Book Review Podcast: Alice Munro's 'Dear Life' This week in The New York Times Book Review, Charles McGrath reviews "Dear Life," the latest collection of short stories by the celebrated Canadian author Alice Munro. Mr. McGrath writes: That Alice Munro, now 81, is one of the great short-story writers not just of our time but of any time ought to go without saying by now. This new volume - her 14th, not counting a collection of selected stories that came out in 1996 - is further proof of her mastery, and also a reminder that unlike a lot of accomplished short-story writers - unlike William Trevor, say, her only living rival - Munro did not hit a characteristic note early on and then stick with it. Over the years her work has deepened and enlarged. At the end of "Dear Life" is a suite of four stories that Munro says are "autobiographical in feeling, though not, sometimes, entirely so in fact," and she adds: "I believe they are the first and last - and the closest - things I have to say about my own life." On this week's podcast, Mr. McGrath talks about "Dear Life"; Leslie Kaufman has notes from the field; J.D. Biersdorfer discusses Sean Howe's history of Marvel Comics; and Gregory Cowles has best-seller news. John Williams is the host, filling in for Sam Tanenhaus.