Laurie Anderson pioneered elements of performance art and electronic music. In her long career, she's lent her eerily cool voice to work by Brian Eno, Peter Gabriel, and her late husband, Lou Reed. Just before the New York release of her film, "Heart of a Dog," the natural born storyteller shares a tale from her collection called "Transitory Life" about a stormy moment from her stay in Amish country.
If you've ever watched TV, chances are you've seen comedian Fred Stoller in action. He's had guest roles on series like "Scrubs," "Friends," and "Everybody Loves Raymond," which leads to the very self-aware title of his memoir, "Maybe We'll Have You Back: The Life of a Perennial TV Guest Star." The Brooklyn comedian hilariously recalls a neurotic adventure involving a demo tape, a director, and the U.S. postal system.
Sloane Crosley's funny, confessional essay collection, "I Was Told There'd Be Cake," was nominated for a Thurber prize. Her follow-up, "How Did You Get This Number," was a New York Times bestseller. Her first novel, "The Clasp." is out on October 6. She shares an excerpt.
Kelly Carlin, daughter of late great comedian George, shares a piece of her new memoir "A Carlin Home Companion" (out this week). It's about the time her father thought that the sun exploded...or as she told us, "A little story that we used to like to tell at cocktail parties."
The Houston writer shares an excerpt from his new novel, "The Hundred Year Flood," in which a Korean-American adoptee heads to Prague in an attempt to forge an identity of his own.
The Minnesota native, whose debut book, "Kitchens of the Great Midwest," won the Faulkner Society's annual novel competition and is earning universal praise from the likes of the New York Times, shares an excerpt -- in which a chef attempts to create the littlest foodie.
Amelia Gray was shortlisted for the Pen/Faulkner Award for Fiction in 2012 for her novel "THREATS." The Los Angeles-based writer returns to the Dinner Party Download to read an excerpt from her recently released collection of short stories called, "GUTSHOT."
Brooklynite Naomi Jackson drew upon her family's roots in Barbados, to write her acclaimed new debut novel. But she says, "The most interesting parts are fiction." Today we overhear an excerpt from "The Star Side of Bird Hill."
Writer Rebecca Makkai's short fiction appeared in "The Best American Short Stories" anthology for four consecutive years. This week, she released her first story collection -- it's called "Music for Wartime." She reads an excerpt about a fantasy life with Baroque composer Johann Sebastian Bach.
Before his big break in cinema, the director once believed his career was doomed from the start... all because of a visit to New York City's Feast of San Gennaro.