Karen Russell’s debut novel “Swamplandia!” was a finalist for the 2012 Pulitzer prize. Her new book – the entrancing, Gothic-tinged story collection “Vampires in the Lemon Grove” – has been receiving similarly rapturous reviews. Today we overhear her reading a particularly juicy excerpt. (This selection has been edited for time purposes.)
On the "Mortified" podcast, brave adults read aloud the most embarrassing moments from their childhood journals. The show's inspired a new book called "My Mortified Life.” Listen to this favorite from the show, perfect for Halloween, about a middle school girl who desperately wanted to be a vampire in the 1990s.
David Litt penned some of former President Obama's most memorable speeches, including his comic turns at White House Correspondents' Dinners. The stories behind those speeches are the stuff of his new memoir, "Thanks, Obama: My Hopey, Changey White House Years." Listen as he shares a tale that didn't make it into the book… maybe because it involves him stealing.