Saturday, October 30, 2010

Nicole Krauss at Talking Volumes - Minneapolis Star Tribune (blog) - Claude Peck - ‎

Nicole Krauss signed books Oct. 28 at the Fitzgerald Theater in St. Paul. Softspoken but eloquent novelist Nicole Krauss talked about books, including her own new novel, at a Talking Volumes event at the Fitzgerald Theater Thursday night. Krauss, whose third novel "Great House," has been named a fiction finalist by the National Book Award, said that the book grew from a short story she wrote a couple of years ago. Her writing does not depend on an outline, she said, and she has little idea at the outset where the novel will end up. "I make the doorknob first, then the door, and the room," she said in describing her writing process. "Only much later do you step back and see the whole house."

Read the full Tribune story here. See also: The History of Love: A Novel, Man Walks Into a Room, The Future Dictionary of America

Bound Up with Books from WNYC's Brian Lehrer Show by listenerservices@wnyc.org (WNYC, New York Public Radio)

Sean Manning, writer and editor of Bound to Last: 30 Writers on Their Most Cherished Book discusses the book along with two of its contributors; Ed Park, a founding editor of The Believer and author of Personal Days: A Novel, and Sigrid Nuñez, author of Salvation City.

Listen to the show here. See also: The Things That Need Doing: A Memoir, Bound to Last, Outland, Bound to Last: 30 Writers on Their Most Cherished Book

Conroy talks about 'Reading Life' — and writing life Baltimore Sun - Michael Sragow - ‎

Actors as different as Jon Voight, Michael O'Keefe, David Keith and Nick Nolte have played writer Pat Conroy and his fictional surrogates in a string of memorable movies. Roll them all together, with their rough edges intact, and you wouldn't achieve the total range of his creative personality. A partial list of his work includes "The Water is Wide" (filmed as "Conrack"), a straightforward, ebullient teaching memoir; "The Great Santini," an intensely focused character study of a tyrannical Marine ace; "The Lords of Discipline," a hard-hitting fictional exposé of initiation rites at a military college; and "The Prince of Tides," a lush, traumatic Southern family epic.

Read the full story here. See also: South of Broad: A Novel, My Reading Life, The Lords of Discipline: A Novel, The Great Santini: A Novel

Slip Into The Secret Life of Eels from NPR Podcast Talk of the Nation

In his new book Eels, writer James Prosek describes the life history and cultural significance of this slimy, snake-like and often misunderstood fish, introducing the reader to an eel fisherman on the Delaware River and to the myths of the Maori of New Zealand along the way.

Listen to the podcast here. Read the full story here. See also: Trout: An Illustrated History, Trout of the World

Zoo Story from Lopate - Underreported by listenerservices@wnyc.org (WNYC, New York Public Radio)

Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Thomas French gives an account of the secret life of a zoo and its inhabitants: both animal and human. Based on six years of research, his book Zoo Story: Life in the Garden of Captives follows a handful of characters at Tampa's Lowry Park Zoo: from an alpha chimp, to a ferocious tiger, to a brilliant but tyrannical CEO.

Listen to the full podcast here. Or see the show's webpage for this episode here. Also, check out this Colbert Report interview.

Crafting with Amy Sedaris from Lopate - Underreported by listenerservices@wnyc.org (WNYC, New York Public Radio)

Amy Sedaris, America's most delightfully unconventional hostess, talks about the joys of crafting. Her new book Simple Times: Crafts for Poor People shows that crafting is pleasurable and constructive. It includes instructions for popular crafts and gifts: crab-claw clips, tinfoil balls, and crepe-paper moccasins, hints for getting inspired, and includes recipes for cooking your own edible crafts. She’ll also launch a listener craft contest!

Read the full WNYC story here. Or listen to the podcast here. See also: I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence, The Book of Liz

Natick author serializes romantic online 'blovel' By Chris Bergeron/DAILY NEWS STAFF GHS Posted Oct 29, 2010 @ 02:00 PM Last update Oct 29, 2010 @ 04:24 PM

From the days of the Old Testament to Stieg Larsson's "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo," authors have written their stories on paper for people to hold and read. Author Sharon Bially thinks the printed word is going the way of the dodo bird so she's published an online, serialized novel about a young mother that's available for everyone to read. Launched Sept. 13 and posted in approximately 1,000-word segments, "Veronica's Nap" chronicles the experiences of a young mother living in the south of France who subverts her dream of being an artist by constant procrastination and excessive napping. Instead of buying Bially's novel at Barnes & Noble, readers can follow Veronica's unfolding quest for serenity at http://veronicas-nap.com, a WordPress powered blog.

Check the full Ipswich Chronicle story out here. See also: http://veronicas-nap.com/

Thursday, October 28, 2010

The Daily Show - October 27, 2010 - Barack Obama

Barack Obama Pt. 1 Episode #15136 Barack Obama believes a lot has been accomplished over the last 18 months in very difficult circumstances. (06:49) Tags: Barack Obama, interviews, economy, health, Midterm Teapartyganza, insurance, reform, Democrats, midterm elections, Indecision 2010, Indecision, on location, Washington DC, intro, TDS Midterm Election Coverage. Aired: 10/27/10. Viewed: 885,931
See also: Of Thee I Sing: A Letter to My Daughters, The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream (Vintage), Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance

The Colbert Report - October 27, 2010 - Apolo Ohno

October 27, 2010 - Apolo Ohno Views: 90,780 Aired: 10/27/10 Episode 06136 Stephen looks at the Democrats' chances in the midterms and gives Apolo Ohno a regret.

See: http://www.colbertnation.com/full-episodes/wed-october-27-2010-apolo-ohno. See also: Apolo Anton Ohno: My Story

"'Bee Season' Author Returns: A 'False Friend' Atones" from NPR's Arts & Life

Recent headlines remind us of the tragic consequences of bullying. Mean girls have tormented other girls for generations. (Ditto boys.) Myla Goldberg's intriguing new novel adds a retrospective twist to the problem. The False Friend is about a woman who heads back to her hometown to confess to perpetrating and then covering up a crime against another girl when they were both eleven. Goldberg, author of the 2000 bestseller Bee Season, begins her story with a blast of memory. Celia sees a red VW bug and imagines she hears the familiar, long-forgotten voice of her childhood best friend Djuna. In memory she is transported back to age eleven, when, after a raging argument, the two of them led their clique of five girls in a forbidden walk home through the woods in upstate New York. In an episode Celia's memory has blanked out until this moment, she recalls seeing Djuna fall into a hole, and leaving her there, telling no one.
Read an excerpt of the book, here. Read the full NPR Arts & Life feature here. See also: The False Friend, Wickett's Remedy: A Novel, Catching The Moon

Joyce Carol Oates: Sourland from Forum Network | Book Tour Podcast Podcast

Award-winning author Joyce Carol Oates discusses her latest work, Sourland. Oates's utterly fearless, disquieting, and imaginative writing spans multiple genres and has established her as one of America's preeminent authors. She is a recipient of the National Book Award for her novel them and the PEN/Malamud Award for Excellence in Short Fiction and has been nominated for the Pulitzer Prize as well as the Nobel Prize. The New York Times, in its review of Sourland, calls her "a dangerous writer in the best sense of the word, one who takes risks almost obsessively, with energy and relish." Hosted by TV and radio personality Faith Salie.
Download the podcast here. See also: Sourland: Stories, Zombie: A Novel (P.S.), Blonde: A Novel

James Patterson sells 1 million Kindle books Christian Science Monitor - Marjorie Kehe - ‎

James Patterson is now the second member of the “Kindle Million Club.” Amazon announced yesterday that Patterson had sold 1,005,803 e-books through Amazon's Kindle Store. The Kindle Million Club recognizes authors whose books have sold more than 1 million copies in the Kindle Store. The first – and only other – author to hit the million mark so far is Stieg Larsson, author of the "Millennium" trilogy. The only surprise in yesterday's announcement was the fact that the astoundingly prolific Patterson (who often works with coauthors) had not been the first inductee into the Kindle Million Club. Although he is perhaps best known for his thrillers featuring forensic psychologist Alex Cross, Patterson has written 65 books since retiring from advertising 34 years ago. He has had 19 consecutive No.1 New York Times bestselling novels and holds the Guinness World Record for "most hardcover fiction bestselling titles by a single author." (His total in that category is 56.)

Read the full story here. See also: The 9th Judgment (Women's Murder Club), Don't Blink, SWEET DREAMS (The Justice of Revenge)

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

The Daily Show - October 26, 2010 - Ted Kaufman

Ted Kaufman Episode #15135 Ted Kaufman says America's founders designed the Senate to be the place where everything stopped. (05:25) Tags: Ted Kaufman, interviews, Midterm Teapartyganza, on location, Washington DC, Joe Biden, Senate, Indecision 2010, founding fathers, history, money, corruption, campaigns, Indecision, government Aired: 10/26/10Viewed: 76,826
See also: Wrong on Race: The Democratic Party's Buried Past, The Democratic Party Heads North, 1877-1962, The Campaign Text Book of the Democratic Party of the United States, for the Presidential Election of 1888 ...

Glee Jumps to the Left from WNYC's Soundcheck by listenerservices@wnyc.org (WNYC, New York Public Radio)

The singing high-schoolers of Fox TV’s Glee took on one of the “best worst” musicals of all time: The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Today: our listeners weigh in on Glee’s adaptation of a cult favorite. Plus: we hear about the Rocky Horror’s history on stage and screen (and in the aisles) from Elizabeth Wollman, author of The Theater Will Rock: A History of the Rock Musical, from Hair to Hedwig.

Listen to the podcast here. Download the podcast here.

Britain's Cuts: Daring or Daft? from On Point with Tom Ashbrook Podcast

Britain announced an austerity package that has stunned even the most hard-nosed American deficit hawks. We look at Britain's cutbacks. With guests Alex Barker of the Financial Times; Lord Robert Skidelsky, emeritus professor of political economy at the University of Warwick, and author of "Keynes: The Return of the Master"; Tim Besley, professor of economics and political science at the London School of Economics; Peter Beinart of The Daily Beast and City University of New York; and Robert Bixby of The Concord Coalition.

Listen to the show here. Download the podcast here. See also: John Maynard Keynes: 1883-1946: Economist, Philosopher, Statesman, John Maynard Keynes: Volume 1: Hopes Betrayed 1883-1920, John Maynard Keynes, Vol. 3: Fighting for Freedom, 1937-1946

California's Prop 19: The Politics and Practicality of Marijuana Prohibition from The Takeaway: Early Edition by feedback@thetakeaway.org (Public Radio International and WNYC Radio)

In under a week, the nation will vote in gubernatorial, Senate and Congressional elections that seem very likely to shift the national balance of power. But in many states, those same voters will be deciding on ballot initiatives that will have more dramatic and immediate consequences. In California, voters are going to decide on Proposition 19, a ballot initiative that would legalize the use of marijuana for non-medicinal purposes. U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder says that even if California were to legalize pot, the Department of Justice will prosecute Californian users and growers under federal drug laws. For more on the politics and the practicality of Prop 19 we speak with Bruce Cain, political science professor at U.C. Berkeley and Time.com health reporter Maia Szalavitz, author of "Born for Love: Why Empathy is Essential ... and Endangered."

Listen to the podcast here. Download the podcast here. See also: Recovery Options: The Complete Guide, The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog: And Other Stories from a Child Psychiatrist's Notebook Child Psychiatrist's Notebook--What Traumatized Children Can Teach Us About Loss, Love, and Healing, Help at Any Cost

Us Now from WNYC's Brian Lehrer Show by listenerservices@wnyc.org (WNYC, New York Public Radio)

Novelist, historian and author Kevin Baker looks back over the 400 years of United States history while discussing his new book, America The Story of Us: An Illustrated History.

Listen to the podcast here. See the rest of the show here. See also: Dreamland (P.S.), America The Story of Us: An Illustrated History, Luna Park

The Colbert Report - October 26, 2010 - Garry Wills

October 26, 2010 - Garry Wills Views: 0 Aired: 10/26/10 Episode 06135 Stephen prepares for the apocalypse, and Garry Wills writes a book about himself.

See: http://www.colbertnation.com/full-episodes/tue-october-26-2010-garry-wills. See also: What Jesus Meant, Bomb Power: The Modern Presidency and the National Security State, Why I Am a Catholic