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Colin Barrett's debut collection deals with some dismal topics. But Tessa Hadley, who picked the book for our Weekend Reads series, praises the Irish writer's "lovely, high-flown, playful" writing.

Poet Lee Bennett Hopkins edited the new children's book, in which poets reflect on paintings at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Rather than describing the painting, it's what they feel," he says.

Journalist Jon Ronson spent two years talking to psychopaths, psychiatrists and even Scientologists in an effort to learn more about psychopathy and its effects on society.

The cherry blossoms are finally in bloom in Washington, D.C., and what better way to celebrate these beautiful Japanese gifts than with a haiku? We celebrate the delicate pink petals with poetry submitted by our listeners.

Film critic Kenneth Turan reviews Memory of a Killer, a Dutch noir thriller about a hit man who's developed Alzheimer's disease. The film is based on the much-praised crime novel series by Jef Geeraerts.

The 2003 film Shattered Glass explores the story of Stephen Glass, a journalist caught fabricating stories for The New Republic. Director Billy Ray drew inspiration from another cinematic exploration of journalism ethics: All the President's Men. It's the latest story in Intersections, a series on artists and their inspirations. NPR's Elizabeth Blair reports.

Brazilian writer Paulo Coelho is a household name in most parts of the world. His new novel, Eleven Minutes, was a global best seller last year -- everywhere but the United States. Now Coelho is setting his sights on the American literary market, which remains stubbornly indifferent to foreign best sellers. NPR's Martin Kaste reports.

Pulitzer Prize winner August Wilson has spent more than 20 years writing a cycle of plays that chronicle black life in 20th-century America, decade by decade. For Intersections, a Morning Edition series on artists and their inspirations, the playwright discusses how he first found the language of the black experience in blues legend Bessie Smith.

In our new feature about songs that conjure up chilly days and frigid nights, novelist Ann Patchett talks about a song that helped her cope with her parents' divorce, and with moving to a strange new place.

The award-winning songwriter speaks with NPR's Scott Simon about the value of melody, and writing a song about rain for a movie scene that had none.