NPR's Book of the Day
NPR
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.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Feb 11, 2026 • 9min
George Saunders' 'Vigil' is a ghostly novel about an oil tycoon in his final hours
George Saunders, award-winning novelist known for probing death and the afterlife, discusses Vigil, about an oil tycoon visited by ghosts in his final hours. He talks about influences like A Christmas Carol, his time in the oil industry, climate denial as a moral focal point, and how storytelling wrestles with responsibility, compassion, and political truth.
Feb 10, 2026 • 9min
Gov. Josh Shapiro emphasizes civic engagement in new memoir 'Where We Keep the Light'
Josh Shapiro, Pennsylvania governor and author, reflects on public service and resilience. He discusses surviving an arson attack, confronting antisemitism, defending voter data and election integrity, and the power of local civic engagement to drive change. Short, personal stories underscore his focus on community problem-solvers and protecting democratic trust.
Feb 9, 2026 • 8min
In 'Room 706,' a woman confronts her extramarital affair during a hostage crisis
Ellie Levenson, journalist-turned-novelist, discusses her novel Room 706. She frames a secret affair set against a hotel hostage crisis. Conversations cover why confinement forces reassessment, using extreme circumstances to explore modern womanhood and motherhood, and unexpected influences like Die Hard.
Feb 6, 2026 • 17min
Two new books take on lesser-known chapters of WWII and Cold War-era Black history
Howard Bryant, sports writer and author who examines Jackie Robinson and Paul Robeson’s clash during the Red Scare. Cheryl W. Thompson, NPR investigative correspondent and author who uncovers 27 missing Tuskegee Airmen. They discuss political pressure on Black leaders, contested public memory, wartime disappearances, family letters, and how these stories were overlooked.
Feb 5, 2026 • 7min
A woman takes over her dead sister’s dating profile in 'Dandelion is Dead'
Rosie Story, debut novelist and author of Dandelion is Dead, explores grief, online dating, and the blurred lines of identity. She describes a woman who hijacks her dead sister’s dating profile and the message that sparks a risky deception. Story also discusses writing from different perspectives and how personal loss shaped the novel.
Feb 4, 2026 • 9min
'How to Commit a Postcolonial Murder' is a dark new novel about sisterhood
Nina McConigley, debut novelist of How to Commit a Postcolonial Murder, blends dark fiction with sharp cultural observation. She explores two Indian-American sisters in 1980s Wyoming. The conversation touches on being one of few Brown families, split identities, colonial legacies, the moral complexity of revenge, and the ties that bind siblings after trauma.
Feb 3, 2026 • 10min
In Sara Levine’s novel 'The Hitch,' a corgi’s soul enters a little boy’s body
Sara Levine, author of The Hitch, mixes horror, comedy and metaphysics in a novel about parenting gone sideways. She discusses a corgi-possessed child, shaping and mis-shaping kids, and writing a shapeshifter who may be real or imagined. The conversation touches on satire, midlife restlessness, and love that refuses easy answers.
Feb 2, 2026 • 9min
Angela Tomaski’s debut novel takes readers on a tour of an English manor in decline
Angela Tomaski, debut novelist who drew on personal experience to shape The Infamous Gilberts, guides a tour of a decaying English manor. She explores the house through its objects. Conversations touch on parental absence, wartime trauma, and how ordinary lives become ruins of grand histories.
Jan 30, 2026 • 22min
Romance authors Emily Henry, Beverly Jenkins, and others on the state of their genre
Beverly Jenkins, pioneering historical romance author with a decades-long career. Emily Henry, bestselling contemporary writer famed for witty, emotionally sharp love stories. Helen Hoang, contemporary novelist centering autistic and Asian American heroines. They debate tropes, writing intimacy and sex scenes, representation and diversity in publishing, and why romance matters now.
Jan 29, 2026 • 8min
A meet-cute followed by real life: 'Party of Two' is about love in the real world
Jasmine Guillory, a bestselling romance novelist who centers relationships and race, chats about Party of Two. She describes a meet-cute turned long-distance fling and how race shapes characters' worldviews. Conversations about arrest experiences, food as intimacy, and the need for real talk about race in fiction also come up.
