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Making Sense Of A Scandal-Fractured Family In 'Houses'

7:03am November 03, 2015

by Michael Schaub

Karen Olsson's novel follows a woman who returns home to care for her ailing father, but also in the hopes that she can get him to open up about how the Iran-Contra scandal ended his career.

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Actress Illeana Douglas Recounts A Life 'Lived In And Out Of The Movies'

1:34pm November 02, 2015

The actress, who appeared in Six Feet Under and Cape Fear, discusses growing up on a commune, working with (and dating) Scorsese and her various acting gigs. Douglas' memoir is I Blame Dennis Hopper.

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'My Father's Guitar' Plays On Perception And Memory

1:09pm November 02, 2015

by Heller McAlpin

Joseph Skibell's new collection of personal essays is full of offbeat life lessons, moving from whimsy to weight. And, as he puts it, though the stories are true, they're full of "imaginary things."

Books

J.K. Rowling On Her Nom De Plume Robert Galbraith

10:21am November 02, 2015

What's in a name? A lot it turns out, if you are J.K. Rowling and want to write anonymously. She tells David Greene why she took a pseudonym to write a series of crime novels.

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J.K. Rowling Explores Perils Of Fame In New Robert Galbraith Novel 'Career Of Evil'

9:58am November 02, 2015

by NPR Staff

J.K. Rowling has just published her third mystery under the pseudonym. This time, detective Cormoran Strike and his beautiful assistant are battling a serial killer — and their own dark pasts.

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Career of Evil, by Robert Galbraith (aka J.K. Rowling).

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Writing 'Career Of Evil' Gave Robert Galbraith (aka J.K. Rowling) Nightmares

9:50am November 02, 2015

by Barrie Hardymon

Rowling studied real criminal case studies to write the latest in the Cormoran Strike mystery series — "It was horrible," she says. But writing under a pseudonym remains "a very private pleasure."

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'The Familiar Vol. 2' Is Better, Stronger ... Weirder

7:03am November 01, 2015

by Jason Sheehan

Mark Z. Danielewski's epic saga (this is part two of a projected 27) is, on the surface, the story of a girl and her cat. But the typographical trickery and sheer weirdness make it much, much more.

'Ridiculous Fun' Helps A Blogger See Through Depression's Darkness

6:20am November 01, 2015

by Lynne Shallcross

Since childhood, humor writer Jenny Lawson has struggled with mental health issues. In her latest book, Furiously Happy, she explains what it means to fight back with spiteful happiness.

David Hare's plays and screenplays include Plenty, Skylight, The Blue Room, The Hours and Stuff Happens.

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Dramatist David Hare Says, Like Many Writers, He's Driven By Doubt

8:22am October 31, 2015

by NPR Staff

"My ability to see what's going on in a room or analyze what's going on inside a person comes from my own doubts about what's going on inside myself," he says. Hare's memoir is The Blue Touch Paper.

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Three Horror Classics Rise From The Grave For Halloween

7:03am October 31, 2015

by Jason Heller

If you like ghosts, ghouls and witches, you won't find them in The Case Against Satan, Perchance to Dream, and Songs of a Dead Dreamer — their horrors are more familiar and far more frightening.