Author Interviews

Books
Arts

'Piety & Power' Considers The Life And Ambition Of Vice President Mike Pence

2:57pm September 26, 2019

by Dave Davies

Political reporter Tom LoBianco has covered Pence in both Indiana and Washington, D.C. He describes the vice president as a man of faith who is willing to put political ambition ahead of his beliefs.

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Ta-Nehisi Coates' 2014 Atlantic Magazine cover story, "The Case for Reparations," led to a national conversation about how to reckon with injustices resulting from years of slavery. He won a National Book Award in 2015 for Between the World and Me.

Books
Arts

Ta-Nehisi Coates On Magic, Memory And The Underground Railroad

12:17pm September 24, 2019

by Terry Gross

"Magic is often very much a part" of the story of enslavement and escape, Coates says. His new novel, The Water Dancer, imagines a world in which teleportation helps power the Underground Railroad.

Books

Author of 'The Recovering,' And 'The Empathy Exams' Releases Essays

5:07am September 24, 2019

NPR's Noel King talks to Leslie Jamison about her latest collection of essays: Make It Scream, Make It Burn.

Books

Ta-Nehisi Coates Explores The Tension Between Escape, Family In 'The Water Dancer'

12:09am September 24, 2019

NPR's Audie Cornish speaks with writer Ta-Nehisi Coates about his new novel, The Water Dancer.

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Chanel Miller poses for a portrait before her interview on Sept. 23 at NPR's bureau in New York City. Miller was sexually assaulted by Brock Turner in 2015. The lenient sentence Turner received elicited widespread controversy and helped inspire new legisl

Chanel Miller, Sexual Assault Survivor, On The 'Immense Relief' Of Going Public

4:03pm September 23, 2019

She was long known only as the victim of Brock Turner, who got a lenient sentence for assaulting her. Now, Miller tells NPR she can "finally exist in the world without having to hide anything."

Identical twins Sara (left) and Tegan Quin began making music together as teenagers.

Tegan And Sara Find Pain — And Unexpected Joy — In 'High School'

3:47pm September 23, 2019

by Terry Gross

Music duo Tegan and Sara revisit their teen years and their early music in a new memoir and companion album. Listening back to the songs they wrote, Sara says: "I was struck by the joy in our voices."

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Books
Arts

In Patchett's 'The Dutch House,' Siblings Reckon With Profound Loss

10:02am September 22, 2019

NPR's Melissa Block speaks to Ann Patchett about her new novel, "The Dutch House." The author talks about her fascination with family bonds and how she maps her intricate plots.

Books
Arts

A Boy And A Pup Come To One Another's Rescue In 'The Dog Who Lost His Bark'

8:31am September 22, 2019

by Samantha Balaban

The Dog Who Lost His Bark is a story in two halves, says author Eoin Colfer: "In the first half the boy heals the dog, and in the second half the dog heals the boy." It's illustrated by P.J. Lynch.

Books
Arts

Navigating Culture And Crushes In 'Frankly In Love'

7:46pm September 21, 2019

by Scott Simon

David Yoon's young adult debut follows Frank Li, a Korean American kid who concocts a plan to keep his strict parents from finding out that he's dating a non-Korean girl — what could go wrong?

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Books

'Show Won't Go On': Book Compiles Performers Who Died On Stage

7:46am September 21, 2019

NPR's Scott Simon interviews Jeff Abraham and Burt Kearns about their new book: The Show Won't Go On: The Most Shocking, Bizarre, and Historic Deaths of Performers Onstage.