Why Does Cynthia Ozick Write? ‘I Simply Must,’ She Says

Silence On The Sidelines: An MLB Insider’s ‘Manifesto’ On Youth Sports
Baseball’s Mike Matheny talks about his playing career, managing in the big leagues and the pressures of youth sports. Matheny is the author of The Matheny Manifesto. Originally broadcast May 5, 2015.

Remembering Lois Duncan, The Queen Of Teen Suspense
The beloved author died suddenly Wednesday at the age of 82. Just a teen herself when she started writing, Lois Duncan sent chills down a generation of spines with books likeDown a Dark Hall.

In ‘The Girls,’ A Teen’s Need To Be Noticed Draws Her Into A Manson-Like Cult
Emma Cline’s debut novel was inspired by the infamous Manson family murders. But Cline says it wasn’t the cult that fascinated her — it was the young girls who were so taken by it.

Former Restaurant Worker Serves Up Industry-Inspired Fiction In ‘Sweetbitter’
Stephanie Danler drew on her own experiences to write her novel about a young woman working at an upscale restaurant in New York. “It’s so physically punishing,” she says of her work as a server.

‘Locally Laid’: A Humorous Memoir To Cure You Of Farming Fantasies
When Jason Amundsen told his wife he was quitting his job to raise pasture-raised eggs, she was less than amused. Readers, however, will chuckle at the story of their tragicomic path to success.

The Power Of Seeing, And Being Seen, In ‘The Girls’
Emma Cline’s spooky new novel starts with a teenaged girl spying on a shabby-glamorous group of Mansonesque cult followers. She follows, desperate for attention — and eventually, they see her too.

Nitza Villapol: The Woman Who Taught Cubans To Cook With Just About Anything
For over 40 years, Villapol hosted a popular cooking show in Cuba, her recipes shifting to reflect the realities of life under the revolution. No meat? No problem — she fried plantain peels instead.

Tig Notaro On Her Terrible Year In ‘I’m Just A Person’
Comedian Tig Notaro shot to fame in 2012, talking candidly on stage about having cancer. Now she’s in remission, recently married and the author of a new memoir called I’m Just A Person.

Understanding Congressional Gerrymandering: ‘It’s Moneyball Applied To Politics’
Ratf**ked author David Daley says that Republicans targeted key state legislative races in 2010 in an effort to control state houses, and, eventually, Congressional redistricting.

‘In the Darkroom’ Explores The Concept of Identity — Both Fixed And Fluid
Pulitzer-prize winning author Susan Faludi writes about her father’s sex reassignment surgery in her memoir, In The Darkroom. Critic Maureen Corrigan calls it “exhausting, messy and provocative.”

‘The Course Of Love’ Is More Case Study Than Novel
Alain de Botton returns to a long-standing fascination — the arc of relationships — in his new novel. But despite its fictional trappings, the book seems more like a class on maintaining a marriage.

Read, Watch, Binge: Like This Movie? You Might Also Like …
A lot of what we read and watch comes to us through algorithms. But we haven’t found an algorithm that makes recommendations between books, movies, TV and beyond. Enter: HUMANS.

DC Comics’ ‘Rebirth’: When The Super-Villain Is Your Own History
DC Comics has relaunched its line of superhero titles again in a bid to recapture “hope and optimism.” This time, heroes fight a villain who represents the cynical tone comics adopted in the 1980s.