Terry Gross

Journalist and author Veronica Chambers. Her new memoir, "Mama's Girl" (Riverhead Books), describes her ascent from childhood poverty into the middle class. Growing up in the 1970s in Brooklyn and Los Angeles, Chambers struggled to ease the strain on her single mother and to help her brother stay out of trouble. She overcame racial stereotypes by excelling in the gifted and talented program in school and graduating from college at the age of 20.

Author and journalist, Marshall Frady. His new book is "Jesse: The Life and Pilgrimage of Jesse Jackson (Random House). The book tells the story of Jackson's ambitious life, from his illegitimate birth in poverty stricken South Carolina through his years working with Martin Luther King and his unprecedented runs for the presidency. Frady writes about political figures and social and racial tensions in the United States for the New Yorker. His first two biographies were about George Wallace and Billy Graham.

Film director Bernardo Bertolucci. His new film is "Stealing Beauty". It's the first time in 15 years that he has worked in his native country, Italy. At the age of 20, he began his career working for filmmaker Pier Paolo Pasolini and wrote his first screenplay the next year. In 1973, Bertolucci achieved international, critical and commercial success with the release of the controversial "Last Tango in Paris" with Marlon Brando.