Book Nook with Vick Mickunas

Thirty years ago when Cindy Fazzi wrote this novel about undocumented immigrants, no publisher would touch it. They said nobody would want to read it. How times changed.

A new private eye series set in the Appalachian region kicks off with a search for two girls who vanished without a trace 10 years ago. Annie Gore investigates.

Kay Hooper was a bestselling romance novelist when she visited WYSO for an interview 30 years ago. Plus C.J. McLin Jr.'s autobiography discussion with Dr. Minnie Johnson.

An author's mother-in-law taught her valuable life lessons and fantastic recipes. This memoir explores Jewish heritage, kosher cooking, and spiritual revival.

This interview with constitutional rights scholar David Cole was timely 22 years ago and seems even more pertinent today. Post-9/11 civil liberties and the Patriot Act.

A longtime diplomat shares his insights into how sustained dialogues are key elements in engineering successful peace negotiations. Hear a Camp David Accords negotiator.

Barbara Taylor Bradford was in her mid-40s when she published her first novel. It sold more than 30 million copies. Over her long career, she sold more than 90 million.

Larry Gara was a peace activist who walked the walk. He was a Quaker and conscientious objector who served a prison term rather than serve in WWII. Rare 1999 interview.

Educator Gwen Agna discusses her memoir on community-centered leadership and creating equitable schools. Plus, a bonus interview with late Indigenous flutist Kevin Locke.

This second book in Eric Rickstad's new crime fiction series with elements of horror and science fiction is quite a page-turner. FBI agents hunt deadly psychic killers.

Why is violence more acceptable in horror novels? Ivy Pochoda explains why her new book isn't the crime novel readers expected in this episode of Book Nook.

This former US Marshall was America's leading Nazi hunter back in the 1980s when there were still a few of them around to pursue. Hear John Pascucci's incredible story.

Southwest Ohio has an incredible history. Richard H. Grant Sr. of Centerville was as influential as better-known Daytonians like Charles Kettering and John Patterson.

In 2001, first-time novelist Lalita Tademy discovered Oprah's publicity powers as Cane River became a bestseller. Plus a bonus jazz critic Nat Hentoff interview.

My final interview with the notable Hollywood producer of programs like "The Rockford Files" and "The A-Team" who had reinvented himself as a writer of crime fiction.

A "women's club" promised to solve financial problems. But when the money didn't reach enough members, things turned murderous in Megan Abbott's latest masterpiece.

Mystery Writers of America Grand Master Laura Lippman's Tess Monaghan series is being adapted for TV. And she published her first cozy mystery, 'Murder Takes a Vacation.'

Introducing the second book in the Taj trilogy of historical fiction set in India. 2003 interview with Indu Sundaresan about "The Feast of Roses" and Empress Mehrunisa.

Author Andrew Welsh-Huggins discusses "The Mailman," the first installment in a sizzling crime series featuring former postal inspector Mercury Carter.

L. Annette Binder discusses 'Child of Earth and Starry Heaven,' a poetic meditation on cognitive decline, exploring her mother's Alzheimer's journey with love.

The latest crime novel by S.A. Cosby is smoking hot. "King of Ashes" explores family bonds in a crematory business as siblings face dangerous criminals.

This Book Nook features Ohioan Mary Annette Pember discussing "Medicine River," her memoir about the Indian boarding schools that tried to erase their cultural heritages.

James Lee Burke discusses his new novel with WYSO's Book Nook. He has made more appearances on the program than any other guest, spanning nearly 30 years.

Has there ever been a better time to try to understand China and the Chinese? Author Adeline Yen Mah explores Chinese proverbs, family, and history in this interview.

Dutch POW secretly documented his WWII captivity in Japan through a hidden diary. He needed a strong spirit to survive his ordeal. A story of resilience & reconciliation.

Twenty-two years later, this interview remains provocative.

100 years ago this was the biggest story in the news.

It was 80 years ago that the U.S. dropped atomic bombs on Japan.

A fascinating history of one our greatest institutions.

The first book in a new series of thrillers.

A true crime story that transfixed Dayton in the 1890s.

A conversation with Alan Turing's nephew, Sir Dermot Turing.

What were you doing in 1999?

We all need to take occasional mental breaks from reality.

Books and baseball can be fabulous when combined.

A retired veterinarian who is now writing children's books.

Recalling the prescription pill mill crisis in Ohio.

Back in the 1980's The Onion practically invented fake news.

A poetry duel: the poet Shuly Cawood vs. Vick Mickunas.

An interview with the Dunbar scholar Herbert Woodward Martin.

A fond remembrance of U.S. Postage stamps. Plus, an interview from the archives of Poor Will's host Bill Felker.

Have you ever wished that you could turn back time?

This novel is a love letter to books and librarians.