Books

Erika Krouse discusses her story collection.

Breece D'J Pancake died young in 1979 at age 26 but since then he has continued to be considered a great American story writer. Peter Orner and Yvette Benavides discuss two stories by this native of West Virginia.

The findings from a conference a year ago were published in an online book with recommendations to combat the disparities in the incidence of cancer in Latinos.

Eiren Caffall’s The Mourner’s Bestiary, is a memoir about her experiences with polycystic kidney disease (PKD)—a chronic illness that has afflicted her family for 150 years—with the stories of marine life struggling to survive in the world’s fastest warming marine ecosystem.

Peter Orner and Yvette Benavides discuss "New Year's Eve," a short story by Mavis Gallant.

The Newport Folk Festival is an annual music festival that's been hosted in Newport, Rhode Island, since the 1950s. Bob Dylan, who was considered folk music's then-reigning king, performed at the festival in 1965 where he made the controversial decision to play the electric guitar. This is the focus of Elijah Wald's 2015 book, Dylan Goes Electric! which has been adapted into the film A Complete Unknown, starring Timothée Chalamet as Bob Dylan. In today's episode, we revisit a 2015 conversation between Wald and NPR's Arun Rath where they talk about Dylan's decision to play that guitar, electrifying the folk faithful. To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookoftheday

Dante Alighieri is one of the pillars of Western literature. And his texts have been translated into English dozens of times. With two new translations of his work out now, it's worth asking – why do we keep returning to this well?

If you have a young reader in your life who just can't put their books down, we have some new 2024 titles to consider. Nurture their new reading habit with books recommended by NPR staff and critics.

Craig Garnett, author of 'Uvalde’s Darkest Hour,' believes healing will take time but the city is on the right path.

These true stories range from a "meow-moir" of a Siberian cat to an exploration of what U.S. presidents do after the White House. Check out these nonfiction reads recommended by NPR staff and critics.