Books

Books
Arts

'Most Blessed Of The Patriarchs' Digs Into Thomas Jefferson's Hypocrisy

12:07pm April 16, 2016

Thomas Jefferson is one of America's founders and, even after centuries, a mystery. Annette Gordon-Reed talks about the book she co-wrote with Peter Onuf, Most Blessed of the Patriarchs.

Queue Listen Now

Political Columnist Ron Fournier Talks New Book 'Love That Boy'

10:39am April 16, 2016

Tyler Fournier has Asperger's. His dad, Ron Fournier, columnist for The Atlantic and National Journal, tells NPR's Scott Simon about what he's learned from his son and his new book, "Love That Boy."

Queue Listen Now

Books
Arts

Pulitzer Prize Honors 100 Years Of Public Service Journalism

8:07am April 16, 2016

Monday, the Pulitzer Prize winners will be announced, and this year will mark the Pultizers' centennial. Scott Simon talks with Roy Harris, who's written a book about the awards, "Pulitzer's Gold."

A Talk With Pulitzer Prize Winners Past

8:07am April 16, 2016

To mark the 100th anniversary of the Pulitzer Prizes, Scott Simon will speak with past Pulitzer winners over the next few months. Simon previews this week's conversation with Annette Gordon-Reed.

Books
Arts

God And Sex Workers — Plus Cartoons — In 'Mary Wept'

7:00am April 16, 2016

by Etelka Lehoczky

Chester Brown's new graphic novel is hard to categorize — a work of lay scholarship about prostitution in the Bible that's simultaneously ideosyncratic, meticulous, imaginative and heretical.

Why Teens Are Impulsive, Addiction-Prone And Should Protect Their Brains

1:41pm April 15, 2016

Research shows that teenagers' brains are not fully insulated, which means that signals move slowly. Frances Jensen, who wrote The Teenage Brain, explains. Originally broadcast Jan. 28, 2015.

Queue Listen Now

Books
Arts

Gothic Family Drama At 'The Border Of Paradise'

7:23pm April 14, 2016

by Carmen Maria Machado

Esme Weijun Wang's novel — packed with family secrets, betrayals, a decaying house and a dramatic fire — could have seemed pulpy in lesser hands. But her restrained, beautiful prose makes it work.

Books
Arts

Seamus Heaney's Translation Of 'The Aeneid' Gets Posthumous Publication

6:33pm April 14, 2016

NPR's Ari Shapiro talks with poetry critic Tess Taylor about the publication of the sixth book of The Aeneid translated by Seamus Heaney and published posthumously.

Queue Listen Now

Following in the footsteps of authors like Charles Dickens, Julian Fellowes will release Belgravia as a serial.

Books
Arts

'Downton' Creator Brings Drama On The Installment Plan In 'Belgravia'

12:23pm April 14, 2016

by NPR Staff

Julian Fellowes' new novel is a twist on the form Charles Dickens made famous: the serial. Belgravia, the story of an ambitious family in 19th century England, will be released in chapters via an app.

Queue Listen Now

WATCH: Marbles Fight To The Bitter End For Victory

2:28pm April 13, 2016

by Camila Domonoske

Take a break from the news for a totally compelling, entirely gravity-driven race that captured hearts and minds on the Internet this week. Plus: literary parodies, because this is NPR.