NPR's Book of the Day

In his new nonfiction book, When Crack Was King, Donovan X. Ramsey explores how the crack cocaine epidemic of the '80s and '90s shaped people, neighborhoods and entire communities, particularly for Black and low-income folks. He writes portraits of those who struggled with addiction, those who sold the drug, and those who tackled policy and decriminalization. In today's episode, Ramsey tells NPR's Ayesha Rascoe why he wanted to dispel the myth of the "superpredator," and how societal views on addiction changed once people of color were no longer the face of it.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Cassie, the main character of Sarah Rose Etter's novel Ripe, has hit a wall. She's burned out at her toxic Silicon Valley job, she's disillusioned by the staggering wealth and poverty that surround her at the same time, and she's struggling with depression and anxiety. In today's episode, Etter tells NPR's Juana Summers how Cassie's experience parallels some of her own time working for a start-up and why girlbossing her way out of her problems isn't an option for Cassie.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Early in today's episode, Aaliyah Bilal says she knows that a lot of people associate the Nation of Islam with hate. But in her new collection of short stories, Temple Folk, she reclaims narratives about Black Muslims and how they contemplate faith, identity and community in the U.S. She tells NPR's Scott Detrow why it was especially important for her to center women's stories and how her characters contend with some of the complexities of the movement.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Both interviews today are with author Douglas Stuart. The first is about his Booker prize-winning Shuggie Bain; a story based on his own life growing up a queer son of a single mother struggling with addiction. He told NPR's Scott Simon that he hoped people could find comfort in this story. Next, Stuart spoke to NPR's Ari Shapiro about his new book, Young Mungo. It's a story about two boys separated by faith who end up falling in love with each other. Stuart told Shapiro that when he "write[s] about heartbreak or sadness, I'm really only doing that to make the tenderness and the love shine more."Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Bonnie Garmus' new novel Lessons In Chemistry has been getting a lot of buzz. Elizabeth Zott is a talented chemist but because it's the 1960s she faces sexism in her quest to work as a scientist. So instead she has a cooking show that is wildly popular. Garmus told NPR's Scott Simon that the character of Elizabeth lived in her head for many years before she started writing this novel.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Former Homeland Security official and author Juliette Kayyem has a new book out that encourages preparedness. The Devil Never Sleeps makes the case that disasters are going to happen, and gives advice on how to manage them. Kayyem told NPR's Steve Inskeep that we need to redefine our definition of success after disasters occur.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Author Jenny Tinghui Zhang is out with a new historical fiction novel, Four Treasures of The Sky. Set in the 1800s during the height of anti-Chinese sentiment, a young girl named Daiyu is kidnapped and brought to the U.S. Zhang told NPR's Ayesha Rascoe that she has seen a lot of reviews that refer to this book as 'timely' – and that she does not think that is a good thing when a book is about racism.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Ocean Vuong's new collection, Time Is A Mother, is about his grief after losing family members. Vuong told Morning Edition'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."Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Today's episode is about two children's books with very big themes. First, author-illustrator Vashti Harrison speaks with NPR's Juana Summers about Big, which chronicles how words affect children – and particularly young, Black girls – as they grow older and their bodies change from baby to big kid. Then, Dolly Parton joins NPR's Melissa Block to discuss Billy the Kid Makes It Big, a story about a music-making dog (inspired by a real-life pet!) standing up to the bullies around him.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

V.V. Ganeshananthan's new novel, Brotherless Night, dives into the Sri Lankan Civil War through the story of Sashi, a 16-year-old girl who dreams of becoming a doctor. As violence unfolds around her and her family, Sashi watches her goals – and personal stakes in the conflict – shift right before her eyes. In today's episode, Ganeshananthan speaks to Here & Now's Deepa Fernandes about the long-lasting impact of colonization in Sri Lanka and the importance of writing from a place of historical accuracy, even while fictionalizing her characters.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy