Books

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Monsters And Magic Run In The Family In These 2 YA Novels

5:00am July 31, 2021

by Caitlyn Paxson

Six Crimson Cranes and The River Has Teeth — two new July YA novels — both focus on monstrous mothers and folkloric family magic. But apart from that, they couldn't be more different.

Helen Hoang, author of The Kiss Quotient.

Author Helen Hoang Talks Sex, Autism And Freedom

5:30pm July 30, 2021

by Alyssa Jeong Perry

This summer, Code Switch is laser-focused on books that teach us about freedom. Today, we're in conversation with a romance novelist whose own identity helped inform a rich cast of characters.

Given The Choice Between Prison Life And Fighting Wildfires, These Women Chose Fire

5:24pm July 30, 2021

NPR's Ailsa Chang talks with writer Jaime Lowe about her new book, Breathing Fire, which tells the stories of the incarcerated women who are part of California's wildfire crews.

Why Sweat Is A Human Superpower

1:53pm July 30, 2021

Sweat is an "evolutionary marvel," says Sarah Everts, the author of The Joy of Sweat. In her new book, Everts delves into the science of perspiration and how this trait has enabled humans to thrive.

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1963 Novel 'The Stone Face' Has New Edition — And It Couldn't Be More Timely

1:42pm July 30, 2021

by John Powers

William Gardner Smith wrote the story of a Black writer who, like Smith himself, moved to Paris to pursue a freedom he couldn't find in America. New York Review Books is releasing a new edition.

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Clash, by Kayla Miller, Something Stinks! by Jonathan Fenske, and Maya and the Robot, by Eve L. Ewing

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These 3 Books Will Help Your Kids Get Over Their Summer Reading Blues

7:00am July 29, 2021

by Juanita Giles

You don't have to be an Olympian to hit a wall — by late July, nothing's exciting anymore, not even the blow-up pool. We've got three books that can help your kids get their reading groove back.

Books
Arts

David Bowie, Travis Scott Inspired The Poems In This New Collection

6:15am July 29, 2021

by Jeevika Verma

Poet Adrian Matejka used to be a DJ — and when he got stuck in pandemic-induced misery, it was music that lifted him up and helped him finish writing his latest book, Somebody Else Sold the World.

Books
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August Book-Ahead: What We're Excited To Read Next Month

5:00am July 28, 2021

by Petra Mayer

August can sometimes be a stretch of the doldrums when it comes to publishing — but this month there are so many fascinating books on the horizon, we added an extra to our usual list of five.

Dr. Leana Wen is in favor of COVID-19 vaccine mandates. "I don't think that people should have the choice to infect others with a potentially fatal and extremely contagious virus," she says. Wen is pictured above in the emergency department at Brigham and

Think Of Your COVID-19 Vaccine Like A Very Good Raincoat, Says Dr. Leana Wen

2:34pm July 27, 2021

by Terry Gross

It protects from drizzles and thunderstorms but not a hurricane. In other words, if you are exposed again and again to infected people, there's some risk you could get sick.

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One Woman Takes A 'Wayward' Approach To Menopause In This Smart New Novel

2:24pm July 27, 2021

by Maureen Corrigan

Messy and floundering in late midlife, Dana Spiotta's heroine is roiling — along with the rest of the country — amid the 2016 election and the rise of the #MeToo and Black Lives Matter movements.