Books

Director of the Center for Study of Popular Television and Professor of Television at Syracuse University Robert J. Thompson. He discusses his curriculum which includes shows like "I Love Lucy," "Leave It to Beaver," and "The Brady Bunch." (Interview by David Bianculli)

Book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews James Frazier's novel "Cold Mountain"

Hypnotherapist David Calof has been using hypnosis for 20 years to help clients discover - thru their own subconscious - the way to solve their emotional problems. He's written a new book about his work, "The Couple Who Became Each Other: And other Tales of Healing from a Hypnotherapist's Casebook" (Bantam Books). Calof practices family therapy and hypnotherapy in Seattle. (Interview by Marty Moss-Coane)

Forensic psychologist Barbara Kirwin has examined hundreds of murderers. One of her most infamous patients was Joel Rifkin, the Long Island Serial Killer, who pleaded insanity. Her book is called "The Mad, the Bad and the Innocent: The Criminal Mind on Trial- Tales of a Forensic Psychologist." (Little, Brown, & Co.) (Interview by Marty Moss-Coane)

John Szwed has written a new biography of Sun Ra, the orchestra leader and piano player who claimed to be from outer space. His new book is "Space is the Place: The Lives and Times of Sun Ra" (Pantheon Books). Szwed is Musser Professor of Anthropology, African American Studies, Music and American Studies at Yale University.

Book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews the novel "Children of Darkness and Light" by Nicholas Mosley (Dalkey Archive Press)

Children's book writer Mavis Jukes is the award-winning author of such books as "Like Jake and Me," "Blackberries in the Dark" and "I'll see you in My Dreams." Her new book is a guide for preteen girls who are about to enter puberty, "It's A Girl Thing: How to Stay Healthy, Safe, and in Charge."

Spider specialist at London's Natural History Museum Paul Hillyard. His 1994 book is "The Book of the Spider: From Arachnophobia to The Love of Spiders" (Random House)

Curator of Herpetology in the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, Harry Greene and Professor of Integrative Biology at the University of California. He has a new book on snakes (with photographs) "Snakes: The Evolution of Mystery in Nature." (University of California Press)

Henry Foster Jr., M.D. is Senior Advisor to President Clinton on Teen Pregnancy Reduction and Youth Issues. He founded the I Have a Future program to encourage at-risk youth to stay in school, and to build self-esteem. Foster was nominated by Clinton to be U.S. Surgeon General but his nomination was withdrawn because of controversy over Foster's record on abortion. He has a new book, "Make a Difference." (Scribner)