Literary Figures

Horror writer Patrick McGrath. McGrath has been described as "a Poe for the 80's," a postmodern-gothic storyteller. His new collection of short stories is titled Blood and Water and Other Tales. Horror writing is a genre that comes easily to McGrath, who grew up on the grounds of an English asylum for the criminally insane.

Writer Bharati Mukherjee. Her new book of short stories, The Middleman and Other Stories, portrays immigrants from Third World countries who strive to maintain their indigenous identity while embracing much of Western culture and lifestyle.

Herbert Mitgang, cultural correspondent for The New York Times, and a former member of its editorial board. His new book, Dangerous Dossiers: Exposing the Secret War Against America's Greatest Authors, examines the 50-year espionage campaign waged by the CIA and the FBI against writers such as Ernest Hemingway, Sinclair Lewis, William Faulkner and Norman Mailer.

Mary Gordon. Her novels include The Company of Women and Final Payments, an acclaimed exploration of a Catholic upbringing. Her recent collection of short stories is titled Temporary Shelter.

Tony Hendra. His new book, Going Too Far, is a history of "Boomer (as in Baby Boomer) Humor." Hendra was editor of The National Lampoon for eight years. He directed the Lampoon play "Lemmings" and co-created and wrote the British TV series "Spitting Image." In addition, he has written several books of satire and appeared in the movie "This is Spinal Tap."

Brendan Gill. He has written for The New Yorker magazine for more than 50 years, writing poems, prose, profiles and film and theater reviews. Gill also writes about architecture and has just written a biography of Frank Lloyd Wright.

Writer Joan Didion. Known for her self-reflective essays and reporting, Didion is one of America's most important writers. Her books include A Book of Common Prayer, Slouching Toward Bethlehem and Salvador. With her husband John Gregory Dunne, she co-wrote the screenplay for "True Confessions." Her new book is titled Miami.

Playwright Wendy Wasserstein, author of an upcoming episode on the new PBS comedy series "Trying Times." Her other plays include Isn't it Romantic and Uncommon Women and Others.

Gordon Lish, editor of The Quarterly, a journal of new American writing. He's a leading exponent of the minimalist style of writing.

Indian writer Ved Mehta. He's written several books of autobiography, most all of which have been serialized in "The New Yorker" magazine. His autobiographies are poignant accounts of his blindness, his education in England, and the role that language came to play in his life.