Episodes

  • 'Labor' is a memoir by a doctor who traveled the country with a mobile OB-GYN clinic

    'Labor' is a memoir by a doctor who traveled the country with a mobile OB-GYN clinic
    Apr 15 2026
    Twenty years into her medical career, Dr. Mary Fariba Afsari, a board-certified OBGYN, had grown increasingly frustrated with the medical profession. She felt that medicine had become more about business and less about caring for patients. Her new memoir, Labor: One Woman’s Work, is about her decision to purchase an RV and convert it into a mobile clinic, which she drove around the country providing medical care. In today’s episode, she talks with NPR’s Ayesha Rascoe about Afsari’s efforts to bring joy back into her profession, how the Dobbs decision impacted her work, and how Labor brings readers into the operating room.

    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

    To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below:

    See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

    NPR Privacy Policy
    Show More Show Less
    10 mins
  • John Sayles on Henry Ford, Detroit and his new historical novel 'Crucible'

    John Sayles on Henry Ford, Detroit and his new historical novel 'Crucible'
    Apr 14 2026
    In the new novel Crucible, director and author John Sayles turns his attention to Henry Ford, Detroit, and automotive labor in the 1920s through World War II. The historical novel focuses less on Ford’s story and more on the cast of characters whose lives were changed by the businessman: Ford workers, labor organizers, young radicals, and many others. Here & Now’s Robin Young recently spoke with Sayles at the West Newton Cinema outside Boston in front of an audience of the author and filmmaker’s fans. They discussed Henry Ford’s top enforcer, cameos by figures like Joe Louis and Diego Rivera in the novel, and how Sayles’ upbringing in Synecdoche, New York has shaped his work.

    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

    To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below:

    See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

    NPR Privacy Policy
    Show More Show Less
    11 mins
  • Patrick Radden Keefe on 'London Falling' and the mystery of Zac Brettler

    Patrick Radden Keefe on 'London Falling' and the mystery of Zac Brettler
    Apr 13 2026
    In November of 2019, a young man leaped into the Thames River from a London apartment building and died. After 19-year-old Zac Brettler’s death, his parents learned their son had adopted a false identity as the son of a Russian oligarch. The mystery surrounding Brettler’s identity is the subject of Patrick Radden Keefe’s new book London Falling. In today’s episode, the author joins NPR’s Scott Simon for a conversation about Brettler’s life in London among a crowd that worshipped wealth, the teen’s talent for accents, voices, and stories, and how Brettler got mixed up in a mutual con with an older businessman named Akbar Shamji.

    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

    To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below:

    See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

    NPR Privacy Policy
    Show More Show Less
    9 mins
  • New children’s books center intergenerational relationships in life and the afterlife

    New children’s books center intergenerational relationships in life and the afterlife
    Apr 10 2026
    Intergenerational relationships take center stage in two new children’s books. First, in The One About the Blackbird, a little boy learns to play guitar from his grandfather and they form a deep bond over music. In today’s episode, author Melanie Florence and illustrator Matt James join NPR’s Ayesha Rascoe to discuss their collaboration and shared love of The Beatles. Then, And They Walk On deals with a heavy topic: Where do our loved ones go after they die? Author Kevin Maillard and illustrator Rafael López spoke with Rascoe about “walking on” and incorporating Seminole culture in their story.

    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

    To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below:

    See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

    NPR Privacy Policy
    Show More Show Less
    19 mins
  • Katrina Manson on 'Project Maven' and how the U.S. is using AI in warfare

    Katrina Manson on 'Project Maven' and how the U.S. is using AI in warfare
    Apr 9 2026
    Marine Corps colonel Drew Cukor says AI will completely change the way the United States fights wars – and maybe already has. The new book Project Maven focuses on Cukor and the Pentagon campaign to incorporate AI into combat. In today’s episode, the book’s author Katrina Manson speaks with NPR’s Mary Louise Kelly about the project's nascent stages in 2017 and how the Department of Defense might be using AI today, including in the war in Iran.

    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

    To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below:

    See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

    NPR Privacy Policy
    Show More Show Less
    9 mins
  • In 'Kutchinsky's Egg,' a jeweler’s corrosive ambition leads to his family’s downfall

    In 'Kutchinsky's Egg,' a jeweler’s corrosive ambition leads to his family’s downfall
    Apr 8 2026
    A famous jeweler in London once became obsessed with a single goal: To produce the world’s largest golden egg. He became fixated with one-upping the famous Fabergé eggs, ultimately producing his own jeweled egg once priced at £7 million. His daughter, Serena Kutchinsky, has a new memoir about the way her father’s “corrosive ambition” led to the demise of the family’s century-old business. In today’s episode, she talks with NPR’s Don Gonyea about Kutchinsky’s Egg, an unusual first-class flight, and the rise and fall of this one-of-a-kind object.

    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

    To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below:

    See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

    NPR Privacy Policy
    Show More Show Less
    9 mins
  • 'Anywhere Else' is a book of essays about a love-hate relationship with Florida

    'Anywhere Else' is a book of essays about a love-hate relationship with Florida
    Apr 7 2026
    Writer Rachel Knox says there was a point at which she wanted to escape Florida. She moved away to New York, but eventually returned. Her new essay collection Anywhere Else works through her love-hate relationship with the state through the lens of pop culture. In today’s episode, she speaks with NPR’s Scott Simon about media representations of Florida in shows like The X-Files, and Knox’s reflections on why she once wanted to leave.

    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

    To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below:

    See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

    NPR Privacy Policy
    Show More Show Less
    8 mins
  • Sen. Cory Booker on 'Stand' and his intentions for the 2028 election

    Sen. Cory Booker on 'Stand' and his intentions for the 2028 election
    Apr 6 2026
    Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) has been a vocal critic of the Trump administration, but lately he’s also expressed frustration with the Democratic Party. His new book Stand makes an argument for 10 virtues he sees as critical to American life, regardless of political party. In today’s episode, he joins NPR’s Juana Summers for a conversation about how Americans have historically responded to similar political moments, whether Chuck Schumer is the right person to lead Democrats in the Senate, and his intentions for the 2028 election.

    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

    To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below:

    See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

    NPR Privacy Policy
    Show More Show Less
    9 mins