NPR's Book of the Day

NPR's Book of the Day

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.

Episodes

'The Devil Is a Southpaw' is a story within a story — or so its narrator says

December 3, 2025 • 8 mins
Are all unreliable narrators self-aware? The answer might depend on the novel, but in Brandon Hobson’s The Devil Is a Southpaw, our primary narrator, Milton (a writer and artist) uses his prose to sew complexity and confusion into the narrative itself. In today’s episode, Hobson speaks with NPR’s Scott Simon about his newest novel, and the journey of crafting a story about two ex-convicts bound together through jealousy and the mut...
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John Fetterman on his new memoir, his mental health, and disagreements with his party

December 2, 2025 • 9 mins
When Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) won Pennsylvania’s Senate seat in 2022, Democrats saw him as a symbol of a new direction during the Trump era. Three years later, things are very different. His new memoir, Unfettered, discusses his mental health struggles, the stroke he suffered in 2022 and his relationship with the left. In today’s episode, Fetterman speaks with NPR’s Scott Detrow about the book and some of his disagreements with ...
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A new book looks to the writings of Renaissance-era nuns for advice on life today

December 1, 2025 • 7 mins
Modern life can make it tempting to return to simpler times, like a 16th-century Spanish convent. In the new book Convent Wisdom, academics Ana Garriga and Carmen Urbita look to the writings of Renaissance-era nuns for insights to apply to modern dilemmas. In today’s episode, the co-authors speak with NPR’s Ayesha Rascoe about the backstory behind the project and what makes these nuns of the past relevant today.


To lis...
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Revisiting ‘Their Eyes Were Watching God’

November 29, 2025 • 34 mins
Janie Crawford – back in her hometown of Eatonville, Florida – recounts a journey of self-discovery, structured around three marriages. Their Eyes Were Watching God is Zora Neale Hurston’s most celebrated work and a classic text of the Harlem Renaissance. In today’s Books We’ve Loved, Andrew Limbong and B.A. Parker, joined by R. Eric Thomas, discuss what makes this novel a coming-of-age story, despite its focus on a woman in her la...
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A Claire McCardell biography and an AI sci-fi are among NPR’s top book picks of 2025

November 28, 2025 • 10 mins
NPR’s annual Books We Love guide is back for its 13th year, sharing over 380 hand-selected reads by NPR staff and critics. In today’s post-Thanksgiving episode, host Andrew Limbong joins Morning Edition and All Things Considered to chat about all things Books We Love. First, he shares some top non-fiction picks with NPR’s Michel Martin; among them Elizabeth Evitts Dickinson’s biography of American fashion designer Claire McCardell,...
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'My Cambodia: A Khmer Cookbook' is Nite Yun’s love letter to food and family

November 27, 2025 • 8 mins
Some cookbooks don’t just provide recipes; they tell stories—and Nite Yun’s My Cambodia: A Khmer Cookbook is a perfect example. Yun discovered the rich history of her Cambodian-American heritage in the kitchen, and her debut cookbook tells these stories through her family’s most beloved recipes. In today’s episode, Yun talks with NPR’s Leila Fadel about her book’s unique creation process and the power of food to bring together fami...
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'We Were Liars' author returns for more teenage catharsis in 'We Fell Apart'

November 26, 2025 • 7 mins
E. Lockhart understands the struggle of being a teenager. Her first novel We Were Liars was a standout YA hit of 2014, celebrated (and at times, criticized) amongst teens in particular for its twisty and devastating coming-of-age narrative set on a fictional island near Martha’s Vineyard. Lockhart returns to the East Coast for We Fell Apart, her third book in the series, crafting another summer tale of mystery and self-discovery. I...
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Comic journalist Joe Sacco on his portrait of deadly riots in Uttar Pradesh, India

November 25, 2025 • 8 mins
In 2013, two young Hindu cousins killed a Muslim man in a rural part of Uttar Pradesh, India. What followed was a series of alternating violence in the region between Hindus and Muslims. Renowned comic journalist Joe Sacco's new book, The Once And Future Riot, investigates that conflict and the stories people tell themselves about what happened. In today’s episode, Sacco speaks with NPR’s Andrew Limbong about illustrating violence ...
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Justinian Huang’s new novel follows a Taiwanese-American family intent on a male heir

November 24, 2025 • 8 mins
Justinian Huang’s new novel Lucky Seed is about a single, gay son pressured by his Taiwanese-American family to produce a male heir. In an interview with NPR’s All Things Considered, Huang tells NPR’s Ailsa Chang that his own family asked him to have a baby boy – or else they would risk punishment in the afterlife. In today’s episode, Huang speaks with Chang about being the “chosen one” in his family, the concept of “hungry ghosts,...
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Revisiting ‘Gone Girl’

November 22, 2025 • 35 mins
Amy and Nick Dunn have the perfect life and are the perfect couple until they reach a breaking point, revealing their true selves. The book that spawned dozens of imitators but few peers, Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl is this week’s read on the latest Books We’ve Loved. Andrew Limbong and B. A. Parker are joined by Greta Johnsen to divulge how this suspense thriller continuously brings fans back to this story. Special guest, Andrea Bar...
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'The Ten Year Affair,' 'Sex of the Midwest' look at the role of sex in domestic life

November 21, 2025 • 16 mins
Two new books examine how sex fits into suburban and small-town life, respectively. First, Erin Somers explores marriage and desire in her novel The Ten Year Affair. In today’s episode, she speaks with NPR’s Andrew Limbong about combining a multiverse plot with domestic fiction. Then, Robyn Royle knits a dozen short stories together in Sex of the Midwest, in which the residents of a small town receive an email inviting them to part...
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'Fire in Every Direction' is a personal work by Palestinian scholar Tareq Baconi

November 20, 2025 • 14 mins
Tareq Baconi is a Palestinian scholar best known for Hamas Contained: The Rise and Pacification of Palestinian Resistance. But in his new memoir Fire in Every Direction, the academic turns to more personal subjects, reflecting on three generations of displacement in his family. In an interview with NPR’s Morning Edition, Baconi speaks with NPR’s Leila Fadel about how silence – around queerness, politics, and shame – has shaped his ...
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Kathy Iandoli on Gucci Mane’s memoir and becoming the go-to writer for rappers

November 19, 2025 • 8 mins
Gucci Mane’s new memoir Episodes covers a range of difficult topics: depression, mania, anxiety, drug abuse. There are even pages of the book that are blacked out to reflect the rapper’s gaps in memory. Writer Kathy Iandoli worked with Gucci on the project – and she’s become the go-to writer for rappers looking to tell their stories. In today’s episode, Iandoli speaks with NPR’s Andrew Limbong about her collaboration with Gucci and...
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'Bog Queen' cherishes Earth’s mossy wetlands and the bodies they preserve

November 18, 2025 • 8 mins
You may have heard of a bog — those wet, mucky environments found mostly in the northern temperate pockets of Canada or Europe — but did you know that bogs can preserve human bodies for thousands of years? Anna North’s Bog Queen, part-history and part-mystery, explores the abiotic relationship between humans and what may be their greatest protector: the moss. In today’s episode, North sits down with NPR’s Scott Simon to discuss her...
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Margaret Atwood on what finally made her agree to write a memoir

November 17, 2025 • 14 mins
Best-selling author Margaret Atwood says she originally rejected the idea of writing a memoir. But she warmed up to the idea after she began to think of a memoir as a recollection of “stupid things you did, near-death events, catastrophes, and surprising highlights and jokes.” Now, at age 85, Atwood is out with Book of Lives. In today’s episode, she joins NPR’s Sacha Pfeiffer for a conversation that touches on the difference betwee...
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Revisiting ‘Giovanni's Room’

November 15, 2025 • 37 mins
James Baldwin’s recent centennial birthday allowed us to discuss one of his most celebrated novels, Giovanni’s Room. Andrew Limbong and B. A. Parker are joined by NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour’s Glen Weldon, examining the story of three lovers, chasing connection, love, and acceptance in 1950s Paris. Special guest Garth Greenwell also drops by to share how Giovanni’s Room made an impact on his work. 


Glen’s Recommendati...
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Music biographies 'The Cars,' 'Only God Can Judge Me' balance greatness and tragedy

November 14, 2025 • 19 mins
Two new biographies focus on legendary musical acts: the rock band The Cars and rapper Tupac Shakur. First, in the late 1970s, a Boston radio DJ played The Cars’ demo tape – and the band went on to inform rock music for decades. In today’s episode, author Bill Janovitz speaks with Here & Now’s Robin Young about his new book The Cars: Let the Stories Be Told. Then, Tupac was one of the most influential rappers of all time, but his l...
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John Grisham brings a money-hungry lawyer to center stage in 'The Widow'

November 13, 2025 • 8 mins
In The Widow, his 52nd novel and counting, author John Grisham returns to one of his cherished topics: lawyers. But not the type of lawyer one would hire if they’d like to keep their money safe. Simon Latch is a small town lawyer sick of equally small cases, until he finds himself in charge of drafting a will for an enormously wealthy widow. Will Simon keep her wealth an untouched secret, or attempt to turn a profit for himself? In...
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In 'A Guardian and a Thief,' a mother’s love for her family threatens her own morals

November 12, 2025 • 10 mins
Megha Majumdar’s new novel takes place in a near-future Kolkata struck by climate change. There, one family’s possibility of escape is jeopardized when their passports are stolen. A Guardian and a Thief, a finalist for the 2025 National Book Award, weaves together their plot with the story of their burglar. In a conversation with Here & Now, Majumdar tells Jane Clayson that hope isn’t always noble in situations of crisis.

...
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Tochi Onyebuchi’s 'Racebook' is a 'personal history' of a less serious time online

November 11, 2025 • 8 mins
Tochi Onyebuchi remembers when the internet was fun. The science fiction and fantasy author says he initially existed online as a “skinless, raceless entity” until he experienced a shift around 2012. His new memoir Racebook traces this shift to the shooting death of Trayvon Martin and subsequent acquittal of the man who killed him. In today’s episode, Onyebuchi speaks with NPR’s Juana Summers about online forums, early Twitter, and...
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