Ever since he was a kid, Nick Kristof dreamed of being a foreign correspondent. And that’s what he spent decades doing, traveling to more than 150 countries to   cover conflicts and crises. Kristof is a two-time Pulitzer Prize winner for his reports on the deadly Tiananmen Square protests and for columns focusing attention on genocide in Darfur. Kristof has also been called the moral conscience of a generation. We talk about all the close calls and terrifying moments he describes in his new memoir Chasing Hope. And we talk about why he’s an optimist in a world torn apart by conflict. “Now What?” is produced with the help of Steve Zimmer, Lucy Little and Jackie Schwartz. Audio production is by Nick Ciavatta.

Gail Godwin has written 18 books. Many of her novels were best sellers including Evensong. Three of them were finalists for the National Book Award. Her book Grief Cottage features a boy who has a relationship with a ghost. Godwin says she herself has seen ghosts. When she was a reporter, an apparition dressed in a medical uniform used to visit her in the middle of the night. Godwin’s new book is a memoir. It opens with the story of how the writer, who’s 87, went into her back yard to water her dogwood tree, wound up falling on her face and breaking her neck. We talk about how curiosity saved her in her darkest moments. “Now What?” is produced with help from Steve Zimmer, Lucy Little and Jackie Schwartz. Audio production is by Nick Ciavatta.