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To The Best Of Our Knowledge

Boundary and Horizon: The Mississippi River in African-American History

Angie da Silva is a historian of black cultural life in the United States, going back to the Civil War. She collects stories, both through oral history and archival research. But she's not merely a writer. She brings these stories to life through historical reenactment, often as a slave character she's created named Lila.  She says that the stories she hears and tells are too often left out of our history books.

In this interview, she talks about her work and tells the story of Mary Meachum, a free black abolitionist who worked on the Mississippi in St. Louis.

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

China Miéville on "Embassytown"

China Miéville´s new novel is called "Embassytown."  It features aliens that speak a strange language in a strange way -- with two voices simultaneously.  Miéville spoke with Anne Strainchamps about "Embassytown."

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

BookMark - Brendan Koerner on "Confessions of a Mask"

Writer Brendan Koerner reviews Yukio Mishima's classic novel, "Confessions of a Mask".

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

Elizabeth Royte on "The Tapir's Morning Bath"

Writer Elizabeth Royte spent some time on Panama’s Barro Colorado Island, the best-studied rainforest in the world.  She describes some of the naturalists she met and their work in her book “The Tapir’s Morning Bath.”

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David Plotz on "Good Book"

David Plotz is the editor of Slate Magazine (slate.com) and the author of "Good Book."

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

Calculus of Love - John and Julie Gottman

Psychologists John and Julie Gottman are famous for being able to predict with 94% accuracy whether a couple will break up, stay together unhappily, or stay together happily. In their Love Lab, they've identified hidden patterns of behavior that can strengthen or weaken relationships. If we'd known the secret to a good marriage was non-linear differential equations, we might have paid more attention in math class.

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Eva Gabrielsson on Stieg Larsson

It sometimes seems as though everyone has read "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" and the books that followed. The author, Stieg Larsson, died before he could tell the stories behind the books. Now his companion of more than 30 years, Eva Gabrielsson, has written about the man and his work. In this NEW and UNCUT interview she tells Jim Fleming about the books and her life with Stieg Larsson.

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DEEP TRACKS: Charles Cross on "The Fabulous Sounds of the Pacific Northwest"

Charles R. Cross on the Young Fresh Fellows album “The Fabulous Sounds of the Pacific Northwest.”

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