NPR's Ari Shapiro speaks with Austrian novelist Robert Menasse about his new book, an absurdist comic tragedy called The Capital, for which he embedded with European Union civil servants in Brussels.
The new edition is in some ways like the retelling of a familiar tale for a new generation; but parts of the discussion that the book first inspired have moved beyond what an update can encompass.
The pseudonymous Reed King's new novel is a loopy, violent, funny Technicolor road trip across a post-apocalyptic America. There are robots, talking goats, and even the occasional lone songbird.
A member of the Muscogee Creek Nation, the 68-year-old poet and musician says she bears "the honor on behalf of the people and my ancestors" and aims to serve as an "ambassador" of the art form.
Mark Haddon's new novel uses Shakespeare's Pericles and its founding myth of the villainous king Antiochus to explore aberrant family relationships, loss, depression, judgment and cowardice.
From Nazis and narcos to mistresses and mysterious ship wrecks, Ellroy's This Storm and Mina's Conviction offer plot twists and zig-zags that take readers on a wild ride.
At the height of America's Jim Crow era, Taylor broke barriers by becoming the country's fastest and most famous cyclist. Michael Kranish tells his story in the new book, The World's Fastest Man.
Daniel Brook has written a book that goes a long way toward injecting thoughtfulness into popular notions of the history of race and racism in America but doesn't delve far enough into class conflict.
Taffy Brodesser-Akner's debut novel seems like a Portnoy-esque tale of a lovable lout, but halfway through, the story shakes itself up and reorients itself in a completely different direction.
Physician Louise Aronson treats patients who are in their 60s — as well as those who are older than 100. She writes about changing approaches to elder health care in her book Elderhood.
This month, we've got love stories about teenage girls who pull patriarchy-smashing pranks, a realistic discussion of female biology and a story about learning how to be your own Tom Hanks.
After Donald Trump's election, Dr. Ayaz Virji started giving talks to mostly white, Christian audiences in rural Minnesota to try to dispel misconceptions about Muslims. He faced a lot of backlash.
Since 2005, San Francisco's La Cocina has helped low-income entrepreneurs grow their businesses. Some went on to recognition from the prestigious James Beard awards. A new book tells their stories.
NPR's Frank Langfitt wanted to get to know the real China, so he started a free taxi service in an effort to have conversations with a variety of people. His new book is the result of this reporting.
NPR's Lulu Garcia-Navarro talks with Jennifer Berry Hawes about her new book, Grace Will Lead Us Home, which chronicles the aftermath of the 2015 Charleston church shooting.
Marcelo D'Salete's powerful graphic novel chronicles the mocambos, communities of runaway slaves that flourished in the jungles of 17th century Brazil, and all the lives they touched, slave and free.
Aminah Mae Safi's new young adult novel is rooted in a famous plot arc from the television show Gilmore Girls — but you don't have to be a fan to enjoy this dense, fulfilling love story.
These works make apparent how singular an achievement America's moon landing was — and show that half a century later we're still grappling to understand its long-term meaning.
Tim Kreider says the longest relationship of his adult life was with the stray cat. He writes about that relationship and others in his essay collection. Originally broadcast Feb. 26, 2018.
Television producer Deb Spera draws on her childhood in rural Branchville, S.C. in her first novel, painting a bleak, atmospheric portrait of three women's lives in the South during the 1920s.
Peter Houlahan's account of the violent robbery and its aftermath is based on interviews with civilians, officers and robbers involved; his prose reads like a crime novel in the best way possible.
NPR's Mary Louise Kelly talks with Frank Langfitt about his new book, Shanghai Free Taxi. It's born out of a project he started to meet ordinary Chinese citizens as a correspondent for NPR.
With details at once compelling and disturbing, geographer Jacob Shell describes the lives of the elephants of mountainous Myanmar and northeastern India that haul timber or transport people.
We've got fantastic judges for this year's summer reader poll! Alexandra Petri, Aparna Nancherla, Guy Branum and Samantha Irby will take your votes and curate a final list of 100 side-splitting reads.
Blake Crouch's new book reads like a relative of those late night college conversations about Big Questions. Here, the question is, if you could live your life over again, but differently, would you?
