taylor reviews a posthumous collection by Larry Levis, The Darkening Trapeze.

Queue Listen Now

Sue Klebold plays in the snow with a young Dylan. "He's like an invisible child that I carry in my arms everywhere I go, always," she says.

Columbine Shooter's Mother: I Carry Him 'Everywhere I Go, Always'

3:27pm February 16, 2016

Sue Klebold says she wishes she'd asked her son Dylan "the kinds of questions that would've encouraged him to open up." Published 17 years after the massacre, her new memoir is A Mother's Reckoning.

Queue Listen Now

A Mexican soldier stands guard next to marijuana packages in Tijuana following the discovery of a tunnel under the U.S.-Mexico border in 2010.

'Narconomics': How The Drug Cartels Operate Like Wal-Mart And McDonald's

12:47pm February 16, 2016

The cartels' business models are similar to those of big-box stores and franchises, says Tom Wainwright, former Mexico City bureau chief for The Economist. His new book is Narconomics.

Queue Listen Now

Books

'Breaking Wild' Explores Dark Spaces In Nature And In Ourselves

8:11am February 16, 2016

David Greene talks to author Diane Les Becquets about her new novel Breaking Wild which vividly evokes Colorado's rugged backcountry.

Queue Listen Now

'Indentured' Explores Efforts To Fight Mistreatment Of College Athletes

7:23pm February 15, 2016

College sports rake in billions, but the athletes' pay just covers college costs. NPR's Ari Shapiro talks with author Joe Nocera about Indentured: The Inside Story of the Rebellion Against the NCAA.

Queue Listen Now