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Letters: April Fools' Day, Adult Coloring Books

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

Now, time for your letters. Yesterday was April Fools' Day so as usual, we got in the spirit with our own fake news story.

MELISSA BLOCK, HOST:

This may or may not come a surprise. It was the one about backwards turntables becoming a hot new music trend.

(SOUNDBITE OF BACKWARDS MUSIC)

CORNISH: Some of you got it right and sent us your backwards letters in response.

BLOCK: Like this one from Jean Kent in Vancouver - (reading backwards text).

CORNISH: What?

(LAUGHTER)

CORNISH: Did someone really write us a backwards letter?

BLOCK: Yeah, they did. Our listeners a really awesome. Read the normal, boring way, it says, (reading) you've caught me in the past on April first, but not this year.

CORNISH: We did manage to fool some of you like Eric Faucher of Portland, Ore. He wrote (reading) backwards music, a new thing? Are you kidding? A little-known group, The Beatles, started doing that stuff about 50 years ago.

BLOCK: David Feinstein of Eugene, Ore., also wanted to tell us about a real song with a hidden message when played backwards, "Gotta Find A Way," by the '70s band Bloodrock.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG PLAYED BACKWARDS, "GOTTA FIND A WAY")

BLOODROCK: Anyone who is stupid enough to play this record backwards deserves what he is about to hear.

CORNISH: And at least one listener thought a different story was the April Fools joke, my chat with adult coloring book illustrator Johanna Basford.

BLOCK: Listener Danny Orozco wrote, (reading) I was almost positive that this was an April Fool's story, but then I went online and found out that this was true.

CORNISH: He went on, (reading) just goes to show that I have a really low view of coloring. Shame on me. If people love to read, work on 1,000-piece puzzles, why not coloring?

BLOCK: Why not, indeed. As always, if you have an opinion about anything you hear on our show, we always appreciate your feedback. Go to npr.org and click on contact us at the very bottom of the page. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

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