Books

Book critic Maureen Corrigan says she often feels jealous when she sees other people reading her favorite authors. But she concedes that some books need a community of readers in order to be fully appreciated.

John Leonard reviews "Coyote Waits" by Tony Hillerman and "Blossom" by Andrew Vachss. The book critic says Hillerman's novel succeeds with its strong focus on the American Southwest. Vachss, on the other hand, shouldn't have had his protagonist Burke leave New York.

Dennis McFarland's severe stage fright led him to give up a career as a concert pianist. He chose writing instead, in part because it didn't involve performing in front of an audience. His first novel, about a divorcé whose brother commits suicide, is called The Music Room.

Peter Bart was a senior vice president of the MGM/United Artists studio, and has just written a new book called "Fade Out." He discusses his efforts to turn the company around as the Hollywood studio system came to a close.

Book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews the scholars's new book, You Just Don't Understand, which examines what the distinct speech patterns adopted by men and women say about gender roles and expectations. Corrigan says Tannen is insightful, and avoids any attempt to account for this difference.

Former NYPD officer Vincent Murano worked in the Internal Affairs Division, and went undercover to investigate crooked cops. His new book details his methods and some of his more memorable cases.

Film scholar Douglas Gomery has a new essay in the anthology Seeing Through Movies, in which he discusses the history of the movie theater, and how theater owners designed the audience experience over the decades.

Book critic John Leonard says Joseph Wambaugh's police thrillers vary in quality, though they're all enjoyable. The writer's newest book, The Golden Orange, about an ex-cop in Southern California, is a return to form.

Critic Maureen Corrigan reviews detective novelist Robert B. Parker's newest Spencer novel, "Stardust."

Book critic John Leonard reviews "Magic Lantern," journalist Timothy Garton Ash's account of the democracy movement in Eastern Europe.