Terry Gross

In her new memoir, Fairyland, Alysia Abbott describes her childhood as the daughter of an openly gay father in San Francisco while the gay liberation movement was gaining strength. Her book is based largely on her father's journals, which she found after his death in 1992.

In Richard Linklater's third film about Jesse and Celine, the two have officially coupled up, but it's no fairy tale. The love is still there, but the daily grind is getting in the way of communication. Linklater, Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy join Fresh Air's Terry Gross to talk about the new film.

New York Times reporter Barry Meier's new e-book explores opiate painkillers and the consequences that come with long-term use. He focuses in particular on OxyContin, how it came to be prescribed for chronic pain, what the consequences have been, and how it became a street drug.

"The more carny it got, the better I liked it," King says of his new thriller, Joyland. The book, set in a North Carolina amusement park in 1973, is part horror novel and part supernatural thriller. King talks with Fresh Air's Terry Gross about his career writing horror, and about what scares him now.

Soldier Brian Turner is no silent witness to war. Instead, he used verse to chronicle his time in the U.S. Army, publishing a book of collected poems titled Here, Bullet. (Originally broadcast on July 22, 2008.).

After years spent studying counterinsurgency, now-retired Lt. Col. John Nagl put his knowledge of rebellion suppression into practice when serving in Iraq. He helped draft an edition of the U.S. Army field manual on counterinsurgency. (Originally broadcast on July 22, 2008.).

After years trying to conceive, novelist Jennifer Gilmore and her husband decided to adopt. What they thought would be a relatively simple process was instead a long and painful one. In her latest novel, Gilmore channels these autobiographical experiences into fiction.

In his new HBO film, the acclaimed director examines the five-year relationship between the flamboyant entertainer and Scott Thorson, who was 40 years Liberace's junior and still a teenager when they met. Michael Douglas plays Liberace and Matt Damon plays Thorson.

This weekend will be Hader's final romp on Saturday Night Live. He joined the cast in 2005 and has been nominated for an Emmy for his character Stefon, an obsessive clubgoer. Hader talks about not understanding how people do standup and about watching old films, which sparked his interest in Hollywood.

This interview was originally broadcast on Aug. 22, 2012.