Accessibility links
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.
NPR's Book of the Day

Podcast Directory

NPR's Book of the Day

From NPR

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.

Most Recent Episodes

Two summer mysteries unravel in 'The Cliffs' and 'The God of the Woods'
Knopf/Riverhead Books

Two summer mysteries unravel in 'The Cliffs' and 'The God of the Woods'

Today's episode focuses on two summer reads trying to piece together some pretty big questions. First, NPR's Mary Louise Kelly speaks with J. Courtney Sullivan about The Cliffs, which follows an archivist digging through the history of a seaside Victorian house in Maine — and the generations of women who lived there — at the owner's concern that it's haunted. Then, NPR's Scott Simon asks Liz Moore about The God of the Woods, which grapples with the disappearance of a wealthy family's daughter from a summer camp in the Adirondacks in 1975.

Two summer mysteries unravel in 'The Cliffs' and 'The God of the Woods'

Listen · 18:11
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1196978411/1255785057" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
'We Were Once a Family' examines how the foster care system failed the Hart siblings
Farrar, Straus and Giroux

'We Were Once a Family' examines how the foster care system failed the Hart siblings

In 2018, Jennifer and Sarah Hart drove off a cliff in California, killing themselves and their six adopted children. While much of the media attention focused on the two women, reporter Roxanna Asgarian set off to investigate what had happened to the children's birth families, and why they'd been removed from their care. In today's episode, Asgarian speaks with Here & Now's Deepa Fernandes about her book, We Were Once a Family, and the ways the foster care and child welfare system in the United States pushed the Hart siblings into an abusive and ultimately fatal situation.

'We Were Once a Family' examines how the foster care system failed the Hart siblings

Listen · 11:09
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1196981057/1255753226" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Revisiting J.D. Vance's memoir, 'Hillbilly Elegy'
Harper

Revisiting J.D. Vance's memoir, 'Hillbilly Elegy'

This week, former President Donald Trump announced that Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance will be his running mate in the 2024 election. Vance rose to prominence with his bestselling 2016 memoir, Hillbilly Elegy, which captured his upbringing in Appalachia and his family's intergenerational struggle with poverty, substance abuse and trauma. In today's episode, we revisit a conversation between Vance and NPR's Steve Inskeep about the book, in which he says there are ways politicians misunderstand white, working-class Americans.

Revisiting J.D. Vance's memoir, 'Hillbilly Elegy'

Listen · 7:44
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1196981016/1255752999" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
'Ultraviolet' follows a young boy going through puberty and first love
Scholastic Press

'Ultraviolet' follows a young boy going through puberty and first love

Aida Salazar's new book, Ultraviolet, has a lot in common with Judy Blume's Forever, but from the point of view of an eighth grade boy; it's all about Elio Solis grappling with his changing body, his first girlfriend and his family life. In today's episode, Salazar tells Here & Now's Deepa Fernandes how watching her own son grow up inspired the events of the middle grade book, and they discuss how conversations of consent, masculinity and sex education are just as important for young men as they are for young women.

'Ultraviolet' follows a young boy going through puberty and first love

Listen · 10:43
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1196980889/1255719353" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
In 'Beautiful Days,' Zach Williams ponders parenthood, reality and the uncanny
Doubleday

In 'Beautiful Days,' Zach Williams ponders parenthood, reality and the uncanny

Zach Williams' collection of short stories, Beautiful Days, has earned high praise for the unsettling way it examines mundane, everyday life. In today's episode, Williams tells NPR's Sacha Pfeiffer how becoming a dad inspired the anxiety and wonder of parenthood that shows up throughout Beautiful Days, and the two get to talking about why he chose to focus on the "quickness and musicality" of short stories over writing a novel.

In 'Beautiful Days,' Zach Williams ponders parenthood, reality and the uncanny

Listen · 8:41
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1196980883/1255620146" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Two books dive into the musical histories of The Police and Joni Mitchell
Rocket 88/Dey Street Books

Two books dive into the musical histories of The Police and Joni Mitchell

Today's episode is about two emblematic musicians who take us to very different parts of the globe, from the London punk scene to the Laurel Canyon utopia of the 1960s and 70s. First, Stewart Copeland speaks to NPR's Leila Fadel about his memoir, Stewart Copeland's Police Diaries, which chronicles his time as a drummer for the legendary band. Then, Here & Now's Robin Young is joined by NPR Music's Ann Powers, who's written a biography of Joni Mitchell's expansive career called Traveling.

Two books dive into the musical histories of The Police and Joni Mitchell

Listen · 19:54
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1196978399/1255561024" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
In 'Other Rivers,' Peter Hessler chronicles his return to Chinese classrooms
Penguin Press

In 'Other Rivers,' Peter Hessler chronicles his return to Chinese classrooms

Foreign correspondent Peter Hessler taught in China during the country's economic boom in the 1990s, which he wrote about in his book River Town. Now, in Other Rivers, Hessler breaks down what it was like to teach there again more than two decades later. In today's episode, he and NPR international correspondent Emily Feng talk about what changed — and what stayed the same — with a new generation of students in China and how covering the country remains a challenge for so many writers and journalists.

In 'Other Rivers,' Peter Hessler chronicles his return to Chinese classrooms

Listen · 11:19
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1196980872/1255502860" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer unveils her vision for American democracy in 'True Gretch'
Simon & Schuster

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer unveils her vision for American democracy in 'True Gretch'

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has a new memoir out – it's about the people and experiences that shaped her version of leadership. Whitmer has led her state through a pandemic, natural disasters and the battle over reproductive rights, among many other issues. In today's episode, she speaks with NPR's Juana Summers about True Gretch: What I've Learned About Life, Leadership, and Everything in Between, her steadfast support for President Biden during his bid for reelection, and how she sees her future in the Democratic party.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer unveils her vision for American democracy in 'True Gretch'

Listen · 10:40
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1196980866/1255416704" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
'Devil Is Fine' explores race, colonialism and grief through magical realism
Celadon Books

'Devil Is Fine' explores race, colonialism and grief through magical realism

Devil Is Fine, the new novel by John Vercher, follows an unnamed protagonist banging out a book pitch in a fugue state that mirrors what's happening in his own life: after the death of his son, a biracial writer inherits a plantation from the white side of his family, which has the remains of both his slave-owning ancestors and the people they enslaved. In today's episode, Vercher speaks with NPR's Lauren Frayer about why he felt magical realism made the story about American history and loss and racism more accessible, and how different layers of grief manifest in the story.

'Devil Is Fine' explores race, colonialism and grief through magical realism

Listen · 9:29
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1196980826/1255348606" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
'At the Edge of Empire' traces China's history through Edward Wong's family
Viking

'At the Edge of Empire' traces China's history through Edward Wong's family

The central character of New York Times correspondent Ed Wong's memoir, At the Edge of Empire, is not Wong himself — it's his father, who studied in Beijing in the 1950s and staunchly supported the Chinese Communist Revolution. Wong's book traces his father's disillusionment with Mao's government and eventual move to the U.S. In today's episode, he speaks with NPR's Mary Louise Kelly about intertwining his family's personal story with the greater history of his parents' home country, and what Americans can still stand to learn about Chinese citizens.

'At the Edge of Empire' traces China's history through Edward Wong's family

Listen · 9:10
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1196980788/1255269541" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
NPR's Book of the Day

Podcast Directory
or search npr.org