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Author Interviews
A first edition of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby was displayed at the London International Antiquarian Book Fair in 2013. Book critic Maureen Corrigan — who calls the cover "striking" — says she likes to think that if it landed on her porch today among the more than 200 books she receives a week, she would read it.

A first edition of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby was displayed at the London International Antiquarian Book Fair in 2013. Book critic Maureen Corrigan — who calls the cover "striking" — says she likes to think that if it landed on her porch today among the more than 200 books she receives a week, she would read it. Oli Scarff/Getty Images hide caption

itoggle caption Oli Scarff/Getty Images

How 'Gatsby' Went From A Moldering Flop To A Great American Novel

In So We Read On, Maureen Corrigan looks at the story behind The Great Gatsby, from F. Scott Fitzgerald's life to the era in which it's set. She says it's her favorite novel, but it wasn't always.

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"Earth outweighs us by a factor of over ten trillion," Munroe writes. "On average, we humans can vertically jump maybe half a meter on a good day. Even if the Earth were rigid and responded instantly, it would be pushed down by less than an atom's width."

"Earth outweighs us by a factor of over ten trillion," Munroe writes. "On average, we humans can vertically jump maybe half a meter on a good day. Even if the Earth were rigid and responded instantly, it would be pushed down by less than an atom's width." Randall Munroe/Courtesy of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt hide caption

itoggle caption Randall Munroe/Courtesy of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

'What If' There Were An Entire Book Devoted To Absurd Hypotheticals?

In a new book, Randall Munroe — creator of the web comic xkcd and a former NASA roboticist — tackles pressing questions like What would happen if all of humanity jumped at once in Rhode Island?

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Drummer, singer and bandleader Sheila E. unpacks the details of a rich musical life in the new memoir The Beat of My Own Drum.

Drummer, singer and bandleader Sheila E. unpacks the details of a rich musical life in the new memoir The Beat of My Own Drum. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

itoggle caption Courtesy of the artist

Music Interviews

What You May Not Know About Sheila E.

If her Prince-assisted '80s hits are all you know of Sheila Escovedo, you're missing half the story. NPR's Arun Rath speaks with the drummer, singer and bandleader and dives in to her early history.

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Artist Miranda July contributed a series of photos in which strangers try on one another's favorite outfits.

Artist Miranda July contributed a series of photos in which strangers try on one another's favorite outfits. Michael Schmelling/Courtesy of Blue Rider Press hide caption

itoggle caption Michael Schmelling/Courtesy of Blue Rider Press

The Seams

For 'Women In Clothes,' It's Not What You Wear, It's Why You Wear It

A new book collects stories that link clothing with intimacy, emotion and memory: how moms dressed before they had kids, favorite outfits and, of course, garment envy.

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Kwei Quartey sets one of the crime scenes in his second D.I. Dawson book in Agbogbloshie, an Accra slum.

Kwei Quartey sets one of the crime scenes in his second D.I. Dawson book in Agbogbloshie, an Accra slum. Ofeibea Quist-Arcton /NPR hide caption

itoggle caption Ofeibea Quist-Arcton /NPR

Crime In The City

Ghanaian Mystery Writer Says 'It's Easy To Get Murdered In Accra'

And, author Kwei Quartey adds, "The police may not find you for a little while." That's why he chose to set his second Detective Inspector Dawson book in Ghana's capital.

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