Books

What happens when admiration turns into envy — and envy takes hold of an entire life? Yvette Benavides and Peter Orner discuss José Emilio Pacheco’s haunting short story, “The Claw.”

Michael Cunningham, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Hours, discusses his new book, Unsayable: A Life in Writing, and the mysteries of memory, imagination and storytelling.

The 2026 list includes new works from household names Douglas Stuart, Marlon James and Elizabeth Strout as well as a few debut authors.

What does it mean to love a place — and still long to leave it? In Alistair MacLeod’s haunting short story “The Boat,” a son struggles between family, tradition and the pull of a different life. On this episode of The Lonely Voice, we explore a powerful story about the sea, sacrifice and the choices that shape who we become.

People are reading fewer and fewer books. The Atlantic's Rose Horowitch discusses what a post-literate world might look like.

In this interview, Ruth Ozeki talks about writing stories, publishing a story collection at age 70, the supremely skilled ways she can write about a range of characters in diverse places, the trunk full of ideas around stories and loss and, of course, typing.

Judy Blume wrote her last book more than a decade ago. At the Santa Fe International Literary Festival, NPR's Scott Simon talked to Blume about her long career and why she doesn't miss writing.

In her latest essay collection, author Reyna Grande reflects on her difficult experiences migrating to the U.S. from Mexico.

In this episode, Book Public host Yvette Benavides shares a reflection on an essay collection that explores grief and how we make meaning from loss.

Peter Orner and Yvette Benavides explore the 1959 short story "Asigh" by the incomparable Mary Lavin. They examine this beautiful, poignant story about a protagonist who remains resilient in the face of domestic tension and psychological confinement in rural Ireland.