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In need of a good read? Or just want to keep up with the books everyone's talking about? NPR's Book of the Day gives you today's very best writing in a snackable, skimmable, pocket-sized podcast. Whether you're looking to engage with the big questions of our times – or temporarily escape from them – we've got an author who will speak to you, all genres, mood and writing styles included. Catch today's great books in 15 minutes or less.

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NPR's Book of the Day

In 1988, a group of gay men gathered in Kingston, Jamaica to put on a play. At the time, homophobia in the country was rampant and sex between men was outlawed. Marlon James’ new novel The Disappearers is about a hateful mob attack at one of the group’s rehearsals. In an interview with All Things Considered’s Juana Summers, James said “this attack in the book was based on an incident which I knew in my gut happened. I just couldn’t prove it.” In today’s episode, Summers and James discuss the untrustworthy quality of official records and the author’s views on writing about violence.

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Marlon James' novel 'The Disappearers' chronicles the aftermath of a violent attack

On today’s show, we mark the 25th anniversary of Sept. 11 with two books that historicize the attacks. First, All the Presidents’ Wars focuses on anti-terror campaigns waged around the world over the past quarter century. Author Peter Bergen spoke with Morning Edition’s Steve Inskeep about the expansion of executive branch powers that have enabled these wars. Then, Scattered Steel investigates how material from the World Trade Center ended up in memorials across the country. All Things Considered’s Scott Detrow spoke with Sam Holleran – who co-authored the book with his brother, Max Holleran.

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Marking 25 years since Sept. 11 with 'All the Presidents' Wars' and 'Scattered Steel'

Sen. Ted Cruz’s new book isn’t a political memoir but an exploration of the life and career of Justice Clarence Thomas. In Going Further, Cruz praises Thomas as an “independent thinker” who is willing to go against the grain. And he argues the Justice has been criticized by the political left because he did not conform to what liberals expected him to be. In today’s episode, Morning Edition’s Steve Inskeep asks Cruz about his own aspirations for the Supreme Court and Thomas’ history of overturning precedent.

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Sen. Ted Cruz's new book 'Going Further' praises Justice Clarence Thomas

For author Jade Chang, the vibe of summer isn’t encapsulated at the pool or by the beach, but in time itself — “and how time kind of stops.” In today’s episode, she joins All Things Considered’s Ailsa Chang to discuss the books she recommends to help keep the summer season alive, even as fall approaches. Jade Chang recommends books like The Corn King and the Spring Queen by Naomi Mitchison and Stories of the Sahara by Taiwanese author Sanmao. Then, they discuss Jade Chang’s novel What a Time to Be Alive.

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Author Jade Chang on the books she's reading to keep summer going

Jill Lepore says our liberal democracy has been replaced by corporations and technology. But what can we do about it? In today’s episode, the historian joins Morning Edition’s Michel Martin for a conversation about her new book The Rise and Fall of the Artificial State. Lepore says she wanted to put a name to a new kind of governance she’s observed in which functions of nation states are being taken over by private interests and run by machinery. She and Martin discuss the way technology has historically maligned representative democracy – and what we can do about it.

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To combat the 'Artificial State,' Jill Lepore says to look to science fiction

After the big success of the 2014 novel Big Little Lies, which included an award-winning HBO adaptation, author Liane Moriarty says everyone kept asking her for a sequel. Now, that sequel has arrived. Big Little Truths picks up the drama between five women as their children navigate high school. Meanwhile, the school’s principal receives a troubling package. In today’s episode, Moriarty tells Here & Now’s Emiko Tamagawa about how performances by Laura Dern and Meryl Streep influenced the sequel, the author’s interest in aging, and how she still writes novels without adaptation in mind.

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Author Liane Moriarty on her long-awaited sequel to 'Big Little Lies'

As midterm elections approach, former President Joe Biden's legacy still plays a big role in the Democratic Party. Princeton historian Julian Zelizer has edited a new book called The Presidency of Joseph R. Biden, which evaluates Biden’s time in office from a historical perspective. In today’s episode, the editor talks with Here & Now’s Scott Tong about writing a first draft of history, the political polarization that surrounded the Biden years and what the lessons Democrats might have learned – and missed.

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New book evaluates President Biden's legacy as midterm elections approach

It’s 1989 in Romania and the country is living under a totalitarian regime. In the new novel Astronaut!, an 8-year-old girl craves bright colors among otherwise gray surroundings as she comes of age during the fall of the Iron Curtain. Simultaneously, a serial killer is on the loose, but the government denies any criminal activity. Instead, they blame a bear. In today’s episode, author Oana Aristide talks with Weekend Edition’s Scott Simon about communist humor and how her upbringing in Transylvania helped shape the novel.

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'Astronaut!' is a coming-of-age story set against the fall of the Iron Curtain

Thomas Mullaney is a historian at Stanford University. After his father died, Mullaney began to think about the archive he left behind: papers, documents, photos, objects and more. How We Disappear is a personal and academic history of information – and the role information plays in a naturally chaotic universe. In today’s episode, Mullaney joins Here & Now’s Peter O’Dowd for a conversation about the small pieces that form our identities, a concept historians called “original order” and why How We Disappear is really a book about entropy.

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'How We Disappear' is a Stanford historian's take on our personal archives

While on a cruise, a former college swimmer finds himself in the water, adrift alone, swimming for his life. But he isn’t sure how he got there. In Man Overboard!, 33-year-old Patrick “Kick” Kilpatrick navigates an existential reckoning while trying to stay afloat. Along the way, he reflects on his touchy relationship with his older girlfriend, grapples with darkness and finds a conversational partner in a sea turtle. In today’s episode, author Kathleen Rooney speaks with Weekend Edition’s Scott Simon about how the novel pairs a survival story with comedy.

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In 'Man Overboard!,' Kathleen Rooney approaches a life-or-death story with humor

Distinguished war correspondent Thomas Ricks analyzes how civil rights movement protesters used military principles and strategies in his new book, Waging a Good War. He explains to Steve Inskeep how although unarmed and non-violent, the discipline, training, and willingness to sacrifice everything allowed the protesters to achieve success and employ tactics rivaling those of the U.S. military. 

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'Waging a Good War' explains civil rights movement in military strategy terms

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