Trouble in Eastern Europe: "A Dog in Georgia" by Lauren Grodstein and "Endling" by Maria Reva
Adventures in life and love in Eastern Europe during interesting times.
Aug 07, 2025•4 min
The Weekly Reader
----What should I read next?---- Book critic and longtime NPR commentator Marion Winik answers this question in four opinionated, book-loving minutes. With reviews of new releases and older titles you may have missed, it’s like having a new best friend with very good taste to guide you in your literary adventures. The Weekly Reader is produced by WYPR and hosted by Lisa Morgan.
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Episodes
Comic Novels: "Vera, or Faith" by Gary Shteyngart and "Run for the Hills" by Kevin Wilson
Leave your everyday cares behind and enjoy a good laugh with us this week.
Jul 29, 2025•4 min
Adventures in Travel: "Culpability" by Bruce Holsinger and "Sky Daddy" by Kate Folk
Travel makes you big!
Jul 23, 2025•4 min
Magnificent Memoirs: "Flowers and Locusts" by Martha Reid Paradis and "Not My Type" by E. Jean Carroll
Life isn't always pretty, but a good memoir is a thing of beauty.
Jul 16, 2025•4 min
Magnificent Memoirs: "Flowers and Locusts" by Martha Reid Paradis and "Not My Type" by E. Jean Carroll
Life's not always pretty, but it makes for great memoirs.
Jul 16, 2025•4 min
Seaside Reads: "Next to Heaven" by James Frey and "The Listeners" by Maggie Stiefvater
Perfect companions to tuck in your tote bag this summer.
Jul 09, 2025•4 min
Must-Read Memoirs from Molly Jong-Fast and Sarah Wynn-Williams
Some people are born with privilege; what they do with it makes all the difference.
Jul 02, 2025•4 min
Insiders: Dispatches from New York City and Hollywood
Two new memoirs that take us behind the scenes of glamour and excess from glitzy publishing in NYC to filmmaking in Hollywood.
Jun 25, 2025•4 min
Women on Women: new books from Elizabeth Evitts Dickinson and Sophie Gilbert
Influential women in the world of fashion and pop culture get the credit, and scrutiny, they deserve.
Jun 18, 2025•4 min
Great Debuts: Aaron John Curtis and Lucas Schaefer
Exciting debut releases from two new American authors.
Jun 10, 2025•4 min
For Music Lovers: "Matriarch" by Tina Knowles and "Walk Softly On This Heart of Mine" by Callie Collins
Sometimes, talent is in the blood.
Jun 04, 2025•4 min
New York Stories: New novels from Maxine Rosaler, Austin Kelley, and Rumaan Alaml
Three new books that will leave you in a New York state of mind.
May 28, 2025•4 min
Funny People: "What Is Wrong With You?" by Paul Rudnick, and "Making the Best of What's Left" by Judith Viorst.
It’s easy to get caught up in life’s little messes and difficulties, especially as we age. Laughter may just help!
May 21, 2025•4 min
Family Life in the UK: "Going Home" by Tom Lamont and "The Names" by Florence Knapp
The concept of “family” can mean a variety of things to different people. What does it mean to you?
May 14, 2025•4 min
Fiction Fights Back: The Dream Hotel, by Laila Lalami, and The Antidote, by Karen Russell
Whether you believe that technology and AI will save us or eventually ruin our lives, have we got some books for you!
May 08, 2025•4 min
Good Stories: "Atavists" by Lydia Millet and "Good Women" by Halle Hill
The world is complicated, for all of us. Good stories can help!
Apr 30, 2025•4 min
Modern Predicaments: "Jane and Dan at the End of the World" by Colleen Oakley and "Rental House" by Weike Wang
Have you ever found yourself in a sticky situation, wishing you could you snap your fingers or click your heels and disappear?
Apr 23, 2025•4 min
Cats From Japan: The Blanket Cats, by Kiyoshi Shigematsu and Mornings Without Mii, by Mayumi Inaba
In Japan they call it iyashakei – a term that can be applied to anything that is comforting and uplifting: a person, a meal, a walk in the park. These books fit the bill!
Apr 17, 2025•4 min
Listen to This: New Audio Memoirs
Never trust the teller, trust the tale? Not when the "teller" is as compelling as the "tale!"
Apr 09, 2025•4 min
Weekly Reader Live at CityLit Festival 2025
The Weekly Reader's Marion Winik will be in conversation with four local writers who have been receiving raves for their new work in fiction and poetry.
Mar 27, 2025•4 min
Europe in Wartime: "33 Place Brugmann" by Alice Austen and "Maya and Natasha" by Elyse Durham
World War II and its aftermath left an indelible mark on the world and inspired countless artists to try to make sense of such a calamity.
Mar 19, 2025•4 min
Listening to Joan Didion
Joan Didion died in 2021, but interest in her life and work has only increased since then.
Mar 12, 2025•4 min
Inheritance: "The Magnificent Ruins" by Nayantara Roy and "Like Mother, Like Mother" by Susan Rieger
We can inherit so many things from our ancestors: physical traits, like hair and eye color, a quick temper, musical talent, a bunch of money, maybe even a big old house.
Mar 05, 2025•4 min
I Dream of Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell gets the biographical treatment in a pair of books as unconventional as the artist herself.
Feb 27, 2025•4 min
Short Stories: New Books From Curtis Sittenfeld, Erika Krouse, and by Amor Towles
We love Short Stories, and we're going to make you love them, too.
Feb 24, 2025•4 min
Career Opportunities: "Mona Acts Out" by Mischa Berlinski and "How to Sleep at Night" by Elizabeth Harris
Who hasn’t dreamed of running away, leaving it all behind, totally reinventing yourself?
Feb 17, 2025•4 min
When Bad Things Happen to Good Writers
Great art is often created in the wake of terrible tragedy – think Guernica, The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll, The Vietnam Memorial.
Feb 10, 2025•4 min
When Bad Things happen to Good Writers
Great art is often created in the wake of terrible tragedy – think Guernica, The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll, The Vietnam Memorial.
Feb 10, 2025•4 min
Coming of Age: "Playworld" by Adam Ross and "The Life Cycle of the Common Octopus" by Emma Knight
Remember the 1980s? Remember college? Even if you weren’t alive, or never attended university, you’ll feel like you’ve gone back in time with this week’s picks.
Feb 03, 2025•4 min
Coming of Age: "Playworld" by Adam Ross and "The Life Cycle of the Common Octopus" by Emma Knight
Coming of age can be a challenge, no matter where, or when, you do it.
Jan 29, 2025•4 min
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