Farley Granger and Robert Calhoun discuss their book, “Include Me Out: My Life from Goldwyn to Broadway.” Granger says he was discovered at the age of 17, and that Samuel Goldwyn signed him. He talks about Howard Hughes and his takeover of...
World War, 1914-1918 - Veterans - Fiction; Radiation - Fiction; Tennessee - Fiction
Marianne Wiggins discusses her book, “Evidence of Things Unseen.” She begins by examining the book’s characters Fos and Flash who met while serving in France during World War I. While on a trip to the Outer Banks in Tennessee to study a...
African American comedians - Fiction; Civil rights movements - Fiction; African American men - Fiction; Comedians - Fiction; Racism - Fiction; Harlem (New York, N.Y.) - Fiction
John Ridley discusses his book, “ A Conversation With the Mann.” He begins by explaining the plot of the book: a young black man’s struggle to become a comedian on The Ed Sullivan Show and achieve fame. He describes some of the other...
Nancy Stone Bernard discusses her books, “Valley of the Kings,” and “Stonehenge.” She begins by explaining that she is an archaeologist and was asked to write a series of books that dealt with famous monuments. She talks about the...
Jerry Pournelle discusses the novel he co-wrote with Larry Niven, “The Gripping Hand.” He begins by explaining that the book is a sequel to their best-selling science fiction novel, “The Mote in God’s Eye.” He talks about previous books...
Joan Nathan discusses her book, “The New American Cooking.” She begins by explaining that American cuisine today is a combination of many different styles from other countries. She talks about how American food today is influenced by the...
Juvenile delinquency - United States - Case studies;
Teachers - Training of - United States - Case studies;
Urban schools - United States
Mary MacCracken discusses her book, “City Kid.” She begins by explaining that her book is a case study of children in inner city public school systems. She talks about her experience teaching autistic and schizophrenic children, and that she...
John Sayles discusses his book, “The Anarchists’ Convention.” He explains that the book is a collection of short stories that depict ordinary people living in extraordinary times. Some of the characters include a lone child traveling west, a...
Loss (Psychology); Self-actualization (Psychology)
Judith Viorst discusses her book, “Necessary Losses: The Loves, Illusions, Dependencies and Impossible Expectations that All of Us Have to Give Up in Order to Grow.” She says she studied at a psychoanalytic institute and talks about great...
African Americans - Biography - Anecdotes; Inspiration - Anecdotes; Social values - United States - Anecdotes; Spiritual life - Anecdotes; African Americans - Conduct of life - Anecdotes
Eric Copage discusses his book, “Soul Food.” He begins by explaining that the book is a compilation of inspirational stories, poems and fables written by and for African Americans. Some of the authors include, Nikki Giovanni, Oprah Winfrey,...
Hollywood (Los Angeles, Calif.) - Pictorial works; Hollywood (Los Angeles, Calif.) - Social life and customs; Hollywood (Los Angeles, Calif.) - Intellectual life - 20th century; Authors, American - 20th century - Biography; Motion picture producers...
Dominick Dunne discusses his book, “The Way We Lived Then.” He explains how the work began as a picture book and later evolved into a book chronicling Dunne’s famous Hollywood parties and social soirees. The collection of photographs,...
World War, 1939-1945 - Washington (D.C.); World War, 1939-1945 - Personal narratives, American; Washington (D.C.) - History
David Brinkley discusses his book, “Washington Goes to War.” Brinkley talks about the singer, Marian Anderson, and the protests of Howard University students. He then describes Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s presidency and the Unites States’...
School improvement programs - California; Problem youth - Education - California; Youth with social disabilities - Education - California; West Valley Leadership Academy (Canoga Park, Calif.)
Paul White discusses his book, “White’s Rules.” He begins by explaining that he is a teacher “of reject kids.” White runs the West Valley Leadership Academy, which is a public charter school in Canoga Park, California. The kids that are...
Motion picture producers and directors - Great Britain - Biography; Chandler, Charlotte; Hitchcock, Alfred, 1899-1980
Charlotte Chandler discusses her book, “It’s Only a Movie.” She begins by explaining that the book is a biography of the British director Alfred Hitchcock whom she had met and interviewed prior to his death in 1980. Chandler shares the story...
Population Groups - psychology - United States - Popular Works; Health Policy - United States - Popular Works; Health Behavior - United States - Popular Works; Drug Industry - economics - United States - Popular Works; Drug Industry - economics -...
Greg Critser discusses his book, “Generation Rx.” He begins by distinguishing between chronic diseases and their prevention and treatments versus acute infectious diseases. He explains that for infectious diseases, such as Polio there is an...
Poland - Fiction; Loss (Psychology) - Fiction; Books and reading - Fiction; Lost literature - Fiction; Immigrants - Fiction; Authors - Fiction
Nicole Krauss discusses her book, “The History of Love.” She begins by explaining the concept of the book, which is that all the characters in the book are inter-connected and forever changed by having read the same book, “The History of...
Public schools - United States - Case studies; Gretchen Whitney High School (Cerritos, Calif.)
Edward Humes discusses his book, “School of Dreams.” He begins by explaining that the book is an exploration of successful American schools. To write the book Edward Humes, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, spent a year at Gretchen Whitney...
Motion pictures - Production and direction; Television - Production and direction
Jed Dannenbaum and Doe Mayer discuss their book, “Creative Filmmaking.” They begin by explaining the “Five Is” of creativity: Introspection, Inquiry, Intuition, Interaction, and Impact. Some of the people they discuss in the book include...
Judaism - Customs and practices - Meditations; Life cycle, Human - Religious aspects -Judaism - Meditations; Life change events - Religious aspects - Judaism - Meditations; Jewish meditations; Life cycle, Human - Religious aspects - Judaism - Poetry
Harold Schulweis discusses his book, “Finding Each Other in Judaism.” He begins by explaining that the first instance of philosophical wisdom that is found in the bible is when God says that it is not good for the human being to be alone and...
World War, 1939-1945 - Japan - Tokyo - Fiction; Pearl Harbor (Hawaii), Attack on, 1941 - Fiction; Americans - Japan - Fiction; Tokyo (Japan) - Fiction
Martin Cruz Smith discusses his book, “December 6.” He begins by sharing that his uncle was a fireman on the Arizona and survived the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941. He then discusses the plot of the book and the protagonist,...
