Author Terry McMillan. She's a black writer whose first novel was "Mama." Her new novel, "Disappearing Acts," is set in Brooklyn in 1982 and takes a look at what makes a relationship work. It's about an educated black man who falls in love with an uneducated black woman.
Director and screenwriter Tom McCarthy's film Win-Win stars Paul Giamatti as a high school wrestling coach struggling with a moral dilemma. McCarthy, a former wrestler himself, explains why he left the mats in high school and turned to improv comedy.
Brandi Carlile is a singer-songwriter who has cited influences as various as Elton John, Patsy Cline, and Queen's Freddie Mercury. Carlile has been releasing albums for the past 10 years, and Fresh Air rock critic Ken Tucker says her new one, called The Firewatcher's Daughter, is her best yet.
The novel is about a flavor chemist who tests a sweetener on lab rats and monkeys and finds side effects the company covers up. Author Stephan Eirik Clark says he was inspired by Fast Food Nation.
In contrast to the serious and rebellious attitudes adopted by many contemporary rock acts, Jonathan Richman writes and performs straightforward and often childlike songs with his band, the Modern Lovers.
In Kevin Wilson's first novel, husband-and-wife conceptual artists stage elaborate public acts of "choreographed spontaneity" -- to the embarrassment of their children. Wilson's inventive energy makes The Family Fang a strange, wonderful and refreshing read in the summer heat.
TV critic David Bianculli previews When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts, Spike Lee's two-part HBO documentary about New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
Vernel Bagneris is a playwright, actor, and dancer. He wrote, directed, and acts in the musical "One Mo' Time," now playing in Philadelphia. The musical is set in 1920s' New Orleans and draws heavily on the jazz from that time and place. It centers around a touring group of vaudevillians performing at the segregated Lyric Theater. Bagneris describes it as a "piece on Black theater history." Bagneris and pianist Morten Larsen give an in-studio concert sharing music from the show's time period.
Cooper says his new novel Closer -- which features explicit depictions of sex acts -- is meant to disturb, but not shock or arouse. While honing in on the experiences of gay men, Cooper sidesteps the issue of AIDS; he says sexuality generates enough anxiety on its own.
British singer-songwriter Teddy Thompson worked with David Kahne, who's helped acts ranging from The Strokes to Tony Bennett, to write and record his fifth album, Bella. Rock critic Ken Tucker says the result is a romantic album that spans a wide range of styles and moods.
Rock critic Ken Tucker has seen most of the heavy metal acts on the package tour's bill. He admires Metallica and the Scorpions; Van Halen has its merits, but he says Dokken and Kingdom Come are bland. Collectively, the bands' popularity shows that metal is a genre that should't be ignored -- though Tucker prefers to enjoy it from the comfort of his own home.
Jazz Critic Kevin Whitehead reviews violinist Billy Bang's new album "Live at Carlos: 1," which is a club in New York City. Bang performs with his sextet, which includes bassist William Parker and drummer Zen Matsuura.
Apple Records released 31 albums and 52 singles from younger acts it hoped would flourish. Ed Ward reviews Come And Get It: The Best of Apple Records, a collection of the label's remastered and re-released tracks.
Record producer and consultant Colin Escott. Escott's had a long association with Sun Records, the company responsible for many of the great acts from the dawn of rock and roll. Escott has a new book about Sun, called "Good Rockin' Tonight" (published by St. Martin's Press).
Fiction and science writer David Quammen. His column "Natural Acts" appears regularly in Outside Magazine. His new collection of short stories is called Blood Line, and his second collection of science essays will be published soon.
