Books

Books

In 'Beasts of a Little Land,' a portrait of Korea's quest for independence

5:07pm December 26, 2021

Elissa Nadworny speaks with writer Juhea Kim about her debut novel, which explores the stories of people who's lives shaped — and were shaped – by the country's decades-long struggle for independence.

A page from the book The Me I Choose to Be by Natasha Anastasia Tarpley with photography by Regis and Kahran Bethencourt.

Books
Arts

Kids need to see themselves reflected in media. Here are some recommendations

5:06pm December 26, 2021

by Elizabeth Blair

We asked children's media experts to recommend their favorite new books, TV shows and video games with characters and storylines representing the diversity of the U.S.

Books

'BookTok' is a new force driving book sales and publishing deals

8:06am December 26, 2021

by Jim Zarroli

"BookTok" — that's the world of book lovers on TikTok — is becoming a major force in the publishing industry, as buzz from the short videos drives sales and new publishing deals.

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Books

NPR's favorite history books of 2021

8:06am December 26, 2021

From NPR's annual list of reading recommendations, Books We Love, we hear four suggestions of history books from 2021.

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Books

The novel 'Velorio' tells one story of rebuilding after Hurricane Maria's destruction

8:06am December 26, 2021

by Eyder Peralta

NPR's Eyder Peralta talks with Xavier Navarro Aquino about his debut novel, "Velorio," centered on the devastation of Hurricane Maria.

Books

NPR's favorite food books of 2021

7:58am December 25, 2021

There's nothing like a good book to chew on. From NPR's annual reading round-up, Books We Love, here are four suggestions for books about food.

Books
Arts

In 'The Four Humors,' a woman delves into the past on a journey of self-discovery

6:00am December 24, 2021

by Martha Anne Toll

Turkish American writer Mina Seçkin's debut is an engrossing exploration of national identity, the meaning of family and loss, and what happens when a family hides its central secret.

Author Joan Didion poses for a portrait in her New York apartment on Sept. 26, 2005.

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Arts

Writer Joan Didion, whose 'electric anxiety' inspired a generation, has died at 87

6:12pm December 23, 2021

by Susan Stamberg

When Didion started writing in the 1960s, she put a certain kind of voice on the page — neurotic, female — that hadn't been there before.

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Joan Didion arrives at the opening night of The Year Of Magical Thinking, a play based on her memoir by the same name, at the Booth Theatre on March 29, 2007, in New York City.

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Joan Didion: The NPR interviews

4:19pm December 23, 2021

by Tien Le

NPR's talks with Didion date back to 1977, where the author described what she meant when she wrote "writers are always selling somebody out" in the introduction of Slouching Towards Bethlehem.

Books
Arts

For queer Seoulites in 'Love in the Big City,' pride and shame intertwine

10:31am December 23, 2021

by Thúy Đinh

Sang Young Park's novel can be read as an anthropological approach to Seoulite queer lives in the 21st century: Its four linked stories capture the experience of being both visible and unacknowledged.