This week, we're celebrating National Poetry Month by revisiting some of our favorite conversations with poets. Ocean Vuong's collection, Time Is A Mother, is about his grief after losing family members. Vuong told NPR's Rachel Martin that time is different now that he has lost his mother: "when I look at my life since she died in 2019, I only see two days: Today when she's not here, and the big, big yesterday when I had her."

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Two figures who defined ?90s culture are out with new memoirs. First, Brandy Norwood is a Grammy-winning singer and made history as the first Black actress to play a Disney princess on screen. In today?s episode, she speaks with NPR?s A Martínez about her memoir Phases, her beloved roles in Rodger & Hammerstein?s Cinderella and Moesha, and collaborations with Whitney Houston and Monica. Then, Arsenio looks back at The Arsenio Hall Show. In today?s episode, Hall chats with NPR?s Michel Martin about creating must-watch TV ? and standout interviews with Magic Johnson and Bill Clinton.

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A few years ago, author Emma Straub saw a story about New Kids on the Block hosting a tropical cruise for their fans. That planted the seed for Straub, whose new novel, American Fantasy, is about a fictional, aging boy band called Boy Talk that sets sail for five days of nostalgia. In today?s episode, the author speaks with NPR?s Justine Kenin about the 50-year-old female fan at the center of the novel. Straub also shares her experience receiving feedback on a draft from New Kids member Joey McIntyre.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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Today?s episode features two cookbooks: One new, the other newly translated. First, a classic Italian cookbook (and classic wedding gift) has been translated into English in full for the first time. Juana Summers spoke with publisher Michael Szczerban about the long journey that brought the regional Italian recipes of The Talisman of Happiness to a global audience. Then, pastry chef Tanya Bush once looked to the kitchen during a difficult moment. She spoke with NPR?s Scott Detrow about Will This Make You Happy, a cookbook and memoir about her year of self-discovery and imperfect baking.

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Larry Bird ? one of the greatest players in the history of the NBA ? once gave up his college basketball career to return to his hometown, French Lick, Indiana. But soon after, an assistant coach went searching for Bird and brought him back to Indiana State. Bird?s return to basketball and subsequent rise is the subject of a new book by Keith O?Brien, Heartland: A Forgotten Place, An Impossible Dream, and the Miracle of Larry Bird. In today?s episode, O?Brien talks with NPR?s Scott Simon about Bird?s origin story, his distaste for reporters, and how a matchup vs. Magic Johnson changed basketball.

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Yann Martel?s new novel Son of Nobody contains two narratives: a lost epic about the Trojan War and a personal tragedy that plays out in the book?s footnotes. The two protagonists are Psoas, a common Greek foot soldier, and Harlow Donne, a graduate student who discovers Psoas? story by chance. In today?s episode, Martel joins NPR?s Scott Simon for a conversation about the author?s decision to give footnotes a ?starring role? in the novel and whether war gives his characters a sense of purpose.

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PBS Newshour co-anchor Geoff Bennett is out with a new book that presents portraits of Black artists who shaped comedy. Black Out Loud is a history that starts with vaudeville and runs through the ?90s, when sitcoms like The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, In Living Color and Family Matters carried the responsibility of representing a varied Black experience. In today?s episode, Bennett speaks with NPR?s Scott Simon about vaudeville and minstrelsy as the DNA of Black comedic performance, the impact of Amos ?n? Andy, and comedians like Bert Williams, Richard Pryor and Dave Chappelle.

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In Project Hail Mary, amateur astronaut Ryland Grace must travel light years from Earth to save humanity from a dying Sun. The stakes are high, to say the least. But author Andy Weir was intentional about centering hope in his bestselling novel, which inspired the recent blockbuster film starring Ryan Gosling. In today?s episode, Andy Weir joins Here and Now?s Indira Lakshmanan to discuss his creative world-building process, and why he remains optimistic about our ability to collaborate in the face of existential threats.

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Singer-songwriter David Archuleta and writer Lindy West are both out with memoirs that deal with letting go of the past. First, Archuleta was the runner-up on the seventh season of American Idol. Underneath that success, he struggled privately with his queer identity and his relationship to the Mormon church. In today?s episode, he talks with Here & Now?s Indira Lakshmanan about his new memoir Devout. Then, Lindy West tells NPR?s Leila Fadel about Adult Braces, the cross-country road trip that reset the Shrill writer?s life, and how she opened herself to the idea of a non-monogamous marriage.

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Next month, tech giant Apple will turn 50, marking five decades since Steve Jobs and his co-founders set out to put powerful technology in the hands of everyday people. David Pogue joined NPR?s Michel Martin for a conversation about his new book Apple: The First 50 Years ? and said he sees the company?s story as one of ?focus.? In today?s episode, Martin and the CBS News correspondent discuss Steve Jobs as a Rorschach test, Jobs? relationship with Steve Wozniak and Apple?s lesser-known third founder, Ronald Wayne, and a time when the company faced bankruptcy.

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The narrator in Black Bag is an unnamed and mostly unemployed actor until a professor offers him the starring role in an experiment. The narrator is asked to zip himself in a black bag and sit in the back of a lecture theater. Luke Kennard?s new novel is based on an experiment from 1967, in which a professor set out to explore ?the mere-exposure effect.? In today?s episode, Kennard talks with NPR?s Scott Simon about why the protagonist takes up this non-role ? and what the experiment reveals about masculinity.

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Fred Brathwaite ? aka ?Fab 5 Freddy? ? is a pioneering multimedia artist credited with bringing hip hop to the mainstream in the 1980s. His new memoir Everybody?s Fly looks back at Brathwaite?s life in New York, beginning when art forms like rap, graffiti, breakdance, and DJ remained mostly underground. In today?s episode, Brathwaite joins NPR?s Adrian Ma to discuss his inspiration behind the memoir, and how his widespread artistic collaborations throughout the 1970s, 80s and 90s synthesized culture and propelled it forward.

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In Sarvat Hasin?s novel Strange Girls, a Pakistani woman and an American woman meet at a London-based university in the 2010s. There, they quickly become close, bonding over a shared dissatisfaction with the definition of femininity available to them. In today?s episode, Hasin joins NPR?s Juana Summers for a conversation about the intense relationship that forms between the two protagonists, the way friendships can be strained in the post-college years, and what makes this novel a kind of ?period piece.?

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Two new murder mystery novels let readers into hidden worlds: one underground and the other among the wives of serial killers. First, Ruby Falls begins in 1928 in Chattanooga, Tennessee when a man discovers a mysterious underground cavern and waterfall. In today?s episode, NPR?s Scott Simon speaks with Gin Phillips about the publicity stunt that sets her story in motion. Then, Lizzie Pook chats with NPR?s Ayesha Rascoe about The Secret Lives of Murderers? Wives ? published under the pen name Elizabeth Arnott ? in which three women find each other after their husbands? crimes are uncovered.

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Author Daisy Hernández grew up in New Jersey in a community she describes as ?the United Nations of Latinos,? with parents from Cuba and Colombia and relatives from Puerto Rico and Peru. Her new book Citizenship uses her family story to trace the history of citizenship in the United States. In today?s episode, she speaks with NPR?s Emily Kwong about the concept of ?social citizenship? and why American citizenship fails to fit into a fixed legal definition.

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Cara Bastone says she wanted to write a book filled with miscommunications that couldn?t be solved with a quick conversation. In her novel No Matter What, Roz and Vin navigate a changing relationship after the couple endures a traumatic accident. In today?s episode, Bastone speaks with NPR?s Juana Summers about developing characters who look like ?normal people,? writing her husband into her work, and why there are so many contemporary novels about separation and divorce.

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After the death of her father, sociologist and law professor Dorothy Roberts decided to sort through his boxes. What she found was an archive of notes related to his research on interracial marriage, which he saw as a means to dismantle white supremacy. Roberts? new memoir The Mixed Marriage Project chronicles her confrontation with her father?s research ? and her role in it; she herself was the product of her parents? mixed marriage. In today?s episode, she speaks with NPR?s Michel Martin about this trove of interviews with interracial couples and Roberts? questions about her own family history.

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Virginia Evans? The Correspondent became a runaway hit for its exploration of a life told through letters. When readers meet Sybil Van Antwerp she?s in her 70s, and she takes readers on a journey through her various correspondences ? which include names as revered as Joan Didion and Ann Patchett. But Sybil isn?t telling us everything, and her clever prose might hide as much as it reveals. In today?s episode, author Virginia Evans joins Here and Now?s Robin Young to discuss the value of correspondence, and how the book?s success has changed the letter-writing industry itself.

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To mark Women?s History Month, today?s episode features new books focused on women who have paved the way for gender equality. First, journalist Norah O?Donnell documents untold stories in American history in We the Women, written in collaboration with Kate Andersen Brower. In today?s episode, O?Donnell tells NPR?s Mary Louise Kelly about lesser-known female heroes, like the woman who printed the Declaration of Independence and a female soldier who fought in the American Revolution. Then, activist Gloria Steinem and Nobel Peace Laureate Leymah Gbowee speak with Here & Now?s Indira Lakshmanan about their new children?s book, Rise, Girl, Rise.

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In today?s episode, Elizabeth Day describes the protagonist in her new novel One of Us as the ?quintessential outsider.? Martin Gilmour came from a difficult background, but won a scholarship to an elite boarding school in England. There, he befriends an aristocratic boy named Ben who will later ask Martin to keep an important secret. One of Us follows the implosion of their friendship ? and Martin?s discretion ? as Ben strives for political power. In today?s episode, Day and NPR?s Scott Simon discuss the novel?s central rivalry and Day?s interest in the Boris Johnson era of British politics.

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While researching a previous book, a mushroom trip in Michael Pollan?s garden left him curious about the boundaries of consciousness. His latest project A World Appears explores the mystery of human consciousness through scientific, philosophical and psychedelic frameworks. In today?s episode, Pollan talks with Here & Now?s Indira Lakshmanan about the sentience of plants and animals vs. our own. They also discuss ?lantern? vs. ?spotlight? consciousness, AI and why Pollan sees the computer as a faulty metaphor for the human brain.

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Lillian Li says Bad Asians was drawn from her upbringing in a hypercompetitive Chinese-American community. In the novel, four 20-somethings, who grew up in a similar environment, confront the challenges of the 2008 financial crisis and begin to let loose. Their former classmate documents their frustrations in what becomes one of the first viral YouTube videos. In today?s episode, Li speaks with Here & Now?s Scott Tong about the initial privacy of the early internet, exploding Asian American stereotypes, and why she wanted to write about friendship.

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As California?s governor ? and a topic of discussion among some as a possible 2028 presidential candidate ? Gavin Newsom is an exceedingly public figure with a busy schedule to match. His new memoir, Young Man in a Hurry, provides a glimpse into Newsom?s rise to political prominence and his ongoing goal of self-discovery. In today?s episode, Newsom sits down with NPR?s Ailsa Chang to discuss his book, the question of his own relatability, and why he uses ?playground insults?? on social media to push back against the Trump administration.

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In today?s episode, two authors tackle everyday experience through short-form writing. First, The Irish Goodbye is a collection of micro-memoirs by the poet Beth Ann Fennelly. In these recollections, she considers childhood, marriage, and old friends ? and she told NPR?s Scott Simon about the immense difficulty she had writing about her sister?s death. Then, Anne Fadiman joins Simon to discuss Frog: and Other Essays, in which she takes on topics like a printer, an unpettable pet, M&Ms, and the rules of grammar.


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Tayari Jones, author of the 2018 novel An American Marriage, says her next book was supposed to be about gentrification in the American South. But while writing her draft, Jones says she realized the backstory of that project was actually the real story. That?s how her new historical fiction novel Kin was born. The book follows two cradle friends who grow up without mothers in Honeysuckle, Louisiana and must navigate life in the Jim Crow South. In today?s episode, Jones tells NPR?s Ayesha Rascoe about how she tapped into something ?older than herself? in order to write this story.


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Author Andrew Krivak grew up hearing stories about his grandfather, who died in a coal mine collapse in the early 1900s. These stories inspired Mule Boy, a novel about a 13-year-old who survives a deadly accident at a Pennsylvania mine. The story takes place during a 24-hour period in which the boy, now an old man, reflects on what took place there. In today?s episode, Krivak joins NPR?s Scott Simon for a conversation about being the grandson of Slovak immigrants, the trio brought together in Mule Boy, and the way Krivak tried to mimic oral storytelling in the novel.


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Journalist Jason Zengerle spent years observing right-wing media personality Tucker Carlson. His new book Hated by All the Right People asks: Does Carlson believe what he says? Zengerle?s reporting maps changes in the former Fox host?s views, such as the shift in how he spoke to his audience about the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, and the 2020 election. In today?s episode, Zengerle talks with NPR?s Steve Inskeep about what Carlson was like as a young journalist, the controversial Nick Fuentes interview, and why Zengerle views Carlson more as a "movement leader? than a media persona.


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Keeper of Lost Children is the latest work of historical fiction by Sadeqa Johnson. The novel is told from three vantage points and follows the story of mixed-race children orphaned in Germany after WWII. At the heart of the novel is Ethel Gathers, a character based on a real-life woman named Mabel Grammer. In today?s episode, Johnson tells NPR?s Emily Kwong about the Google search that inspired her novel and how she views the responsibility of writing historical fiction.


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New books by a psychoanalyst and a priest have something in common: They draw on the experience of holding other people?s stories. Stephen Grosz says his book, Love?s Labor, is a collection of ?hard-won truths? he?s arrived at through sessions with his patients. In today?s episode, he speaks with NPR?s Ayesha Rascoe about his observations on love, work and relationships. Then, Father James Martin joins NPR?s Scott Detrow for a conversation about Work in Progress. They discuss the litany of odd jobs Martin held before becoming a priest ? and what ultimately led him to the church.


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Reshona Landfair met R. Kelly when she was a pre-teen in 1996. Starstruck, Landfair says she fell victim to his grooming tactics, followed by years of sexual, physical and emotional abuse.  A video of Kelly abusing Landfair eventually became public ? and helped lead to Kelly?s conviction. Now, Landfair tells her story for the first time in her memoir Who?s Watching Shorty? In today?s episode, she tells NPR?s Juana Summers about being ?kept? by Kelly, the way the public treats young Black women who survive abuse, and what she wants the world to know about her today.


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There are many ways that a home renovation project can become a nightmare for all involved. But in The Renovation, narrator Dilara?s remodeling woes aren?t strictly financial or aesthetic?they?re absurdly surreal. When she finds her bathroom transformed into an armed Turkish prison cell, Dilara and her family must reckon with fragments of their past, present and future, all while fighting against the pace of time itself. In today?s episode, author Kenan Orhan joins NPR?s Scott Simon to discuss his debut novel, and how the concept of ?prison? is a metaphor in far more ways than one.

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Jung Chang?s memoir Wild Swans, published in 1991, told the story of three generations of women in her family as they survived upheaval in 20th-century China. Now, Chang picks up her family?s story in Fly, Wild Swans, which she was moved to write as her mother?s health failed. In today?s episode, Chang talks with Here & Now?s Scott Tong about her inability to return to China, the biography of Mao she co-authored with her husband, and the Xi era.


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The new novel Clutch follows five women who have known each other since college as they navigate the challenges of midlife. Author Emily Nemens recently told NPR?s Juana Summers that she wanted to tell this story through the group chat, which Nemens calls ?the vernacular of now.? In today?s episode, they also discuss negligence in relationships, the novel?s head-on approach to abortion rights, and how writing Clutch impacted Nemens? own friendships.


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In preparation for the U.S. Semiquincentennial this summer, we?re featuring two key texts in American history. First, Professor Nora Slonimsky joins NPR?s Sarah McCammon to discuss the legacy and reach of Thomas Paine?s Common Sense ? including how we might see Paine as an influencer-like figure. Then, Jill Lepore?s We the People is a new history of the U.S. Constitution. In today?s episode, she speaks with NPR?s Steve Inskeep about historical attempts to reinterpret our law long after the Constitution was first drafted.

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Adi is a man grieving the death of his young son and the end of his marriage. Following these losses, he comes across a strange job listing, which brings him to a remote island populated by non-native goats. Jonathan Miles? new novel Eradication follows Adi?s journey as he struggles with a gruesome mission assigned to him. In today?s episode, Miles joins NPR?s Scott Simon for a conversation about Adi?s personal motives and the difficulty of killing animals. 


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Content warning: this episode contains discussions of sexual abuse.


In 2024, Gisèle Pelicot waived her right to anonymity as the victim during her own rape case in France, demanding a public trial. Soon after, she became an international feminist icon for her self-sacrifice. In A Hymn to Life, Pelicot recounts the unconscionable horrors she suffered at the hands of her husband and 50 other men?but she also establishes herself as a witness rather than simply a victim. In today?s episode, Pelicot joins NPR?s Michel Martin to discuss her new memoir, and her complex relationship with the hope that remains.


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Rock climbing is a great sport for thrill-seekers. In Gabriel Tallent?s Crux, main characters Dan and Tamma fit the bill perfectly. At just 17 years old, they bond over the side of a mountain where one miscalculated inch of movement could mean life or death. However, risk doesn?t disappear once they make it safely to flat ground. For Dan and Tamma, risk exists in growing up, and growing out of their physical and emotional comfort zones. In today?s episode, Tallent joins NPR?s Juana Summers to discuss his newest novel and how rock climbing can widen more than one type of human perspective.


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Next year marks the 100th anniversary of the first drilling at Mount Rushmore, the iconic American landmark in South Dakota. But Matthew Davis, author of the new book A Biography of a Mountain, says the project is actually unfinished. In today?s episode, he joins NPR?s Sacha Pfeiffer for a conversation about the original vision for Mount Rushmore, which was intended to diversify a struggling South Dakota economy after World War I.


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The Super Bowl is over, but the NFL season is set to ramp up again in just a few months.  Today?s episode features two nonfiction books that delve into the world of football. First, Chuck Klosterman?s Football is a critical reading of the sport. He spoke with NPR?s Juana Summers about why football became dominant in American culture and why he believes it?ll lose popularity over the next decades. Then, Danny Funt speaks with NPR?s A Martínez about his new book Everybody Loses, which charts the sports gambling boom and the NFL?s role in the popularization of prop bets.


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About a decade ago, professor and historian Ethelene Whitmire was presenting research on the experiences of African Americans living in Denmark. At that talk, she met ? by chance ? a relative of Reed Peggram, one of her research subjects. That relative directed Whitmire to a trove of letters written by Peggram, a queer, Black translator who found himself in Europe on the eve of World War II. In today?s episode, Whitmire joins NPR?s Scott Simon for a conversation about her book The Remarkable Life of Reed Peggram, the project that emerged from his family?s archive.


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In his latest novel, George Saunders continues to explore his interest in death and the afterlife. Vigil tells the story of an oil tycoon and climate change denier named K.J. Boone who?s visited by a series of ghosts in his final hours. In today?s episode, NPR?s Scott Detrow asks Saunders about similarities between this novel and A Christmas Carol. They also discuss the author?s Substack, his experience in the oil industry, and the role of storytelling in this political moment.


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Gov. Josh Shapiro has plenty of dark experiences that he could recount in his new memoir, Where We Keep the Light. In his first term as Pennsylvania?s governor, he investigated abuse within the Catholic Church and was the victim of an arson attack in his own home. But as Shapiro eyes a second term in Pennsylvania, he says he?s choosing to focus on the light. In today?s episode Shapiro sits down with NPR?s Scott Detrow, and the two discuss the power of local civic engagement ? including how small communities can produce big change. 


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