The Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer's latest book delves into the life, complexities and sardonic humor of a man who remains a vital presence in American culture.

We all need a little bit of comfort these days. I’d nominate any Backman book for this list, especially “Anxious People.” Backman has a particular talent for writing about hard topics in a ...

How a Book Can Change a Graduate’s Life After I finished college, Leslie Jamison’s The Empathy Exams won my allegiance immediately and forever. By Emma Sarappo ...

Perfectly imperfect. A drawing that looks like it’s straight out of a good children’s book. I think we know that artist. How she looked at the world, how much she desired to capture it.

Ron Powers’s more recent biography, “ Mark Twain: A Life ” (2005), a book that has more ragtime in its soul than Chernow’s, wrapped up the life in 722 pages.

Sam Kean has gone back in time, at least in practice, for his new book "Dinner with King Tut." He talks with NPR's Ayesha Rascoe about "experimental archeology" and learning about ancient cultures.