An author interview the way they should be. (Might spice up Writers at Work if we booked guests like this...) youtu.be/bcsIJqhGkB4?...

The South Bronx bandleader took the Latin genre to new heights while recording for Fania Records. n.pr/4kLTCKV

My guest is book critic Ron Charles. After two decades – and having received a National Book Critics Circle Award – Ron was let go by the Post and the paper's Book World section was shut down. What's the function and future of book reviewing in mainstream media? tinyurl.com/5ek26f59

Streaming now: "Girl I Remember," the second single from the album "The Lost Songs of Katy Shayne" inspired by my novel "A Song for Katy Shayne." tinyurl.com/38hytyuf "The Lost Songs of Katy Shayne" arrives March 27. My novel is available via your favorite online bookseller and select bookstores.

Happy President's Day: youtu.be/9wvAjA-ovhs?...

Spent the afternoon at the Public Theatre with an absurd, frantic, hysterical, ridiculous and brilliant rendition of “Ulysses.” There’s nothing like an Elevator Repair Service production of a literary classic. youtu.be/K7UMBN08w04

2026 is already shaping up as an unforgettable year for book lovers, packed with new works by favorite authors and exciting debuts that we at PEN America can't wait to dig in to. Here are 100 books we can't wait to get our hands on: bookshop.org/lists/pen-am... #books #newbooks #readinglist

My guest on this episode of Writers at Work is Don Winslow. His latest, “The Final Score,” marks his return following his announced retirement in 2022. It’s a six-story crime collection Stephen King called “the best crime fiction I’ve read in 20 years.” tinyurl.com/2nje4ttt

If you're thinking about dialing an 800 number for medical advice, you'll want to listen to this episode. Elizabeth Chamblee Birch is author of “The Pain Brokers: How Con Men, Call Centers and Rogue Doctors Fuel America’s Lawsuit Factory," an infuriating, heartbreaking tale. tinyurl.com/4y2n59fv

If only Trump knew anything about the arts and American popular culture... Damning-with-faint-praise quote: “'This year alone, we have seen enthusiasm for high-caliber programs with broad appeal,' said Roma Daravi, the vice president of public relations at the center." www.wsj.com/business/ken...

The shortest month of the year is packed with highly anticipated new releases, including books from Michael Pollan, Tayari Jones and the late Nobel laureate Mario Vargas Llosa. n.pr/4qt3Dxu

What Happens in a Performer’s Brain While Playing Music? www.nytimes.com/2026/02/10/a...

Haruki Murakami Isn’t Afraid of the Dark www.nytimes.com/2026/02/08/b...

We'll pick it up from here. Spring Training and the World Baseball Classic are right around the corner!

On this date in 1964, the Beatles arrived in America to play two concerts and perform on "The Ed Sullivan Show." A question: Back then, were the Beatles a good band? From the WSJ archives: tinyurl.com/3hyru5wr

My latest guest on Writers at Work is Elizabeth Chamblee Birch, author of “The Pain Brokers: How Con Men, Call Centers and Rogue Doctors Fuel America’s Lawsuit Factory,” a tale of a scheme that exploits a view that women’s bodies are commodities, their pain not a concern. tinyurl.com/4y2n59fv

My latest guest is Janice Page, a culture and arts editor at the Washington Post and the author of “Year of the Water Horse,” a wise and often amusing memoir about her melting-pot family, Amazing how a well-told story about someone else’s family can remind us of our own. tinyurl.com/5e7h5k6u

The US immigrant population generated more in taxes than they received in benefits from all levels of government every year from 1994 to 2023. The Cato study provides the first-ever 30-year analysis of the fiscal effects of immigration on government budgets. ow.ly/nh8L50Y8kAb

What’s With That Voice People Use When Reciting Poetry? www.nytimes.com/2026/02/02/a...

“With ticket sales plummeting and artists pulling out, Trump decides to close the Kennedy Center for two years, promising to renovate it and try again to find an audience and performers when it reopens in 2028.” There wasn’t a thing wrong with the Kennedy Center until Trump got involved.

“The strategy of protesting in America is moving away from rallies and electoral organizing toward direct action. It is becoming one of the most significant civil-disobedience efforts since the civil-rights movement” econ.st/4c1PdRx

My latest guest is Janice Page, a culture and arts editor at the Washington Post and author of “Year of the Water Horse,” a wise and often amusing memoir about her melting-pot family. Amazing how a well-told story about someone else’s family can remind us so much of our own. tinyurl.com/5e7h5k6u

Prepping for the March release of "The Lost Songs of Katy Shayne" by Suzanna Spring and the Black Canyon City Band featuring songs by me, I was looking through some old photos. Found a fuzzy one of me performing at the Bitter End circa 1981. You can preorder the album here: tinyurl.com/mtmrjxvv

Joining me on this episode is Matthew Pearl, author of the novel “The Award.” If you're a writer or want to be a writer or are curious at all about writers, it's a book for you. Who knew writing was such a fraught and deadly occupation? tinyurl.com/m38yekuw

"Let fury have the hour, anger can be power / Do you know that you can use it?" youtu.be/LQ82BX0hGBM?...

@mets.com maybe tell Jon Morosi and other doubters that a 3B throw isn’t always longer than a SS. Bichette made the throw from the hole with no problem.

Singer-songwriter Lucinda Williams tapped into America's current period of struggle on her latest album, a collection of protest songs called "World's Gone Wrong." n.pr/4jVfYsN

At the Morgan, Renoir’s portrait of Julie Manet, daughter of Berthe Morisot and Eugene Manet, brother of Edouard Manet. She became a painter herself and a rabid anti-Semite as were several of her artistic relatives’ peers. She died in Paris in 1966 at age 87.

In 1926, a generation of artists was born that reshaped jazz for decades. This episode celebrates eight centennials, including Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Lou Donaldson, Tony Bennett and more. n.pr/4sVW5pu

The Martha Graham Dance Company is just the latest to say they will no longer perform at the Kennedy Center since Trump took over last year. n.pr/4b98UXi

Congratulations to all this year's nominees for the MWA's Edgar Awards. A nod to nominees John Wirth, Lisa Unger and CM Kushins, who were guests in 2025 on my podcast, Writers at Work. For more, visit www.writersatworkpodcast.com

A Briny Englishman (and Booker Prize Winner) Says Farewell www.nytimes.com/2026/01/19/b...

"Miss Scarlett" is back on @pbs.org Masterpiece. About a year ago, Rachel New, the show's creator, show runner and principle writer, visited Writers at Work and hinted at what may happen this season: tinyurl.com/dkb684ex

If You Think This Instrument Is Hard to Play, Try Building One www.nytimes.com/2026/01/14/a...

Set in Germany in the 1930s. How a “good” man can spiral, in small steps, into submission to, and participation in, the brutal activities of an authoritarian state. Is this where America is now? youtu.be/90B2VuBNvys