Books: Whats the Buzz from National Public Radio

Here is the latest Book News from National Public Radio.

For A Young Irish Artist And Author, Words Are Anchored In Images
“I see the world and then I describe it,” says Sara Baume. Her debut novel, Spill Simmer Falter Wither, is a “very atypical love story” between a troubled man and his adopted one-eyed dog.

‘The Rope’ Chronicles A Good Death, And A Bad Start
Kanan Makiya’s new novel, The Rope, is named for the rope used to execute Saddam Hussein. It follows one Shi’ite militiaman from the day of Saddam’s fall through the tumultuous years that follow.

‘Putin Country’ Offers A Glimpse Inside ‘Real’ Russia
Veteran foreign correspondent Anne Garrels takes us deep inside Russia, where citizens struggle with a shaky economy and widespread corruption, but seem supportive of their controversial president.

Battle Hymn At The Dining Table: A Famous Feminist Subjugated Through Food
Julia Ward Howe wrote the Civil War psalm The Battle Hymn of the Republic. She was adrift in a lonely war of her own, against a husband who controlled every aspect of her life, including what she ate.

With Beauty And Wonder, ‘The Winged Histories’ Soars
Sofia Samatar returns to the world of her award-winning debut, A Stranger in Olondria, with a companion tale of four women caught up in war and turmoil, trying to preserve and pass on their stories.

Forget About It: Your Middle-Aged Brain Is Not On The Decline
You forget someone’s name, or why you ran downstairs. Your brain is getting older, and the connections are weakening. But research shows the middle-aged brain is actually operating at its peak.

Have Five Hours To Spare? See Bolaño’s Epic ‘2666’ On Stage
Roberto Bolaño’s posthumous novel 2666 weighs in at over 900 pages — a challenging read, to say the least. Now Chicago’s Goodman Theater has adapted it to as a five and a half hour stage production.

Beautiful ‘Breathing’ Is A Nuanced Family Drama
Elizabeth Poliner’s book takes a familiar dramatic trope — the death of a child — and makes it the linchpin for an intricate tale that follows a close-knit family at a cultural turning point.

Men Are Momentary, But Art Is Forever In ‘Innocents And Others’
Dana Spiotta’s new novel centers on a friendship between two female filmmakers. Critic Maureen Corrigan calls it an uncanny work, whose characters and ideas linger “long after the story is over.”

‘The Story Of Hong Gildong’ Helps Define Korean Sense Of Identity
Hong Gildong is to Koreans — both North and South — as Superman is to Americans. NPR’s Ari Shapiro talks to Minsoo Kang, the translator for the new English version of the classic Korean tale.

Bad Luck Or Bad Genes? Dealing With BRCA And ‘A Cancer In The Family’
Oncologist Theodora Ross discusses the hereditary nature of cancer and her own predisposition to breast and ovarian cancer, which led her to have a double mastectomy and to have her ovaries removed.

‘Witness To Change’ Recounts Civil Rights Struggles Of New Orleans
Sybil Morial’s memoir details her formative experiences living under Jim Crow laws.

No Paper Tiger, This ‘Menagerie’ Is Full Of Fierce Feeling
Ken Liu’s new The Paper Menagerie, collects fifteen of his Hugo and Nebula Award-winning stories. Critic Amal El-Mohtar calls it “stupendously good work” that strikes chords profound enough to hurt.

‘The Throwback Special’ Tackles Middle-Age Manhood
Rachel Martin speaks with Chris Bachelder. His novel tells the story of a group of friends who gather each year to re-enact the gruesome injury sustain by quarterback Joe Theisman.

‘I Ate A Lot Of Apples’: Tracy Chevalier On Writing Her ‘Orchard’ Novel
The author’s latest book, At the Edge of the Orchard, follows a pioneer family growing apple trees in Ohio. Chevalier says she got the idea after hearing the real story of Johnny Appleseed.

Author Interview: Annie Dillard, Author of ‘The Abundance’
NPR’s Melissa Block asks Annie Dillard about the celebrated author’s “masculine mind,” her decision to write less, and her baseball skills. Dillard’s new collection of essays is called The Abundance.

Bravery Among The Ruins In ‘Noonday’
Pat Barker’s latest novel completes the trilogy she began with Life Class. Her first foray into the World War II era is rich with evocative language, though it occasionally verges on soap opera.

Longtime Brooklyn Bartender Who Inspired ‘Sunny’s Nights’ Has Died
Sunny Balzano was the genial and eccentric proprietor of a beloved bar in Red Hook, Brooklyn. He died Thursday at 81, just weeks after the publication of a new book about his life and times.

Remembering ‘Great Santini’ Author Pat Conroy
Conroy, who died last week, was the author of several books, two of which — The Great Santini and The Prince of Tides — were made into feature films. He spoke to Terry Gross in 1987, 1995 and 2002.

Gastronomy Of Genius: History’s Great Minds, And The Foods that Fueled Them
From Pythagoras to Balzac, Darwin to Marie Curie, many a genius was inspired by certain edibles, repulsed by others — or had some very peculiar dining habits.

Tales Of Sex, Corruption And ‘Peacekeeping’ In A Fictional Haiti
Mischa Berlinski’s novel is about a failed Florida policeman trying to make a new life in Haiti. Critic Jason Sheehan says the book explores “the gray middles of everything.”

Publishing Heavyweights Petition White House, Congress To End Cuba Book Embargo
The petition, which comes just before President Obama’s historic visit to the island nation, says the embargo is “harmful to book culture” and “counter to American ideals of free expression.”

Wild Energy Flows Free in a Feminist Comics Anthology
The Complete Wimmen’s Comix collects two decades of the groundbreaking all-women series. Critic Etelka Lehoczky calls it a “frenetic, anarchic, occasionally kamikaze production.”

‘Bullies’, A Story Of Friendship, Booze And Brawls In An Oakland Biker Bar
Alex Abramovich was in his 30s when he looked up a guy who had bullied him in grade school. In his new memoir, Abramovich writes about reconnecting with Trevor, now the head of a motorcycle club.

There Are Times When Journalists Must Take A Stand, Jorge Ramos Says
Steve Inskeep talks to Univision anchor Jorge Ramos about his book, Take A Stand: Lessons From Rebels. Ramos will be one of the moderators at Wednesday’s Washington Post-Univision Democratic debate.

‘What Is Not Yours’ Is Flawless
Helen Oyeyemi’s new story collection has all the sly humor, gorgeous writing and magical characterization as her novels. Critic Michael Schaub calls it a dreamy, spellbinding masterpiece.

J.K. Rowling Releases Part 1 Of New ‘Magic in North America’ Series
In the first of a four-part essay series, the Harry Potter author delves into the previously unaddressed world of magic in North America, whetting fans’ appetites ahead of new spinoff movie.

An Addict, Now Clean, Discusses Needle Exchanges And ‘Hope After Heroin’
At the height of her addiction to heroin, Tracey Helton Mitchell lived in an alley and sold her body. Now she works as an addiction specialist helping others. Her new memoir is The Big Fix.

Unnerving WWII Noir In ‘A Man Lies Dreaming’
Lavie Tidhar’s new alternate history imagines a world where Communists took over Germany in 1933, Fascism is on the rise in the U.K. and a down and out German PI in London dreams of world domination.

Yes, You Can Still Teach Kids To Love Books
It can be hard to get kids to read, especially with so much technology competing for their attention. A new book looks at ways teachers can help kids find books (and find themselves).

Supreme Court Denies Apple’s Appeal On E-Books, Triggering Millions In Payments
Apple must now pay $400 million to e-book purchasers. The case’s roots date back at least six years, when Apple sold its first iPad models and sought to compete with books giant Amazon.

In ‘The End Of Karma,’ Young Indians Work To Overcome Their Past
NPR’s Ari Shapiro talks with Somini Sengupta, the former New Delhi bureau chief for The New York Times, about her book, The End of Karma: Hope and Fury Among India’s Young.

‘For A Little While’ Author On The Art Of The Short Story
NPR’s Kelly McEvers talks to petroleum-geologist-turned-writer Rick Bass about the art of the short story, specifically his short stories. A collection of the short stories he’s written over the years is called, For A Little While.

The Supreme Court Ruling That Led To 70,000 Forced Sterilizations
In the first half of the 20th century, American eugenicists used forced sterilization to “breed out” traits they considered undesirable. Adam Cohen tells the story in his new book,Imbeciles.

‘Charlie Chan Hock Chye’ Offers A Heartfelt Take On Aging, Art And History
The new graphic novel by Malaysia-born cartoonist Sonny Liew spans 80 years as it tells the story of a fictional comic-book. Critic John Powers calls the book a “startlingly brilliant tour de force.”

An Audacious Transformation Bogs Down In ‘Blackass’
A. Igoni Barrett’s new novel is a long, bizarre riff on Kafka’s Metamorphosis, transplanted to Nigeria. Reviewer Michael Schaub says Barrett’s strong writing is ultimately mired in a rambling plot.

Modern Love: What It’s Like To Fall, Quite Literally, In Love
Most people remember the first time they fall in love. In this excerpt from “Modern Love: The Podcast,” the author writes about the actual fall that marked her first love.

Remembering Pat Conroy, A Master Who Searched Out The World In Stories
The best-selling author of Prince of Tides died Friday evening at the age of 70. NPR’s Tom Vitale has an appreciation.

Author Pat Conroy Dies At 70
The “Prince of Tides” author Pat Conroy, age 70, has died. He had pancreatic cancer. NPR’s Scott Simon spoke with Conroy in 2010 about the people who shaped him as a writer, and as a reader.

‘Rodeo’ Gets In Touch With The Wild, Both Inside And Out
Adoption is a metaphor for cultural dislocation in Boris Fishman’s new novel, which follows an immigrant Jewish couple in New Jersey who adopt a baby from Minnesota — and set out to find his roots.

More Color In Kids’ Lit: Your Best Picks
Our story about Marley Dias’ #1000blackgirlbooks list got lots of feedback and some really good suggestions for kids’ reading lists.

‘Charlie Chan:’ An Imaginary Cartoonist Draws A Very Real Homeland
Charlie Chan Hock Chye is one of Singapore’s great unsung cartoonists. He’s also imaginary — the virtuosic invention of comic artist Sonny Liew, who’s created a realistic mix of comics and history.

‘Prince Of Tides’ Author Pat Conroy Dies At 70
The best-selling author was known for novels such as The Great Santini and The Prince Of Tides. He had announced last month that he had pancreatic cancer.

In Richard Price’s ‘The Whites’, Haunted Cops And Cases They Couldn’t Close
Price says that in every precinct there’s one cop who just can’t let go of a case. “They all reminded me of Ahab … looking for their whales,” he says. Originally broadcast Feb. 17, 2015.

America’s ‘Lead Wars’ Go Beyond Flint, Mich.: ‘It’s Now Really Everywhere’
David Rosner and Gerald Markowitz chronicle America’s poisonous relationship with lead in Lead Wars. “We’ve created a terribly toxic environment in all sorts of ways,” Rosner says.

Memory Of Potato Famine Burdens ‘Immortal Irishman’
Civil War buffs and the Irish-American community have probably heard of Thomas Francis Meagher. Renee Montagne talks to New York Times columnist Timothy Egan about his book The Immortal Irishman.

‘The Yid’ Blends Soviet Fact And Fiction
Paul Goldberg’s audacious new novel trades in rumor and anecdote, conjuring a time of Antisemitism and violence in 1950’s Moscow.

‘Borderline’ Is Urban Fantasy With A Cinematic Punch
Mishell Baker’s new fantasy novel follows filmmaker Millie Roper as she manages her mental and physical issues while hunting down a missing fairy nobleman — and trying to make a career in Hollywood.

Let’s Stop Requiring Advanced Math, A New Book Argues
Algebra, trigonometry and calculus keep millions of people from graduating. And they’re unnecessary, argues author and professor Andrew Hacker.

The Final Chapter Of A Tale Of Books, Love And Mystery In Minneapolis
Gary Shulze and Pat Frovarp have run the beloved Once Upon A Crime bookstore for 14 years. They fell in love there, bought it together and married there. Now, they’re retiring.

Single By Choice: Why Fewer American Women Are Married Than Ever Before
Rebecca Traister, author of All the Single Ladies, says the declining marriage rates among adult women are less about the institution of marriage and more about the choices available to women today.

Provocative Book Explores The Connection Between Loneliness And Art
Olivia Laing surveys the landscape of urban alienation in her new book, a work that is part-memoir and part-criticism. Critic Maureen Corrigan says The Lonely City is “absolutely one of a kind.”

Sentenced To Death For Murder, A Woman Tells Her Story From ‘Memory’
In Petina Gappah’s new novel, an albino Zimbabwean woman named Memory is charged with murdering her adoptive father. She narrates the tale from inside a maximum security prison in Harare.

‘Lonely City’ Is More Than A Cry For Connection
Writer Olivia Laing recalls her days as an expatriate Brit in New York in her new book, a meditation on modern life and loneliness. It’s a lonely read, too, but full of heart-piercing wisdom.

Originals: How To Spot One, How To Be One
Adam Grant, author of Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World, tells us what makes an original, how parents can nurture originality in their children, and its potential downside.

Teen Girls And Social Media: A Story Of ‘Secret Lives’ And Misogyny
Author Nancy Jo Sales says the Internet fosters a kind of sexism that is harmful to teen girls. Her new book is American Girls: Social Media and the Secret Lives of Teenagers.

‘The Ballad Of Black Tom’ Offers A Tribute And Critique Of Lovecraft
Growing up, Victor LaValle loved reading the horror stories of H.P. Lovecraft. It wasn’t until later that LaValle recognized the racism in Lovecraft’s work and felt the need to respond.

Frankly, My Dear, Mark Leyner Doesn’t Give A Damn
Mark Leyner manages to make run-on sentences, erotic digressions and manic depression engaging in his autobiographical novel, Gone with the Mind.

‘The Martian’ Started As A Self-Published Book
The movie that was nominated for several Oscars began as a self-published book by Andy Weir. NPR’s Lynn Neary looks at how an unknown author’s book became a hit audio book and major motion picture.

Comedian Ben Bailey Smith Weaves Rapping Into Children’s Book
What does rapping have in common with a good children’s book? A lively beat and rhyme. Rapper, comedian and actor, Ben Bailey Smith speaks to NPR’s Lourdes Garcia-Navarro about his book, “I Am Bear.”

A Writer-Engineer’s Historical Fiction Hack: Add Dragons
Before her first book, Naomi Novik was a programmer who wrote Napoleonic-era fan fiction on the side. Then she had an idea: “What could make the Napoleonic wars more exciting? Dragons!”

Placid Madonnas Please Antisocial Men Of Genius In ‘Almanac’
In A Doubter’s Almanac, Ethan Canin tells the story of a book-smart man — “a topologist, who can map the world but not the heart.”

Written Behind Bars, This 1850s Memoir Links Prisons To Plantations
The Life and the Adventures of a Haunted Convict is the earliest known prison memoir by an African-American writer. Written by Austin Reed in the 1850s, it was discovered at an estate sale in 2009.

‘Imbeciles’ Explores Legacy Of Eugenics In America
Adam Cohen’s new book tells the story of the 1927 Supreme Court case Buck v. Bell. The ruling permitted the state of Virginia to sterilize an “imbecile” — a scientific term of the day.

Where’s The Color In Kids’ Lit? Ask The Girl With 1,000 Books (And Counting)
Eleven-year-old Marley Dias went on a quest to collect and donate 1,000 books with a black girl as the main character. Spoiler alert: She did really well.

Simon & Schuster Launches Imprint For Muslim Children’s Books
The books published by Salaam Reads will appeal to Muslim and non-Muslim readers alike, executive editor Zareej Jaffery says — and will represent a wide range of cultural traditions within Islam.

Social Media And Teenage Girls: Not Your Mother’s Adolescence
In her book American Girls: Social Media and the Secret Lives of Teenagers, Nancy Jo Sales looks at the pressures on teenage girls socially and sexually. She talks to David Greene about her book.

Plenty Of Shadows Loom In ‘Gathering’
V.E. Schwab’s follow-up to A Darker Shade of Magic picks up with heroes Kell and Delilah adventuring (and sometimes agonizing) in a magical alternate London while danger lurks in the titular shadows.

Muhammad Ali And Malcolm X: A Broken Friendship, An Enduring Legacy
The new book, Blood Brothers: The Fatal Friendship Between Muhammad Ali and Malcolm X, explores how faith brought two African-American icons together, and eventually tore their relationship apart.

‘So As I Was Saying’: Frank Mankiewicz’s Sons On Their Father’s Life, Memoir
NPR’s Robert Siegel talks to the sons of the late Frank Mankiewicz, Josh and Ben, about their father’s posthumously published memoir, So As I Was Saying: My Somewhat Eventful Life.

Obama Nominates Carla Hayden To Lead Library Of Congress
Hayden is a former president of the American Library Association and is currently CEO of the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore.

‘Hap And Leonard’ Creator Needed To ‘Burn Bridges’ To Make It As A Writer
Joe R. Lansdale grew up poor in east Texas and worked as a janitor and in a potato field before finding success as a writer. Honky Tonk Samurai is the latest book in his mystery series.

‘Slumdog’ Cuisine: Cookbook Explores Recipes From India’s Working Class
The Indecisive Chicken combines the recipes and life stories of eight women from communities across India who now make their home in Dharavi, a teeming slum made famous bySlumdog Millionaire.

A Reference Guide To Reference In ‘You Could Look It Up’
Encyclopedias, dictionaries and directories take on a life of their own in Jack Lynch’s new book — a history of reference systems that becomes an examination of the nature of lexicography itself.

A Chilling Effect As Hong Kong’s Missing Bookseller Cases Go Unresolved
With the disappearance of five Hong Kong booksellers still unexplained, their colleagues who publish books about Chinese politics say they feel at risk and unprotected.

‘We’ve Already Gone This Far’ Counts The Cost Of War
Patrick Dacey’s debut story collection follows the people of a fictional Massachusetts town hit hard by war, weather and economic turmoil. Critic Michael Schaub praises Dacey’s emotional honesty.

‘Pandemic’ Asks: Is A Disease That Will Kill Tens Of Millions Coming?
Author Sonia Shah says that urbanization and air travel put the global population at an increased risk for disease. “Zika is a great example of how new pathogens are emerging today,” she says.

‘Doubter’s Almanac’ Is A Family Saga, Plus Algebraic Equations
Ethan Canin traces the complicated lives of two generations of mathematical geniuses in his new novel. Critic Maureen Corrigan calls it A Doubter’s Almanac an “elegant and devastating novel.”

The ‘Girl’ In The Title: More Than A Marketing Trend
Lately it seems as if every thriller written by a woman gets compared to two recent blockbusters: Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train. So what makes those two books so appealing and influential?

Yet Another Teaching Memoir? A Teacher’s Critique
Recent years have seen a proliferation of books about the struggles of rookie teachers. We asked a veteran New York City teacher to review The Battle for Room 314 by Ed Boland.

‘Tender’ Author Calls Novel On Friendship ‘Autobiographical To Its Core’
Adolescence is a time when “friendship feels like something you die for,” says Irish author Belinda McKeon. It’s how she explains the characters in her new novel “Tender” to NPR’s Rachel Martin.

Family And Friends Pay Tribute To ‘Mockingbird’ Author Harper Lee
In a tribute to the late Harper Lee, we hear several poignant passages read from her novel, “To Kill a Mockingbird.”

Translator Behind Elena Ferrante Novels Says Her Job Is To Be An ‘Enabler’
Ann Goldstein is the translator for the mysterious novelist’s popular Neapolitan series. She says her role is to “enable someone to express him or herself as much as he or she possibly can.”

Harper Lee’s Hometown Reacts To Her Death
The news of Harper Lee’s death hit her beloved hometown particularly hard. Fans and friends in Monroeville, Ala., reflect on her passing.

Harper Lee Remembered As Reclusive
Linda Wertheimer talks to Harper Lee’s longtime friend Wayne Flynt about the late author. He will deliver Lee’s eulogy.

Italian Author And Philosopher Umberto Eco Dead At 84
Internationally acclaimed Italian author Umberto Eco has died, according to his American publisher. He was 84. He launched his career as a novelist with The Name of the Rose in 1980.

Harper Lee’s Depiction of ‘Polarization In A Southern Town’ Defines Legacy
NPR’s Ari Shapiro talks with Lizzie Skurnick, cultural critic of Harper Lee’s books, about what she will be most remembered for.

Small Batch: ‘To Kill A Mockingbird’
We talk with Barrie Hardymon of NPR’s Weekend Edition about the book that was, for most of her life, Harper Lee’s only published novel.

The Measure Of Harper Lee: A Life Shaped By A Towering Text
The author, who died Friday at 89, lived for decades in the shadow of her iconic novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. Yet there was more to Lee than her characters, however beloved they may remain.

Harper Lee, Author Of ‘To Kill A Mockingbird,’ Dies At Age 89
The Pulitzer Prize-winning writer died in her hometown of Monroeville, Ala. Published in 1960, To Kill a Mockingbird has sold tens of millions of copies and been translated into dozens of languages.

‘To Kill A Mockingbird’ Author Harper Lee Dies
Lee won the Pulitzer Prize for the novel that was published in 1960 and didn’t publish another book for more than 50 years afterward. She avoided the spotlight her entire life. She was 89.

Lies We Tell Ourselves Propel ‘The Widow’
Veteran reporter Fiona Barton brings a journalist’s eye to her fiction debut, the story of a woman thrust into the spotlight after her husband — accused of a terrible crime — dies in an accident.

‘How To Be A Tudor:’ Not As Stinky As You Think
Ruth Goodman — advisor to BBC productions like Wolf Hall — digs deep into the everyday life of Tudor England in her new book. Surprisingly, Elizabethan hygiene isn’t as bad as you might think.

In ‘Doubter’s Almanac,’ Troubled Math Genius Tries To Solve The Unsolvable
Author Ethan Canin says two odd talents contributed to his main character becoming a mathematician: He can always tell where he is on Earth and he can draw things perfectly.

Holy Ravioli! Cookbook Reveals The Vatican’s Favorite Recipes
We all have comfort foods — even Pope Francis and the men who guard him. The Vatican Cookbook is a tour of life and food in the world’s smallest country, as told by members of the Swiss Guard.

‘Strange Gods’ Chronicles The History Of Secularism And Conversion
Journalist Susan Jacoby tells Fresh Air that more than half of Americans will change religion at least once in their adult life time. Her new book is Strange Gods: A Secular History of Conversion.

‘Furnace’ Burns With Horror And Wonder
Livia Llewellyn’s new story collection is beautiful and hideous in the same breath, steeped in the traditions of H.P. Lovecraft. Critic Jason Heller calls it “bursting with blood and shadow and dust.”

Welcome To ‘Koreatown,’ A Cookbook To Tempt American Tastebuds
From LA to New York, Chef Deuki Hong and writer Matt Rodbard spent two years eating in Korean-American communities. Their new cookbook captures both well-known and obscure flavors of this cuisine.

More Died On This WWII Ship Than On The Titanic And Lusitania Combined
On its final voyage, Germany’s Wilhelm Gustloff carried soldiers and thousands of civilians, many of them children. Young adult author Ruta Sepetys revisits the ship’s 1945 sinking in Salt to the Sea.

Book Review: ‘The Darkening Trapeze,’ Larry Lewis
Tess Taylor reviews a posthumous collection by Larry Levis, The Darkening Trapeze.