Join NHPR the week of December 16 for a special NHPR Books literary series showcasing outstanding authors who graced Granite State stages in 2024. Each episode will air at 1 p.m. with a rebroadcast at 9 p.m.
In this series we’ll revisit highlights from our beloved Writers on a New England Stage and Authors on Main events featuring interviews, readings, and reflections from acclaimed authors and national best sellers. Whether you're a devoted book lover or a casual reader, this is an opportunity to connect with the voices that helped shape the literary landscape in 2024.
This week-long series will also take you on a journey through author stories and their inspirations, offering a rare glimpse into the creative processes that fuels their remarkable works.

Barbara McQuade - Attack from Within: How Disinformation is Sabotaging America
Monday, Dec. 16 at 1 p.m. & 9 p.m.
In March 2024, NHPR’s Senior News Editor Casey McDermott spoke at length with author Barbara McQuade about her book “Attack from Within: How Disinformation Is Sabotaging America.” This conversation aired as part of Writers on a New England Stage, a partnership between the Music Hall in Portsmouth, and New Hampshire Public Radio.
Barbara McQuade is a professor from practice at the University of Michigan Law School, where she teaches courses in criminal law, criminal procedure, national security, and data privacy. She is also a legal analyst for NBC News and MSNBC, and a co-host of the podcast #SistersInLaw.
Jodi Picoult - By Any Other Name
Tuesday, Dec. 17 at 1 p.m. & 9 p.m.
In this edition of Authors on Main, NHPR’s Casey McDermott talks with New York Times bestselling Jodi Picoult about her latest work, “By Any Other Name.” This is a novel about two women, centuries apart—one of whom is the real author of Shakespeare’s plays—who are both forced to hide behind another name. Authors on Main is a partnership between Gibson's Bookstore, Capitol Center for the Arts, and New Hampshire Public Radio.
Doris Kearns Goodwin - An Unfinished Love Story: A Personal History of the 1960s
Wednesday, Dec. 18 at 1 p.m. & 9 p.m.
In June 2024, NHPR’s Rebecca Lavoie spoke at length with author Doris Kearns Goodwin about her latest book, "An Unfinished Love Story: A Personal History of the 1960s," as part of our Writers on a New England Stage series.
Doris Kearns Goodwin is one of the country’s most beloved presidential historians and authors, having written books about the Roosevelts, the Kennedys, and Lincoln, among many others.
Julia Alvarez - The Cemetery of Untold Stories
Thursday, Dec. 19 at 1 p.m. & 9 p.m.
This past April, NHPR’s Julia Furukawa sat down with best-selling author Julia Alvarez to discuss “The Cemetery of Untold Stories.” This sweeping novel focuses on Alma Cruz, who after inheriting a small plot of land in the Dominican Republic, creates a graveyard for the manuscript drafts and revisions, and the characters whose lives she tried and failed to bring to life and who still haunt her. Authors on Main is a partnership between Gibson's Bookstore, Capitol Center for the Arts, and New Hampshire Public Radio.
Friday, Dec. 20 at 1 p.m.
Our final Writers on a New England Stage of 2024 features Ariel Lawhon, author of “When We Had Wings,” “I Was Anastasia.” On Nov. 6 she sat down with NHPR’s Rebecca Lavoie to discuss her latest novel “The Frozen River,” a gripping historical mystery inspired by the life and diary of Martha Ballard, a renowned 18th-century midwife who defied the legal system and wrote herself into American history.