NPR's Book of the Day

Episodes

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  Journalist Emily Feng on how Uyghur militants took up arms in Syria's civil war 12.11.2026 10m

  In Our Hearts Burned for Home: Uyghur Militants in Syria's Civil War, NPR’s Emily Feng traces the paths of Uyghur fighters’ from escaping the Chinese communist party to fighting the civil war in Syria against the Assad regime. At the heart of the book, and her reporting, Feng tries to answer how the Uyghur fighters became who they are and why they embraced this violent ideology. Here & Now's Scott Tong discussed the new book with Feng, who is an NPR White House reporter and former China correspondent.Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy
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  English actress Judi Dench pulls back the curtain about life on stage 11.11.2026 7m

  Dame Judi Dench made her debut as Ophelia in Hamlet with the Old Vic Company in 1957, and she’s since won an Oscar, BAFTA Awards, Olivier Awards and Golden Globes. She played Queen Victoria in Shakespeare in Love and M in the James Bond franchise. Now, along with co-author Brendan O'Hea, she’s added a memoir to her repertoire: Is It Too Late to Make a Run for It? Dench and O'Hea joined Weekend Edition’s Scott Simon to talk about her career, prankster reputation on set, and what makes theater so enduring. Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy
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  'Who? Weekly' hosts Lindsey Weber and Bobby Finger unpack modern fame in new book 10.11.2026 8m

  Who? Weekly podcast hosts Lindsey Weber and Bobby Finger assert in their new book I Want to Be Famous that classic celebrityhood – made up of A, B and C-listers – is over. In the wake of ever-changing definitions of fame, influencing and celebrity, they propose a who-versus-them binary, split into the people most of us have to ask “Who is that?” when they come up in conversation versus the ones where most people would say  “Oh, I know them.” Weekend Edition’s Ayesha Rascoe talks with Weber and Finger about modern-day fame, celebrity scandals and the money that drives it all. Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy
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  Author Deesha Philyaw says she's still 'obsessed' with the church in her fiction 09.11.2026 8m

  Deesha Philyaw, who grew up going to church, says you can leave religion behind but “the pastor and your mama are still in your bedroom.” That premise informs her new novel The True Confessions of First Lady Freeman, which centers on Scharisse, a megachurch pastor’s wife who receives an invitation to compete in an exclusive pageant. But when a scandal breaks out, Schar’s carefully crafted image is challenged. In today’s episode, Philyaw joins All Things Considered’s Juana Summers for a conversation about womanhood, identity and freedom in the Black church.Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy
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  A follow-up 15 years in the making: Chad Harbach on 'The Brightness' 06.11.2026 27m

  It’s been 15 years since Chad Harbach published The Art of Fielding, a book about a star college baseball player at a fictional Wisconsin liberal arts college. His new book The Brightness isn’t quite a sequel, but a follow-up that returns to that same world. The novel focuses on a group of young women who execute a controversial prank on campus. NPR’s Andrew Limbong spoke with Harbach about writing a campus novel that predates Covid, Trump’s presidency and TikTok, the author’s experience being “scooped by reality” and why he chose to focus this project on female friendship.Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy
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  'Redemption' is a story of sisterhood between nuns and women on Texas' death row 05.11.2026 7m

  Lawrence Wright’s new book Redemption is a story about two groups of women who live surprisingly similar lives. One is on death row in Gatesville, Texas. The other group is a nearby Catholic order, the Sisters of Mary Morning Star. Redemption: Faith, Justice, and Sisterhood on Death Row is an account of their alliance. In today’s episode, Wright speaks with Morning Edition’s Steve Inskeep about the idea of second chances, the likeness betwSupport public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy
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  In 'Sophie, Standing There,' author Meg Mason explores finding connection in books 04.11.2026 8m

  In Sophie, Standing There by Meg Mason, Sophie Pattison’s life is falling apart. On paper, there shouldn’t be an issue: She works her dream job mic’ing up authors at a local book festival – and she has a robust support system. So why, when it all comes crashing down, does she feel so alone? Sophie turns to books for solace and develops a crush on her favorite author. In today’s episode, All Things Considered’s Mary Louise Kelly talks with Mason about starting over, a desire for human connection, and books as a means of coping with loneliness.Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy
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  B.J. Novak on 'The Little Book with No Pictures' and making kids laugh 03.11.2026 8m

  Writer and The Office star B.J. Novak says that when his friends started having kids, he would connect with their children by reading books aloud. He began to pay attention to what would make kids laugh and eventually “printed and glue-sticked and paper-clipped” his own book that ended up being The Book with No Pictures. Now, Novak is out with a sequel for younger children called The Little Book with No Pictures. In today’s episode, he chats with Morning Edition’s Michel Martin about how the book turns words like “bonk” and “hug and squeeze" into symbols and art objects.Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy
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  Laleh Khadivi explores mother-daughter relationships in 'Female Life on Planet Earth' 02.11.2026 10m

  It’s been almost one year since Heti, the main character of Laleh Khadivi’s Female Life on Planet Earth, lost her mother. But when details from her mother’s secret past resurface, Heti must grapple with what it means to know someone, womanhood and how to grieve parts of her mother she never knew existed. In an interview with NPR's Debbie Elliott, Khadivi talks about motherhood, how physics books became a surprising inspiration and why this is her most personal novel yet.  Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy
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  New memoirs by Evan Gershkovich and Mahmoud Khalil chronicle political imprisonment 30.10.2026 15m

  Today’s episode features memoirs by two men whose incarceration became international headlines. Evan Gershkovich is an American journalist who spent 16 months in a Russian prison. Two years after his release, his new memoir This Cursed Beautiful Land details the time he spent listening, observing and writing while detained. Gershkovich spoke with Morning Edition’s Leila Fadel about adjusting to life after his release. Then, Mahmoud Khalil describes his detention by ICE as a combined Palestine, First Amendment and immigration case. He spoke with Fadel about his new memoir No Land to Stand On.Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy
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  Biography 'American Pope' follows Leo XIV's life from Chicago to Vatican City 29.10.2026 9m

  In American Pope: Leo XIV’s Road from the South Side of Chicago to Vatican City, NPR host Scott Detrow and religion editor Daniel Burke chronicle Pope Leo XIV’s path to leading the Catholic Church as the first American to take the position in its 2,000 year history. Reported across Peru, Chicago and Rome, the biography paints a picture of the pope, as told by his friends, confidants, family, classmates, fellow clergy and Vatican insiders. Detrow and Burke discuss the Pope’s upbringing and more in today’s episode with Weekend Edition’s Scott Simon.Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy
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  In 'Friends and Family,' a police encounter strains a friendship between two moms 28.10.2026 8m

  Natalie Baszile’s new book, Friends and Family, follows the friendship of two mothers: Babs, a Black woman, and Nora, a white woman with an adopted Black son. When the police are called on their kids while they’re home alone, the two women are left to grapple with their tightly-held beliefs on race, identity and how to best protect their kids. In today’s episode, Baszile joins All Things Considered’s Juana Summers to talk about how the book’s questions of race, class and allyship strike personally for the author.Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy
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  Kevin Roose on the quasi-religious pursuit of artificial general intelligence 27.10.2026 10m

  Over the past few months, some industry insiders have warned that rogue AI could escape its human creators, resulting in dangerous – and perhaps existential – consequences. But in his new book, Kevin Roose reminds readers that billionaire tech executives behind the technology have been fighting about this possibility for a decade or more. The AGI Chronicles follows the all-out sprint to create artificial general intelligence, despite its risks. In today’s episode, Kevin Roose, host of the new NPR podcast Machine Gods, speaks with Here & Now’s Peter O’Dowd about the quasi-religious pursuit of this technology.Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy
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  'Lessons in Chemistry' author Bonnie Garmus on her new novel 'Peck & Peck' 26.10.2026 10m

  Bonnie Garmus’ 2022 novel Lessons in Chemistry was a smash hit, selling more than 8 million copies worldwide. Her new novel Peck & Peck is set in the ‘80s and centers around Batter Gray, a young man who lands a job in the copy room of a prestigious poetry magazine. But soon, Batter becomes embroiled in personal and editorial conflicts. In today’s episode, Garmus joins NPR’s Elissa Nadworny for a conversation about poetry, reading aloud and why Peck & Peck is a novel about being misunderstood.Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy
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  Two collections of horror stories modernize the genre 23.10.2026 17m

  Spooky season is year-round, and so are our episodes about scary stories. First up, NPR's Ayesha Rascoe speaks with Jeanette Winterson about The Night Side of the River, a collection of ghost stories that weaves in the liminal spaces — Metaverses, one might say — created through technology to coexist with the dead. Then, NPR's Juana Summers asks Desiree Evans and Saraciea Fennell about The Black Girl Survives in This One, an anthology of horror stories by Black writers that contend with the genre's relationship to race.Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy
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  Shirley Jackson's biographer on the writer's ability to find evil in the ordinary 22.10.2026 8m

  With stories like “The Lottery” and The Haunting of Hill House, Shirley Jackson was one of the great horror authors of the 20th century. In 2012, Ruth Franklin wrote a biography of the writer called Shirley Jackson: A Rather Haunted Life. In today’s episode, we revisit a conversation between Franklin and NPR’s Linda Wertheimer. They talk about Jackson’s childhood, domestic life, and her unique ability to see "extraordinary evil” under the surface of ordinary life.Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy
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  George Saunders' 'Vigil' is a ghostly novel about an oil tycoon in his final hours 21.10.2026 9m

  In his latest novel, George Saunders continues to explore his interest in death and the afterlife. Vigil tells the story of an oil tycoon and climate change denier named K.J. Boone who’s visited by a series of ghosts in his final hours. In today’s episode, NPR’s Scott Detrow asks Saunders about similarities between this novel and A Christmas Carol. They also discuss the author’s Substack, his experience in the oil industry, and the role of storytelling in this political moment.Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy
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  Jordan Peele on his Black horror story collection 'Out There Screaming' 20.10.2026 6m

  Out There Screaming: An Anthology of New Black Horror is a collection of scary stories curated by horror filmmaker Jordan Peele. In today's episode, Peele speaks with NPR's Brittany Luse about the Black horror stories in this collection and the unique motif of eyes in this genre, including in his own 2017 film Get Out.Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy
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  In 'The Eleventh Hour,' Salman Rushdie writes about morality, revenge and ghosts 19.10.2026 12m

  Salman Rushdie lived for decades under a death sentence and survived a knife attack three years ago. His latest book The Eleventh Hour is his first work of fiction since that near-death experience. These short stories and novellas center around the end of life, what might come after, and the idea of personal legacy. In today’s episode, Rushdie joins Here & Now’s Scott Tong for a conversation that touches on mortality, changes to the author’s writing process, and his first ghost story.Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy
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  'Nickel and Dimed' and 'The Case for Quitting' reconsider our relationship to work 16.10.2026 19m

  Today’s episode features two books – one classic and one new – that might lead you to reconsider your relationship to work. Nearly 25 years ago, journalist and activist Barbara Ehrenreich went undercover as a nursing aide, waitress, hotel maid and retail worker to write Nickel and Dimed. Here & Now’s Scott Tong spoke with Alissa Quart about Ehrenreich’s legacy and why the author took issue with the term “unskilled” labor. Then, Lindsay Crouse is the author of The Case for Quitting. She spoke with NPR’s Sacha Pfeiffer about how quitting and perseverance can be complimentary options.Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy