Paul Elie is the author of two big books; The Life You Save May Be Your Own and Reinventing Bach. 

The Life You Save May Be Your Own focuses on the lives of, and relationships between, four mid-twentieth century Catholic writers, Thomas Merton, Dorothy Day, Flannery O’Connor and Walker Percy.

Reinventing Bach tells the story of the life and music of the famed composer through the particular ways in which his music has been interpreted and recorded by well-known musicians of the twentieth century. 

I spoke with Paul about writing about the lives and work of others, the spiritual aspect of Bach’s music, and his time as an editor at Farrar, Straus, and Giroux.