Terry Gross

Novelist Kate Christensen makes a plot line of her own life in a memoir that describes her struggles to come to terms with her family, her relationships and her sometimes violent father. A passionate lover of food, Christensen weaves recipes into a story of survival.

Journalist Alfredo Corchado covers Mexico for the Dallas Morning News. His new book, Midnight In Mexico, is part memoir and part recent history of the upheaval in the country. He talks to Fresh Air about the power of the cartels, the rampant corruption and the hopes for the future of Mexico.

In the Showtime series, Schreiber plays a Hollywood fixer with some personal problems of his own. While TV is newish territory for Schreiber, playing a man plagued by inner demons is not. He talks with Dave Davies about acting the heavy — and how his face has shaped his career.