Former lead singer of the indie-rock band the Del Fuegos, Dan Zanes. When he became a father he realized he couldn't stomach music for kids, so started writing his own. He also formed the Rocket Ship Revue, a touring band that performs dance-party shows for kids. His first CD Dan Zanes and Friends Rocket Ship Beach received a Parents Choice Award and the kids liked it too. It also featured Suzanne Vega and Sheryl Crow. Zanes' new CD is Family Dance.
Professor of structural engineering at the University of California at Berkeley, Abolhassan Astaneh-Asl. He is a member of a team assembled by the American Society of Civil Engineers to investigate the World Trade Centers site. He recently received a grant from the National Science foundation to study the remains of the at the site. His findings will be used in engineering studies to help improve the structural integrity of buildings. Astanneh also has done research on bomb-resistant designs, following the bombing of the Oklahoma Federal Building.
Book critic Maureen Corrigan tells us about some of the mysteries she and her friends are reading to help cope with the times. They include Hope to Die the new Laurence Block mystery featuring hard-boiled detective Matt Scudder; Journey into Fear (1940) a classic by Eric Ambler; Rouge Male (1950) by Geoffrey Household; The Ministry of Fear (1943) by Graham Greene; The Maltese Falcon (1930) by Dashiell Hammett.
Author Jonathan Franzen joins Fresh Air to discuss his latest novel, The Corrections. The story revolves around the lives of three children who live far away from their aging parents. The parents' health problems have made it difficult for them to take care of themselves. The children then have to decide how willing they are to change their own lives to care for their parents.
For today's entire show we excerpt portions of The New Yorker magazines benefit program Beyond Words in which New Yorker writers read the work of others on-stage. (Taped Thursday, Oct. 11 at Town Hall in New York City). Beyond Words benefits The September 11th Fund. David Remnick, editor of The New Yorker introduces the readings.
WOODY ALLEN reads from
"Nobody Asked Me But. . ." (1943) by Jimmy Cannon.
"New York City Folklore" (1956) by Damon Runyon
"Damon Runyon's Ashes" (1946/1953) by Damon Runyon, Jr.
Journalist Robert Kaplan is a correspondent for The Atlantic Monthly. He is the best known for his book Balkan Ghosts which became the book that former President Clinton turned to before the U.S. involvement in the Bosnian crisis. His 1990 book, Soldiers of God: with Islamic Warriors in Afghanistan and Pakistan has just been republished, updating the story. The book now includes a new introduction and a final chapter on how the Taliban came to power.
Editor and writer Walter Kirn lives in Montana, a place where many people are thinking of moving to - now that the United States is under threat of more terrorist attacks. Kirn was recently on Fresh Air to discuss his new novel Up in the Air (Doubleday) about 35 year-old Ryan Bingham, a well-traveled business man who has a goal of accumulating one million miles in his frequent flyer account. Kirn is the literary editor for GQ and a contributing editor to Time and Vanity Fair.
Journalist Jeffrey Goldberg is a staff writer for the New Yorker, specializing in foreign reporting with an emphasis on Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. His article, "Letter from Cairo: Behind Mubarak: Egyptian Clerics and Intellectuals Respond to Terrorism" appears in the Oct. 8 issue of the New Yorker. He is currently writing a non-fiction book about the Middle East, due out next year. Previously, Goldberg was a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine.
Pakistani journalist Ahmed Rashid. He's the author of the book, Taliban: Militant Islam, Oil, and Fundamentalism in Central Asia (Yale University Press-2000). Rashid's book has been called the most in-depth study of the Taliban. Rashid is a correspondent for the Far Eastern Economic Review and the Daily Telegraph, reporting on Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Central Asia.
After Maine Senator George Mitchell left office, he chaired the Northern Ireland peace talks. His book, Making Peace, is about his work on that negotiation. He recently headed an international panel examining the conflict between the Israelis and Palestinians.
