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In need of a good read? Or just want to keep up with the books everyone's talking about? NPR's Book of the Day gives you today's very best writing in a snackable, skimmable, pocket-sized podcast. Whether you're looking to engage with the big questions of our times – or temporarily escape from them – we've got an author who will speak to you, all genres, mood and writing styles included. Catch today's great books in 15 minutes or less.
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Memoirs from authors Glory Edim and Moshe Kasher narrate their lives through cultural objects: books and subcultures. First, Edim, the founder of the Well-Read Black Girl book club, grew up as the child of Nigerian immigrant parents searching for their way into American identity. As part of that journey, Edim found herself through reading. Her memoir, Gather Me, is a coming-of-age story told through her encounters with books. In today's episode, Edim speaks with NPR's Michel Martin about the early influence of stories such as Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, reading as an act of defiance, and a trove of letters that helped the author reconnect with her father. We then hear from comedian Moshe Kasher, whose memoir Subculture Vulture is organized around six scenes he's inhabited throughout his life. After deciding to get sober, Kasher accessed community and recovery in expected and unexpected places, from Alcoholics Anonymous to the rave scene. In today's episode, he joins NPR's Rachel Martin to discuss healing core wounds, the relationship between Burning Man and the Jewish Days of Awe, and the responsibility of being a comedian today.To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Nate Gadol is a spirit with the power to make anything last for as long as it's needed, whether oil, chocolate, or a flower. Gadol's special gift is at the center of The Hanukkah Magic of Nate Gadol, a children's book from author Arthur Levine. Growing up, Levine says, he felt that the Jewish holiday was often eclipsed by the mythology surrounding Christmas, with beloved characters like Rudolph, Frosty the Snowman, and Santa Claus. With Nate Gadol, Levine aims to introduce a mythological hero that Jewish people could call their own. In today's episode, we revisit a conversation between Levine and NPR's Scott Simon. They discuss the backstory behind Hanukkah presents and the many forms Jewish families take today.To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
During the Civil War, Union Army Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman and his troops arrived in Savannah, Georgia, days before Christmas in 1864. The city was their final stop on Sherman's March to the Sea, a military campaign to weaken Confederate power through the state of Georgia. Stanley Weintraub's 2009 book, General Sherman's Christmas, explores the holiday celebration in the war-torn city. In today's episode, we revisit a conversation between Weintraub and NPR's Guy Raz about Sherman's controversial reputation and how they tied twigs to the heads of mules to turn them into reindeer.To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
In the '70s, gelatin was very much in vogue. Gatherings often featured a colorful, molded jello salad that contained surprising ingredients from cottage cheese to tuna. Those dishes have since fallen out of favor, but a new cookbook by Peter DiMario and Judith Choate declares that gelatin is back. Jiggle! includes modernized recipes for sweet, savory and layered dishes, such as Grandma's Ambrosia and Watermelon Margarita Bites. In today's episode, DiMario talks with Here & Now's Deepa Fernandes about the origins of gelatin, how to achieve the perfect suspension, and the fun of updating gelatin dishes with fresh ingredients and flavors.To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
The Newport Folk Festival is an annual music festival that's been hosted in Newport, Rhode Island, since the 1950s. Bob Dylan, who was considered folk music's then-reigning king, performed at the festival in 1965 where he made the controversial decision to play the electric guitar. This is the focus of Elijah Wald's 2015 book, Dylan Goes Electric! which has been adapted into the film A Complete Unknown, starring Timothée Chalamet as Bob Dylan. In today's episode, we revisit a 2015 conversation between Wald and NPR's Arun Rath where they talk about Dylan's decision to play that guitar, electrifying the folk faithful.To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Two books take dramatically different approaches to the Christmas story. First, in Everyone This Christmas Has a Secret, reluctant detective Ernest Cunningham finds himself in the middle of another murder mystery. His ex-wife's partner has been killed and every suspect is a master of the art of deception. The book is the third installment of comedian Benjamin Stevenson's Ernest Cunningham mysteries series. In today's episode, Stevenson joins NPR's Ayesha Rascoe for a discussion that touches on the essential rules of the genre, the fun of writing to the holiday theme, and the commonalities between his comedy and writing practices. We then hear from Dolly Parton about her new picture book, Dolly Parton's Billy the Kid Comes Home for Christmas. She speaks with NPR's Michel Martin about her real-life French bulldog, the inspiration for her children's literacy program, and her annual Christmas traditions.To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
A new cookbook from America's Test Kitchen pays homage to the diverse communities of women who have defined food in the American South. When Southern Women Cook includes recipes and accompanying culinary histories from women with a variety of backgrounds. Each of the book's 14 chapters opens with an essay from a historian, author or chef that goes deep on a recipe's backstory or cultural context. In today's episode, co-authors Toni Tipton-Martin and Morgan Bolling join Here & Now's Robin Young to talk about the project. They discuss the physical and cultural boundaries of the South, restoration of recipes like Aunt Jule's Pie, and permanent slaw.To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
After a high school English teacher introduced Alizah Holstein to Dante's Divine Comedy, the Italian capital Rome became the first place she wanted to go. Rome's rich history was the one thing she wanted to study most. As an adult, she did spend time researching and exploring in Rome, believing that becoming a Roman historian was her destiny. But while working on her Ph.D. back in the U.S., Holstein came face to face with gender biases in academia – and she pivoted to another, wholly different path. In today's episode, Holstein speaks with NPR's Robin Young about her memoir My Roman History, the gender biases she encountered, and how Rome has continued to be a city that inspires wonder in her.To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
In Fabienne Josaphat's latest novel, a young woman named Nettie leaves Haiti for the United States. Set in the 1960s, Kingdom of No Tomorrow follows Nettie as she joins the Black Panther Party's free health clinics in Oakland, California, and falls in love with a party defense captain. In her research for the novel, Josaphat found deep resonances between Haiti's revolutionary history and the Black Panther movement. In today's episode, she speaks with NPR's Ari Shapiro about her research, the Black Panthers' Free Breakfast for School Children Program, and how her book might fit into the broader understanding of the party.To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Colson Whitehead's 2019 novel The Nickel Boys follows the studious and idealistic Elwood Curtis, a Black teenager whose prized possession is a recording of speeches by Martin Luther King Jr. But when Elwood is sent to a juvenile reformatory in Florida, his worldview is challenged by the horrors he experiences there. Now, Whitehead's novel has been adapted into a film. In today's episode, we revisit a conversation between Whitehead and NPR's Scott Simon, where they discuss the real-life reform school that inspired Nickel Academy, MLK's idea of soul force, and Whitehead's strong emotional reaction to the characters in his novel.To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
1Two books of essays consider the female experience through different stages of life. First, Kate Kennedy's One in a Millennial documents coming of age as a member of a highly-scrutinized generation. Her book explores the origins of millennial stereotypes and pop culture, but also focuses on the way that shared experiences of girlhood are often dismissed as frivolous. In today's episode, Kennedy joins NPR's Juana Summers for a conversation that touches on AOL Instant Messenger, college pre-games, and self-editing our own desires. We then hear from Jenny Slate about her new book Lifeform, a compilation of experimental essays that follow her life through five phases: Single, True Love, Pregnancy, Baby, and Ongoing. Slate joined Here & Now's Emiko Tamagawa at a live event in Boston, where the two discussed the confidence it takes to write down our ideas, fear and bravery in love, and Slate's perspective on childbirth and motherhood.To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
The World With Its Mouth Open is a book of short stories from journalist-turned-author Zahid Rafiq. The collection showcases the precarious but ordinary lives of people in modern day Kashmir, a site of ongoing geopolitical conflict. In Rafiq's stories, a work crew makes a disturbing discovery at a construction site, a pregnant woman searches for fresh fish, and a shopkeeper has an unexpected encounter with a mannequin. In today's episode, Rafiq tells NPR's Eric Deggans about his interest in writing stories without knowing the ending, and his characters' ability to build a future on the foundation of a difficult past.To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Renowned poet and professor Nikki Giovanni died earlier this week at age 81, following a third cancer diagnosis. She was a prolific writer and leader in the Black Arts Movement, publishing poetry collections such as Black Feeling Black Talk and Those Who Ride the Night Winds. She also taught English at Virginia Tech. In today's episode, we revisit a 2013 conversation between Giovanni and NPR's Michel Martin that followed the release of Chasing Utopia, which featured a combination of essays and poetry. Giovanni and Martin discussed the poet's relationship to her late mother, the pleasure of old age, and the trauma of the 2007 Virginia Tech shooting.To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Colonization and the Wampanoag Story is a 2023 history book for middle school readers about the tribe's first encounters with English settlers. In the early 17th century, European contact set off years of destruction for the Wampanoag Nation, including a disease that killed an estimated two-thirds of the population. Earlier this year, the nonfiction work was recategorized as fiction at a library in Montgomery, Texas, following complaints by an anonymous cardholder. But last month, a judge ruled that the book must be returned to the library's nonfiction section. In today's episode, Linda Coombs, Wampanoag historian and author, joins Here & Now's Robin Young to speak about how the recategorization of her book fits into the history of her tribe's erasure.To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Tensions are running high for married couple Keru and Nate, who decide to rent a house in Cape Cod, sharing it with each set of parents at different points of a month-long trip. Their vacation seems to have stoked the fires of family dysfunction, eventually pushing Keru to a breaking point. Author Weike Wang believes in putting one's characters through trial by fire, which she does quite literally in her latest novel, Rental House. In today's episode, Wang speaks with NPR's Scott Simon about sometimes-frustrating family life, coexistence, and obstacles for characters.To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Two new nonfiction books explore the impact of cultural forces in the world of music. First, a number of musicians, including B.B. King, Ed Sheeran, Jewel and Tracy Chapman, began their careers as street musicians. Cary Baker's new book Down on the Corner explores the history and influence of busking through interviews with performers of all kinds. In today's episode, he speaks with NPR's A Martinez about some lesser-known musical street legends, like oil drum player Bongo Joe and neo-Dixieland band Tuba Skinny. They also discuss the early historical origins of busking and the way technology has changed the practice. Then, a new book on De La Soul contextualizes the hip-hop group within the modern musical canon. In High and Rising, Marcus Moore discusses how the band created a space for Black alternative culture, appealing to fans of rap, but also of jazz and punk. In today's episode, Moore speaks with Martinez about how De La Soul's popularity has persisted, despite the group's difficult trajectory.To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Lexy Bloom first read Haruki Murakami in the '90s, when she picked up A Wild Sheep Chase. At that point, not much of the Japanese author's work had been published in English. But Bloom often read his stories in The New Yorker, trying to guess which of his three translators had worked on each one. Bloom, who is now a senior editor at Knopf, began to edit Murakami's English translations years later, starting with 1Q84. Now, Murakami has a new novel out, The City and Its Uncertain Walls, a revision of an earlier novella. In today's episode, Bloom joins NPR's Andrew Limbong for a discussion that touches on what it's like to collaborate with Murakami, feminist critiques of the author's female characters, and reading the author's work through a Western lens.To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Angela Merkel served as Chancellor of Germany through a number of global challenges: a pandemic, a migrant crisis and military aggression. But she also had to consider dilemmas that were specific to being the first and only woman to hold her position. The former chancellor reflects on this experience, her rise to power and her political record in a new memoir, Freedom. In today's episode, Merkel speaks with NPR's Mary Louise Kelley through a translator. They discuss going toe-to-toe with leaders like Vladimir Putin, what a second Trump term means for U.S. diplomacy, and whether Merkel sees herself as a feminist.To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Author Marisha Pessl has always loved puzzles and board games. She's intrigued by the feeling of forced companionship that comes from solving a puzzle together. Her new novel, Darkly, follows a teen named Arcadia and six others as they embark on an internship with the renowned game design company Darkly. Working on the mysterious island that houses the Darkly headquarters, they come across mysteries of the company and its owner. In today's episode, Pessl speaks with NPR's Ayesha Rascoe about the idea of contained chaos and how the mysteries of the past can unlock the mysteries of the present.To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Comedian, writer and podcast host Youngmi Mayer was raised in Korea and Saipan with a Korean mom and a white American father. Their relationship was strained at times as Mayer navigated her family's generational trauma and often took on a parental role. She pushed through these struggles, and others, through humor–and that strategy frames her new memoir, I'm Laughing Because I'm Crying. Mayer speaks with NPR's Juana Summers about her family story in today's episode. They also discuss Mayer's original pitch for the book's title, relatability in Asian American storytelling and how she became a standup comedian.To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
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I was ok with assistance until the hundredth tattoo and second kid.
I don't know of any historian who has had a greater impact on me than Wilkerson.
I wish that "unpack" could be banned forever, although a podcast on how words come into fashion would be interesting And "unhuman" is... well.... maybe check your Oxford dictionary on that.
#love
it's rare for a reviewer to be so awful that I no longer want to buy a book that I intended to purchase, but this one set my teeth on edge with the uber sensitivity and scott-simonesque-i-apologize-for-living voice. so I'll pass on this book and try to get beyond the memory of this interview.
stop projecting your religion onto your listeners
The principle is interesting, but are your bathroom habits the best example?!?
Wonderful author ( too bad that NPR thrusts all these ads on us at the beginning of every podcast)
thank you for this episode, I shall look for the book