Alex is 22 years old and staying with a much older, wealthy man in the Hamptons. She's the protagonist of Emma Cline's new novel, an outsider looking in at the perfectly pruned life people of a certain social status lead in these towns.

It's been three years since George Floyd's murder. Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison prosecuted the former police officers who killed Floyd, but accountability and justice is not always found in state-sponsored violence against Black Americans.

Early in the novel Yellowface, a prominent Asian-American writer, Athena Liu, dies. Her white friend, who is struggling to break through in publishing and witnesses Athena's accident, then seizes on an opportunity: to pass off Athena's words – and identity – as her own.

Today's episode features interviews with two monumental performers.

King: A Life, the new biography by Jonathan Eig, provides a fresh perspective into the life of one of America's most important activists.

Before author Cassandra Jackson was even born, her father's family suffered a major loss – a car accident that resulted in the deaths of five people, including Jackson's aunt and grandmother.

Today's episode is about untangling and understanding untold family stories.

As a certified personal trainer, Justice Roe Williams knows the benefits of exercising regularly– but as a Black trans man, he's also experienced how the gym can be far from welcoming.

Suitcases symbolize a lot for three-time Grammy winner Lucinda Williams. She tells NPR's Juana Summers she keeps a briefcase of musical references to help with her songwriting. In her new memoir, Don't Tell Anybody the Secrets I Told You, she also writes about moving from place to place as a child – she'd lived in 12 places by age 18 – because of her father's work.

Actor Rainn Wilson says he's "always identified as being a dork and a misfit and an outsider." In fact, he says that's probably why he found so much success playing Dwight Schrute in The Office.