Joyce Maynard's new book, How the Light Gets In , is a sequel to her 2021 novel Count the Ways , both following a family grappling with a tragic accident, its aftermath and the expectations they have for one another. In today's episode, Maynard speaks with NPR's Scott Simon about some of the big questions behind both books – "What is a typical family? What is a good mother? Is there such a thing?" – and why she feels it's imperative for her characters to live fully in the world, which means brin...
Jul 23, 2024•9 min
Actor, producer and director Griffin Dunne grew up during a fascinating time in Hollywood history. In today's episode, he tells Here & Now's Emiko Tamagawa he remembers bowing goodnight to his parents' black-tie party guests, like his aunt Joan Didion and his father's friend, Billy Wilder. His new memoir, The Friday Afternoon Club , captures his family's story in a bygone era of the entertainment industry — including his sister Dominique Dunne's death at the hands of her boyfriend in 1982, and t...
Jul 22, 2024•10 min
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 ...
Jul 19, 2024•18 min
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...
Jul 18, 2024•11 min
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, work...
Jul 17, 2024•8 min
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 the...
Jul 16, 2024•11 min
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. To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book c...
Jul 15, 2024•9 min
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 . To li...
Jul 12, 2024•20 min
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 jour...
Jul 11, 2024•11 min
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 ...
Jul 10, 2024•11 min
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...
Jul 09, 2024•9 min
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 Am...
Jul 08, 2024•9 min
Today's episode features two interviews with Kevin Kwan, author of the Crazy Rich Asians series. First, former NPR host Lulu Garcia-Navarro spoke to the writer in 2020 about Sex and Vanity , exploring identity through the lens of a biracial character and setting a new trilogy between Europe and the U.S. Then, Here & Now's Robin Young asks Kwan about his newest novel, Lies and Weddings , and his thoughts on the fascination with wealth and power in literature. To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-...
Jul 05, 2024•19 min
Alexander Hamilton, the first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, is somewhat of a pop culture phenomenon thanks to a hit musical about his life. But a new book called The Hamilton Scheme dives into a less-known part of Hamilton's legacy — his vision for public debt. In today's interview, author and historian William Hogeland speaks with NPR's Steve Inskeep about why Hamilton considered higher loans to be paid by the federal government a good thing, and how that can be traced to today's relationship...
Jul 04, 2024•8 min
When science reporter Sadie Dingfelder mistakes a complete stranger in the supermarket for her own husband, she realizes something's up. The tests and research that follow result in a face blindness diagnosis and her new book, Do I Know You? . In today's episode, she speaks with NPR's Ayesha Rascoe about the different experiences of consciousness everyone has, and how understanding the brain's capacities opens up a whole new world of neurodiversity. To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and ...
Jul 03, 2024•10 min
Yangsze Choo says she doesn't thoroughly plan out her novels – her newest, The Fox Wife , blossomed from that core idea behind the title, of a woman who also happens to be a fox. But beyond that, it's a story about a mother avenging her child, about a murder investigation in early 20th century China, and about family curses. As the author tells NPR's Scott Simon, foxes hold a wide range of intrigue and mystery in Chinese, Korean and Japanese legends — and it's these traits that broke open a whol...
Jul 02, 2024•9 min
Journalist Kara Swisher, who's been covering the internet and the tech industry for decades, says she's not surprised when people like Steve Jobs or Elon Musk lie to her — but what she says they sometimes don't realize is how much they lie to themselves. Her new memoir, Burn Book , recounts what she's learned in conversation with some of the brightest minds in Silicon Valley. In today's episode, Swisher tells NPR's Steve Inskeep that as disillusioned as she is with how much harm the industry has...
Jul 01, 2024•8 min
Today's episode features two interviews with author Morgan Talty. First, a conversation with NPR's Melissa Block about his 2022 collection of short stories, Night of the Living Rez , and how he navigates the weight of representation for the Penobscot Nation. Then, NPR's Andrew Limbong asks Talty about his new novel, Fire Exit , which takes place in the same cinematic universe as his former book but follows a white man trying to make sense of his place within an Indigenous community. To listen to...
Jun 28, 2024•21 min
In the 1840s, a Scottish minister named John Ferguson accepts the task of traveling to a remote island to evict Ivar, the only man who lives there. When Reverend Ferguson falls off a cliff, Ivar brings him back to life — and the two find a common understanding even as they realize they don't speak the same language. That's the basis of Carys Davies' new novel, Clear . In today's episode, NPR's Scott Simon asks the author about how she discovered a real-life extinct language called Norn, and how ...
Jun 27, 2024•8 min
Eight translators from eight countries travel to a Polish forest to begin adapting famed author Irena Rey's newest book into their respective languages. But when Irena Rey disappears, a competitive, ego-fueled search unravels in the surrounding woods and within each person. In today's episode, author Jennifer Croft speaks with NPR's Scott Simon about her new novel, The Extinction of Irena Rey , and how her own experience as an International Booker Prize-winning translator sparked an interest in ...
Jun 26, 2024•10 min
Memory Piece , the latest novel from National Book Award finalist Lisa Ko, kicks off in the 1980s with three teenage girls who find a deep connection to one another. Into the1990s and eventually the 2040s, the book delves into their growth as individuals and friends. In today's episode, Here & Now's Deepa Fernandes speaks with Ko about how art, gentrification and activism plays a role in each woman's life, and how memory and interdependence helps them find hope for their futures. To listen to Bo...
Jun 25, 2024•10 min
The story of Saba, the protagonist of Leo Vardiashvili's novel Hard by a Great Forest , is much like the author's own. A young boy flees the Soviet Republic of Georgia with his father and brother as the country is ravaged by a war. Decades later, when his father goes back to their homeland and promptly disappears, Saba must face his family's past – and immense loss – in an effort to find him. In today's episode, Vardiashvili tells NPR's Scott Simon about being separated from his own family, and ...
Jun 24, 2024•8 min
Today's episode is all about what it means to "make it" – and why there's no one path to success. First, Jennifer Breheny Wallace speaks with Here & Now's Deepa Fernandes about her new book Never Enough , which examines "toxic achievement culture" and the high pressure young people are under in regards to grades and college admissions. Then, WBUR's Tiziana Dearing speaks with Mo Rocca about Roctogenarians , co-written with Jonathan Greenberg, which profiles people who reached their goals and big...
Jun 21, 2024•21 min
Once upon a time, author Porochista Khakpour worked as a shop girl in the luxury stores lining Rodeo Drive. She tells NPR's Ailsa Chang how excited she would get when Iranian-American customers came in — but how poorly those interactions would pan out to be. Her new novel, Tehrangeles , explores the story of one such powerful family in LA on the cusp of getting their own reality TV show. And as Khakpour and Chang discuss, it opens a whole lot of questions about whiteness, assimilation and cultur...
Jun 20, 2024•9 min
After riding out the first year of the pandemic alone in her small studio apartment in New York City, Glynnis MacNicol saw an opportunity and ran with it. Once vaccines had rolled out in 2021, she booked a flight to, and apartment in, Paris – and the food, wine and sex that followed is the fuel of her new memoir, I'm Mostly Here to Enjoy Myself . In today's episode, MacNicol speaks with NPR's Mary Louise Kelly about pursuing pleasure, fully and unapologetically. To listen to Book of the Day spon...
Jun 19, 2024•9 min
In the new novel One of Our Kind , Jasmyn Williams moves her family to the planned Black utopia of Liberty, California. But things start to take a turn when Jasmyn realizes not everyone who lives in Liberty is the way she expected them to be. In today's episode, author Nicola Yoon speaks with NPR's Ayesha Rascoe about writing in the thriller genre, dismantling the idea that Black people are a monolith, and finding inspiration in The Stepford Wives . To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and ...
Jun 18, 2024•9 min
At the height of the Drake and Kendrick Lamar beef a few weeks back, Questlove took to Instagram to say, amongst other things, that "hip-hop is truly dead." In today's episode, he tells NPR's Rodney Carmichael where he was coming from – whether or not he actually believes that – and explains the musical shift, personal stories and cultural changes detailed in his new book, Hip-Hop Is History . To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+...
Jun 17, 2024•7 min
Today's episode highlights two books that grapple with hardships – and perseverance — within a family. First, Here & Now's Robin Young speaks with Michelle Horton about Dear Sister , a memoir chronicling how Horton's sister was arrested for killing her husband, the abuse she'd been suffering at his hands for years, and the family's fight to reduce her prison sentence. Then, NPR's Scott Simon speaks with journalist Lawrence Ingrassia about A Fatal Inheritance , which tracks generations of cancer ...
Jun 14, 2024•22 min
Comedian, TV writer and podcast host Chelsea Devantez moved around a lot as a kid. She jokes in today's episode that her mom "loved to get divorced" — but that also led to what she describes as a pretty great co-parenting situation between her mom and godmother for a while. It's one of the many stories in Devantez's new memoir, I Shouldn't Be Telling You This (But I'm Going to Anyway) . She spoke to NPR's Elizabeth Blair about the book, her journey as a domestic violence survivor and the experie...
Jun 13, 2024•12 min
You Like It Darker is a new collection of short stories by Stephen King — and as the author tells NPR's Mary Louise Kelly, one of those stories spent decades tucked away in a desk drawer before he gave it an ending. In today's episode,the two discuss the bigger questions of destiny and morality in that story and in much of King's work, and why the writer thought several of his best-selling novels would never see the light of day. To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book c...
Jun 12, 2024•9 min
