Books

'Pope And Mussolini' Tells The 'Secret History' Of Fascism And The Church

9:49pm May 14, 2015

Historian David Kertzer says the Catholic Church lent strength and legitimacy to Mussolini's fascist regime. Kertzer recently won a Pulitzer Prize for his book. Originally broadcast Jan. 25, 2014.

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'Black Snow' Is A Lyrical Landscape Of Hope And Menace

1:31pm May 14, 2015

by Alan Cheuse

Former Dublin newsman Paul Lynch's new novel follows an Irish farmer in 1945, struggling against adversity. Critic Alan Cheuse says Lynch's prose is so gorgeous, it makes him want to give up writing.

The Millionaire and the Bard promo photo option 1

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'Millionaire' Tracks One Man's Fruitful Obsession With The Bard Of Avon

12:47pm May 14, 2015

by Trey Graham

Andrea Mays' new book digs into the history of Washington, D.C.'s Folger Shakespeare Library, the legacy of oilman Henry Clay Folger — who, like William Shakespeare, found his greatest fame in death.

The cover of Burning Down George Orwell's House, by Andrew Ervin.

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Misadventures And Absurdist Charm Take Root In 'George Orwell's House'

11:31am May 14, 2015

by Maureen Corrigan

In Andrew Ervin's comic novel, a disillusioned advertising executive rents the cottage once inhabited by dystopian author George Orwell. Critic Maureen Corrigan says the funny book has a serious core.

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The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, D.C., still has all 82 of the William Shakespeare first folios Henry Folger collected.

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A Fortune In Folios: One Man's Hunt For Shakespeare's First Editions

10:37am May 14, 2015

by NPR Staff

Henry Folger once spent nearly a year's salary on a William Shakespeare first folio. In The Millionaire and the Bard, Andrea Mays chronicles his obsession with collecting the playwright's work.

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In 'Paddy Buckley' Suffering Through Four Last Days With Dark Comedy

7:03am May 14, 2015

by Jason Sheehan

Jeremy Massey's debut novel centers on an undertaker with magical abilities — like communicating with dogs and flies. Critic Jason Sheehan says Massey has an eye for black humor.

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'Nimona' Shifts Shape And Takes Names — In Sensible Armor, Of Course

6:56pm May 13, 2015

by NPR Staff

Comics creator Noelle Stevenson has written for Boom! Studios and Marvel's new female Thor. Her webcomic Nimona, about a young shapeshifter with a streak of villainy, has just been released as a book.

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Tom Brokaw served as the anchor and managing editor of NBC Nightly News from 1982 until 2004.

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Tom Brokaw Reflects On Cancer, 'Nightly News' And His 'Lucky Life'

4:08pm May 13, 2015

The former NBC anchorman says his multiple myeloma diagnosis two years ago made him "more conscious of the fact that the days are more numbered." His new memoir is A Lucky Life Interrupted.

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Myth, Fantasy And Sci-Fi Dovetail In 'Archivist Wasp'

3:36pm May 13, 2015

by Jason Heller

Nicole Kornher-Stace's new novel follows Wasp, an Archivist tasked with hunting ghosts to scavenge information about the past for her primitive post-apocalyptic society — where all is not as it seems.

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Remembering A Troubled Brother In 'Lord Fear'

1:05pm May 13, 2015

by Heller McAlpin

Lucas Mann's new memoir pieces together family memories to create a portrait of his heroin-addicted older brother, who died of an overdose. Critic Heller McAlpin calls it difficult but necessary.