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An old portrait of Philip Roth hovers semi-transparent over a shelf full of books

Philip Roth

As a Guest

9 segments
43:52

Fresh Air Remembers Novelist Philip Roth

We listen back to excerpts from Roth's interviews about The Plot Against America and Everyman. Roth died Tuesday at age 85. He spoke with Terry Gross seven times over the years.

An old portrait of Philip Roth hovers semi-transparent over a shelf full of books
21:19

Philip Roth: On Writing, Aging And 'Nemesis.'

Roth, who has been writing novels for more than a half-century, explains how he comes up with his ideas — and why he continues to write every day. In his latest work, Nemesis, he imagines a fictional polio outbreak set in his hometown of Newark, N.J., during the 1940s.

Interview

As a Topic

4 segments
50:30

For Zoe Kazan, 'Plot Against America' Is 'Scarily Prescient' And Personal

Actor Zoe Kazan describes her new HBO series, The Plot Against America, as "scarily prescient." The show, which is adapted from Philip Roth's 2004 novel, is set in the U.S. between 1940 and 1942, and imagines a world in which aviator Charles Lindbergh has defeated Franklin D. Roosevelt in the race for the presidency, moving the country toward fascism.

Interview
05:59

A Measured Look At Roth As The Writer Turns 80.

The celebration of Philip Roth's career reaches its peak in a new documentary — Philip Roth Unmasked — that will screen on PBS next week as part of the American Masters series. There's no doubt that Roth is a master, and not just an American one, but the film tiptoes around the novelist's dark ferocity.

Review
03:55

Philip Roth's "Patrimony"

Book critic John Leonard reviews the new family memoir by the prolific novelist. He says it features many of the same themes found in Roth's fiction, like an obsession with memory, and one usually absent: love.

Review

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