NBN Book of the Day

Gaoheng Zhang, associate professor of Italian studies who researches China–Italy cultural exchanges. He traces the surprising pairings of Italian dumplings and Chinese pizzas. He maps how restaurants, students, media, and migration reshaped food scenes. He outlines transcultural movements, stereotypes, and future work on architecture and memorials.

Michael Stambolis-Ruhstorfer, Associate Professor at Université Toulouse and author of By the Power Vested in Me, studies how experts shape debates over same-sex marriage and parenthood. He contrasts U.S. reliance on empirical research with France's turn to psychoanalysis and legal theory. Short segments examine expert selection, credibility, cultural resources, and how expertise shapes policy and public narratives.

Stephen Bezruchka, an epidemiologist studying how social forces shape population health, lays out how politics, inequality, and early-life stress drive poor U.S. health. He compares U.S. rankings to other nations. He examines historical roots, racial and regional gaps, cultural supports, and postwar policy lessons. He ends with policy ideas to reset national health goals.

Saundra Weddle, professor of architecture who studies how built environments shaped women’s lives in early modern Italy. She explores Venice’s sex trade across alleys, gondola landings, bathhouses and brothels. Short takes on archival sleuthing, mapping methods, neighborhood differences, institutional controls, and how mobility and networks reshaped urban life.

Jonathan Gleason, writer, instructor, and medical interpreter, explores medicine, illness, and queer experience in America. He traces personal and historical threads from a blood clot and HIV prevention to AZT, PrEP, and opioid crises. He discusses interpreting in clinics, archival discoveries, and why a lyrical essay collection can make healthcare feel less isolating.

Kay Dickinson, Programme Convenor for Creative Arts and Industries at the University of Glasgow and author of Fernando: A Song by ABBA, unpacks how a sing-along pop hit became entangled with 1970s Latin American struggles and global markets. Short takes cover the song’s revolutionary lyrics, multilingual versions, queer and female revivals, questions of appropriation, and why English helped ABBA conquer the charts.

Jenny Banh, professor of Asian American Studies and Anthropology and author of Fantasies of Hong Kong Disneyland (2025). She traces Disney’s attempt to localize in Hong Kong. Short takes on unequal contracts, feng shui hires, food controversies, queue tensions between mainland and Hong Kong visitors, and how Ocean Park’s local roots contrast with Disneyland’s struggles.

Lindsay Sarah Krasnoff, historian of global sport and sports diplomacy who teaches at NYU, discusses her book Basketball Empire. She traces France’s basketball rise from midcentury decline to an NBA/WNBA talent pipeline. Conversation explores France’s training systems, transatlantic flows, colonial connections, and how French players shape global basketball culture.

Daisy Fancourt, a renowned professor at University College London, explores the health benefits of arts engagement in her book, Art Cure. She discusses how various art forms impact brain function and bodily health, emphasizing that dance can often surpass traditional exercise for overall wellness. Fancourt highlights the role of arts in reducing stress, particularly in hospital settings, and presents research linking arts participation to increased longevity. She also addresses barriers to access and proposes solutions to enhance arts funding and engagement.

Jason Burke, a veteran foreign correspondent, dives into the gripping history of international terrorism in the 1970s with his book, The Revolutionists. He explores the motivations of diverse armed groups, from Palestinian liberation to leftist extremism. Burke reveals the spectacle of hijackings aimed at publicity, not mass casualties, and traces the evolution of tactics leading to more lethal methods. He shares surprising insights on key events and figures, making connections that resonate with today's challenges in terrorism and radicalism.