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Deborah Willis on her seminal history of Black photography, reissued 25 years later
Deborah Willis is one of the foremost authorities on Black photography. The MacArthur “genius award” winner has dedicated her career to cataloging and showcasing Black photographers and photos of Bla…
Published on 1 week, 4 days ago
In ‘Best Offer Wins,’ an ambitious millennial is driven mad by the homebuying process
Marisa Kashino used to report on the real estate industry in Washington, D.C. That experience inspired her debut novel, Best Offer Wins, which follows an ambitious woman who goes to extreme lengths t…
Published on 1 week, 5 days ago
Revisiting Frank Herbert’s ‘Dune’
Frank Herbert’s 1965 epic Dune was once the domain of sci-fi diehards. But in recent years, the book has crossed over into the mainstream. In today’s Books We’ve Loved, Andrew Limbong and B.A. Parker…
Published on 2 weeks ago
In new novels, marriages are tested by a last request and a moment in the spotlight
In two new novels, marriages are tested by unusual circumstances. First, in Ann Packer’s Some Bright Nowhere, a woman dying of cancer makes a big ask of her husband. In today’s episode, Packer speaks…
Published on 2 weeks, 1 day ago
Abby Phillip’s 'A Dream Deferred' chronicles Jesse Jackson’s rise to political esteem
Rev. Jesse Jackson is well-known as an icon of the American Civil Rights Movement, a protégé of Martin Luther King Jr., and a steadfast activist — but he has quite a past in electoral politics, too. …
Published on 2 weeks, 2 days ago
'The Devil Is a Southpaw' is a story within a story — or so its narrator says
Are all unreliable narrators self-aware? The answer might depend on the novel, but in Brandon Hobson’s The Devil Is a Southpaw, our primary narrator, Milton (a writer and artist) uses his prose to se…
Published on 2 weeks, 3 days ago
John Fetterman on his new memoir, his mental health, and disagreements with his party
When Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) won Pennsylvania’s Senate seat in 2022, Democrats saw him as a symbol of a new direction during the Trump era. Three years later, things are very different. His new m…
Published on 2 weeks, 4 days ago
A new book looks to the writings of Renaissance-era nuns for advice on life today
Modern life can make it tempting to return to simpler times, like a 16th-century Spanish convent. In the new book Convent Wisdom, academics Ana Garriga and Carmen Urbita look to the writings of Renai…
Published on 2 weeks, 5 days ago
Revisiting ‘Their Eyes Were Watching God’
Janie Crawford – back in her hometown of Eatonville, Florida – recounts a journey of self-discovery, structured around three marriages. Their Eyes Were Watching God is Zora Neale Hurston’s most celeb…
Published on 2 weeks, 6 days ago
A Claire McCardell biography and an AI sci-fi are among NPR’s top book picks of 2025
NPR’s annual Books We Love guide is back for its 13th year, sharing over 380 hand-selected reads by NPR staff and critics. In today’s post-Thanksgiving episode, host Andrew Limbong joins Morning Edit…
Published on 3 weeks, 1 day ago