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Books: Book Reviews, Book News, and Author Interviews NPR's brings you news about books and authors along with our picks for great reads. Interviews, reviews, the NPR Bestseller Lists, New in Paperback and much more.

Books

The Velvet Rope Economy

National

From Private Helicopters To Concierge Doctors, Inequality Is A 'Big Business'

Fresh Air

Nelson Schwartz, author of The Velvet Rope Economy, says special privileges for the super-rich are dividing America: "The result is less sympathy, less empathy and a sort of a harder-edge society."

From Private Helicopters To Concierge Doctors, Inequality Is A 'Big Business'

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Feeling Cooped Up? Let Your Mind Fly Free With 'What It's Like To Be A Bird'

An illustration of a Common Yellowthroat is part of David Sibley's new book, What it's Like to be a Bird. David Sibley/Albert A. Knopf hide caption

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David Sibley/Albert A. Knopf

The Coronavirus Crisis

Feeling Cooped Up? Let Your Mind Fly Free With 'What It's Like To Be A Bird'

WGBH Radio

People sheltering-in-place due to the coronavirus pandemic may want to know more about the lives of the birds they see outside their window. Illustrator David Allen Sibley's new book might help.

Feeling Cooped Up? Let Your Mind Fly Free With 'What It's Like To Be A Bird'

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The Women in Black

Review

Book Reviews

Need A Mental Escape? These Books Offer Solace In Troubled Times

Fresh Air

With much of the world on lockdown due to the pandemic, critic Maureen Corrigan turns to books for companionship. Her recommended reads span fiction, nonfiction and poetry — some old, some new.

Need A Mental Escape? These Books Offer Solace In Troubled Times

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A Haunting Home Movie Inspired Lois Lowry To Write 'On The Horizon'
HMH Books for Young Readers

Picture This

A Haunting Home Movie Inspired Lois Lowry To Write 'On The Horizon'

The film, made in 1939 or 1940, shows Lowry as a child playing on the beach, with a ship in the distance. She later learned it was the USS Arizona, which sank during the attack on Pearl Harbor.

A Haunting Home Movie Inspired Lois Lowry To Write 'On The Horizon'

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It's 'Alchemy': Alan Zweibel Explains How He Helps 'Funny People Be Funnier'

Alan Zweibel chronicles four decades of comedic collaborations in his new memoir Laugh Lines. Jill Lotenberg/Abrams hide caption

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Jill Lotenberg/Abrams

Author Interviews

It's 'Alchemy': Alan Zweibel Explains How He Helps 'Funny People Be Funnier'

Zweibel began writing for Borscht Belt comics in 1972, earning $7 per joke. His memoir Laugh Lines chronicles four decades of comedic collaborations with some of the biggest names in the business.

It's 'Alchemy': Alan Zweibel Explains How He Helps 'Funny People Be Funnier'

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The Last Emperox

Author Interviews

Set 1,500 Years From Now, 'The Last Emperox' Is Still Pretty Timely

In the last installment of Scalzi's Interdependency trilogy, a ruler must fight to save a galactic empire threatened by greed, complacency and the collapse of vital resources. Sound familiar?

Set 1,500 Years From Now, 'The Last Emperox' Is Still Pretty Timely

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The Other Bennet Sister

Author Interviews

Elizabeth's More Serious Sister Mary Takes The Spotlight In 'The Other Bennet Sister'

Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice follows Elizabeth Bennet's effort to marry. Now, Janice Hadlow has made the least of the sisters in that story, Mary, the star of her own novel of self-discovery.

Elizabeth's More Serious Sister Mary Takes The Spotlight In 'The Other Bennet Sister'

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Science Is For Everyone. Until It's Not.

Author Brandon Taylor. William J. Adams/Riverhead Books hide caption

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William J. Adams/Riverhead Books

Short Wave

Science Is For Everyone. Until It's Not.

Brandon Taylor's story has a happy ending. Today he's a successful writer whose debut novel 'Real Life' received glowing reviews earlier this year. But his success only underscores what science lost when Brandon walked away from a graduate biochemistry program in 2016. He tells host Maddie Sofia why he left, and what he misses.

Science Is For Everyone. Until It's Not.

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If It Bleeds

The Coronavirus Crisis

Stephen King Is Sorry You Feel Like You're Stuck In A Stephen King Novel

Fresh Air

The horror writer says he understands why fans have said the COVID-19 pandemic feels like living inside one of his novels. King says he doesn't feel panic or terror, but rather, a "gnawing anxiety."

Stephen King Is Sorry You Feel Like You're Stuck In A Stephen King Novel

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The Enduring Afterglow Of Ravi Shankar's Life In Music

Pictured here in his late 20s, Ravi Shankar was hugely important in popularizing Indian classical music in Western pop music. He would have turned 100 years old today. Courtesy of the Shankar family hide caption

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Courtesy of the Shankar family

Music News

The Enduring Afterglow Of Ravi Shankar's Life In Music

Ravi Shankar took Indian classical music to world stages and introduced the sitar to Western audiences. His influence can still be felt today, 100 years after his birth.

The Enduring Afterglow Of Ravi Shankar's Life In Music

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See You on Sunday

The Coronavirus Crisis

Cooking During COVID-19: Family Meals And Fantasies Of Future Dinner Parties

Fresh Air

Food writer Sam Sifton says the resurgence of family meals is one of the "precious few good things" to come of the pandemic. He says his family is eating a lot of tinned fish and cabbage these days.

Cooking During COVID-19: Family Meals And Fantasies Of Future Dinner Parties

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