Books & Literature

Critic Maureen Corrigan reviews "Freud, Dora, and Vienna 1900," by historian Hannah S. Decker. It's an account of Sigmund Freud's work with his patient Dora -- a case which has often been viewed and critiqued through the lens of contemporary feminist scholarship.

Book critic John Leonard reviews Grossman's first novel, "The Smile of the Lamb," originally written in 1983. It explores the conflict between the Israelis and Palestinians through the lenses of culture and language.

The journalist's new book, "The Power and the Glitter," looks at alliances between politicians across the ideological spectrum with movie stars and other celebrities. Brownstein is the national political correspondent for the Los Angeles Times.

Critic Maureen Corrigan says that Elizabeth Bowen quote best describes the collection Wave Me Goodbye, which features short stories written by women during World War II. Corrigan says, in light of the conflict in the Middle East, the collection is remains relevant to women and men alike.

Comic strip artist Bill Griffith talks about the impact of the war on his daily strip, Zippy. Griffith is surprised that other comics like Beetle Bailey haven't also addressed the conflict.

Terry asks three people about how the war is affecting their creative work: Arab poet Zabyah Khamis, American poet Galway Kinnell, and political cartoonist Dan Wasserman.

Oz talks to Terry from his home in Israel about his family's experiences during the recent Iraqi missile attacks, his work as a lecturer with the Israeli army, his views on the Israeli government's response to the crisis, and his feelings about the current war in Iraq.

Book critic John Leonard reviews "The Half Man," George Packer's novel of a journalist in a small Pacific Rim country.

Science writer Timothy Ferris. In his new book, "The Mind's Sky," Ferris explores the relationship between the universe and how our brains' see the universe. Ferris's earlier books include the best-seller, "Coming Of Age In The Milky Way."

Book critic John Leonard reviews "The Secret Pilgrim" by John LeCarre. It's the final chapter in LeCarre's novels starring master spy George Smiley, which Leonard says it's a Pilgrim's Promise of a book, and LeCarre's best in recent years.

Bell's new novel, "Doctor Sleep," follows a hypnotist and part-time criminologist through three days and nights as he deals with his domestic life and with tracking down a serial killer. Bell is interested in the altered states of mind that come from hypnotism, insomnia, and stress.

Book critic John Leonard reviews the new family memoir by the prolific novelist. He says it features many of the same themes found in Roth's fiction, like an obsession with memory, and one usually absent: love.

Writer Frank White's book "The SETI Factor," looks at the ongoing search for extraterrestrial intelligence. In 1992, NASA will begin a comprehensive scan of the heavens for radio signals from other solar systems. White says, as a result of that search, it's quite likely that within the next 25 years we'll finally know if we're alone in the universe.

Film historian Kevin Brownlow is best known as the man who reconstructed the silent movie masterpiece Napoleon. His new book, Behind the Mask of Innocence, is an examination of how pre-World War One filmmakers, contrary to popular belief, addressed social issues of the day.

Linguist Geoff Nunberg foregoes his usual language commentaries to tell us a tale about being young and limber in Rome.

Film critic Stephen Schiff and book critic John Leonard look back at the movies and books of 1990. They give us their favorites from the year, and consider trends and highlights in popular culture.

Political cartoonist Mark Alan Stamaty writes the comic strip "Washingtoon," which lampoons the news of the day. Stamaty joins Fresh Air to share his perspective on the events of the past year.

Book critic John Leonards says the Russian author is the greatest writer never to have received the Nobel prize. He reviews a new biography by Brian Boyd, which explores Nabokov's complex and unnerving mind.

Book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews the new book by Elijah Anderson, which features interviews with city dwellers. The sociological text reveals much about crime and and racism in urban areas.