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NPR's Book of the Day

NPR's Book of the Day

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 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.Copyright 2021 NPR - For Personal Use Only Art Literary History & Criticism
Episodes
  • 'Fire in Every Direction' is a personal work by Palestinian scholar Tareq Baconi

    'Fire in Every Direction' is a personal work by Palestinian scholar Tareq Baconi
    Nov 20 2025
    Tareq Baconi is a Palestinian scholar best known for Hamas Contained: The Rise and Pacification of Palestinian Resistance. But in his new memoir Fire in Every Direction, the academic turns to more personal subjects, reflecting on three generations of displacement in his family. In an interview with NPR’s Morning Edition, Baconi speaks with NPR’s Leila Fadel about how silence – around queerness, politics, and shame – has shaped his family’s story.


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    14 mins
  • Kathy Iandoli on Gucci Mane’s memoir and becoming the go-to writer for rappers

    Kathy Iandoli on Gucci Mane’s memoir and becoming the go-to writer for rappers
    Nov 19 2025
    Gucci Mane’s new memoir Episodes covers a range of difficult topics: depression, mania, anxiety, drug abuse. There are even pages of the book that are blacked out to reflect the rapper’s gaps in memory. Writer Kathy Iandoli worked with Gucci on the project – and she’s become the go-to writer for rappers looking to tell their stories. In today’s episode, Iandoli speaks with NPR’s Andrew Limbong about her collaboration with Gucci and her take on what draws musical artists to write books in the first place.


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    9 mins
  • 'Bog Queen' cherishes Earth’s mossy wetlands and the bodies they preserve

    'Bog Queen' cherishes Earth’s mossy wetlands and the bodies they preserve
    Nov 18 2025
    You may have heard of a bog — those wet, mucky environments found mostly in the northern temperate pockets of Canada or Europe — but did you know that bogs can preserve human bodies for thousands of years? Anna North’s Bog Queen, part-history and part-mystery, explores the abiotic relationship between humans and what may be their greatest protector: the moss. In today’s episode, North sits down with NPR’s Scott Simon to discuss her newest novel, and the importance of caring for that which cares for us.


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    8 mins
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brilliant! beautifully written and narrated.
I was transported back to Italy in the exquisite descriptions of villages, pensions and characters.

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