Film critic Stephen Schiff reviews "Black Rain." It stars Michael Douglas as a New York City cop who goes to Japan to try to track down a killer. The movie's directed by Ridley Scott, who also made "Blade Runner" and "Alien."
Writer Cynthia Ozick. In 1981 and 1984, Ozick's two stories, "The Shawl" and "Rosa" won the O. Henry Prize award. Both stories appear in Ozick's new book, called The Shawl. In it, Ozick looks at what it means to `survive' the Nazi concentration camps, telling the story of Rosa, who witnesses the murder of her infant daughter in the camps. Later, living in Miami, Rosa imagines her daughter alive and married to a doctor in the United States.
Poet Li-Young Lee. He was born into a family of political refugees from China. They traveled throughout Asia for years to escape persecution. In the mid-60's his family moved to Pennsylvania. Lee's poems reflect his struggle with his Chinese heritage - a heritage to which he is bound but in which he never lived. His poems also reflect Lee's attempt to come to terms with the powerful and mythic figure of his father, who was alternately imprisoned and revered for his beliefs.
Classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz reviews a new release of Mozart's comic opera, "The Abduction from the Seraglio." It's a 1961 performance of a little known German comedy by Mozart, but Lloyd says it compares favorably with his best known Italian works.
Reporter Thomas J. Moore. In his new book, Heart Failure, Moore argues that one of America's biggest health concerns - trying to reduce cholesterol - is a waste of time. Moore re-examines health studies and concludes that diet and exercise do relatively little to lower cholesterol, and almost nothing to increase lifespan. Moore also examines the little reported dangers of heart surgery and other coronary procedures. Part of Moore's book appears in the September issue of The Atlantic Monthly under the title "The Cholesterol Myth." Terry also talks with Dr. W.
Airline expert George Brown. In his new book, The Airline Passenger's Guerrilla Handbook, Brown explains how to beat the air travel system. He tells how to find the cheapest fares, accumulate frequent flyer points, how to beat jet lag, even how to make love while in flight.
Shakespearean scholar Gary Taylor. Four years ago, Taylor made headlines when he claimed to have discovered a new Shakespeare poem. Now Taylor's written a cultural history of the Bard of Stratford, called Reinventing Shakespeare. In it, Taylor asks `is Shakespeare really as great as everyone says?' Taylor looks at how changing societies have reinterpreted Shakespeare, and to some extent all great literature, to correspond with changing social mores and opinions.
Rock historian Ed Ward looks back to the dawn of the British punk scene, and the creation of acts such as the Sex Pistols, the Clash, Billy Idol, and Siouxie and the Banshees.
Television critic David Bianculli looks at the CBS Monday night comedy lineup, particularly "The Famous Teddy Z," starring Jon Cryer as an unlikely talent agent.
Writer and social critic Barbara Ehrenreich (air-en-RIKE). Her new book, "Fear of Falling," examines the middle class in America and the many myths associated with it. Her articles and essays appear in the New York Times, the Atlantic, Ms magazine, and Mother Jones.
Film critic Steven Schiff previews "Sea of Love," which opens on Friday (Sept. 15). It stars Al Pacino as a cop who falls in love with a suspected killer, played by Ellen Barkin.
Mystery writer Mary Wings. Wings' novels draw on the familiar hard-boiled detective genre, but her heroine is a lesbian-feminist detective named Emma Victor. Wings new book is titled "She Came in a Flash."
Writer Alec Wilkinson. Cutting sugar cane is one of the most dangerous jobs in America. In Florida, workers are recruited from the West Indies in what some are calling modern day slavery. Wilkinson exposes the sugar cane industry in his new book "Big Sugar." Wilkinson's past books include "Moonshine: A Life in Pursuit of White Liquor," and "Midnights: A Year with the Wellfleet Police." Wilkinson is also a staff writer for the New Yorker; Big Sugar originally appeared as a series of articles in the magazine.
