As the Books Editor of Paste Magazine, Charles McNair cares deeply about what we read. But McNair is concerned that we're only reading a handful of the artists available to us, thanks to what he calls a kind of geographic hegemony of taste-making. In other words - we're all reading the same books because a handful of respected critics on the East and West coasts tell us to.
Intelligent. Optimistic. Curious.
Audio
Cartoonist David Rees's cult hit comic, “Get Your War On” grew out of his frustration at the lack of satire in New York after 9/11.
Elizabeth Strout just won the Pulitzer Prize for her book "Olive Kitteridge." Marilynne Robinson's most recent novel, "Home," was a finalist for the National Book Award. Both women join Steve Paulson to discuss their works.
Great Britain is one of the first countries to create "a gross national happiness index" - thanks largely to Lord Richard Layard. He says economics should focus on what makes people happy.
Christian Lander sees himself as an expert on "Stuff White People Like".
Sacred music provided comfort and hope to generations of African Americans, from slavery to the civil rights movement. Music historian Robert Darden tells this inspiring story and we hear lots of great music.
Emily Parker bookmarks Mario Vargas Llosa's "Conversation in the Cathedral."
Anthony Loyd tells Steve Paulson why he decided to move to Sarajevo and call himself a photojournalist; what living there during the war was like; and how he ended up with a heroin habit.
Pages
