Writer Eva Hoffman moved with her family from Poland to the Canada when she was thirteen. Her new book about assimilating into the culture of her new country is called Lost in Translation. Hoffman is also an editor for the New York Times Book Review.
Writer and theologian Harvey Cox says the current rise of religious fundamentalism stems in part from a disillusionment with modern technology. He has also witnessed the increasing politicization of religious messages. Cox joins Fresh Air to discuss the current state of interfaith relations in the United States and abroad.
Freberg created several humorous and memorable ad campaigns for television and radio, and continues to work in the trade today. His new memoir, the first of two volumes, is called It Only Hurts When I Laugh.
Book critic John Leonard reviews the new detective novel Ratking, by Michael Dibdin. Leonard says the narrative, set in Italy, keeps the mystery genre alive by confronting bourgeois life and corrupt politics.
Rock historian Ed Ward says the 1960s Mod movement started in working-class London, and was rooted more in fashion than rock music. But the amphetimine-fueled subculture was short-lived, and many Mods became hippies. The re-emergence of Mods in the 1970s didn't last long, either.
As a reporter, Ward Just covered the Vietnam War and, later, Washington politics. Now, he devotes himself to fiction writing. While his novels often draw on his knowledge of D.C. culture, Just is careful to invent his own characters, rather than use fictionalized versions of real politicians.
Peter Nabokov cowrote a book with Robert Easton about the dwellings of American Indians, which he uses as a lens through which to learn more about their lives and traditions. For his research, Easton lived near several reservations and visited the homes of Native American families.
TV critic David Bianculli reviews Shining Time Station, a kids' show starring Ringo Starr and acted out with tabletop train sets. Bianculli says he liked it almost as much as his toddlers did.
Davies began his working life as an actor in England. At the start of World War II, he returned to his home country of Canada and became a journalist. Now a popular author best known for his Deptfod Trilogy, Davies says he still only "squeaks by" as a writer.
Jazz critic Kevin Whitehead says Carla Bley is an exceptional composer and piano player, but he's frustrated by how uneven her output has been throughout the 1980s. Her new album, Duets, with bassist Steve Swallow is a reminder of how good her music used to be. A reissue of an excellent, earlier record, Social Studies, is also available.
Urban planner and designer Lawrence Halprin designs public spaces which take into consideration how people move through a city -- a process he likens to dance choreography.
Unlike many young writers, Carpenter avoided the siren call of New York City, instead documenting the life around his hometown of San Francisco. His new novel is called From a Distant Place.
The British author and travel writer recently passed away. His acclaimed books include Songlines, a semi-fictional account of the myths that structure the lives of Australia's aborigines, and the travel book In Patagonia.
Rock critic Ken Tucker says Reed's new record, New York, doesn't live up to the artist's claim. But it may be his most sincere in its examination of contemporary, social issues.
Film critic Stephen Schiff says that the World War II-themed The Dressmaker masterfully follows in the European tradition of what he calls "intimate filmmaking" -- something no American director has yet been able to replicate.
Journalist Isadore Barmash joins Fresh Air to explain the process of leveraged buyouts and hostile takeovers of corporations, and how these affect employees, customers, and shareholders. His new book, Macy's for Sale, offers a case study.
Oklahoma-born Singer writes the Talk of the Town feature for the magazine, as well as profiles of ordinary people in New York. A new book, Mr. Personality, collects the best of his New Yorker pieces.
Writer Joe McGinniss lived in the Toms River, New Jersey area to investigate how the community reacted to the murder of Maria Marshall at the hands of her husband. Two of Marshall's sons eventually came to believe in their father's guilt; the youngest still maintains his innocence. A book about that experience is called Blind Faith.
Mountaineer Joe Simpson suffered a severe fracture while descending a cliff in the Peruvian Andes. His climbing parter Simon Yates took extraordinary measures to save him, but was ultimately forced to abandon Simpson. Simpson tells his story of survival in a new book, Touching the Void.
