Jan. 28-feb. 3: teen lust, gothic fright and a history of introverts

_Fiction and nonfiction releases from John Irving, Denise Mina, David Maraniss, Robert Kagan and Susan Cain._ Copyright 2024 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. JAN. 28-FEB. 3: TEEN

LUST, GOTHIC FRIGHT AND A YOUNG PRESIDENT IN ONE PERSON _by John Irving_ John Irving's novel is a coming-of-age story about Billy Abbott, a character at the mercy of his own teenage

crushes. Billy spends many days backstage at the local theater, where gender roles can fluctuate and where his family members are regulars. Much of Billy's growing up occurs in his

relationships — some with women, others with men. Irving tells NPR's Scott Simon that, as a writer well into his adult life, he was comfortable being frank about sexuality. "I just

think as an older person you can be more candid with yourself about who you were and how thoroughly intimidating and confusing and conflicted the world of adult sexuality seemed when you

were on the doorstep of it but still standing outside," he says. THE END OF THE WASP SEASON _by Denise Mina_ NPR book critic Maureen Corrigan writes,"The decrepit ancestral pile

where murder is committed at the beginning of Denise Mina's psychological thriller, _The End of the Wasp Season_, could have been lifted out of the Gothic tales that Conan Doyle

savored." The story takes place in a wealthy suburb of Glasgow, Scotland, where a young woman staying in her newly deceased mother's house suddenly wakes up when the kitchen radio

goes dead, and hears something outside her closed bedroom door. "Like her fellow Scot, Conan Doyle, Mina relishes combining elements of the uncanny with crisp insights into the various

diseases of the human psyche," observes Corrigan. "_The End of the Wasp Season_ is a tale that lingers long after you might wish it could be exorcised." BARACK OBAMA _by David

Maraniss_ When David Maraniss' biography of the president was first released, it sparked headlines about Barack Obama's relationships with his college girlfriends and his

marijuana use as a young man. But there's much more to _Barack Obama: The Story_, writes NPR book critic Michael Schaub. "Maraniss does a fine job chronicling the early years of

the first African-American to become leader of the free world ... The book is a story of a young man looking for his identity, for his place in the world, 'moving not only from culture

to culture but also from political group to political group ... never staking a home, never grabbing hold of something and making it his.'" THE WORLD AMERICA MADE _by Robert Kagan_

Some believe America is in decline, but author Robert Kagan disagrees. In _The World America Made_, the neoconservative writer and former adviser to Republican presidential candidate Mitt

Romney argues that what people think of as decline is based on a faulty memory of how things used to be. "People have a sense that America used to call the shots, used to be able to

dominate the world, get everyone to do what we wanted them to do. And of course that's ludicrous," he tells NPR's Steve Inskeep. Further, Kagan argues, "on the economic

side, the United States produces 25 percent of the world's GDP, and has for the past 40 years ... People note the rise of China and Asia, which is true, but most of that has come at the

expense of Europe's declining GDP. In terms of military power, even with defense budget cuts that I think are unfortunate, the United States is still by far the most powerful nation in

the world." QUIET _by Susan Cain_ From Gandhi to Joe DiMaggio to Mother Teresa to Bill Gates, introverts have done a lot of good work in the world. But being quiet, introverted or shy

was sometimes looked at as a problem to overcome. In the 1940s and '50s the message to most Americans was: Don't be shy. And in today's era of reality television, Twitter and

widespread self-promotion, it seems that cultural mandate is in overdrive. In _Quiet_, Susan Cain — who tells NPR's Audie Cornish that she considers herself to be an introvert —

explains how introversion fell out of style, and how introverts can best capitalize on their strengths and gifts.