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Book Recounts Challenges Of Eradicating Smallpox November 20, 2009 In Smallpox: The Death of a Disease, Dr. D.A. Henderson recounts the history of the deadly virus, from the development of the first vaccine in the late 18th century to his involvement in the successful global eradication campaign in the 1960s and 70s. NPR
'Emancipation,' A Story Of European Jews' Liberation November 21, 2009 Europe's Jews began to fight their way out of the ghettos during the tumult of the French Revolution. It's the focus of Michael Goldfarb's new book, Emancipation: How Liberating Europe's Jews from the Ghetto Led to Revolution and Renaissance. Guy Raz talks with Goldfarb about how that liberation paved the way for thinkers like Marx, Freud and Einstein. NPR
Growing Up With Orson Welles As Her Father November 22, 2009 The name Orson Welles has the power to jog millions of memories. His radio work sent the nation into a panic. Host Liane Hansen speaks with Chris Welles Feder about her new book, In My Father's Shadow, an account of her life growing up as the daughter of Orson Welles. NPR
A Child's Doctor Turns To Iraq War's Youngest Victims November 22, 2009 Dr. Chris Coppola was a pediatrician in the U.S. before he shipped off to Iraq. As a military surgeon, he expected to treat soldiers, but he found himself helping war-ravaged Iraqi children as well. Host Liane Hansen speaks with Dr. Coppola about his memoir, Coppola: A Pediatric Surgeon in Iraq. NPR
Author Recounts 'Buffalo Saga' November 22, 2009 The Buffalo Soldiers have been called the unsung heroes of World War II. James Harden Daugherty was only 19 when he was drafted in the U.S. Army. He left the United States, where he was still abiding by "Coloreds Only" Jim Crow laws, to help fight for freedom and liberation for those abroad. Daugherty, who's written a book called The Buffalo Saga, revisits those years with host Guy Raz. NPR
Author: Polar Bears Are 'On Thin Ice' November 22, 2009 Polar bears are some of the most high-profile victims of global warming. Theyżre irresistibly cute, and author Richard Ellis says theyżll disappear from the wild within a hundred years as irreversible warming destroys the polar ice caps. Ellis talks to host Guy Raz about his new book, On Thin Ice: The Changing World of the Polar Bear. NPR
Turan's Book Spotlights Theater Producer Joe Papp November 23, 2009 There's a new book out about legendary theater producer Joseph Papp. Kenneth Turan's book is called Free for All: Joe Papp, the Public, and the Greatest Theater Story Ever Told. Papp founded the New York Shakespeare Festival and the Public Theater. He also produced works like Hair and A Chorus Line. NPR
Former Prosecutor Pens A Hip-Hop Theory Of Justice November 19, 2009 George Washington University law professor and former prosecutor Paul Butler believes that, in order to fight for justice, Americans must sometimes fight the power of the justice system. He speaks with host Michel Martin about his new book, "Let's Get Free: A Hip Hop Theory of Justice," and his vision for justice policy. NPR
McCann, Stiles Win National Book Awards November 19, 2009 The 60th annual National Book Awards were handed out Wednesday night in New York. Colum McCann's Let the Great World Spin, a novel about daring, luck and mortality in 1970s New York, won the fiction prize. T.J. Stiles' biography of Cornelius Vanderbilt, The First Tycoon, was the nonfiction winner, and Keith Waldrop's Transcendental Studies: A Trilogy won for poetry. NPR
Hundreds Wait In Mich. Cold To See Sarah Palin November 19, 2009 Grand Rapids, Michigan, was the first stop on Sarah Palin's Going Rouge book tour. The former governor of Alaska and vice presidential candidate signed copies of her book. Palin fans had waited in line all day for a chance to see her. NPR
Eating Animals November 21, 2009 Spurred by the birth of his son, novelist Jonathan Safran Foer investigates the system that puts meat on our plates. The Christian Science Monitor
What We're Reading, Nov. 17 - 23, 2009 November 17, 2009 This week's staff picks: Biographies from bad-boy Andre Agassi and 'Rogue' politician Sarah Palin. Stephen King returns to form in a new novel, Zadie Smith fascinates in collected essays, and science writer Nicholas Wade argues that God is just an evolutionary adaptation. NPR
Comedian George Carlin's 'Last Words' November 17, 2009 Before his death in June 2008, comedian George Carlin spent 10 years working on a memoir, Last Words, with his longtime friend Tony Hendra. Hendra, a writer and comedian, talks with Rebecca Roberts about Carlin's life and legacy. NPR
Is Palin's 'Going Rogue' A Good Read? November 17, 2009 Just one day after its release, Sarah Palin's new memoir, Going Rogue, is already on its way to the bestseller lists. Pundits are combing the book for signs of the former vice presidential candidate's political ambitions — and prospects. NPR's Congressional correspondent Andrea Seabrook gave it a read. NPR
Story Specialists: Doctors Who Write November 17, 2009 The history of literature is filled with authors who also performed surgery or scribbled prescriptions. Lynn Neary speaks with two doctors who are also fiction writers — Abraham Verghese and Terrence Holt — about the link between medicine and writing literature. NPR
A Conservative Read On Palin's 'Going Rogue' November 17, 2009 Sarah Palin may be the Republican party's next big hope, but commentator Rod Dreher says her new book, Going Rogue, does little to bolster her image. She may be the perkiest small-town American in the spotlight, but Palin is selling her personality, not a platform. NPR
Joshua Kosman, Predicting The Next Credit Crisis November 16, 2009 In a new book, journalist Joshua Kosman predicts a coming credit crisis, and assigns blame to private equity firms. While such firms make a fast profit from buying companies, improving them and reselling them, the companies take on the debt incurred from the purchase, leaving them in danger of financial collapse. NPR
A Haunting American Dream Set In 'Luna Park' November 16, 2009 Writer Kevin Baker says he never thought he'd be "hip enough" to venture into graphic novels. But with illustrator Danijel Zezelj, he has created Luna Park — a ghostly graphic novel set in the decaying amusement parks of Coney Island. It profiles a Russian immigrant plagued by nightmares of the Chechen War. NPR
Free Love's Discontents: A.S. Byatt's 'Children' November 16, 2009 The Booker Prize-winning author calls her new novel, The Children's Book, her "easiest to love." In it, the children of a bohemian turn-of-the-century couple discover the truth about their parents. Byatt is also the author of Possession. NPR
Hardcover Fiction Bestsellers For Nov.12, 2009 November 13, 2009 Topping the list: Barbara Kingsolver's The Lacuna, Kathryn Stockett's The Help and Dan Brown's Lost Symbol. And making their list debut: John Grisham's Ford Coutnty and Kurt Vonnegut's Look at the Birdie. NPR
Obama's Half-Brother Recasts Story Of Their Father November 13, 2009 One person who plans to meet with President Obama during his trip to China is his half-brother, Mark Obama Ndesandjo, who lives in China. Ndesandjo has recently released a semi-autobiographical novel, revealing the abusive nature of their father. NPR
A Basketball Hoop Changed UNC Coach's Life November 14, 2009 The next time you see Roy Williams prowling the sidelines in a dapper Alexander Julian suit at University of North Carolina games, you might remember what a dime his mother left on their kitchen table once meant to him. Williams, the winningest active college basketball coach, has written the story of his life with Tim Crothers. Host Scott Simon talks to Williams about his book, Hard Work: A Life On and Off The Court. NPR
'Twilight' Craze Inspires Manuals For Toothy Teens November 14, 2009 The latest film in the teen supernatural romance series Twilight opens Friday. This installment, New Moon, pits dreamy vampires against hunky werewolves in a battle for the hearts of teenage girls across America. Meanwhile, two humorists — Joe Garden and Bob Powers — have authored self-help books for new members of the vampire and werewolf communities. The authors talk with Guy Raz about the misconceptions and challenges facing the vampire and werewolf communities. NPR
These Days, Anne Rice Prefers Angels November 15, 2009 Anne Rice doesn't write about vampires anymore, but in her latest book she turns her attention to another supernatural being: angels. Host Liane Hansen talks with Anne Rice about contemporary vampire fervor and her novel, Angel Time. NPR
What The Future Holds When China Rules November 15, 2009 British author Martin Jacques witnessed the decline of the British Empire over his lifetime. He predicts that Americans will have a similar experience as the power of the United States declines in the coming years, yielding to an ever more powerful China. He discusses his new book, When China Rules the World. NPR
'Mad Scientists,' Building The Future For 50 Years November 15, 2009 If you've used a GPS system — or if you happen to be using the Internet to read this — you can thank DARPA, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. For 50 years, the smallish, somewhat secretive division of the Pentagon has been mostly off-limits to reporters. Now author Michael Belfiore has profiled the agency in a new book. NPR
Palin Begins Media Blitz For 'Going Rogue' November 16, 2009 Former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin launches a media tour Monday to promote her memoir, Going Rogue. What will the book — and book tour — mean for Palin's political future? NPR
Memoir: A History November 17, 2009 What is a memoir – and when and why did we go so crazy for the genre? The Christian Science Monitor
Hudson Landing An Engineering Miracle, Pilot Says November 12, 2009 In January, pilot Chelsey "Sully" Sullenberger was hailed as a hero, after he glided his U.S. Airways plane — which had lost both engines — to a safe landing in the Hudson. In Fly by Wire, writer and former pilot William Langewiesche argues that it was the engineering of the plane, and not Sullenberger's skill, that made the "miracle" possible. NPR
Scalia Book Explores The Man Behind The Justice November 12, 2009 In American Original: The Life and Constitution of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, author Joan Biskupic examines the justice's life as the son of Italian immigrants. She also explores his conservative views from interviews with him, his critics — and his writing. "His core essence comes out not so much in the majority opinion, but in his dissents," she says. NPR
'Paris Review' Author Interviews: 50 Years Of Insight November 11, 2009 For a half-century, the literary journal's interviews, under the banner "The Art of Fiction," have unlocked the mysteries of writing and the eccentricities of writers. Critic Maud Newton reviews a new boxed set, The Paris Review Interviews, Volumes I-IV. NPR
A Tennis Star Who Hates Tennis? November 11, 2009 Widely considered one of the greatest tennis players of all time, Andre Agassi admits in a new autobiography that he hates tennis, "with a dark and secret passion." Always has. He's here to talk with host Terry Gross about what he calls the "contradictions" at the core of his life. NPR
'The Red Book': A Window Into Jung's Dreams November 11, 2009 The journal — 16 years in the making — in which psychoanalyst Carl Jung documented his inner life was long hidden. Now, after a painstaking process of translation and reproduction, Jung's journal is finally available to the public. NPR
In Essays, Author Zadie Smith Reveals Her Process November 11, 2009 In the new collection Changing My Mind: Occasional Essays, author Zadie Smith explores her writing process and the people who have influenced her. Smith tells NPR she doesn't write every day, though she wishes she did — and that she used writing as a way to mourn her father. NPR
Unlikely Word Origins Defined In 'Anonyponymous' November 12, 2009 Did you know that the word "Frisbee" is derived from Mary Frisbie, a woman who made pies in Connecticut? Or that "silhouette" originated with Etienne de Silhouette, an 18th century French finance minister? John Marciano shines light on these and many other etymological mysteries in Anonyponymous: The Forgotten People Behind Everyday Words. NPR
Googled: The End of the World as We Know It November 14, 2009 Ken Auletta documents the meteoric rise of Google from its humble beginnings through its multibillion-dollar profits in his latest book The Christian Science Monitor
What We're Reading: Nov. 10 - 16 November 10, 2009 More staff picks of standout books. This week, new nonfiction: Newspaperman Harold Evans traces his rise, while poet Mary Karr details her fall — and redemption. Nina Totenberg reads the Scalia biography. And great detective writers reveal the origins of their famous sleuths. NPR
Review: 'Good For The Jews' November 10, 2009 The Jewish holiday of Purim arises from a story of Jews in ancient Persia, as told in the biblical Book of Esther. Now, novelist Debra Spark draws on the same story for her latest novel, Good for the Jews. And it's set not in ancient Persia — but in Madison, Wis. The novel won this year's Literary Fiction award from the University of Michigan Press. NPR
An American In Japan, Investigating The 'Tokyo Vice' November 9, 2009 Working for Japan's Yomiuri Shinbun newspaper, reporter Jake Adelstein uncovered a world unknown to many of the Japanese public, let alone to foreigners: the world of organized crime. He details its landscape — and the dangers of covering it — in a new memoir. NPR
A Reluctant Femme Fatale In Postwar London November 9, 2009 The heroine of Elizabeth Wilson's new mystery novel, War Damage, lives an outwardly respectable life, but a murder threatens to bring the secrets of her past into the light. Watson is also the author of Twilight Hour, published in 2007. NPR
Seduction And Betrayal In Paul Auster's 'Invisible' November 6, 2009 Intricate plotting, intermittent erotic tension and the author's powerful moral imagination combine to make Paul Auster's latest novel an absorbing literary thriller. NPR
Can Oceans Survive The Human Appetite For Seafood? November 6, 2009 Faced with declining fish stocks, many nations are looking for sustainable ways to have their fish — and eat it too. But how much fishing is too much? Oceanographer Sylvia Earle discusses this and other topics in her book The World is Blue: How Our Fate and the Ocean's Are One. NPR
How Market Crash Helped Hedge Fund Operator November 6, 2009 Before the financial crisis hit, John Paulson was just your run-of-the-mill hedge fund operator, worth millions of dollars. But when the market crashed, Paulson made billions. How he did it lies at the heart of a new book called The Greatest Trade Ever. The book's author, Gregory R. Zuckerman, offers his insight. NPR
To See The Future, Use The Logic Of Self-Interest November 7, 2009 Bruce Bueno de Mesquita knows what will happen in the future on a host of critical questions. Will Iran develop a nuclear bomb? Will North Korea? What major companies or economies will merge, grow or fall apart? De Mesquita has been predicting the future for 30 years — to a reported 90 percent success rate. Host Scott Simon talks to him about the new book that reveals how his secret: The Predictioneer's Game: Using the Logic of Brazen Self-Interest to See and Shape the Future. NPR
Refusing Flu Shots? Maybe You're A 'Denialist' November 7, 2009 At the Ocean Charter School near Marina del Rey, Calif., 40 percent of the 2008 kindergarten class received vaccination exemptions. Author Michael Specter says the parents in this upscale enclave are prime examples of what he calls "denialism." NPR
Poker, Power Go Hand In Hand, Author Says November 7, 2009 American history is filled with powerful men who have have honed their competitive strategies around the card table. In Cowboys Full: The Story of Poker, author James McManus details how the game's logic is reflected in our history of battles and business. NPR
Mixed Race Americans Picture A 'Blended Nation' November 8, 2009 The 2000 U.S. census was the first to give Americans the option to check more than one box for race. Nearly 7 million people declared themselves to be multiracial, a number that's expected to shoot up in the 2010 count. As more of the nation's population identifies itself as being of mixed race, the authors of a new book say Americans' ideas of racial identity are in for a challenge. NPR
Walking Through Walls And Staring At Goats November 8, 2009 The new George Clooney movie, The Men Who Stare at Goats, is filled with tough-to-believe notions. Here's one — the U.S. Army teaching one of its squads how to walk through walls. Or how about stopping the hearts of goats just by staring at them? Sounds crazy, but author Jon Ronson tells host Guy Raz that the Army really tried those techniques and others in the late '70s and early '80s. Ronson wrote the book that became the basis for the movie. NPR
From Kingsolver, The Fiction Of A Split Psyche November 9, 2009 Writer Barbara Kingsolver is fascinated by the tension inherent in living on the border between two cultures. Her latest novel, The Lacuna, tells the story of a young man born of a Mexican mother and an American father. NPR
The Education of a British-Protected Child November 11, 2009 This collection of beautifully written autobiographical essays reveals much about the worldview of celebrated Nigerian author Chinua Achebe The Christian Science Monitor
'The Audacity To Win' The Presidency November 4, 2009 As Barack Obama's presidential campaign manager, David Plouffe was responsible for constructing an unprecedented grass-roots campaign. In his new book, The Audacity To Win: The Inside Story and Lessons of Barack Obama's Historic Victory, Plouffe presents a behind-the-scenes look at a historic campaign. NPR

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