Motion picture industry - Fiction; Husbands - Fiction; Hollywood (Los Angeles, Calif.) - Fiction
Jackie Collins discusses her book, “Hollywood Husbands.” Collins describes the three male characters consisting of: a movie star, a studio executive, and a television talk-show host. She goes on to talk about one of the character’s...
T.C. Boyle discusses his book, “World’s End.” The book is set during the 1960s, 1940s, and 1600s. It follows the arrival of the Dutch and political unrest during various time periods. Boyle goes on to talk about the biological father,...
Kit Williams discusses his book, “The Bee on the Comb.” It consists of a series of artwork that was originally oil painted on linen. Williams explains that the story is from the bees’ point of view and describes the similarities between...
Women painters - Fiction; Friendship - Fiction; Girls - Fiction; Toronto (Ont.) - Fiction
Margaret Atwood discusses her book, “Cat’s Eye.” Atwood describes the protagonist, Elaine, and her childhood friends and her relationship with her brother. She goes on to discuss the domination of children’s lives by women during the...
World War, 1939-1945 - France - Fiction; Revenge - Fiction; Betrayal - Fiction; Man-woman relationships - Fiction
Jacqueline Briskin discusses her book, “The Naked Heart.” Briskin talks about the two protagonists, Ann, an American girl, and her friend, Gilberte, the daughter of French nobility. Briskin describes the French climate during World War II and...
Christian biography - United States; Amputees - United States - Biography; Skiers - United States - Biography
Carol Schuller discusses her book, “In the Shadow of His Wings.” Schuller talks about the amputation of her leg as a result of a motorcycle accident and her skiing endeavors.
Footage of Schuller skiing and an interview by her father,...
Dean Koontz discusses his book, “Strangers.” Koontz describes the characters and their exotic careers and the plot, which revolves around their stay at the same motel. He talks about his writing process and Charles Dickens’ newspaper...
Kevin Clash discusses his book, “My Life as a Furry Red Monster: What Being Elmo Has Taught Me About Life, Love, and Laughing Out Loud." Clash talks about his parents’ support of his interest in puppetry and his work with Elmo on Sesame...
British - Arizona - Fiction; Fathers and daughters - Fiction; Deserts - Fiction; Arizona - Fiction
Susan Elderkin discusses her book, “Sunset Over Chocolate Mountains.” She describes the characters, Theobald, an overweight mama’s boy from England, and Jersey, an oddball that meets Theobald in Arizona. Elderkin also describes Tibor, an...
Middle-aged women - Fiction; Peter Pan (Fictitious character) - Fiction; Aging - Fiction; San Francisco (Calif.) - Fiction
Laurie Fox discusses her book, “The Lost Girls.” She says she identified with Wendy from “Peter Pan,” but imagined herself as Peter Pan. Fox talks about Peter Pan taking generations of Wendy’s female children with him. She goes on to...
Actors - United States - Biography; Acting teachers - United States - Biography; Acting
Darryl Hickman discusses his book, “The Unconscious Actor: Out of Control, in Full Command: The Art of Performance in Acting and in Life.” Hickman talks about his time as a childhood actor and as a director of daytime drama. He says not to try...
United States. Army - Officers - Biography; Vietnam War, 1961-1975 - Personal narratives, American; Vietnam War, 1961-1975 - Psychological aspects; Soldiers - United States - Biography
Shad Meshad discusses his book, “Captain for Dark Mornings: A True Story.” Meshad says he was a medical service officer during the Vietnam War. He talks about Linda VanderVeen, a Vietnam nurse’s book, and his war experiences. Meshad...
Korean Americans - Fiction; Children of immigrants - Fiction; Women college graduates - Fiction
Min Jin Lee discusses her book, “Free Food for Millionaires.” She describes the character, Casey, and her boyfriend, Jay. Lee also describes other characters such as Ella, Ted, and Casey’s mother, Leah. She explains how she came up with...
Kiana Davenport discusses her book, “House of Many Gods.” Davenport describes the characters, Ana, an abandoned child, and her mother, Anahola. She talks about the men who have come home from war to unemployment and are wounded. Davenport...
Henson, Jim; Puppeteers - United States - Biography
Cheryl Henson discusses the book, “Jim Henson: The Works: The Art, the Magic, the Imagination," authored by Christopher Finch. Cheryl Henson, daughter of Jim Henson, starts by saying that her father began working on commercials and that the...
Aharon Appelfeld discusses his book, “The Iron Tracks.” He describes the character, Irwin, and his enchantment with trains and tracks following World War II. Appelfeld says Irwin spends his time trying to find Jewish objects and is fearful of...
Human evolution; Social evolution; Nature - Effect of human beings on
Jared Diamond discusses his book, "The Third Chimpanzee: The Evolution and Future of the Human Animal." The book encompasses the history of evolution from the Neanderthals, "tree of human life," and "last first contact." He writes that humans are...
Denny Miller discusses his book, "Didn't You Used to Be What's His Name?" He shares that he played football while he was in the military and that a theatrical agent handed him his card while he was a furniture mover. Miller says he was given...
Women art dealers - Fiction; World War, 1939-1945 - Art and the war - Fiction; Female friendship - Fiction; New York (N.Y.) - Fiction; Paris (France) - Fiction
Barbara Taylor Bradford discusses her book, “A Sudden Change of Heart.” She begins by talking about the two main characters in the book, Laura and Claire. Bradford describes Laura as “true blue,” an always devoted friend to Claire. She...
Vietnam War, 1961-1975 - United States - Fiction; Belief and doubt - Fiction; Mothers - Death - Fiction; Male friendship - Fiction; Predestination - Fiction; Birthfathers - Fiction; New Hampshire - Fiction
John Irving discusses his book, “A Prayer for Owen Meany.” Meany is described as a religious figure that is undersized and damaged, who accidentally kills his best friend’s mother. Owen goes on to find success in the written word and...
