Between the Covers

  "In this memoir, Brandon Shimoda, an American poet of Japanese descent, tells the story of his family, starting with his grandfather, who was transformed into an 'enemy alien' by World War II; and in doing so, tells a universal story of the horrors of war both physical a... Read more

  "Wilk's debut novel is a strange, vivid thought experiment. In a near-future Berlin, scientist Anja lives in an eco-settlement on an artificial mountain . . . Anja’s quiet, shy analysis turns a critical eye to our future, asking daring questions of how the desire to chan... Read more

  Host Jenna Yokoyama spoke with two members of the team behind the They Called Us Enemy (Top Shelf, 2019), a graphic novel that tells the biographical story of George Takei's experience with Japanese American concentration camps. Featured are graphic artist Harmony Becker... Read more

  “Max Porter's innovative hybrid of fairy tale, fable, and myth cunningly evokes the freewheeling fantasies of children at play. . . .The result is a puckish celebration of imagination and free spirits rising above the buzz of societal scolds and the anxieties of parental... Read more

Portland author Renee Watson discusses her latest book, "Watch Us Rise." This episode originally aired Feb 07, 2019 on Black Book Talk. Jasmine and Chelsea are best friends on a mission--they're sick of the way women are treated even at their progressive NYC high school, so... Read more

  “Like such eclectic predecessors as Philip K. Dick, James Tiptree, Jr., Jorge Luis Borges, Ursula K. Le Guin, Margaret Atwood, Haruki Murakami, China Miéville, and Kazuo Ishiguro,  Ted Chiang has explored conventional tropes of science fiction in highly unconventional wa... Read more

  “One of the first great novels of the year... In a narrative so sharp it could draw blood, Miriam Toews' Women Talking asks an immense, weighty question: How do women who have lived their entire lives in a society that severely limits their agency act when suddenly needi... Read more

“Kenji Liu’s Monsters I Have Been writhes knotty tentacles through textual boneyards," raves Douglas Kearny, "disturbing screenplays, theoretical works, and literatures in their coffined-off sleeps... Sharp, protean, dexterous, and discontent―Liu’s collection shows where th... Read more

Host Ken Jones talks with Karen Russell, author of the new book Orange World and Other Stories. Orange World is Karen’s fifth book, following the novel Swamplandia!, the novella Sleep Donation, and two collections of short fiction – St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolv... Read more