One of the founders of queer theory says his childhood in the Pentecostal church laid the ground for his evolution as a gay man and literary scholar. Michael Warner grew up around faith healing and speaking in tongues. He says it was an education in thinking beyond "normal".
Intelligent. Optimistic. Curious.
Audio
In the U.S., copyright originally lasted only 14 years. These days, creative works could be protected for as long as the author's alive, plus an additional 70 years. Cultural historian Siva Vaidhyanathan explains the evolution of copyright law, and how it's affected artists.
Jesse Ball's new novel is called "How to Set a Fire and Why." The protagonist is a teenage girl who joins a secret Arson Club at her new school.
Wangari Maathai triumphed over discrimination and tribalism in her native land and became an environmental activist, planting trees all over her country.
Sharon Jones is a black woman in her late 40s who fronts a band called the Dap-Kings...
Alena Graedon's debut novel is an intellectual thriller set in the near future. Print is dead, words have been monetized, and a "word flu" is running rampant. The book is called "The Word Exchange."
David Bromberg was once a legendary name in the American folk scene, but then he disappeared. He stopped performing and ultimately discovered a new career as a violin maker and collector. He's since returned to music, put together a quintet, and recorded a Grammy-nominated album. He dropped by our studios to perform a few songs and talk about his journey away from and back to music.
Afghan-born writer Khaled Hosseini, author of "The Kite Runner," reads from his latest novel, "And the Mountains Echoed."
Pages
