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Literature

NPR Books | Oct 07, 2012

Page And Screen Make Peace In 'Mr. Penumbra'

The debut novel of Robin Sloan, a former Twitter and Current TV employee, tells the thoughtful, magical story of Clay, a worker in a mysterious literary emporium. Aside from the occasional groaner insight, the buoyant narrative demonstrates Sloan's gift of charismatic prose. By Michael Schaub   

Book Review | Oct 03, 2012

One City One Book: Rebecca Solnit's A Paradise Built in Hell

If there ever was an apt choice for a book to recommend to the Bay Area, Rebecca Solnit's A Paradise Built in Hell is probably it. Solnit wonders whether society in the absence of authority will implode, and explores the history of five disasters for an answer. By Ingrid Rojas Contreras   

The Writers' Block | Oct 02, 2012

Letters from Robots

Diana Salier, one of the five writers taking part in The Writers' Block Lit Crawl event "New Kids on the Block" on October 13th, reads selected poems from Letters to Robots. By Diana Salier   



Literature | Oct 01, 2012

The Silent History: A Digital Novel Tied to Reality

What is possible when fiction and technology merge in a meaningful and innovative way? McSweeney's alums Eli Horowitz and Russell Quinn aim to find out with today's release of The Silent History, a serialized app that is part medical case study, part mystery novel, and part real-life scavenger hunt. By Sarah Hotchkiss   

NPR Books | Sep 30, 2012

The Anti-Romance Novel I Didn't Know I Needed

Elissa Schappell was 13 and in search of a delicious romance novel when she stumbled on Erica Jong's feminist call to arms, Fear of Flying. It didn't resonate with her at the time, but later she appreciated its message. Is there a book you've changed your mind about? Tell us in the comments. By Elissa Schappell   

The Writers' Block | Sep 24, 2012

Our Generation Is One of Moving Back in with Your Mother

D.W. Lichtenberg, one of the five writers taking part in The Writers' Block Lit Crawl event "New Kids on the Block" on October 13th, reads "Our Generation Is One of Moving Back in with Your Mother." By D. W. Lichtenberg   



NPR Books | Sep 23, 2012

Renaissance CSI: Machiavelli-Da Vinci Detective Duo

In The Malice of Fortune, two of the biggest names of the Renaissance team up to track a killer. Michael Ennis pairs the ruthless political philosopher and the genius artist in a pulse-quickening, historical whodunit. By Lynn Neary   

The Writers' Block | Sep 17, 2012

Chapbook Poems

Alli Warren, one of the five writers taking part in The Writers' Block Lit Crawl event "New Kids on the Block" on October 13th, reads selected poems. By Alli Warren   



NPR Books | Sep 16, 2012

'Lose Her' Finds Power In Resonant Voices

Junot Diaz's third book, This Is How You Lose Her, is a collection of stories, many narrated by recurring character Yunior. Diaz's voice-driven prose describes characters who are simultaneously appealing and appalling, says NPR critic Carmen Gimenez Smith. By Carmen Gimenez Smith   

The Writers' Block | Sep 10, 2012

People Who Are Good People

Andrea Kneeland, one of the five writers taking part in The Writers' Block Lit Crawl event "New Kids on the Block" on October 13th, reads from her short story "People Who Are Good People." By Andrea Kneeland   



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Author Interviews
  • Siblings' Separation Haunts In 'Kite Runner' Author's Latest

    Khaled Hosseini's new novel, like his two earlier works, is set partly in Afghanistan — but this time, political turmoil isn't a major element of the plot. Instead, And The Mountains Echoed is a story of a family's loss that spans decades and continents.

  • Stories Of Hope Amid America's 'Unwinding'

    When the factory she worked at closed down, Tammy Thomas reinvented herself as a community organizer; and when Dean Price's truck stop business went belly up, he became a champion of biofuel. In a new book, George Packer examines how ordinary people are adapting to a new America.

  • 'Waiting To Be Heard' No More, Amanda Knox Speaks Out

    Less than two months into her study abroad program in Italy, Amanda Knox was accused and eventually convicted of murdering her roommate, Meredith Kercher. After her conviction was overturned, Knox returned home to Seattle — and now faces a potential retrial. Knox tells her story in a new memoir.

  • Dan Brown: 'Inferno' Is 'The Book That I Would Want To Read'

    Dan Brown, author of the blockbuster The Da Vinci Code, is back with his first novel in four years. Inferno follows academic hero Robert Langdon on a chase through Italy as he attempts to avert a biological catastrophe.

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