Books: Book Reviews, Book News, and Author Interviews NPR's brings you news about books and authors along with our picks for great reads. Interviews, reviews, the NPR Bestseller Lists, New in Paperback and much more.

Books

Subscribe to Books Newsletter

NPR

NPR's Book Concierge: Our Guide To 2018's Great Reads

November 27, 2018 • The Book Concierge is back! Explore more than 300 standout titles picked by NPR staff and critics.

Review

Book Reviews

'Tram Car 015' Is A Delightful Ride

February 18, 2019 • P. Djèlí Clark's novella about about two supernatural investigators on the trail of a malign spirit in a magical alternate Cairo packs wonderful characters into a thoughtfully-built world.

Recently Reviewed

Review

Book Reviews

This 'Cassandra' Prophesies Disaster But Never Reflects On It

February 17, 2019 • Sharma Shields' new novel follows a young woman working at a secretive nuclear research center during World War II. She has terrible premonitions of atomic disaster, but never truly thinks about them.

Author Interviews

A Chance Meeting Changes Lives In Sophie Kinsella's Latest

February 17, 2019 • The author of the bestselling Shopaholic series is back, with a new novel about a woman who's addicted not to shopping but to fixing the lives of the people around her — at the expense of her own.

A Chance Meeting Changes Lives In Sophie Kinsella's Latest

Listen · 6:22 6:22

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/695191491/695536927" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Transcript

Review

Book Reviews

In 'The City In The Middle Of The Night,' Big Ideas Lead To Big Upheavals

February 17, 2019 • Charlie Jane Anders' new novel, set on an inhospitable alien planet, is about rebels, smugglers and lobster-like monsters, but also about how grand political ideas break down — and who that hurts.

Former Teacher Blames Education Policymakers For Atlanta Cheating Scandal

In 2011, Emma Hutchinson School was one of the Atlanta Public Schools identified by a state government report as part of a widespread cheating scandal. John Bazemore/AP hide caption

toggle caption

John Bazemore/AP

Education

Former Teacher Blames Education Policymakers For Atlanta Cheating Scandal

February 16, 2019 • Shani Robinson was one of 11 Atlanta teachers convicted of altering standardized test results in 2015. In None of the Above, she pleads her innocence — and points a finger at systemic failure.

Former Teacher Blames Education Policymakers For Atlanta Cheating Scandal

Listen · 7:44 7:44

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/695344751/695488120" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Transcript

Review

Book Reviews

'Eugene V. Debs' Resurrects A Stubborn Question: Why Is Labor History So Boring?

February 16, 2019 • Turn-of-the-last-century labor leader Eugene V. Debs lead an interesting life — but this graphic biography misses plenty of opportunities to render the most interesting parts of it on the page.

Review

Book Reviews

Real Life Provides The Origin Story In 'Comics Will Break Your Heart'

February 16, 2019 • Faith Erin Hick's sweet new YA novel is reminiscent of the real-life conflict between Batman co-creators Bob Kane and Bill Finger — and asks what happens when the next generation meets up.

Review

Book Reviews

McCabe's 'The Threat' May Be Darkest Vision Of Trump Presidency Yet

February 14, 2019 • Former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe said Thursday that top Justice Dept. officials discussed invoking the 25th Amendment. But his new book is about far more than that.

McCabe's 'The Threat' May Be Darkest Vision Of Trump Presidency Yet

Listen · 3:10 3:10

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/694670497/695054864" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Transcript

Review

Book Reviews

'The Source Of Self-Regard' Speaks To Today's Social And Political Moment

February 14, 2019 • Though the essays, speeches, and meditations in Toni Morrison's new nonfiction collection were written over the course of four decades, virtually every entry feels strikingly relevant now.

Love Is: A Crowdsourced Valentine's Day Poem

anandaBGD/Getty Images

Arts & Life

Love Is: A Crowdsourced Valentine's Day Poem

February 14, 2019 • Poet Kwame Alexander's latest community poem is inspired by kids' definitions of love, touching on everything from ephemeral connections and puppy kisses to the circle of life and Kendrick Lamar.

Love Is: A Crowdsourced Valentine's Day Poem

Listen · 7:02 7:02

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/694635029/694635030" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Transcript

Review

Book News & Features

This Valentine's Day, Make A Date With A Book

February 13, 2019 • Sure, it's great to celebrate love, but why not escape all the relationship pressures, buy yourself some chocolate and make a date with a good romance novel? Here are five our our all-time favorites.

Review

Book Reviews

Aspirations Come Up Against Economic Hardship In 'Sounds Like Titanic'

February 13, 2019 • In Jessica Chiccehitto Hindman's debut, she doesn't shrink from the systemic issues of an unfair economic system, but her personal story, with its unexpected twists, makes this memoir memorable.

Review

Book Reviews

'American Spy' Is A Unique Spin On The Cold War Thriller

February 13, 2019 • Lauren Wilkinson's debut novel follows the life and career of an African American FBI agent who's recruited by the CIA to aid in the overthrow of a charismatic African leader.

A Neuroscientist Explores The Biology Of Addiction In 'Never Enough'

Image Source/Getty Images

Shots - Health News

A Neuroscientist Explores The Biology Of Addiction In 'Never Enough'

Fresh Air

February 12, 2019 • Growing up, Judith Grisel struggled with alcohol, marijuana and cocaine. Now as a neuroscientist, she's working to understand the biological basis of addiction. Her new book is Never Enough.

A Neuroscientist Explores The Biology Of Addiction In 'Never Enough'

Listen · 36:03 36:03

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/693814827/693942206" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Transcript

Review

Book Reviews

Real Life Informs A Tense Trip In 'Lost Children Archive'

February 12, 2019 • Valeria Luiselli's twist on the great American road trip novel follows a family with two children on a grim odyssey through the Southwest, a vision of a country blighted by industry and prejudice.

Review

Book Reviews

'How To Disappear' Condemns Online Visibility Without Truly Exploring It

February 12, 2019 • Akiko Busch sets out to argue against visibility, "the common currency of our time." But she neglects to expose why she dislikes social media and networked culture.

Author Interviews

'Magical Negro' Carries The Weight Of History

February 11, 2019 • Morgan Parker's new poetry collection explores the ways African-American lives are affected by historical events, even though they may have happened decades or centuries ago.

'Magical Negro' Carries The Weight Of History

Listen · 7:53 7:53

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/693587521/693668241" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Transcript

The 'Strange Science' Behind The Big Business Of Exercise Recovery

Hinterhaus Productions/Getty Images

Shots - Health News

The 'Strange Science' Behind The Big Business Of Exercise Recovery

Fresh Air

February 11, 2019 • Does exercise recovery work? Science writer Christie Aschwanden examines the physiology and effectiveness of sports drinks, protein powders and other products and services in her new book, Good to Go.

The 'Strange Science' Behind The Big Business Of Exercise Recovery

Listen · 20:21 20:21

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/693423729/693643673" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Transcript

Review

Book Reviews

For Chilly February, 3 Romances To Warm Your Heart

February 11, 2019 • February is High Holiday season in Romancelandia — and what better time to recommend some great romances? From Victorian jewel thieves to modern-day road trips, we've got something for everyone.

Review

Book Reviews

'Tonic And Balm' Builds A World In A Bottle

February 10, 2019 • Stephanie Allen's novel creates a microcosm of America in 1919 in the form of a travelling medicine show, packed with people from all walks of life, trying to get along in the show's close confines.