NPR's Book of the Day
Episodes
Nicole A. Taylor's cookbook puts a spin on traditional African American food
20 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Junteenth was celebrated across the country this weekend and is observed nationally Monday. In a new, Juneteenth-inspired cookbook, Nicole A. Taylor p...
Two books on fatherhood to help celebrate Sunday
17 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Father's Day is this Sunday, giving us a good opportunity to reflect not only the art of fatherhood but also on the struggles that come after dads lea...
A reflection on ambition and success in 'Tracy Flick Can't Win'
16 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
You've probably seen it: Reese Witherspoon playing ambitious, throat-cutting Tracy Flick in the 1999 movie Election. It's the film adaptation of Tom P...
In Keri Blakinger's memoir, the path from high-achieving teenager to prison to writer
15 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Keri Blakinger says there are no rules behind bars. In 2010, she was arrested on a drug charge and spent two years in prison. And although that statem...
Inspired by a true story, 'Nightcrawling' deals with sex work – and sexual abuse
14 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Inspired by a true story from Oakland, California, Leila Mottley's first novel follows a young Black girl who is sexually abused by a group of police ...
Four strangers, a murder, and a cozy winter library in Sulari Gentill's new novel
13 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Four strangers sitting in the reading room of the Boston Public Library suddenly hear a woman's piercing scream. When the body is found, the four char...
Exploring immigration through a common experience: feeling like an outsider
10 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
There is a common hurdle for many first generation immigrants: feeling out of place. Whether that's in school, speaking a different language, or livin...
Dan Chaon imagines a dystopian, dark future for America in 'Sleepwalk'
09 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Author Dan Chaon wanted to find a way to write about current times – instability, fear, political division – by creating an alternate version of A...
Book recommendations for 50+ states and beyond!
08 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
We have something a little different today. Often when we travel to new places, we look for books about the areas we'll be exploring. Whether via trav...
The aftermath of Brown vs The Board of Education in 'Jim Crow's Pink Slip'
07 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Leslie Fenwick is a nationally-known education policy and leadership studies scholar at Howard University. In her new book, Jim Crow's Pink Slip: The ...
In 'Big Feelings:' Advice on how to be okay... when things are not okay
06 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The last couple of years have been tough for everyone, and dealing with the plethora of emotions they have brought on can be complicated for many adul...
A multifaceted view of trauma in two Indian novels
03 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Trauma isn't finite. It doesn't happen only to one person – and its effects on people and communities don't always end. Today, two books that explor...
Grady Hendrix reimagines the horror movie sequel in 'Final Girl Support Group'
02 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Grady Hendrix loves horror movies, especially those old 80s slashers. And his new book is a tribute to that "final girl" at the end of so many of them...
Jhumpa Lahiri on translating herself and others
01 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Jhumpa Lahiri is best known for her fictional stories about immigration; novels that usually explore themes that arise from living in between two worl...
A quest for knowledge in Elif Batuman's sequel to 'The Idiot'
31 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
For teenagers, every life question can feel existential. It was like that for Elif Batuman, who found meaning through literature and creative writing....
In honor of Memorial Day: 'When Books Went to War'
30 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
During World War II, as American publishers sought ways to support the troops abroad, they began printing small, pocket-sized books that soldiers coul...
Two celebrity memoirs take us behind the scenes to talk health, relationships, fame
27 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Contrary to how it might feel when we're just seeing them through screens, celebrities, too, deal with very common human problems: disease, mental hea...
Anne Heltzel questions 'cult of motherhood' in a new horror novel 'Just Like Mother'
26 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In a frightening new horror novel, a young woman reunites with her cousin after escaping from a motherhood cult. In Just Like Mother, Anne Heltzel exp...
New George Floyd biography paints a picture of being a Black man in America
25 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Most people know George Floyd through how he died, not how he lived. His Name is George Floyd, a new biography by journalists Robert Samuels and Tolus...
The debate on reforming the Supreme Court in Eric Holder's 'Our Unfinished March'
24 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The leak of the Supreme Court draft opinion on Roe v. Wade earlier this month has reignited debates about the power and reach of the highest court in ...
Traveling in time with Emma Straub in her new novel 'This Time Tomorrow'
23 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
If you could go back in time to when you were 16 years old, what would you change? This question is at the heart of Emma Straub's new novel, This Time...
Understanding China's brutal treatment of Uyghur Muslims through two nonfiction books
20 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
It's estimated that more than 1 million Uyghur Muslims have been detained in camps in China, where they may be subjected to forced labor, sexual viole...
Authentic Mexican recipes abound Ricky Martínez's cookbook 'Mi Cocina'
19 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Just like every person has a story, every recipe has a memory. For famous chef Rick Martínez, those memories often come from his time in Mexico, wher...
An unexpected, endearing friendship in 'Remarkably Bright Creatures'
18 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Can humans and sea creatures communicate? In Shelby Van Pelt's first novel, Remarkably Bright Creatures, they sure can –and they do. The story cente...
A new Bonnie and Clyde-type adventure in 'Teenager' by Bud Smith
17 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Two teenagers in love, in a whole lot of trouble, and on a road trip across the country. It's the plot of Bud Smith's novel Teenager, a Bonnie and Cly...
Former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper on the ethical dilemmas of working for Trump
16 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
As secretary of defense for President Trump, Mark Esper was privy to a lot of the inner workings of the administration. In his new book, A Sacred Oath...
Two nonfiction books... that just won Pulitzer Prizes!
13 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The Pulitzer Prize is one of the most prestigious awards in the country for writers... and last year's winners were just announced this week. So today...
The illusion and power of money in Hernan Diaz's 'Trust'
12 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Money is all things... or it can become all things, says Hernan Diaz, author of Trust. In his new book, readers are presented with narratives on wealt...
Romance, terror, and the supernatural in Isabel Cañas' debut novel 'The Hacienda'
11 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In the aftermath of the Mexican war for independence, a new bride finds herself alone in a haunted house surrounded by people who don't believe her. I...
The paradox of fame in Minnie Driver's new memoir
10 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Minnie Driver's experience with fame has been what she calls "surreal." She's faced the paradox of fame: she wants to be seen, but not that much. In h...
In 'The Family Roe:' the human side of the landmark abortion case 'Roe v. Wade'
09 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Despite the attention that Roe v. Wade has gotten throughout the years, there are still many details about the case that are obscure to the public. Fo...
For Mother's Day, two books that tackle motherhood
06 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This weekend is Mother's Day, a good occasion to reflect on the art of parenting. First, comedian Glenn Boozan speaks to Celeste Headlee on Here and N...
Dolen Perkins-Valdez's historical novel fictionalizes involuntary sterilizations
05 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dolen Perkins-Valdez says she's attracted to what she calls "silences in the archives," or – holes in our recollection in history, particularly thos...
Colson Whitehead Finally Gets To Flex His Comedy Muscle
04 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
After writing his Pulitzer Prize-winning books The Underground Railroad and The Nickel Boys, author Colson Whitehead needed a change of pace. So for h...
Devon Price on the freedom of "unmasking" for people with autism
03 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
For people with autism, simply existing in a neurotypical world can be exhausting. Many learn early on to employ certain strategies to fit in with oth...
Danica Roem reclaims her own story in her memoir 'Burn the Page'
02 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In 2017, Danica Roem became the first openly transgender woman in office when she was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates. In her new memoir, B...
Two memoirs that celebrate the influence of Black female artists
29 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Who made you the person you are? Today, we bring you two interviews from Black female authors who explore the impact that musicians, writers, and actr...
A retelling of the Book of Genesis with God as a woman in 'Let There Be Light'
28 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
New Yorker magazine cartoonist Liana Fink grew up in a Jewish household; she went to synagogue, attended Hebrew day school, and observed Shabbat. But ...
'How to Be a Woman Online' tackles online harassment against women
27 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
According to Nina Jankowicz, a fellow at the Wilson Center known for her research on online disinformation, women face a disproportionate amount of at...
A queer, Afrofuturistic world in 'The Memory Librarian'
26 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Janelle Monáe's Afrofuturistic pop album 'Dirty Computer' was nominated for a Grammy in 2019. Now, Monáe brings the sci-fi world into literature thr...
Mortality, politics, and the power of poetry in Colm Tóibín's 'Vinegar Hill'
25 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
After more than a dozen novels and collections of short stories, Irish writer ColmTóibín recently published his first book of poetry. His new collec...
For Earth Day, two books rethink how we talk about environmental crises
22 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today is Earth Day, a good occasion as any to reflect on the emergencies the planet currently faces. First, Harriet A. Washington, author of A Terribl...
Humor, horror and social commentary blend in Percival Everett's detective novel
21 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Percival Everett's page-turning new detective novel is at once gruesome and screamingly funny. A racial allegory rooted in southern history, the book ...
How Delia Ephron let herself fall back in love after heartbreak
20 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Nobody does love and heartbreak like an Ephron. And Delia Ephron knows a lot about it. Her new memoir is Left on Tenth, and it details the trauma of l...
Reinventing the epic with 'The Love Songs of W.E.B Du Bois'
19 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
When you think of an epic, what comes to mind? The Iliad, the Odyssey, maybe Beowulf? Well, author Honorée Fanonne Jeffers points out that epics are ...
Virtual memories live in 'The Candy House'
18 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
It's already pretty hard to tell what's really real when it comes to social media. But Jennifer Egan takes it one step further in her latest novel The...
A Douglas Stuart double feature! 'Shuggie Bain' and 'Young Mungo'
15 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Both interviews today are with author Douglas Stuart. The first about his Booker prize-winning Shuggie Bain; a story based on his own life growing up ...
In 'Lessons in Chemistry,' a chemist is the star of ... a cooking show?
14 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Bonnie Garmus' new novel Lessons In Chemistry has been getting a lot of buzz. Elizabeth Zott is a talented chemist but because it's the 1960s she face...
How to manage a disaster in 'The Devil Never Sleeps'
13 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Former Homeland Security official and author Juliette Kayyem has a new book out that encourages preparedness. The Devil Never Sleeps makes the case th...
Novel 'Four Treasures of the Sky' focuses on the horrors of the Chinese Exclusion Act
12 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Author Jenny Tinghui Zhang is out with a new historical fiction novel, Four Treasures In The Sky. Set in the 1800s during the height of anti-Chinese s...
Poet Ocean Vuong shares his grief in 'Time Is A Mother'
11 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
April is National Poetry Month, so to celebrate we are bringing you a conversation with poet Ocean Vuong. His new collection, Time Is A Mother, is abo...
Maud Newton and Jhumpa Lahiri interrogate one's place in the world
08 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Writer Maud Newton could not ignore her family's white supremacist history, so she decided to reconcile with it in her new book Ancestor Trouble: A Re...
Viet Thanh Nguyen follows Pulitzer winning 'The Sympathizer' with 'The Committed'
07 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Viet Thanh Nguyen's novel The Committed follows the same unnamed character we met in his Pulitzer-winning thriller, The Sympathizer. The character is ...
'The Vortex' investigates how climate catastrophes can have unexpected consequences
06 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In 1970, a cyclone tore through Pakistan and the political lines that existed, leading to genocide and very nearly a nuclear war in the country. Autho...
'Booth' looks at the family life of President Lincoln's notorious assassin
05 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Author Karen Joy Fowler thinks John Wilkes Booth craved attention – and that gotten his fair share of it. So her new novel, Booth, instead focuses ...
A new picture book seeks to answer the question 'what is school for?'
04 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Writer John Schu and illustrator Veronica Miller Jamison are out with a new picture book that asks the question what exactly is school...for? Test pre...
Authors Peng Shepherd and Anne Tyler show that family is...complicated
01 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today's first interview is with author Peng Shepherd on her new mystery. A father and daughter, both cartographers, haven't spoken in seven years. But...
'The Last Suspicious Holdout' looks at how humans keep on believing
31 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Author Ladee Hubbard's new collection of short stories, The Last Suspicious Holdout, all take place in a nameless, majority Black suburb in the 90s an...
'The Beauty of Dusk' and life's calamitous challenges
30 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Journalist Frank Bruni had lots of professional success: he was a White House correspondent, food critic, and opinion columnist. But then in 2017 he s...
Solving systemic racism and buying sensible cardigans with comic Phoebe Robinson
29 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Comic Phoebe Robinson told NPR's Rachel Martin that she doesn't wake up every day thinking "time to dismantle systemic racism!" But since she has a pl...
We look at Hollywood legend Rita Moreno's career after the Oscars
28 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The 94th Academy Awards were last night. To celebrate we're taking a trip down memory lane with one of Hollywood's greatest icons, Rita Moreno. Back i...
Karen Dawisha and Marie Yovanovitch provide a deeper look at Russia's war in Ukraine
25 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
It's been nearly a month since Vladimir Putin attacked Ukraine, so we are taking another look at how we got here. First, an interview from 2014 with t...
A meet-cute followed by real life: 'Party of Two' is about love in the real world
24 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Romance writer Jasmine Guillory writes beautiful love stories – but that doesn't mean they aren't based in reality. Her novel Party of Two from the ...
'Checkout 19' explores the magic of escaping with a good book
23 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The nameless narrator in author Claire-Louise Bennett's new novel, Checkout 19, absolutely loves books. Their mere presence puts her at ease. But her ...
'Peach Blossom Spring' interrogates the meaning of home
22 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Can you belong to more than one home? Author Melissa Fu sets out to answer that question in her debut novel Peach Blossom Spring. The story of the Pea...
Author Azar Nafisi says books can help you really live
21 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Author Azar Nafisi has written a love letter to literature and reading in Read Dangerously: The Subversive Power of Literature in Troubled Times. She ...
Lights, camera, method acting!
18 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Our books today give the reader a peek into showbiz. Sarah Polley was a child actor but that led to her being put into many dangerous situations, whic...
Two mothers clash over integration in 'What's Mine & Yours'
17 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
At the center of author Naima Coster's novel What's Mine & Yours are two struggling mothers. Jade is a Black single mother who is trying to provide a ...
Poet Warsan Shire hopes you can make the voices in your head your friends
16 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Somali British poet Warsan Shire has had many projects, including running a popular Tumblr page and collaborating with Beyoncé. Now, she is out with ...
Author NoViolet Bulawayo's novel 'Glory' draws inspiration from the Orwellian
15 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Author NoViolet Bulawayo's new novel Glory is quite openly based on Orwell's Animal Farm and the 2017 coup in Zimbabwe that ousted then president Robe...
Former Attorney General William Barr says he was just doing his job
14 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The former attorney general under former President Trump, William Barr, is out with a new memoir called One Damn Thing After Another. In it, he agrees...
Nikole Hannah Jones and Adam Rubin aim to make children's books more accessible
11 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Our interviews today are both children's books and even though they are about wildly different topics, they both aim to make reading more accessible f...
Author Bernardine Evaristo confides in the reader in new memoir, 'Manifesto'
10 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Author Bernardine Evaristo wrote the Booker prize winning novel Girl, Woman, Other. But before she did, like way before, she was incredibly unsure of ...
Author Tessa Hadley writes a juicy tale of the bourgeois in 'Free Love'
09 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Author Tess Hadley's new novel opens with an affair, but that's not really what the book is about. Free Love is set in the 1960s just outside of Londo...
We travel to Iceland with its first lady on International Women's Day
08 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
There is an Icelandic word, sprakkar, that means outstanding women - and those women are at the heart of the book Secrets Of The Sprakkar: Iceland's E...
The people caught in the middle of war in 'A Constellation Of Vital Phenomena'
07 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Back in 2013 author Anthony Marra wrote a book that is every bit as timely today. A Constellation Of Vital Phenomena takes place in Chechnya, a place ...
Gulbahar Haitiwaji and Desmond Shum get personal about the reach of China's power
04 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today we look at the power of the Chinese government. The first book, How I Survived A Chinese Reeducation Camp, is by Gulbahar Haitiwaji, a Uyghur wo...
'Black Cloud Rising' novelizes the leader of an all-Black brigade in the Civil War
03 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Novelist David Wright Falade learned about the life of Richard Etheridge in the 90s and has been enthralled by him ever since. Born into slavery in No...
Putin's use of Nazi rhetoric is not new according to historian Timothy Snyder
02 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Russian President Vladimir Putin has framed his recent invasion of Ukraine as a "de-nazification" of the country. This is not a new move by Putin. In ...
A lifetime of secrets unfold in 'Black Cake'
01 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Author Charmaine Wilkerson's new novel, Black Cake, is all about identity; who we are and how we fit into this world. Estranged siblings, Benny and By...
'The Splendid and the Vile' dives deep into Winston Churchill's year during the blitz
28 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The Russian invasion into Ukraine is a world-altering event that has people fearful. Historically, few leaders have navigated their country through th...
'The Black Agenda' and 'Solitary' tackle criminal justice reform
25 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In interviews with the authors of The Black Agenda and Solitary, the issue of criminal justice reform is central. First, writer Anna Gifty Opoku-Agyem...
'Girl, Woman, Other' celebrates Black British women
24 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Bernardine Evaristo didn't think there were enough books being published about Black British women, so she wrote one herself. Girl, Woman, Other looks...
'Anthem' considers the world we are passing down to the next generation
23 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Noah Hawley is a world builder. He created the TV shows Fargo and Legion, so he is no stranger to getting an audience immersed in his worlds. His new ...
'Moon Witch, Spider King' takes us back into Marlon James' fantastical world
22 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Author Marlon James is following up Black Leopard, Red Wolf with a new fantasy novel Moon Witch, Spider King. It tells the same story as Black Leopard...
Writer Arthur Brooks says strivers can end up unhappier later in life
21 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Social science writer Arthur Brooks has figured out how you, yes you, can be happy later in life. He details it all in his new book, From Strength to ...
Two authors tell stories of the weird and wild in the classical music world
18 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Both interviews today will transport you into the exciting world of classical music. No, really! The first is with Brendan Slocumb, whose new book, Th...
Author Maeve Higgins humorously reflects on her immigrant experience
17 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Author Maeve Higgins starts her new book, Tell Everyone on This Train I Love Them, by saying she hopes the pandemic doesn't impart any lessons. This k...
What does 'The Family Chao' have in common with Dostoyevsky? Murder and more.
16 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Patriarch Leo Chao is murdered at his restaurant at the beginning of Lan Samantha Chang's new novel The Family Chao. Eventually family secrets and bit...
Author Tara Westover says we need to consider how people have been 'Educated'
15 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Author Tara Westover grew up in an extreme survivalist family in Idaho. She and her siblings had no formal education, but she taught herself algebra, ...
Happy Valentine's Day! We get sappy with 'Evvie Drake Starts Over'
14 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In honor of Valentine's Day, we are revisiting a conversation with our very own romance expert, Linda Holmes. Her novel Evvie Drake Starts Over is abo...
Isabel Wilkerson argues that 'Caste' not racism caused The Great Migration
11 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
As part of Black History Month, Book of the Day brings you an interview with author Isabel Wilkerson. She followed her book about The Great Migration,...
Octavia Butler imagines a world without racism
10 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
During Black History month, Book of the Day is bringing you some interviews from the archives, including this one with author Octavia Butler. Butler w...
Alex Haley nearly lost it all writing 'Roots'
09 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
To recognize Black History Month, Book of the Day is digging into the archives to bring you some important interviews. In 1977, author Alex Haley told...
'The Color Purple' is about the bonding of women
08 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
As part of Black History Month, we are running interviews from our archives. The Color Purple is about the survival of Black women in a male-dominated...
Book banning is seen in historical context in 'Burn This Book'
07 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
For the first full week of Black History Month, we dove into our archives to bring you some older interviews by Black authors. The first is an intervi...
Writers Lizzie Damilola Blackburn and Edmund White want to talk about sex
04 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The first interview today is with debut novelist Lizzie Damilola Blackburn about her book, Yinka, Where is Your Huzband? The protagonist Yinka is cons...
How did humans get here? Historian Yuval Noah Harari is thrilled to tell you
03 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Historian Yuval Noah Harari wrote a book back in 2015 that looked at the entirety of human history; from hunter-gatherers to space exploration. Sapien...
'South To America' makes the case that southern history shaped our nation
02 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Author Imani Perry is a child of the South. In her newest book South to America: A Journey Below the Mason-Dixon to Understand the Soul of a Nation, s...
Enslaved people imagine freedom and beyond in 'Yonder'
01 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Author Jabari Asim is out with a new novel called Yonder. The story follows a group of enslaved men and women who are forced to work on a plantation b...