Books & Literature

Czech-born novelist JOSEF SKVORECKY. His parents fled the Nazis, and he fled the Soviets when they invaded Czechoslovkia. His first novel, The Cowards was banned in Czechoslovkia and since then he and his wife have run a publishing firm that brings out the works of other Czech writers who have also been banned. His best known books are Dvorak in Love, The Engineer of Human Souls and The Bass Saxophone. He's also written mysteries, the latest is Sins For Father Knox. His stories blend elements of memoir, politics and his love of music. Since 1969 he has lived in Toronto.

Writer, photographer and teacher MARGARET RANDALL. For 23 years, she lived throughout Latin and Central America, writing about the people, and in particular the lives of the women. She has published almost 50 books of poetry, prose and oral history. Since her return to the United States from an extended stay in Latin America, the Immigration and Naturalization Service has been trying to deport her. Randall and her supporters claim that is because Randall's writing is sharply critical of government policy in Central America.

The author's books follow the lives of fictional characters in real historical situations. Several of them have been made into films. Doctorow's newest novel, Billy Bathgate, takes place in the criminal underworld of early-twentieth-century New York City.

Robert MacNeil hosts the Newshour program with Jim Lehrer. His latest book is about how his childhood experiences led him to a career in the news, and the importance of language and diction in his professional life.

Former diplomat Anthony Lake's new book is about the tense relationship between the United States and Nicaragua during the final years of Anastasio Somoza's reign. Book critic John Leonard is impressed by Lake's thoroughness, as well as his recommendations for improved diplomatic relations -- though the author is not without his own political blind spots.

Douglas Adams' new, metaphysical novel follows detective Dirk Gently's investigation into an explosion at a London airport. His book A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy spawned a radio show, several sequels and a computer game.

Le Guin has a new collection of essays called "Dancing at the Edge of the World," about her life as a writer of genre fiction, her perspective as a woman sci-fi author who is also a mother, and the various tropes she explore in her classic works, like 1969's gender-themed "Left Hand of Darkness."

Critic Maureen Corrigan reviews books by Wayne C. Booth and Robert Coles, writers who, while offering different solutions, both believe that the teaching of literature deserves a greater place in colleges and universities.

Rose has created educational and literacy programs for young people who fall through the cracks in school. As a young person, he was placed in a vocational track after a testing mixup -- a program that wasn't a good fit for Rose. His new book about his education and his current teaching is called "Lives on the Boundary."

The new novelist's book, The Casual Brutality, deals with a man from Trinidad who moves to Canada -- a narrative inspired by Bissoondath's own life. The writer is descended from Indian immigrants, and is the nephew of fellow author V.S. Naipaul.

David Marc considers his new book about classic sitcoms as a kind of autobiography: each show he reviews reminds him of the time in his life when he first watched it. He joins Fresh Air to talk about the history and politics of television comedy, especially in how it restricted the roles of women and people of color.

Watergate journalist Carl Bernstein has a new memoir about his parents, two left-wing organizers who faced persecution because of their politics. Book critic John Leonard says it demystifies the McCarthy era and the day-to-day lives of activists.

Naipaul was born to Indian Hindu parents in Trinidad. His international perspective has informed both his fiction and nonfiction, which are often set in post-colonial countries. His newest book, A Turn in the South, explores the culture of the United States' Southern states.

Writer and novelist David Grossman spent time in the occupied West Bank and was shocked by the effect Israel's policies have had on the lives of the Palestinians -- particularly in light of what Jews endured during the Holocaust. His book about this situation is called "The Yellow Wind." He also wrote a novel called "See Under - Love."

Now that author Salman Rushide has gone into hiding, critic-at-large Laurie Stone looks at how communities around the world have been responding to his controversial book.

Humor writer Alfred Gingold's newest book, The House Trap, highlights his misadventures buying a house with his wife.

Lopez has a new collection of essays called Crossing Open Ground, which offers what he hopes is a non-judgemental view of environmental change and different interactions with animals and the natural world.

Book critic John Leonard says that leading feminist author Margaret Atwood can be alternately lyrical and severe. Her latest novel, Cat's Eye, is a dark look at a painter's fraught friendships with other women.

Mathematician John Allen Paulos joins Fresh Air to discuss how people often lack the ability to evaluate the size of objects and the magnitude of different phenomena. He believes numeracy should be taught in primary schools in order to combat this deficiency.

Feminist writer Susan Brownmiller wrote a fictionalized account of the Sternberg-Nussbaum child abuse and murder case, case called Waverly Place. She joins Fresh Air to discuss why she avoided writing a true crime book, as well as the sociology of domestic abuse.