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'Vera Kelly' Finds The Connections Between Deep Cover And The Closet

7:00am June 12, 2018

by Jean Zimmerman

The personal is most definitely political in Rosalie Knecht's crisp, lively and subversive novel about a queer woman who discovers her early life in the closet makes her well-suited for espionage.

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Arts

Somali Refugee Abdi Nor Iftin: 'I Am Here To Make America Great'

7:54am June 10, 2018

by Lulu Garcia-Navarro

Back in Somalia, Abdi Nor Iftin was nicknamed "Abdi the American," and his love of this country put him in danger — but then he got a visa to come here. Iftin has a new memoir out: Call Me American.

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Arts

Sweet And Hot, 'The Kiss Quotient' Really Adds Up

7:00am June 10, 2018

by Kamrun Nesa

Author Helen Hoang used her own experience on the autism spectrum to build the character of Stella, a straight-laced numbers whiz who falls for the escort she hires to help her work on relationships.

Ron Stallworth (pictured here in 1975) was the first black detective in the history of the Colorado Springs Police Department.

How A Black Detective Infiltrated The KKK

4:44pm June 09, 2018

by Scott Simon

In Black Klansman, Ron Stallworth writes about an undercover investigation in which he — an African-American police detective — convinced the Ku Klux Klan that he was one of them.

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Books

Carrie Fisher And Debbie Reynolds Remembered In 'My Girls'

8:10am June 09, 2018

Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds died within hours of each other. Todd Fisher talks with NPR's Scott Simon about losing his sister and mother and his new memoir My Girls.

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In 'Death Notice,' The Thrills Don't Quite Translate

7:00am June 09, 2018

by Jean Zimmerman

Zhou Haohui's high-octane cop drama Death Notice aims for Dragon Tattoo-type thrills, but gets dragged down by flat characterizations and odd romantic flourishes.

Poetry Is Making A Big Comeback In The U.S., Survey Results Reveal

6:47pm June 08, 2018

by Colin Dwyer

The National Endowment for the Arts says that since its last survey period in 2012, the number of U.S. adults reading poetry had nearly doubled. And the agency says social media may be responsible.

Tommy Orange's debut novel features a wide cast of characters who are all Native American, with varying degrees of connection to the culture. He says, "I wanted to represent a range of human experience as a way to humanize Native people."

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Native American Author Tommy Orange Feels A 'Burden To Set The Record Straight'

5:00am June 08, 2018

by Lynn Neary

In his debut novel, There There, Orange explores what it means to be an urban Indian. He says, "Native people look like a lot of different things. ... And we just need a new story to build from."

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Former Obama Administration Insider Says U.S. Is Losing Its Standing On International Stage

4:23pm June 07, 2018

Ben Rhodes witnessed all eight years of Barack Obama's presidency from inside the White House, helping the president make key national security and foreign policy decisions. NPR's Audie Cornish talks with Rhodes about his new memoir about those years, The World as It Is.

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Mariam Sharma Hits the Road, by Sheba Karim

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Arts

'Mariam Sharma' Nails The Fun Road-Trip Vibe

10:00am June 07, 2018

by Caitlyn Paxson

Summer is the season for road-trips, and Mariam Sharma Hits the Road makes for a saucy, yet emotional ride, following three Pakistani-American teens on a journey through the Deep South.