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Tommy Orange is here to hold the door open for future Indigenous writers
Penguin Random House

NPR's Book of the Day

Tommy Orange is here to hold the door open for future Indigenous writers

This Thanksgiving, we're bringing you an author whose narrative likely runs counter to what you learned in school. Tommy Orange's novel, There There, is a brutal, remarkable, and necessary Native history. It's also a story of the shameful way America still treats its Native people. Orange was not comfortable with his new rising fame back in 2018. But he told NPR's Lynn Neary it was important to him to pave the way, spotlight and all, for young Indigenous writers.

Tommy Orange is here to hold the door open for future Indigenous writers

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What people miss in the conversation about banned books

Many banned books lists include Raina Telgemeier's Drama, Brendan Kiely and Jason Reynolds's All American Boys, Alison Bechdel's Fun Home, Benjamin Alire Sáenz's Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, Ruby Bridge's This is Your Time, and Toni Morrison's Beloved. Estefania Mitre/NPR/NPR hide caption

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Estefania Mitre/NPR/NPR

It's Been a Minute with Sam Sanders

What people miss in the conversation about banned books

Guest host Ayesha Rascoe is joined by NPR senior editor Barrie Hardymon and Traci Thomas, host of The Stacks podcast, to talk about banned books. They talk about why it's important for kids to discover books freely, even if that means starting a hard conversation with them. They also discuss their favorite — and least favorite — books that often show up on banned book lists.

What people miss in the conversation about banned books

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HBO revolutionized TV, but the next few years are tipped to be pivotal for its future

Steven Van Zandt [left], James Gandolfini and Tony Sirico starred in HBO's hit television series, The Sopranos. HBO/Getty Images hide caption

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HBO/Getty Images

Author Interviews

HBO revolutionized TV, but the next few years are tipped to be pivotal for its future

Journalist James Andrew Miller and NPR TV critic Eric Deggans talk about how HBO changed television and why the next few years are pivotal for the network's future.

HBO revolutionized TV, but the next few years are tipped to be pivotal for its future

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NPR's Book Concierge returns with a new name, a new look and new books

NPR's end of the year picks are collected in a recommendation tool we're calling: Books We Love. It's more than just a list of the year's best books.

NPR's Book Concierge returns with a new name, a new look and new books

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'Calvin' shows how transgender kids can express who they really are
Penguin Random House

NPR's Book of the Day

'Calvin' shows how transgender kids can express who they really are

Authors JR and Vanessa Ford read the one book they could find about transgender kids to their child but skipped over the word 'transgender.' When they finally used the word, their child felt empowered by finding the right language to describe themselves. So the Fords set out to help more families with their children's book, Calvin. JR and Vanessa Ford told NPR's Audie Cornish that they are still learning as they go.

'Calvin' shows how transgender kids can express who they really are

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'The Island of Missing Trees' uses, well, trees to chronicle generational trauma
Bloomsbury Publishing

NPR's Book of the Day

'The Island of Missing Trees' uses, well, trees to chronicle generational trauma

Author Elif Shafak struggled at first with how to write her new book, The Island of Missing Trees. The story she wanted to tell is about a family from Cyprus, a Mediterranean island that was the center of a conflict in the 1970s, but she didn't want the story to be about tribalism or nationalism. Which is why, Shafak told NPR's Steve Inskeep, much of the story is told from the perspective of a fig tree

'The Island of Missing Trees' uses, well, trees to chronicle generational trauma

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Poet Robert Bly, anti-war activist and 'men's movement' leader, dies at 94

Robert Bly won a National Book Award in 1968. He is pictured above in 2008. Jim Mone/AP hide caption

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Jim Mone/AP

Obituaries

Poet Robert Bly, anti-war activist and 'men's movement' leader, dies at 94

MPR News

Bly won a National Book Award and was a tireless advocate for poetry. But he knew he could rub people the wrong way. "I do remember people wanting to kill me," he said, "but that's not unusual."

Poet Robert Bly, anti-war activist and 'men's movement' leader, dies at 94

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Former gun industry insider explains why he left to fight for the other side

A clerk shows a customer an AR-15 style rifle at a gun show in Costa Mesa, Calif. in June 2021. Gun sales increased in the U.S, following COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns. Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images

Author Interviews

Former gun industry insider explains why he left to fight for the other side

Fresh Air

Gunfight author Ryan Busse was once a rising star in the gun industry. But he became disillusioned after Columbine when, he says, the NRA began to use "fear and conspiracy and hatred" to boost sales.

Former gun industry insider explains why he left to fight for the other side

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'The Sinner and the Saint' masterfully unpacks a Dostoevsky classic
Penguin Random House

Review

Book Reviews

'The Sinner and the Saint' masterfully unpacks a Dostoevsky classic

Fresh Air

Kevin Birmingham's deeply researched biography details the radical political fervor that almost destroyed Dostoevsky's life — and the real-life murder that inspired Crime and Punishment.

'The Sinner and the Saint' masterfully unpacks a Dostoevsky classic

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'Out of Office' considers 'why' companies want to bring back remote employees
Penguin Random House

NPR's Book of the Day

'Out of Office' considers 'why' companies want to bring back remote employees

The working world looks a lot different today than it did nearly two years ago, when the coronavirus pandemic sent many office staff to work from home indefinitely. Writers Anne Helen Peterson and Charlie Warzel take a look at what work, and our relationship to it, will look like going forward in their new book, Out of Office. NPR's Rachel Martin spoke with Peterson about why so many companies want their employees back in person. And, spoiler alert: it's not about productivity.

'Out of Office' considers 'why' companies want to bring back remote employees

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Amazon reinvents 'The Wheel of Time' for the small screen, with surprising turns

Moiraine (Rosamund Pike) visits a remote village in search of something — or someone — in Amazon's The Wheel of Time. Jan Thijs/Amazon Studios hide caption

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Jan Thijs/Amazon Studios

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Amazon reinvents 'The Wheel of Time' for the small screen, with surprising turns

This long-awaited adaptation of Robert Jordan's sprawling fantasy epic feels scaled-down for home viewing, but compelling characters and nice twists keep things rolling along.

Murder! Space! James Bond! Chris Hadfield and Anthony Horowitz talk thrillers

The Apollo Murder/Trigger Mortis Mulholland Books/Orion Publishing hide caption

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Mulholland Books/Orion Publishing

NPR's Book of the Day

Murder! Space! James Bond! Chris Hadfield and Anthony Horowitz talk thrillers

This Friday, we're featuring two thrillers. First, astronaut Chris Hadfield talked with former NPR host Lulu Garcia-Navarro about his novel The Apollo Murders, which is set in the 70's around, you guessed it, the Apollo missions. It's got Soviet spies and secret space stations with machine guns mounted to the top. What more could a book need? Then a 2015 interview with NPR's Robert Siegel and author Anthony Horowitz about his James Bond novel Trigger Mortis, and what it's like giving a classic a 21st century twist.

Murder! Space! James Bond! Chris Hadfield and Anthony Horowitz talk thrillers

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Poetry inspired by a viral photo of drowned migrants wins the National Book Award

The Rio Grande is seen from the International Bridge near a section of the U.S.-Mexico border where a father and daughter drowned attempting to cross into the United States in 2019, in Matamoros, Tamaulipas. Oscar Alberto Martinez and his 23-month-old daughter, Angie Valeria, had migrated from El Salvador and planned to seek political asylum in the U.S. when they died. Verónica G. Cárdenas/Getty Images hide caption

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Verónica G. Cárdenas/Getty Images

Poetry inspired by a viral photo of drowned migrants wins the National Book Award

Photos of a father and his young daughter, drowned in the Rio Grande, underlined the deadly risks of the immigration crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border. Martín Espada drew on them for his book Floaters.

'Misfire' takes an inside look at the corruption at the heart of the NRA
Penguin Random House

Review

NPR's Book of the Day

'Misfire' takes an inside look at the corruption at the heart of the NRA

The National Rifle Association is being sued. The nonprofit at the heart of the gun lobby is accused of diverting money from its charitable mission. NPR investigative journalist Tim Mak has been following the paper trail, much of it tracing back to Wayne LaPierre, longtime leader of the NRA. NPR's Steve Inskeep talked with Mak about his new book, Misfire, detailing congressional investigations, and what the New York state attorney general has identified as tens of millions of dollars of corrupt spending on private jets and six figure suits.

'Misfire' takes an inside look at the corruption at the heart of the NRA

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Celebrating Petra Mayer's legacy and the joy she brought to NPR
Allison Shelley/NPR

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Celebrating Petra Mayer's legacy and the joy she brought to NPR

There's no good way to share terrible news. Pop Culture Happy Hour panelist and NPR Books editor Petra Mayer died suddenly on Saturday of what is believed to be a pulmonary embolism. We take some time to remember our friend and colleague, and revisit some of our favorite episodes featuring Petra.

Celebrating Petra Mayer's legacy and the joy she brought to NPR

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