• NPR's Book of the Day

  • By: NPR
  • Podcast

NPR's Book of the Day

By: NPR
  • Summary

  • 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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Episodes
  • Han Kang, winner of the 2024 Nobel Prize in literature, on her novel 'The Vegetarian'
    Oct 14 2024
    South Korean author Han Kang is this year's recipient of the Nobel Prize in literature, making her the first Korean writer to win the award. In its citation, the Swedish Academy commended Han "for her intense poetic prose that confronts historical traumas and exposes the fragility of human life." Both of these themes are present in the author's 2007 novel, The Vegetarian, which tells the story of a young woman who decides to give up meat. In today's episode, we revisit a 2016 interview between Han and NPR's Linda Wertheimer, which took place around the time of The Vegetarian's publication in English. In the interview, they discussed gender politics, how women cope with trauma, and Han's "long-lasting question about human violence."

    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/bookoftheday

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    7 mins
  • American Library Association president Cindy Hohl on why book bans are hard to stop
    Oct 11 2024
    Cindy Hohl, the current president of the American Library Association, says the political temperature surrounding book bans has remained at a boiling point. Over the last year of her tenure, Hohl has witnessed librarians exit the profession due to increased stress, ridicule and public pressure to remove certain titles from their libraries–particularly those related to race and LGBTQ+ identity. Although these battles are particularly pronounced in hot spots like Florida and Texas, they're being fought in communities all over the country. In today's episode, NPR's Andrew Limbong speaks with Hohl about what librarians can and can't do to push back against this cycle of censorship and what it's like to lead through times of crisis.

    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/bookoftheday

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    19 mins
  • In Simone St. James' 'Murder Road,' a lakeside honeymoon turns into a murder mystery
    Oct 10 2024
    In 1995, a mostly pre-digital age, it was much easier to get lost–especially on a strange road in the middle of the night. This time period is the setting for Simone St. James' thriller Murder Road, which came out earlier this year. In the book, newlyweds are en route to a lakeside cabin in Michigan when they take a wrong turn and discover a hitchhiker needing help. That chance meeting lands the young couple at the center of a series of mysterious murders. In today's episode, NPR's Ayesha Rascoe speaks with St. James about weaving the supernatural into her fiction and the appeal of true crime.

    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/bookoftheday

    Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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    10 mins

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