Sherman Alexie wrote a novel in response to 9/11. He thinks the fanaticism of flying planes into buildings is the end game of tribalism and he wanted to teach his sons something else.
Intelligent. Optimistic. Curious.
Audio
Art critic, novelist and editor Wendy Lesser reads excerpts from her essay "Hitchcock's Vertigo."
Tom Lessl conducted a study of the Darwin fish emblem some people slap on their cars. He says that it seems to have little to do with evolution but represents a rejection of fundamentalist Christianity.
Music historian Will Friedwald is the author of “Stardust Melodies.” He talks with Steve Paulson about the history of the song “My Funny Valentine” and we hear lots of different interpretations.
Nelson Algren wrote “A Walk on the Wild Side” and won the first National Book Award for “The Man with the Golden Arm,” but was too gritty for most critics
According to one estimate, the average young person spends about 8 hours a week playing video games. While many parents are worried about all that screen time, there's an emerging body of research that suggests some social and psychological benefits to gaming. And now there's a new generation of educators who want to bring video games into the classroom, not only to make it more fun, but also more effective. Journalist Greg Toppo writes about their efforts in "The Game Believes in You: How Digital Play Can Make Our Kids Smarter."
Stephen Bloom tells Jim Fleming about a group of Orthodox Jews who moved from Brooklyn to Postville to run a kosher slaughterhouse.
Elizabeth Lunbeck talks about her book, "The Americanization of Narcissism."
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