npr book reviews august 2022

Books We Love

Great reads, thoughtfully curated by npr.

‹ Back to books

What is this thing?

Books We Love is NPR’s interactive reading guide. Mix and match tags such as Book Club Ideas , Biography & Memoir or Eye-Opening Reads to filter results and find the book that’s perfect for you or someone you love.

How are the books selected?

We reached out to our staffers and trusted critics and asked them to nominate their favorite books published in 2023. They responded with hundreds of titles. Then, the editors and producers at NPR Books sat down with a huge spreadsheet of responses; we resolved duplications, noted omissions, considered the overall mix and balance of books recommended and then made assignments.

Why isn’t this just a list?

Back in 2013, the NPR Books staff was suffering from an acute case of list fatigue. So we teamed up with our friends at NPR News Apps and started to think about a site that would be more Venn diagram-y than list-y – a site that could help you seek out the best biographies that were also love stories, or the best mysteries that were also set in the past. We wholeheartedly believe that human beings are capable of absorbing new information in formats that are 1) not sequentially ordered and 2) wait … dammit! and 3) never mind.

But no, really, I just want to see a list of books

We got you. To view these books as a list of titles rather than as an array of covers, you are welcome to select the “List” option in the upper right-hand corner of the site.

So what’s the deal with these tags?

At NPR Books, we’re all about discovery: helping you find your next great read – the mystery you can’t put down, the memoir you recommend to all your friends. In 2013, we hashed out a basic taxonomy that was both functional (e.g., Biography & Memoir or Kids’ Books ) and fun (e.g., It’s All Geek To Me and Let’s Talk About Sex ). Over the years, we’ve refined our filters and added new tags, like The States We’re In and No Biz Like Show Biz .

The names are cute, but what do they mean?

The States We’re In is for stories of the American experience both true and fictional. It’s All Geek To Me is for deep dives on particular topics – trees, personality tests, tiny houses, you name it. In The Dark Side , you’ll find dystopias, serial killers, true crime and people behaving badly in general. Eye-Opening Reads will give you a new perspective on the topic at hand, whether it’s the state of philanthropy or a new pair of shoes.

How do the books get tagged?

Our critics and staffers make suggestions, but to ensure we are applying tags consistently, the producers and editors at NPR Books consider and discuss every tag on every book.

That must take a very long time

Can i look under the hood.

If you want to know more about how Books We Love was designed and coded, you can read about the process here . And if you’re curious to see the code and adapt it for your own project, you can check it out here .

If I click on the links and purchase one of the books, does that purchase help NPR?

Yes. And you can read more about how that works here .

How can I stay up to date on reviews and recommendations from NPR Books?

Sign up for our newsletter ! Every week we will send interviews, stories and reviews right to your inbox.

Subscribe to our podcast ! NPR’s Book of the Day brings you today’s great reads in 15 minutes or less.

Have fun exploring Books We Love! We hope you find something wonderful to read today.

The 2023 Books We Love team: Rose Friedman , Andrew Limbong , Beth Novey and Meghan Collins   Sullivan

Project Credits

This edition of Books We Love was published on Nov. 20, 2023.

• Produced and edited by Rose Friedman, Beth Novey and Meghan Collins Sullivan
• Design and development by Alyson Hurt and Brent Jones
• Copy edited by Preeti Aroon, Arielle Retting and Pam Webster
• Branding work by Luke Medina and Alexander Reade

Previous editions of Books We Love: Annette Elizabeth Allen, Preeti Aroon, Jeremy Bowers, Tayla Burney, Nicole Cohen, Patricia Cole, Danny DeBelius, Camila Domonoske, Beth Donovan, David Eads, Juan Elosua, Jess Eng, Natalie Escobar, Rose Friedman, Alice Goldfarb, Christopher Groskopf, Geoff Hing, Clinton King, Becky Lettenberger, Megan Lim, Wes Lindamood, Petra Mayer, Amy Morgan, Koko Nakajima, Duy Nguyen, Beth Novey, Maureen Pao, Katie Park, Ashley Pointer, Christina Rees, Arielle Retting, Ellen Silva, Meghan Collins Sullivan, Ruth Talbot, Shelly Tan, Pam Webster, Glen Weldon, Thomas Wilburn, Matthew Zhang

Icons by Font   Awesome

You are using an outdated browser. Please upgrade your browser or activate Google Chrome Frame to improve your experience.

NCPR Podcasts

More podcasts from NPR

Here are the books we love: 160+ great 2022 reads recommended by npr.

Books We Love is back early this year; for 2022, we're launching the first-ever summer edition, complete with 160+ recommendations from NPR staff...

Books We Love is NPR's interactive reading guide. In the past, it's been a year-end guide we put out annually. But this year, we've decided to offer it in summer and winter! This summer edition of Books We Love focuses on books that publish in the first six months of the year, between January and July 2022; what hasn't changed is the bounty of hand-picked books. Mix and match tags such as Book Club Ideas , Biography & Memoir or Eye-Opening Reads to filter results and find the book that's perfect for you or someone you love.

Open the app now!

More from NPR

Judge orders pause on biden program offering legal status to spouses of u.s. citizens.

The administrative stay comes just days after 16 states challenged the program that could benefit an estimated 500,000 immigrants in the country, plus about 50,000 of their children.

Eggs and Bananas: Life after a Russian prison

It's been more than three weeks since the U.S. and Russia completed the largest prisoner swap since the collapse of the Soviet Union. Speaking from the White House shortly after news broke that three American prisoners were headed home, President Biden described the release as an "incredible relief." Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva was one of those prisoners, and she's sharing what life was like in a Russian prison and how she's adjusting to life at home. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for C onsider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org . Email us at [email protected] .

French officials question Telegram CEO about child sexual abuse images and drugs

Authorities in Paris said on Monday that Durov is being held on questions stemming from an investigation into criminal activity on the app, including the spread of child pornography and facilitating the selling of illegal drugs.

Trump is trying to allay concerns on abortion, and abortion opponents aren't happy

Anti-abortion rights activists are raising concerns about recent comments from former President Donald Trump, in which he appears to be trying to soften his position on abortion.

A high school quarterback dies after brain injury, Alabama’s 2nd death in 2 weeks

Sixteen-year-old Caden Tellier’s death comes less than two weeks after the tragic death of another Alabama high school football player. Semaj Wilkins, 14, collapsed Aug. 13 during a practice.

Special counsel Jack Smith appeals ruling tossing Trump's classified documents case

Special Counsel Jack Smith says U.S. District Court Judge Aileen Cannon was wrong when she dismissed the case against former President Donald Trump for mishandling classified and top-secret documents.

An Oasis comeback? The Gallagher brothers hint at a reunion after decades of feuding

Famously feuding brothers Liam and Noel Gallagher are teasing a comeback of their band Oasis, 15 years after its dramatic breakup. Here's a brief timeline of their tumultuous history.

She was struck by a car during the holidays in 1989. DNA just helped find the driver

Ruth Buchanan had just left a department store in Charlotte, N.C., with a friend when she was fatally struck by a car. After 30 years, DNA technology helped police identify the driver.

Democrats want to turn internet hype for Harris into actual votes

There’s an increase in enthusiasm for the vice president among voters under 30, but making that support stick is a daunting task.

The rape and murder of a female doctor in India sets off an outcry over women's safety

The young woman was raped and murdered while on break from a 36-hour hospital shift. Women who work in health care — and other fields — are calling for changes to protect them from sexual violence.

The U.S. national park system gets a $100 million grant, the largest in its history

The National Park Foundation said the gift from Lilly Endowment Inc. would help fund programs in the national park system, which includes more than 400 sites.

At last week's DNC, even the fashion choices carried political messaging

As thousands of delegates flocked to the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, they sported outfits that symbolized their support for Kamala Harris.

• News & Stories

NPR's top picks for 2022 fiction books

• Summer Thomad
• Natalie Escobar
• Rommel Wood
• Karen Grigsby Bates

[Copyright 2022 NPR]

Recommended Stories

'The Boys in the Boat' is narrative gold

What's kuow's book club reading in august.

'And now it was done.' The perfectly imperfect ending of Kristen Millares Young's novel 'Subduction'

Get local stories, delivered to your inbox daily, weekly, or monthly..

NPR's top picks for 2022 fiction books

ALINA SELYUKH, HOST:

A lot of you look forward to NPR's Books We Love at the end of each year. And that's because it's a great resource for what new books to read as recommended by our staff and contributors. But why wait? We have some suggestions right now. Today, some of the best fiction of 2022 so far. We start with Code Switch producer Summer Thomad and a spellbinding fantasy novel about death.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

SUMMER THOMAD, BYLINE: The book I'm recommending is "How High We Go In The Dark" by Sequoia Nagamatsu. It's about a world reeling from a climate catastrophe-driven plague. Sound familiar? From the earliest days of a pandemic to the impacts that linger centuries into the future, the plague forces humans to reckon with immeasurable grief and loss. But what I love most about this book is that despite all the doom and gloom, these stories are endlessly imaginative and rich with meaning. Though the world they're inhabiting is undeniably weak, Nagamatsu's characters maintain a sense of cosmic hope and humanity.

ROMMEL WOOD, BYLINE: My name is Rommel Wood, and I'm an associate producer in programming at NPR. I'm recommending the book "Vladimir," a novel by Julia May Jonas because when was the last time a book made you sit up from your couch and yell, what? Where is this going? This happened to me about three-quarters of the way into her debut novel. The book follows a nameless narrator, a 50-something tenured professor at a liberal arts college. She's married to a disgraced professor about to be drummed off campus due to a parade of former students coming forward with sexual misconduct allegations. But she isn't terribly concerned with his fate or the other women because she herself is infatuated with a new junior professor. In "Vladimir," Jonas carefully builds a house of matchsticks where our protagonist's desires safely live until she reaches a flash point that left me squirming and desperate to discover, how exactly is this going to end?

KAREN GRIGSBY BATES, BYLINE: I'm Karen Grigsby Bates. I'm the senior correspondent for Code Switch, NPR's podcast about race and identity. I selected "Mecca," a novel by Susan Straight. Straight writes a lot about the California we don't often see or hear about. The people she writes about are working-class refugees. They came west to escape racial violence and poverty from places like Texas, Mississippi and Oaxaca. And some come from communities who've even lived in the state for thousands of years. "Mecca" is a fine set of interwoven tales of these people. They're connected to each other by their love for the land, by their jobs, for each other, for all of those things. This Southern California is filled with desert highways and strip malls and small suburban houses where everyday people are sometimes faced with choices that are anything but. Straight's writing is both illuminous and sharp and bold. And these tales are told to richly layered family histories. Who'd love this book? People who suspect there's more to California than Kardashians, wildfires and serial killers.

NATALIE ESCOBAR, BYLINE: My name is Natalie Escobar, and I'm an associate editor on NPR's Culture Desk. I read "The Candy House" by Jennifer Egan. She is the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of "A Visit From The Goon Squad," and "The Candy House" is a follow up to her previous book. The basic premise is a little bit complicated. But there is this form of social media that basically allows users to upload all of their memories to something called the collective consciousness. And if they upload all their memories, they're also able to access all the memories of the users who have done the same. Each of the book's chapters is told through the eyes of different people whose lives are affected by this new technology that's so encompassing that it basically dictates a lot of how society runs. It's this sort of alternate universe type of book that really grapples with a lot of the questions of, what is technology, especially social media, doing to our lives in the way that we relate to each other as people? What would it look like to opt out of that? Is it possible? And because it's Jennifer Egan, it's a really beautifully written book. And I loved every moment of it.

SELYUKH: There you go. Glowing recommendations from NPR staff for "The Candy House," "Mecca," "Vladimir" and "How High We Go In The Dark." For more reading ideas, hop over to our Books We Love list at npr.org/bestbooks.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

NPR's top picks for 2022 fiction books

ALINA SELYUKH, HOST:

A lot of you look forward to NPR's Books We Love at the end of each year. And that's because it's a great resource for what new books to read as recommended by our staff and contributors. But why wait? We have some suggestions right now. Today, some of the best fiction of 2022 so far. We start with Code Switch producer Summer Thomad and a spellbinding fantasy novel about death.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

SUMMER THOMAD, BYLINE: The book I'm recommending is "How High We Go In The Dark" by Sequoia Nagamatsu. It's about a world reeling from a climate catastrophe-driven plague. Sound familiar? From the earliest days of a pandemic to the impacts that linger centuries into the future, the plague forces humans to reckon with immeasurable grief and loss. But what I love most about this book is that despite all the doom and gloom, these stories are endlessly imaginative and rich with meaning. Though the world they're inhabiting is undeniably weak, Nagamatsu's characters maintain a sense of cosmic hope and humanity.

ROMMEL WOOD, BYLINE: My name is Rommel Wood, and I'm an associate producer in programming at NPR. I'm recommending the book "Vladimir," a novel by Julia May Jonas because when was the last time a book made you sit up from your couch and yell, what? Where is this going? This happened to me about three-quarters of the way into her debut novel. The book follows a nameless narrator, a 50-something tenured professor at a liberal arts college. She's married to a disgraced professor about to be drummed off campus due to a parade of former students coming forward with sexual misconduct allegations. But she isn't terribly concerned with his fate or the other women because she herself is infatuated with a new junior professor. In "Vladimir," Jonas carefully builds a house of matchsticks where our protagonist's desires safely live until she reaches a flash point that left me squirming and desperate to discover, how exactly is this going to end?

KAREN GRIGSBY BATES, BYLINE: I'm Karen Grigsby Bates. I'm the senior correspondent for Code Switch, NPR's podcast about race and identity. I selected "Mecca," a novel by Susan Straight. Straight writes a lot about the California we don't often see or hear about. The people she writes about are working-class refugees. They came west to escape racial violence and poverty from places like Texas, Mississippi and Oaxaca. And some come from communities who've even lived in the state for thousands of years. "Mecca" is a fine set of interwoven tales of these people. They're connected to each other by their love for the land, by their jobs, for each other, for all of those things. This Southern California is filled with desert highways and strip malls and small suburban houses where everyday people are sometimes faced with choices that are anything but. Straight's writing is both illuminous and sharp and bold. And these tales are told to richly layered family histories. Who'd love this book? People who suspect there's more to California than Kardashians, wildfires and serial killers.

NATALIE ESCOBAR, BYLINE: My name is Natalie Escobar, and I'm an associate editor on NPR's Culture Desk. I read "The Candy House" by Jennifer Egan. She is the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of "A Visit From The Goon Squad," and "The Candy House" is a follow up to her previous book. The basic premise is a little bit complicated. But there is this form of social media that basically allows users to upload all of their memories to something called the collective consciousness. And if they upload all their memories, they're also able to access all the memories of the users who have done the same. Each of the book's chapters is told through the eyes of different people whose lives are affected by this new technology that's so encompassing that it basically dictates a lot of how society runs. It's this sort of alternate universe type of book that really grapples with a lot of the questions of, what is technology, especially social media, doing to our lives in the way that we relate to each other as people? What would it look like to opt out of that? Is it possible? And because it's Jennifer Egan, it's a really beautifully written book. And I loved every moment of it.

SELYUKH: There you go. Glowing recommendations from NPR staff for "The Candy House," "Mecca," "Vladimir" and "How High We Go In The Dark." For more reading ideas, hop over to our Books We Love list at npr.org/bestbooks.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

• Live TV stream

Here are the Books We Love: 400+ great 2022 reads recommended by NPR

NPR's Books We Love returns with 400+ new titles handpicked by NPR staff and trusted critics. Find 10 years of recommendations all in one place – that's more than 3,200 great reads.

Open the app now!

Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

20 new books hitting shelves this summer that our critics can't wait to read

June is around the corner, meaning summer is almost here! As we look forward to travel and staycations, plane rides and trips to the beach, we've asked our book critics for some advice: What upcoming fiction and nonfiction are they most looking forward to reading?

Their picks range from memoirs to sci-fi and fantasy to translations, love stories and everything in between. Here's a look:

Daughter of the Merciful Deep by Leslye Penelope

I was hooked when I first saw the gorgeous cover for Daughter of the Merciful Deep by Leslye Penelope. But the novel's premise put it at the top of my summer reading list. Penelope is known for unforgettable characters, world-building, beautiful writing and robust storytelling. Her latest work, inspired by actual events — the drowned Black towns of the American South — promises a magical, mythical and powerful tale of a young woman's quest to save her town. A historical fantasy must-read. (June 4) — Denny Bryce

The Future Was Color by Patrick Nathan

The Future Was Color by Patrick Nathan has everything I look for in a book: a unique and startling voice, a queer protagonist and a deep understanding of a particular time and place. George — once György — is a gay Hungarian immigrant working as a screenwriter in McCarthy-era Hollywood, occasionally fantasizing about his officemate, Jack. When a once-famous actress named Madeline invites George to stay and write at her spacious Malibu house, she won't take no for an answer — and so George finds himself in a hedonistic milieu where pleasure, politics and strong personalities intermingle. (June 4) — Ilana Masad

Mirrored Heavens: Between Earth & Sky, Book 3 by Rebecca Roanhorse

Rebecca Roanhorse is one of my auto-read authors — and one major reason is because of her fire Between Earth and Sky series. That trilogy comes to a stunning, fevered conclusion with Mirrored Heavens . All of the characters you love, hate and love to hate will converge on the city of Tova. Get ready for an epic battle between ancient gods, their human avatars and the mortals caught in between. (June 4) — Alex Brown

Sing Like Fish: How Sound Rules Life Under Water by Amorina Kingdon

You may know about 52 Blue , whose vocalizations likely go unheard by some other whales; it captured worldwide sympathy and became a pop-culture metaphor. But did you know all whale song is critically disrupted by ships? If that gets you wondering, keep an eye out for Sing Like Fish , which promises to illuminate the fragile symphony of the deep. (June 4) — Genevieve Valentine

Consent: A Memoir by Jill Ciment

I look forward to reading Jill Ciment's Consent and to the discussions it's sure to provoke. In this follow-up memoir to Half a Life, Ciment reconsiders what she wrote 25 years ago about her teenage affair and marriage to her art teacher, 30 years her senior. Half a Life was written before the #MeToo movement, and before her husband died at the age of 93 after 45 years of marriage. Consent promises a fuller picture. (June 11) — Heller McAlpin

Do What Godmother Says by L.S. Stratton

As we continue to experience the frenzy of Harlem Renaissance celebrations, commemorations and historical resonance, Do What Godmother Says by L.S. Stratton is the perfect addition to the litany of works set in this artistic period this year. It examines the intense and frequently degenerating relationship between patrons and artists during this intellectual and cultural movement. In this dual-timeline gothic thriller, a modern writer discovers a family heirloom painting by a Harlem Renaissance artist, which connects her family to a mysterious past. This historical novel is one I'm eager to read because it deftly exposes the layers of creative ownership, especially when race and wealth are involved. (June 11) — Keishel Williams

Horror Movie: A Novel by Paul Tremblay

Paul Tremblay is one of the most entertaining and innovative voices in contemporary fiction regardless of genre. Horror Movie , a story about a cursed movie that never came out and is about to get a remake, is a love letter to horror novels and horror movies, as well as a tense narrative that will redefine the cursed film subgenre. Tremblay is one of the modern masters of horror, and this new novel promises to be packed with the author's distinctive voice, knack for ambiguity and intrigue, and superb atmosphere. (June 11) — Gabino Iglesias

Cue The Sun! The Invention of Reality TV by Emily Nussbaum

Every so often there's a nonfiction title I covet like it's the next installment in my favorite mystery series. This summer it's Cue the Sun! Based on in-depth interviews with more than 300 sources from every aspect of the production process, this book is a cultural history of the genre that ate American entertainment, from New Yorker critic Emily Nussbaum. It combines the appeal of a page-turning thriller and the heft of serious scholarship. Juicy and thoughtful, it's a must-read for anyone interested in television or popular culture. (June 25) — Carole V. Bell

The Undermining of Twyla and Frank by Megan Bannen

In this return to the delightfully wacky world established in one of my personal top-five romance novels of all time, The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy , Megan Bannen takes on the friends to lovers trope with a combination of madcap joie de vivre and the exhausted practicality of a mom who's had enough. Also, there are dragons! (July 2) — Caitlyn Paxson

The Anthropologists by Ayşegül Savaş

I am eagerly awaiting Ayşegül Savaş' The Anthropologists . Born in Istanbul, Savaş has lived in England, Denmark and the U.S. also and now resides in France; in this novel she takes up themes of cultural migration through focus on a young couple seeking an apartment in a foreign city. I'm intrigued to discover how Savaş gifts her characters with an anthropological lens of exploration. (July 9) — Barbara J. King

Elevator in Saigon by Thuân, translated by Nguyen An Lý

Elevator in Saigon is a literal and structural exquisite corpse , capturing Vietnam's eventful period from 1954 to 2004. Mimicking an elevator's movement, the novel heightens our yearning for romance and mystery, while unflinchingly exposing such narrative shaft. Channeling Marguerite Duras and Patrick Modiano, the book also offers a dead-on tour of a society cunningly leaping from one ideological mode to the next. As if challenging Rick's parting words to Ilsa in Casablanca , Thuận's sophomore novel in English implies that geopolitical debacles might have been mitigated if personal relations were held in more elevated regard than "a hill of beans." (July 9) — Thúy Đinh

Goodnight Tokyo by Atsuhiro Yoshida, translated by Haydn Trowell

Atsuhiro Yoshida's Goodnight Tokyo begins with a film company procurer who's tasked with finding fresh kumquats for a production. From there, interlinked tales of Tokyo residents unspool in unpredictable directions. Characters range from a cabdriver to a star of a detective TV series who might be an actual detective. Readers will be reminded of Jim Jarmusch's 1991 movie Night on Earth , which also takes place in the wee hours of the morning and threads together the stories of strangers. (July 9) — Leland Cheuk

Navola: A novel by Paolo Bacigalupi

I love when a beloved author — especially one known mostly for a certain type of book — throws us a daring curveball. Navola is exactly such a pitch. Paolo Bacigalupi, who has won pretty much every major award in the science-fiction field with his climate-conscious dystopianism, is veering hard left with his new novel. It doesn't take place in the future, and it isn't a cautionary tale. Instead, it's a hefty tome of high fantasy set in a dreamed-up world akin to Renaissance Florence. Only with, you guessed it, dragons. But also high finance, political intrigue, and de' Medici-esque opulence. Bacigalupi is one of today's most gripping spinners of speculative fiction, and I can't wait to dive into this surprising magical foray. (July 9) — Jason Heller

The Lucky Ones: A Memoir by Zara Chowdhary

In 2002, two train carriages were set on fire in Gujarat, India. Within three weeks, more than 2,000 Muslims were murdered in response by Hindu mobs. By the end of the year, more than 50,000 Muslims became refugees in their own country. The Lucky Ones is a unique memoir in English of this largest-ever massacre in independent India . It is also about a communal crisis bringing a fractured family together. A must-read in our warring world today. (July 16) — Jenny Bhatt

Sharks Don't Sink: Adventures of a Rogue Shark Scientist by Jasmin Graham

Author Jasmin Graham is a marine biologist specializing in smalltooth sawfish and hammerhead sharks. Who are the real sharks in this story? Graham had to face the sharp-teethed truths of academia, while creating a world of curiosity and discovery around the complex lives of sharks. To combat the racism she encountered in academia, Graham created an "ocean of her own" to become an independent scientist and a champion of social justice, a journey she unspools in this new memoir. (July 16) — Martha Anne Toll

Liars by Sarah Manguso

I have long been a fan of Sarah Manguso's crystalline prose, from her fragmented illness memoir The Two Kinds of Decay to her tightly constrained 2022 novel Very Cold People . Her second novel , Liars , marries restraint with rage — in it, Manguso traces the full arc of a 15-year relationship between Jane, a successful writer, and John, a dilettante artist-cum-techie, in aphoristic vignettes. The result is a furious, propulsive meditation on wifehood, motherhood and artistic ambition. (July 23) — Kristen Martin

The Horse: A Novel by Willy Vlautin

Musician and Lean on Pete author Willy Vlautin captures the American West like few other writers. His prose is always excellent, his characters always beautifully drawn, and that promises to be the case with his next novel, about an isolated Nevada man in his 60s who is visited by a blind horse that refuses to leave. (July 30) — Michael Schaub

Einstein in Kafkaland: How Albert Fell Down the Rabbit Hole and Came Up With the Universe by Ken Krimstein

Art and science collide in Ken Krimstein's new graphic biography . In this book, the author of the brilliant and whimsical The Three Escapes of Hannah Arendt similarly translates careful research into scenic, emotive comics — in this case tracking the potential effects of an adventitious meeting in Prague between two geniuses on the cusp of world-changing discoveries. (Aug. 20) — Tahneer Oksman

Survival Is a Promise: The Eternal Life of Audre Lorde by Alexis Pauline Gumbs

I'd probably be interested in a new biography of Audre Lorde if it focused on the eating habits of the brilliant thinker, poet, feminist and activist. But biographer Alexis Pauline Gumbs promises to more than exceed that bar. An award-winning poet, writer, feminist and activist in her own right, Gumbs is among the first researchers to delve into Lorde's manuscript archives. The resulting book highlights the late author's commitment to interrogating what it means to survive on this planet — and how Lorde's radical understanding of ecology can guide us today. (Aug. 20) — Ericka Taylor

Et Cetera: An Illustrated Guide to Latin Phrases by Maia Lee-Chin, illustrated by Marta Bertello

To those claiming Latin is dead, I say res ipsa loquitur — the thing speaks for itself — in children's cartoons , Hollywood cartoons and enduring epics . As a fan of both Mr. Peabody and the Muses, the idea of combining Maia Lee-Chin's thoughtful scholarship and Marta Bertello's dynamic artistry is captivating. Their new book reimagines the world of Latin's invention and tops my summer reading list. (Aug. 27) — Marcela Davison Avilés

Copyright 2024 NPR

• Skip to main content
• Keyboard shortcuts for audio player

Oleksandr Breus, a Ukrainian and onetime French legionnaire, was killed next to his car during the Russian invasion. Oleksandr Holod, who says he witnessed it from his window, describes events as he rides his bike past the charred remains of the vehicle near Nova Basan, Chernihiv Oblast, Ukraine on June 28. Carol Guzy for NPR hide caption

Investigations

There have been 50,000 alleged war crimes in ukraine. we worked to solve one.

Investigators in Ukraine have opened more than 50,000 inquiries into alleged Russian war crimes since the war began. NPR looked into the death of one man to show the challenges investigators face.

In acceptance speech, Russian Nobel Peace Prize co-laureate condemns Ukraine war

Life in a ukrainian town: rampaging russians, power cuts, a visit by banksy.

France forward Kylian Mbappe (#10) fights for the ball with England defender Kyle Walker during the World Cup quarterfinal match between England and France at the Al-Bayt Stadium in Al Khor, Qatar on December 10, 2022. Paul Ellis/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

FIFA World Cup 2022

France beats its european rival england to advance to the world cup semifinals.

Youssef En-Nesyri of Morocco soars high to head the ball and score the team's first goal during Morocco-Portugal quarterfinal at the World Cup in Qatar on December 10, 2022. Justin Setterfield/Getty Images hide caption

Morocco marches on — eliminating Portugal in the quarterfinals of the World Cup

With TikTok trends like "copy-paste Latinas", the standard for what a Latinx woman could or should look like is squeezed into a very narrow set of ideals. Charlotte Gomez for NPR hide caption

Pop Culture

How latin identity became fodder for content.

After winning a prize in Quebec, Michael Kaloki went on to sculpt ice at other competitions, such as the Helsinki Zoo International Ice Carving Festival. Michael Kaloki hide caption

Goats and Soda

The strange but true story of how a kenyan youth became a world-class snow carver.

German police help a person into a police car near a shopping mall in the center of the city of Dresden, Germany, on Saturday. Jens Schlueter/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

Hostage situation in Dresden, Germany, ends with suspect dead and hostages freed

Gloria Lucchesi cooks some local beans that she prepared using the cooking containers, on Nov. 12, in San Casciano dei Bagni, Italy. Valerio Muscella for NPR hide caption

Amid rising energy costs, Italian cooks go old-school to save gas

More NPR content after sponsor message

OHYUNG's imagine naked! is one of NPR Music's top 11 experimental music albums of 2022. Photo Illustration: Jackie Lay/NPR/Jess X. Snow/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

Best Music of 2022

The 11 best experimental albums of 2022.

In 2022, the greatest difficult-to-classify sounds encompassed microtonal rock jams, tender ambient, Egyptian ghosts and an epic synth symphony.

Raina Douris' Favorite Music of 2022

Sheldon pearce's top 20 albums of 2022.

People gather around the lighthouse after the dedication ceremony of a Third Order Fresnel Lens after being relit at the Port Isabel Lighthouse Historic Site in Port Isabel, Texas on Friday. Veronica G. Cardenas for TPR hide caption

Texas' last public lighthouse shines for the first time in 117 years

At the southern tip of Texas, hundreds of people gathered around the last public lighthouse in the state on Friday. No living person in Port Isabel had seen the city's lighthouse's beacon shine before.

In this photo taken by a drone, cleanup continues in the area where the ruptured Keystone pipeline dumped oil into a creek in Washington County, Kan., on Friday. DroneBase via AP hide caption

Kansas oil spill is Keystone pipeline's biggest ever, according to federal data

A ruptured pipeline northwest of Kansas City dumped about 588,000 gallons of oil into a creek running through rural pastureland, throwing operator TC Energy's federal permit into question.

In this file photo, sportswriter Grant Wahl speaks during a panel discussion in New York in 2014. He died Friday in Qatar while covering the Argentina-Netherlands World Cup quarterfinal. Michael Loccisano/Getty Images hide caption

Longtime soccer sportswriter Grant Wahl has died covering the World Cup in Qatar

Grant Wahl was influential in the soccer world. He was able to break down the most intricate of plays and relate to hardcore and casual fans alike.

Revellers gather in Times Square for the start SantaCon in New York City on Saturday. Timothy A. Clary/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

Strange News

Santas gather by the thousands to drink and be merry at santacon nyc.

The annual SantaCon celebration is back in New York City this Saturday.

The Dingers' Matthew Carrillo shares a high five with a teammate. Luke Paine Photography hide caption

Sandlot baseball is about having fun and building community — and everyone's a winner

The amateur sport is booming, with at least 21 new teams formed in 2022 alone.

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., speaks during a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs committee hearing to examine social media's impact on homeland security, Sept. 14, 2022, on Capitol Hill in Washington. Alex Brandon/AP hide caption

Sinema's break with the Democratic Party may not help her as much as she'd like

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema announced she will no longer be a member of the Democratic Party, raising questions about how independent politicians can really be.

Here's what Sinema's switch from Democrat to independent could mean for the Senate

Three people hold U.S. flags as they wait to be sworn in as American citizens at a naturalization ceremony on the Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum. Spencer Platt/Getty Images hide caption

Nearly a million adults became U.S. citizens this past year, a record high since 2008

Despite the setbacks caused by the pandemic, the federal government naturalized a record number of adult immigrants this year and reduced its application backlog by nearly half.

Jennifer Hadley's overall winning photo of a 3-month-old cub tumbling out of a tree. Jennifer Hadley/Comedy Wildlife 2022 hide caption

The Picture Show

We're not lion: the 2022 comedy wildlife photography awards are a good laugh.

Jennifer Hadley claimed the top prize for her photo of a 3-month-old lion cub tumbling out of a tree in the Serengeti region of Tanzania.

Rep.-Elect Maxwell Frost (D-FL) speaks at a Congressional Hispanic Caucus event on Nov. 18, 2022 in Washington, DC. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images hide caption

The first Gen Z member of Congress was denied a D.C. apartment due to bad credit

Maxwell Frost, who became the first Gen Z candidate to be elected to the U.S. House in November, says Congress has a serious problem of accessibility for people who don't come from wealth.

The "congregation" gathers on a Sunday morning in early November at the Battlefield Farm & Gardens in Knoxville, Tenn. Pastor Chris Battle, center, left the Baptist church and started the community garden and a free food delivery as a way to build community and "do church differently." Mike Belleme for NPR hide caption

As attendance dips, churches change to stay relevant for a new wave of worshippers

A longtime pastor says the question used to be: How can the church change the culture? Now, it's how to change the culture of the church. Ways range from gardening to food giveaways to fire pits.

A painting by British street artist Banksy amidst destroyed buildings in Borodianka on Saturday. The image shows a young boy tossing a man to the floor. Both are in martial arts attire. The man is widely assumed to be Russian leader Vladimir Putin, a judo enthusiast. Natalie Keyssar for NPR hide caption

Ukraine invasion — explained

Borodianka was largely reduced to rubble by the Russian invasion. It's become a symbol of the devastation inflicted by the Russian forces, and attracted a recent visit by the artist Banksy.

In this image taken from El Paso County District Court video, Anderson Lee Aldrich, 22 (center) sits during a court appearance in Colorado Springs, Colo., on Tuesday. According to newly unsealed court documents, Aldrich was also charged with felony crimes in June 2021, but the case was dismissed. El Paso District Court/AP hide caption

The Club Q suspect's bomb threat case was dismissed because victims wouldn't testify

A court has unsealed documents in a 2021 bomb threat case involving felony charges for the Club Q shooting suspect. The district attorney said a conviction would've required family testimony.

Shots - Health News

Because of wisconsin's abortion ban, one mother gave up trying for another child.

Kristen Petranek has a history of miscarriages – and she has diabetes, which makes pregnancy risky. She fears that if something goes wrong, her state's law may inhibit doctors from helping her.

Small wheels of Gouda line the shelves at 't Kaaswinkeltje cheese shop in Gouda, the Netherlands. Amanda Aronczyk/NPR hide caption

Planet Money

The case of the missing cheese racks.

Jelle Peterse's company ships cheese all over the world, but they don't always get their cheese racks back. In this episode of Planet Money, we try to fix a supply chain problem.

Matt Rogers in Matt Rogers: Have You Heard of Christmas? Scott Gries/Showtime hide caption

What's Making Us Happy: Recommendations From 'Pop Culture Happy Hour'

What's making us happy: a guide to your weekend viewing and reading.

Each week, the guests and hosts on NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour share what's bringing them joy. This week: South Side , Treasure Planet , the Sight & Sound film list, Matt Rogers and more.

A woman watches an episode of the newly released Netflix docuseries Harry & Meghan, about Britain's Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, and Britain's Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, in London on Thursday. Daniel Leal/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

It's thumbs-down in the U.K. for Harry and Meghan's Netflix Series

Even critics in the liberal media panned Harry & Meghan, the new documentary that attacks Britain's notorious tabloids for invading the couple's privacy and coverage that traded in racist tropes.

Here's what we learned from Harry and Meghan's Netflix documentary

Supporters of ousted Peruvian President Pedro Castillo march at the Plaza San Martin in Lima, Peru on Thursday. Peru's Congress voted to remove Castillo from office Wednesday and replace him with the vice president, Dina Boluarte, shortly after Castillo tried to dissolve the legislature ahead of a scheduled vote to remove him. Fernando Vergara/AP hide caption

Latin America

From president to prisoner: the rapid descent of peru's pedro castillo.

Castillo gambled away all of his power in one breathtaking day, attempting to avoid possible corruption charges by shuttering Congress, reorganizing the judiciary and ruling by decree. No one else seemed to like that plan.

Media magnate Rupert Murdoch, at right, in London a decade ago on his way to give evidence at a British judicial inquiry. He is accompanied by his son (and now Fox Corp boss) Lachlan Murdoch, at left, and his then-wife Wendi Deng. LEON NEAL/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

Untangling Disinformation

Rupert murdoch's turn to face questions in $1.6 billion lawsuit against fox news.

Rupert Murdoch will be deposed on Monday in a defamation lawsuit brought by Dominion Voting Systems, which also alleges that Fox News destroyed messages from star Sean Hannity and others.

Starbucks employees strike outside their store on Nov. 17 in Mesa, Ariz. Matt York/AP hide caption

Starbucks union organizing gave labor a jolt of energy in 2022

Starbucks workers unionized at record speed. But workers are now filing fewer unionization petitions, one year on.

American basketball star Brittney Griner gets out of a plane after landing in San Antonio on Friday. Suzanne Cordeiro/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

Brittney Griner is back home in the U.S. after a Russian prisoner swap

American basketball star Brittney Griner returned to the United States early Friday after being freed in a high-profile prisoner exchange following nearly 10 months in detention in Russia.

Why vaccine hesitancy persists in China — and what they're doing about it

The reluctance of many citizens — especially the elderly — to get vaccinated is a problem for a government facing intense pressure to roll back strict COVID policies.

Performers with the Kyiv National Ballet rehearse for a production of The Snow Queen at the National Opera in Kyiv on Sunday. Pete Kiehart for NPR hide caption

Ukraine is calling for a boycott of 'The Nutcracker,' but ballet companies aren't budging

Ukraine's culture minister said his country's allies could stop Russia from weaponizing its culture by temporarily boycotting Russian artists, including The Nutcracker composer Tchaikovsky.

It's Been a Minute

'framing agnes' questions the ways trans stories are told.

When the world never stops questioning you, do you refuse to answer... or do you play along to get what you want? These questions are at the heart of Framing Agnes , an award-winning documentary about the legacy of a young trans woman in the 1950s who was forced to choose between access and honesty.

The classical singer Julia Bullock has released Walking in the Dark , her debut solo album. Grant Legan/Nonesuch Records hide caption

Deceptive Cadence

With a bold debut album, julia bullock curates an unconventional career.

The velvet-voiced soprano with a career on the rise chooses her projects, and the music on her debut solo album, with consummate intention.

Do some people have built-in protection against a COVID infection? Laura Gao for NPR hide caption

From COVID to mpox to polio: Our 9 most-read 'viral' stories in 2022

It was a big year for viruses, which simply refused to be ignored. And unlike the previous two years, COVID had to share the spotlight.

Former Vice President Mike Pence campaigns for Sen. Chuck Grassley at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines, Iowa on August 19, 2022. Clay Masters/Iowa Public Radio hide caption

As Democrats look elsewhere, Republicans are keeping Iowa first

The DNC has taken its first steps to make drastic changes to the primary calendar. But Republicans want to keep things exactly as they are and that means a lot of attention on Iowa.

Eliane Elias performs a Tiny Desk concert. Credit: Bob Boilen/NPR hide caption

Eliane Elias: Tiny Desk Concert

One of the most respected names in Latin jazz gives a commanding performance behind the Tiny Desk.

Here are the Books We Love: 400+ great 2022 reads recommended by NPR

Books We Love returns with 400+ new titles handpicked by NPR staff and trusted critics. Find 10 years of recommendations all in one place — that's more than 3,200 great reads.

A visual feast: 6 favorite coffee table and gift books of 2022

A helicopter flies above a wildfire burning in Canada this summer. Smoke from these wildfires floated hundreds of miles, blanketing much of North America in toxic air. James MacDonald/Bloomberg via Getty Images hide caption

Wildfire smoke this year woke up places unaccustomed to its effects. Now what?

Wildfires worsened by climate change spewed smoke over much of North America this year. It's a new reality Americans haven't yet processed: how dangerous the smoke is for human health.

2023 was a tragic and bizarre year of wildfires. Will it mark a turning point?

Rigoberto Urán crosses the finish line of stage 12 of the 110th Tour de France, July 13, 2023, in Belleville-en-Beaujolais, France. Jean Catuffe/Getty Images hide caption

For Colombia's most beloved cyclist, winning isn't the point

Doctors and medical societies are suggesting patients who rely on Flovent take action now to ensure they can get the medication in 2024. Mariia Siurtukova/Getty Images hide caption

A popular asthma inhaler is leaving pharmacy shelves. Here's what you need to know

Top global TikToks of 2023: Mr. Bean of math, makeup demo, capybaras!

Cade Cunningham #2 of the Detroit Pistons drives to the basket between Gary Trent Jr. #33 and Jakob Poeltl #19 of the Toronto Raptors during the first half at Little Caesars Arena on Saturday in Detroit. Gregory Shamus/Getty Images hide caption

Detroit Pistons end a historic losing streak with a win against the Toronto Raptors

Paula Abdul and producer Nigel Lythgoe are pictured in Los Angeles at a Television Academy event in 2014. Vince Bucci/Vince Bucci/Invision/AP hide caption

Paula Abdul accuses 'American Idol' producer of sexual assault

Palestinians look at the destruction after an Israeli strike in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, on Friday. Fatima Shbair/AP hide caption

Middle East crisis — explained

Airstrikes hit refugee camps in gaza as u.s. approves new weapons sales to israel.

English actor Tom Wilkinson poses for photographers on the red carpet ahead of the Royal and World Premiere of the film The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel in London on Feb. 17, 2015. Justin Tallis/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

Actor Tom Wilkinson, known for 'The Full Monty' and 'Michael Clayton,' dies at 75

Wilkinson died suddenly at home on Saturday, his family confirmed. His wife and family were with him, they said in a statement.

Maurice Hines, seen in 2005, appeared alongside his younger brother Gregory Hines during the first part of his career. Frank Franklin II/AP hide caption

Broadway actor, dancer and choreographer Maurice Hines dies at 80

Maurice Hines, who started tap dancing at the age of five, starred alongside his late brother Gregory Hines in the 1984 Francis Ford Coppola movie The Cotton Club .

Dan Novack, an attorney for the publisher Penguin Random House, speaks with reporters after an injunction hearing against an Iowa law that bans schools from having books in their libraries that include descriptions of sexual acts. Grant Gerlock/Iowa Public Radio hide caption

Federal judge blocks enforcement of Iowa book ban law

A federal judge has blocked the state from enforcing major portions of an education law which has caused school districts to pull hundreds of books from library shelves.

Cruise rolled out hundreds of its robotaxis in San Francisco this year. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images hide caption

Driverless car startup Cruise's no good, terrible year

After rapidly expanding its self-driving car program, things took a disastrous turn for Cruise when one of its robotaxis struck a pedestrian.

The $7,500 tax credit for electric cars will see big changes in 2024. What to know

Michael Cohen arrives at New York Supreme Court for former President Donald Trump's civil business fraud trial on Oct. 25, 2023 in New York. Cohen says he unwittingly passed along to his attorney bogus artificial intelligence-generated legal case citations he got online before they were submitted to a New York judge. Yuki Iwamura/AP hide caption

Michael Cohen says he unwittingly sent AI-generated fake legal cases to his attorney

Donald Trump's onetime personal lawyer and fixer says he passed along to his attorney bogus artificial intelligence-generated legal case citations he got online before they were submitted to a judge.

A robot was scheduled to argue in court, then came the jail threats

A woman digs through rubble of a home destroyed by a wildfire on Aug. 11, in Lahaina, Hawaii. Rick Bowmer/AP hide caption

Maui wildfires ruined personal treasures. A local jeweler is repairing items for free

The August wildfires on the Hawaiian island erased troves of irreplaceable items — photographs, urns and mementos. One local jewelry store has been trying to help recover what the fires destroyed.

Eden Austin waits on customers at the Same Day Cafe in Chicago's Logan Square neighborhood on Aug. 18. Scott Olson/Getty Images hide caption

Minimum-wage workers in 22 states will be getting raises on Jan. 1

While that's great news for the almost 10 million workers affected, 20 other states still pay minimum-wage workers the federal rate of $7.25 an hour.

Taylor Swift (left) and Brittany Mahomes react during the first half of a game between the New England Patriots and the Kansas City Chiefs in Foxborough, Mass., on Dec. 17. Michael Dwyer/AP hide caption

Call it 'Swiftonomics': How Taylor Swift brought a gold rush to Kansas City

Swift's Eras Tour this summer gave a big boost to the local economy. Then the mega-popular performer kept coming back to Kansas City because of her relationship with the Chiefs' Travis Kelce. Local business owners and tourism officials say they're reaping the benefits.

Book Reviews

11 books to look forward to in 2024.

The first few months of the year are stacked with exciting and interesting reads. Get ready for big swings from old pros and exciting new debuts.

Here are the Books We Love: 380+ great 2023 reads recommended by NPR

Clockwise from left: Sinéad O'Connor, Tina Turner, Matthew Perry, Wayne Shorter, Paul Reubens and Harry Belafonte Getty Images; Brian Rasic/Getty Images; Getty Images; Christophe Simon/AFP via Getty Images; Danny Moloshok/AP; AFP via Getty Images hide caption

Remembering the actors, musicians, writers and artists we lost in 2023

Giants of the arts world left us this year: We look back on the legacies of Harry Belafonte, Tina Turner, Sinéad O'Connor, Paul Reubens (aka Pee-wee Herman), Richard Roundtree, Norman Lear and more.

Book News & Features

Public libraries reveal their most borrowed books of 2023.

Not all libraries track checkouts, and there isn't one definitive national list. But this year lots of people checked out Lessons in Chemistry, Prince Harry's memoir Spare, and Colleen Hoover's books.

Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., talks with Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., during a voting on a motion to adjourn after the 14th vote for speaker in the House chamber as the House meets for the fourth day to elect a speaker and convene the 118th Congress on Jan. 6. Andrew Harnik/AP hide caption

2023: What a year in politics

From former President Donald Trump's historic mug shot to the House speaker drama, here are moments that captured the unprecedented political drama and other powerful moments that unfolded in 2023.

NPR Politics Podcast: The 2023 can't-let-it-go year-end spectacular

Herlin Riley performing at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival in New Orleans, Louisiana on April 30, 2011. Ebet Roberts/Redferns/Getty Images hide caption

Herlin Riley: master of drums in the cradle of jazz

With a long career playing among jazz and R&B greats, he remains one of the most in-demand drummers in New Orleans.

Internally displaced Palestinian children use a makeshift wheeled cart to haul water in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on Sunday, as battles continue between Israel and the militant group Hamas. Mohammed Abed/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

There's a water crisis in Gaza that the end of fighting might not solve

Before the war, Palestinians in the territory relied heavily on power-hungry desalination plants. But with Israel's intense bombardment, the fate of those plants — and Gaza's water future — is hazy.

Why Egypt doesn't want Palestinians in Gaza to cross the border

Dnipro: A man walks past a damaged building after Russian airstrikes which killed 6 and injured around 28 people. Ozge Elif Kizil//Anadolu/Getty Images hide caption

See the aftermath of Russia's aerial assault on several cities in Ukraine

Several large Ukrainian cities were attacked, including the capital, Kyiv, as well as Dnipro, Lviv, Odesa and Kharkiv.

Russia launches what Ukraine is calling the biggest aerial barrage of the war

Google agreed Dec. 28, to settle a $5 billion privacy lawsuit claiming that it continued spying on people who used the "incognito" mode in its Chrome browser — along with similar "private browsing" modes in other browsers — to track their internet use. Matt Slocum/AP hide caption

Google settles $5 billion privacy lawsuit over tracking people using 'incognito mode'

The class-action lawsuit said Google misled users into believing that it wouldn't track their internet activities while using 'incognito mode.' Terms of the settlement weren't disclosed.

Elizabeth Weller speaks at a press conference in Austin, Texas on July 19. She's one of 20 women suing the state after being denied abortions despite serious pregnancy complications. Suzanne Cordeiro/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

'Jane Roe' is anonymous no more. The very public fight against abortion bans in 2023

As the first full year since Roe v. Wade was overturned closes, the abortion landscape in the U.S. has changed legally, politically and medically.

A next big ballot fight over abortion could come to Arizona

Immigrants wait to be processed after they crossed the border into the U.S. in Eagle Pass, Texas, on Dec. 22. Eleven states and D.C. offer taxpayer-funded health insurance to some immigrants without legal status. Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

More states extend health coverage to immigrants even as the issue inflames the GOP

More than 1 million immigrants, most lacking permanent legal status, are covered by state health programs. Several states, including GOP-led Utah, will soon add or expand such coverage.

An unprecedented year in immigration, and in anti-immigration rhetoric

College students home for break it's a good time to talk about their mental health.

Mental distress is on the rise among 18- to 25-year-olds. Experts say parents can ask open-ended questions while college students are home between semesters to get a sense if they need extra support.

A Boeing 737 MAX jet lands following a Federal Aviation Administration test flight at Boeing Field in Seattle, Wash., in June 2020. Jason Redmond/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

Boeing urges airlines to check its 737 Max jets for loose bolts

The FAA says it's closely monitoring the Boeing-requested checks after an unnamed international airline discovered a bolt with a missing nut on a 737 Max while performing routine maintenance.

In this file photo, Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley speaks during a town hall on Dec. 18 in Nevada, Iowa. Charlie Neibergall/AP hide caption

Nikki Haley didn't say slavery caused the Civil War. Now she's facing major backlash

At a campaign event in New Hampshire Wednesday, the former S.C. governor didn't mention slavery as a cause of the Civil War, sparking controversy. Now she's walking back those comments.

Marlene Kaiser winds up at the end of her lane during the Colorado Blind Bowling Association's weekly takeover of Federal Boulevard's Crown Lanes on Dec. 9. Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite hide caption

Colorado Blind Bowling Association has been rolling for 50 years

Marlene Kaiser and Veronica Rodriguez have bowled together pretty much every weekend since the 1970s. They had no idea they were starting something that would last for decades.

The Pop-Tarts mascot is lowered into a toaster following the 2023 Pop-Tarts Bowl between the Kansas State Wildcats and the NC State Wolfpack at Camping World Stadium on Thursday in Orlando, Fla. Julio Aguilar/Getty Images hide caption

First edible mascot in sports history stars in the Pop-Tarts Bowl

Kansas State beat NC State, 28-19, after which the winning team devoured the giant pastry that emerged from an even more giant toaster in what was a clever marketing move.

Bishop William J. Barber II speaks during the Clinton Global Initiative September 2023 meeting at New York Hilton Midtown on Sept. 19, 2023. Noam Galai/Getty Images for Clinton Global hide caption

AMC Theatres apologizes for kicking out a civil rights leader for using his own chair

Bishop William J. Barber II, who suffers from a chronic and painful form of arthritis, was escorted out of an AMC movie theater after he tried to use his own chair in the accessible section.

The cast of Melrose Place in 1998. Worldvision/Getty Images hide caption

A guide to your weekend reading, viewing and listening

Each week, Pop Culture Happy Hour guests and hosts share what's bringing them joy. This week: 5-Second Films, an eye-opening Melrose Place article, the song "Ça plane pour moi" and rewatching 30 Rock .

James Beard award-winning chef Alexis Nikole Nelson harvests wild food while building a community of plants and people. Alexis Nikole Nelson hide caption

Foragers build a community of plants and people while connecting with the past

James Beard award-winning chef Alexis Nikole Nelson harvests wild food while building a community of plants and people.

A woman casts her vote at a polling station during regional elections in Hyderabad, India, on Nov. 30. In 2024, India will be among a large number of countries holding important national elections. Noah Seelam/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

2024 elections are ripe targets for foes of democracy

Billions of people around the world are expected to head to the polls in 2024. But experts warn that these elections are ripe targets for bad actors seeking to disrupt democracy.

U.S. President Joe Biden is seen in the White House Oval Office of in January 2021 in Washington, D.C., as Vice President Kamala Harris looks on. Doug Mills/Getty Images hide caption

Biden's West Wing has a moon rock, a rugby ball and homemade cookies

The White House's latest tenant invited over Architectural Digest magazine for a rare and personal look at his version of the Oval Office.

7 tiny hacks that can improve your to-do list

Is your to-do list helping you reach your goals? Or is it holding you back? Productivity experts explain how to level up your list so it prioritizes what matters.

Clockwise from left: Brad Mehldau, Maryam Keshavarz, Samantha Irby, Lauren Fleshman, Ke Huy Quan and Christian Cooper. Giorgio Perottino/Getty Images for OGR; Fred Hayes/Getty Images for SAGindie; Lori Morgan Gottschling/Random House; Ryan Warner/Oiselle; A24; Matt Licari/Invision/AP hide caption

'Fresh Air' staffers pick the 2023 interviews you shouldn't miss

Interviews with actor Ke Huy Quan, pianist Jason Moran, humorist Samantha Irby, and media critic Brian Stelter are among the conversations that stuck with the staff of Fresh Air this year.

In Memoriam 2023: The musicians we lost

When artists die, it can feel impossible to imagine a world without their musical guidance. Yet it's also a moment to celebrate — not just their impact on culture but also inside ourselves.

In Memoriam 2023: The Musicians We Lost

A person passes a pile of discarded Christmas trees along a sidewalk in New York City on Jan. 14, 2014. Spencer Platt/Getty Images file photo hide caption

Environment

How to give your christmas tree new life or kick it to the curb.

Christmas has come and gone but your tree is probably still up. Here are some tips to dispose of your tree or give it new life.

Madeline and one of the many non-magical creatures she encountered at farm camp in 2023. Courtesy Madeline's mom, Leilani hide caption

A year after receiving LA's first 'unicorn license', she has raised thousands for animal wellfare

The story of Madeline's letter to L.A. County Animal Care and Control traveled around the world and raised more than $10,000. But she's searching for the mystical equine creatures.

Watch the Sam Smith Tiny Desk concert here . Michael Zamora/NPR hide caption

Want to know what it's like to photograph a Tiny Desk concert?

NPR photographers share their insights behind their favorite Tiny Desk concert photos of 2023.

Harry Belafonte, alongside Ed Sullivan, signs autographs for fans outside CBS Studio 50 in New York City, circa 1955. Archive Photos/Hulton Archive/Getty Images hide caption

Music Features

Island man: how harry belafonte's caribbean roots helped him change america.

Since his death at 96, tributes to the singer and activist have centered his legacies in the U.S. But it's impossible to grasp Belafonte's larger meaning without first understanding his island roots.

A clergyman with the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, Chaplain Ivan, conducts a liturgy for Ukrainian troops near the front line in the eastern town of Vuhledar on Dec. 15. Valentyn Kuzan/AP hide caption

2 bitter wars with a long history and no solution in sight

NPR's Greg Myre has been covering both the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the Israel-Hamas fighting. He looks at where both these wars stand and the prospect for a permanent solution.

Left to right: Barbies in India; Maya softball players in Mexico; walking on a frozen fountain in the mountains of Pakistan, where efforts are underway to revive the ancient art of glacier mating. Anushree Bhatter for NPR, Bénédicte Desrus; Diaa Hadid/NPR hide caption

From glacier babies to a Barbie debate: 7 great global stories you might have missed

Here are our editors' picks for stories from 2023 that we wish more people would see: from an elephant safari for teens to mating glaciers in Pakistan to a debate about Barbie's skin tone in India.

Rite Aid, Bird and Bed Bath & Beyond are among the notable companies that filed for bankruptcy in 2023. Gene J. Puskar/AP; John Minchillo/AP; Rogelio V. Solis/AP hide caption

Why corporate bankruptcies were up in 2023 despite the improving economy

Hundreds of debt-saddled companies filed for bankruptcy this year, as the era of easy money caught up to corporations. High interest rates mean banks aren't extending lifelines.

Clockwise from left: Cocaine Bear, Luke Macfarlane in Platonic, Danielle Brooks and Fantasia Barrino in The Color Purple, Bryce Harper of the Philadelphia Phillies , the cover of the book Starter Villain, Jessica Williams in Shrinking. Universal Pictures; Apple TV+; Eli Adé/Warner Bros. Pictures; Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images; Tor Books; Apple TV+ hide caption

Pop Culture Happy Hour

The year in review: 50 wonderful things from 2023.

Pop culture critic Linda Holmes has been making this annual list since 2010. Big, small, inspirational, silly — what these items have in common is that they are all wonderful and brought her joy.

Clockwise from top left: Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One , Passages , Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse , Four Daughters , Only Murders in the Building , Hijack Paramount Pictures; MUBI; Sony Pictures; Jour2Fête; Hulu; Apple TV+ hide caption

The best movies and TV of 2023, picked for you by NPR critics

Whether you plan to head out to the theater or binge from the couch, our critics have gathered together their favorite films and TV shows of the year. Happy watching!

NPR's Holiday Favorites

Celebrate 2024 with toast of the nation.

Ring in the New Year with electric live performances by Hiromi, Red Baraat, Jonathan Scales Fourchestra and Lizz Wright.

Need a New Year's resolution? Here are 50 ways to improve your life in 2024

Scroll through Life Kit's New Year's Resolution Planner to find the perfect goal this year, whether it's exercising more, paying off your credit card debt or having more fun.

Best Music Of 2023

The 123 best songs of 2023.

A best-of list should be an opportunity for discovery, so NPR Music has handmade a series of mixtapes full of great songs from 2023 to help you find music you'll love well beyond the end of the year.

Books We Love returns with 380+ new titles handpicked by NPR staff and trusted critics. Find 11 years of recommendations all in one place – that's more than 3,600 great reads.

In a year of book bans, Maureen Corrigan's top 10 affirm the joy of reading widely

• ADMIN AREA MY BOOKSHELF MY DASHBOARD MY PROFILE SIGN OUT SIGN IN

20 Best Books To Read in August

AUG. 2, 2022

by Tess Gunty

A stunning and original debut that is as smart as it is entertaining. Full review >

by Marianne Wiggins

This majestic novel will satisfy those thirsting for an epic saga of love, family, and the complexities of the American way. Full review >

AUG. 23, 2022

by Abdulrazak Gurnah

A novel with an epic feel, even at 320 pages, building a complex, character-based story that stretches over generations. Full review >

AUG. 30, 2022

by James Hannaham

A brash, ambitious novel carried by an unforgettable narrator. Full review >

AUG. 9, 2022

by David Maraniss

A tale that, though well known in outline, Maraniss enriches with his considerable skills as a writer and researcher. Full review >

by Andrew Nagorski

Excellent biographies of Freud and some contemporaries. Full review >

by Alora Young

A moving debut from a young writer with great promise. Full review >

by Michael W. Twitty

A thoughtful, inspiring book that will have readers pondering their own ancestors and their presence in the kitchen. Full review >

TEENS & YOUNG ADULT

by Aaron H. Aceves

An outstanding portrait of teenage longing, angst, and self-discovery. Full review >

by Cynthia Hand , Brodi Ashton & Jodi Meadows

Energetic, clever, and absorbing. Full review >

AUG. 16, 2022

by Emily Lloyd-Jones

A gorgeous, intricate fantasy. Full review >

by Debbie Rigaud

Steeped in the magic of first kisses, family bonds, and joyful community. Full review >

CHILDREN'S

by Jason Li , An Xiao Mina & Jennifer 8. Lee

Clever, complex, yet concise and fun: This guide promises to engage language learners and curious readers. Full review >

by Celia C. Pérez

A plucky, heartwarming tale that celebrates the complexity of family relationships. Full review >

by Kereen Getten

Dazzling. Full review >

More Book Lists

Recent News & Features

• Perspectives

• Book to Screen

• Seen & Heard

• 20 Best Books To Read in September
• 21 Best September Books for Young Readers
• 150 Most Anticipated Books of the Fall
• YA Nonfiction That Stands the Test of Time
• Episode 387: Gayle Forman
• Episode 386: Chris La Tray
• Episode 385: Caro De Robertis
• Episode 384: Best August Books With Abi Daré

The Magazine: Kirkus Reviews

Featuring 332 industry-first reviews of fiction, nonfiction, children’s, and YA books; also in this issue: our annual Fall Preview, with a first look at the season’s most anticipated titles, author interviews, and much more

The Kirkus Star

One of the most coveted designations in the book industry, the Kirkus Star marks books of exceptional merit.

The Kirkus Prize

The Kirkus Prize is among the richest literary awards in America, awarding $50,000 in three categories annually.

Great Books & News Curated For You

Be the first to read books news and see reviews, news and features in Kirkus Reviews . Get awesome content delivered to your inbox every week.

• Discover Books Fiction Thriller & Suspense Mystery & Detective Romance Science Fiction & Fantasy Nonfiction Biography & Memoir Teens & Young Adult Children's
• News & Features Bestsellers Book Lists Profiles Perspectives Awards Seen & Heard Book to Screen Kirkus TV videos In the News
• Kirkus Prize Winners & Finalists About the Kirkus Prize Kirkus Prize Judges
• Magazine Current Issue All Issues Manage My Subscription Subscribe
• Writers’ Center Hire a Professional Book Editor Get Your Book Reviewed Advertise Your Book Launch a Pro Connect Author Page Learn About The Book Industry
• More Kirkus Diversity Collections Kirkus Pro Connect My Account/Login
• About Kirkus History Our Team Contest FAQ Press Center Info For Publishers
• Privacy Policy
• Terms & Conditions
• Reprints, Permission & Excerpting Policy

© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Popular in this Genre

Hey there, book lover.

We’re glad you found a book that interests you!

Please select an existing bookshelf

Create a new bookshelf.

We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!

Please sign up to continue.

It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!

Already have an account? Log in.

Trouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.

Almost there!

• Industry Professional

Welcome Back!

Sign in using your Kirkus account

Contact us: 1-800-316-9361 or email [email protected].

Don’t fret. We’ll find you.

Magazine Subscribers ( How to Find Your Reader Number )

If You’ve Purchased Author Services

Don’t have an account yet? Sign Up.

Books of Brilliance

The latest book reviews and book news.

Book Talk , Lists , News

NPR Releases List of Over 400 of the Best Books of 2022

Photo by Taryn Elliott on <a href="https://www.pexels.com/photo/books-on-brown-wooden-shelf-4440123/" rel="nofollow">Pexels.com</a>

The year is coming to a close and it is a great time to look back at all of the great books that made their debut in 2022. But who has the time to make a list of the books that were released over the course of the year? NPR does and they went all out.

NPR Releases Annual Books of Love List

They have released their annual Books of Love! List and have over 400 books covered that they recommend. The books are hand-picked by NPR staff and trusted critics so you will be seeing a bunch of amazing titles. If you have had trouble choosing a book to read, then hopefully this will help. NPR is in the 10th year of its Books We Love! list and you can visit older books which is over 3000 plus books to choose from! Click here to visit the website!

“There were so many great books published this year, and we’re excited to once again bring readers recommendations from our staff and freelance critics,” said Meghan Collins Sullivan, the senior books and culture editor for NPR . “This guide pulls together all of our favorite books from 2022, from a group with many varying individual interests, so readers are bound to find something that they love, too.”

Over 400 Books to Choose From

The website is easy to navigate as it shows the book covers and once you click on a book, it takes to you a page with a short summary of the book. You can use this easy to use setup to find the best books from 2022 to add to your reading list or to find the perfect book to gift to someone.

I enjoy coming across new books and NPR makes it easy to navigate and be able to see the best books of the past year. They put a lot of time and effort and as a book lover, I am very grateful for that. This is something most book lovers would enjoy which is why I had to share it with everyone. Happy reading!

Follow us on  Instagram  and  Facebook ! 

Share this:, 6 thoughts on “ npr releases list of over 400 of the best books of 2022 ”.

Add Comment

• Pingback: New York Public Library Releases its List of the Best Books of 2022 - Books of Brilliance
• Pingback: Jujutsu Kaisen is the Best-Selling Manga of 2022 - Books of Brilliance
• Pingback: Vulture’s Best Books of 2022 - Books of Brilliance
• Pingback: The Best Books Lists of 2022 - Books of Brilliance
• Pingback: The 2023 Gotham Book Prize Finalists Have Been Revealed  - Books of Brilliance
• Pingback: The New York Times Best Books of the Past 125 Years  - Books of Brilliance

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

NPR's top picks for 2022 fiction books

ALINA SELYUKH, HOST:

A lot of you look forward to NPR's Books We Love at the end of each year. And that's because it's a great resource for what new books to read as recommended by our staff and contributors. But why wait? We have some suggestions right now. Today, some of the best fiction of 2022 so far. We start with Code Switch producer Summer Thomad and a spellbinding fantasy novel about death.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

SUMMER THOMAD, BYLINE: The book I'm recommending is "How High We Go In The Dark" by Sequoia Nagamatsu. It's about a world reeling from a climate catastrophe-driven plague. Sound familiar? From the earliest days of a pandemic to the impacts that linger centuries into the future, the plague forces humans to reckon with immeasurable grief and loss. But what I love most about this book is that despite all the doom and gloom, these stories are endlessly imaginative and rich with meaning. Though the world they're inhabiting is undeniably weak, Nagamatsu's characters maintain a sense of cosmic hope and humanity.

ROMMEL WOOD, BYLINE: My name is Rommel Wood, and I'm an associate producer in programming at NPR. I'm recommending the book "Vladimir," a novel by Julia May Jonas because when was the last time a book made you sit up from your couch and yell, what? Where is this going? This happened to me about three-quarters of the way into her debut novel. The book follows a nameless narrator, a 50-something tenured professor at a liberal arts college. She's married to a disgraced professor about to be drummed off campus due to a parade of former students coming forward with sexual misconduct allegations. But she isn't terribly concerned with his fate or the other women because she herself is infatuated with a new junior professor. In "Vladimir," Jonas carefully builds a house of matchsticks where our protagonist's desires safely live until she reaches a flash point that left me squirming and desperate to discover, how exactly is this going to end?

KAREN GRIGSBY BATES, BYLINE: I'm Karen Grigsby Bates. I'm the senior correspondent for Code Switch, NPR's podcast about race and identity. I selected "Mecca," a novel by Susan Straight. Straight writes a lot about the California we don't often see or hear about. The people she writes about are working-class refugees. They came west to escape racial violence and poverty from places like Texas, Mississippi and Oaxaca. And some come from communities who've even lived in the state for thousands of years. "Mecca" is a fine set of interwoven tales of these people. They're connected to each other by their love for the land, by their jobs, for each other, for all of those things. This Southern California is filled with desert highways and strip malls and small suburban houses where everyday people are sometimes faced with choices that are anything but. Straight's writing is both illuminous and sharp and bold. And these tales are told to richly layered family histories. Who'd love this book? People who suspect there's more to California than Kardashians, wildfires and serial killers.

NATALIE ESCOBAR, BYLINE: My name is Natalie Escobar, and I'm an associate editor on NPR's Culture Desk. I read "The Candy House" by Jennifer Egan. She is the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of "A Visit From The Goon Squad," and "The Candy House" is a follow up to her previous book. The basic premise is a little bit complicated. But there is this form of social media that basically allows users to upload all of their memories to something called the collective consciousness. And if they upload all their memories, they're also able to access all the memories of the users who have done the same. Each of the book's chapters is told through the eyes of different people whose lives are affected by this new technology that's so encompassing that it basically dictates a lot of how society runs. It's this sort of alternate universe type of book that really grapples with a lot of the questions of, what is technology, especially social media, doing to our lives in the way that we relate to each other as people? What would it look like to opt out of that? Is it possible? And because it's Jennifer Egan, it's a really beautifully written book. And I loved every moment of it.

SELYUKH: There you go. Glowing recommendations from NPR staff for "The Candy House," "Mecca," "Vladimir" and "How High We Go In The Dark." For more reading ideas, hop over to our Books We Love list at npr.org/bestbooks.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

• Skip to main content
• Keyboard shortcuts for audio player

Weekend Edition Saturday

• Latest Show
• Scott Simon
• Corrections

Listen to the lead story from this episode.

Week in politics: DNC in Chicago, RFK Jr. withdraws campaign

by  Ron Elving ,  Scott Simon

Middle East

Taliban codifies law dictating how men and women appear in public.

by  Diaa Hadid ,  Scott Simon

Pro-Palestine protesters march ahead of the Democratic National Convention on Aug. 18, 2024 in Chicago. Jim Vondruska/Getty Images hide caption

Opinion: Chicago's protests show democracy's shifts since 1968

by  Scott Simon

ESSAY 08242024

Georgia delegate on what it'll take for the democratic party to win the swing state.

by  Ryan Benk ,  Scott Simon

At DNC parties, the Chicago hot dog took center stage

Author interviews, harriet constable on her historical fiction novel 'the instrumentalist', music interviews, shelby lynne on her new album 'consequences of the crown', 6 takeaways from the dnc, and what it means for both parties going forward.

by  Sarah McCammon ,  Scott Simon

The DNC didn't let a Palestinian American speak. The uncommitted movement took note

19-year-old first-time delegate from california shares his experience at the dnc.

by  Scott Simon ,  Ryan Benk ,  D. Parvaz

The Navajo Nation is raising concerns about mining near the Grand Canyon

by  Ryan Heinsius

Saturday Sports: MLB's regular season enters its final month

How chicago's comedians are adapting to the changing political landscape.

by  Scott Simon ,  Ryan Benk

Scotland's hottest DJ is 72-year-old Tony Morris

Movie interviews, carol kane on her new movie 'between the temples'.

Searching for a song you heard between stories? We've retired music buttons on these pages. Learn more here.