Fresh Air
Book Recommendations

Fresh Air

Fresh Air from WHYY, the Peabody Award-winning weekday magazine of contemporary arts and issues, is one of public radio's most popular programs. Hosted by Terry Gross and Tonya Mosley, the show features intimate conversations with today's biggest luminaries. Subscribe to Fresh Air Plus! You'll enjoy...

Episodes 879
Books 1,286

Recently mentioned

Latest Recommendations

The Alchemist - Gift Edition cover

The Alchemist - Gift Edition

Paulo Coelho

Mentioned 3 months ago

Malala Yousafzai

Malala mentioned reading The Alchemist as one of the few books she had access to as a teenager, expressing pride in having read it.

I read The Alchemist, and like one or two other books like that, and I was so proud of myself.

Buy on Amazon
I Wasn't Supposed to Be Here: Finding My Voice, Finding My People, Finding My Way cover

I Wasn't Supposed to Be Here

Jonathan Conyers

Mentioned 3 months ago

Malala Yousafzai

The memoir was highlighted as the source that revealed how the bullet altered Malala's life and continued her journey, and it was repeatedly referenced as her recent book throughout the interview.

It's when I read her recent memoir, Finding My Way, that I learned how the bullet changed the course of her life, thrusting her into a new culture and changing her in ways that didn't quite fit her public image as an inspirational hero.

Buy on Amazon
Defiance: A Memoir of Awakening, Rebellion, and Survival in Syria cover

Defiance

Loubna Mrie

Mentioned 5 months ago

A daughter's rebellion against a regime and her father

This memoir detailed the author's awakening, rebellion against the Syrian regime, and her survival in the country. The interviewer found the toxic family dynamics within the book to be familiar, while also noting how thoroughly the author documented the country falling apart.

Lubna Murai's new book is called Defiance, a memoir of awakening, rebellion, and survival in Syria.

Buy on Amazon
Here We Are: Notes for Living on Planet Earth cover

Here We Are

Oliver Jeffers

Mentioned 5 months ago

A daughter's rebellion against a regime and her father

This was mentioned as the migrant memoir written by the guest interviewer, Aarti Shahani, which was about fighting ICE to protect her father.

You may have also heard her interviews on her podcast, Art of Power, or read her migrant memoir, which is about fighting ice to protect her father. It's called Here We Are.

Buy on Amazon
The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together cover

The Sum of Us

Heather McGhee

Mentioned 5 months ago

Best Of: Mixed Marriage Project / How Racism Costs Everyone

Heather McGhee's book examines why many Americans believe progress for one group signifies loss for another, tracing how the country has chosen to destroy public goods rather than share them. The author argued that racism hurts everyone, including white Americans, by costing the country significant GDP, and presented the book as both a diagnosis and a way out.

Her book, 'The Sum of Us,' examines a question at the heart of American life: Why do so many Americans believe that progress for one group means loss for another?

Buy on Amazon
Torn Apart: How the Child Welfare System Destroys Black Families--and How Abolition Can Build a Safer World cover

Torn Apart

Dorothy Roberts

Mentioned 5 months ago

Best Of: Mixed Marriage Project / How Racism Costs Everyone

This was one of Dorothy Roberts' landmark books that helped reshape how the policing of reproduction, parenting, and race in America was understood.

Her landmark books, Killing the Black Body and Torn Apart, helped reshape how we understand the policing of reproduction, parenting, and race in America.

Buy on Amazon
The Mixed Marriage Project: A Memoir of Love, Race, and Family cover

The Mixed Marriage Project

Dorothy Roberts

Mentioned 5 months ago

Best Of: Mixed Marriage Project / How Racism Costs Everyone

This is Dorothy Roberts' memoir which she wrote after discovering boxes of her late father's research interviews with interracial couples dating back to the 1930s. The discovery challenged her lifelong assumption that her father's research was inspired by his marriage to her Black Jamaican mother. She realized her father's interest in interracial marriage predated his relationship with her mother, leading her to write a book exploring her family and identity instead of just finishing his sociological work.

The memoir is called 'The Mixed Marriage Project.'

Buy on Amazon
Black Power: The politics of liberation in America, cover

Black Power

Stokely Carmichael (Kwame Ture)

Mentioned 5 months ago

Best Of: Mixed Marriage Project / How Racism Costs Everyone

Dorothy Roberts read this book in the seventh grade, which caused her to begin developing a different perspective than her father regarding structural racism and the power of interracial love to transcend it.

And I do believe that beginning at that young age, I recognized the power of structural racism and could not accept his view that interracial love by itself would be strong enough to transcend it or overcome it or dismantle it. And so from that time on, we began to have debates about it.

Buy on Amazon
Wuthering Heights cover

Wuthering Heights

Emily Brontë

Mentioned 5 months ago

‘Sinners’ Songwriter Raphael Saadiq

The novel was highlighted as a classic that has been adapted many times for the screen, with the latest film version starring Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi.

Emily Bronte's 1847 novel, Wuthering Heights, has been adapted for the screen numerous times. The latest version stars Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi as Bronte's ill-fated lovers, Catherine and Heathcliff, and opens in theaters this week.

Buy on Amazon
American Struggle: Democracy, Dissent, and the Pursuit of a More Perfect Union: An Anthology cover

American Struggle

Jon Meacham

Mentioned 5 months ago

‘Sinners’ Songwriter Raphael Saadiq

The book was noted as a new collection of important speeches, letters, and other texts spanning from colonial times to today.

His new book, American Struggle, is a collection of important speeches, letters, and other texts from colonial times to today.

Buy on Amazon
Fatal Invention: How Science, Politics, and Big Business Re-create Race in the Twenty-First Century cover

Fatal Invention

Dorothy Roberts

Mentioned 5 months ago

Love, Race & the ‘Mixed Marriage Project’

The host referenced it as Roberts's 2011 book that argues race is a political construct.

You know, your 2011 book, Fatal Invention, I want to talk about it just for a moment in the context of this work, because you argued that race is a political category, something Europeans invented to oppress other groups.

Buy on Amazon
Fear and Fury: The Reagan Eighties, the Bernie Goetz Shootings, and the Rebirth of White Rage cover

Fear and Fury

Heather Ann Thompson

Mentioned 5 months ago

Best Of: Fighting for free press in Russia / ‘Fear and Fury’

This book revisited the 1984 New York City subway shooting involving Bernhard Goetz and four Black teenagers. The historian argued the case marked a political turning point where white racial fear was sanctioned by law and leveraged by elites. The book explored fear as a powerful force in American life, capable of shaping policy and excusing violence.

We are watching someone tell us exactly who they are, exactly what they did, and it will not matter. Up will become down, down will become up. And that also felt very, very familiar to where we are today.

Buy on Amazon

Most Recommended

Something Wonderful Cover

Matt Ritter

Something Wonderful

The title was listed among the author's earlier works, indicating it is a published book by the same writer.

"

He's the author of the previous books, Something Wonderful, Rogers and Hammerstein's Broadway Revolution, and An Idea Whose Time Has Come, Two Presidents, Two Parties, and the Battle...

— Episode: With 'I Love Lucy,' Desi Arnaz Changed T...

Listen on Audible 7-day free trial

Episode: With 'I Love Lucy,' Desi Arnaz Changed TV Forever

The title was listed among the author's earlier works, indicating it is a published book by the same writer.

"

He's the author of the previous books, Something Wonderful, Rogers and Hammerstein's Broadway Revolution, and An Idea Whose Time Has Come, Two Presidents, Two Parties, and the Battle for the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Something Wonderful: Rodgers and Hammerstein's Broadway Revolution Cover

Todd S. Purdum

Something Wonderful

Rodgers and Hammerstein's Broadway Revolution

Mentioned as one of the author's previous publications, showing it is a distinct paperback/hardcover work.

"

He's the author of the previous books, Something Wonderful, Rogers and Hammerstein's Broadway Revolution, and An Idea Whose Time Has Come, Two Presidents, Two Parties, and the Battle...

— Episode: With 'I Love Lucy,' Desi Arnaz Changed T...

Listen on Audible 7-day free trial

Episode: With 'I Love Lucy,' Desi Arnaz Changed TV Forever

Mentioned as one of the author's previous publications, showing it is a distinct paperback/hardcover work.

"

He's the author of the previous books, Something Wonderful, Rogers and Hammerstein's Broadway Revolution, and An Idea Whose Time Has Come, Two Presidents, Two Parties, and the Battle for the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Idea Whose Time Has Come Cover

Todd S Purdum

Idea Whose Time Has Come

Cited as another prior book by the guest, confirming its status as a published title.

"

He's the author of the previous books, Something Wonderful, Rogers and Hammerstein's Broadway Revolution, and An Idea Whose Time Has Come, Two Presidents, Two Parties, and the Battle...

— Episode: With 'I Love Lucy,' Desi Arnaz Changed T...

Listen on Audible 7-day free trial

Episode: With 'I Love Lucy,' Desi Arnaz Changed TV Forever

Cited as another prior book by the guest, confirming its status as a published title.

"

He's the author of the previous books, Something Wonderful, Rogers and Hammerstein's Broadway Revolution, and An Idea Whose Time Has Come, Two Presidents, Two Parties, and the Battle for the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

An Idea Whose Time Has Come: Two Presidents, Two Parties, and the Battle for the Civil Rights Act of 1964 Cover

Todd S. Purdum

An Idea Whose Time Has Come

Two Presidents, Two Parties, and the Battle for the Civil Rights Act of 1964

Listed among the guest's earlier works, indicating it is a separate published volume.

"

He's the author of the previous books, Something Wonderful, Rogers and Hammerstein's Broadway Revolution, and An Idea Whose Time Has Come, Two Presidents, Two Parties, and the Battle...

— Episode: With 'I Love Lucy,' Desi Arnaz Changed T...

Listen on Audible 7-day free trial

Episode: With 'I Love Lucy,' Desi Arnaz Changed TV Forever

Listed among the guest's earlier works, indicating it is a separate published volume.

"

He's the author of the previous books, Something Wonderful, Rogers and Hammerstein's Broadway Revolution, and An Idea Whose Time Has Come, Two Presidents, Two Parties, and the Battle for the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

A Book (Expanded Edition): The Outspoken Memoirs of the Man Who “Loved Lucy”―and Revolutionized Television (Exclusive New Material with Commentary by Lucie Arnaz) Cover

Desi Arnaz

A Book (Expanded Edition)

The Outspoken Memoirs of the Man Who “Loved Lucy”―and Revolutionized Television (Exclusive New Material with Commentary by Lucie Arnaz)

The book explored Desi Arnaz's role in shaping television production, highlighting his behindthescenes innovations that became industry standards.

"

On Monday's show, we talk with Todd Purdom about his new book on Desi Arnaz. Arnaz became a star playing Ricky Ricardo on I Love Lucy. Behind the scenes, though, he created what became standard proced...

— Episode: A Veteran Stunt Performer Shares Tricks...

Listen on Audible 7-day free trial

Episode: A Veteran Stunt Performer Shares Tricks Of The Tra...

The book explored Desi Arnaz's role in shaping television production, highlighting his behindthescenes innovations that became industry standards.

"

On Monday's show, we talk with Todd Purdom about his new book on Desi Arnaz. Arnaz became a star playing Ricky Ricardo on I Love Lucy. Behind the scenes, though, he created what became standard procedures for producing, shooting, lighting, and broadcasting TV sitcoms. Purdom's new book is Desi Arnaz, The Man Who Invented Television. I hope you can join us.

The #1 Dad Book: Be the Best Dad You Can Be in 1 Hour Cover

James Patterson

The #1 Dad Book

Be the Best Dad You Can Be in 1 Hour

The host noted that Patterson's new book, The Number One Dad Book, offered advice to new fathers.

"

His new book, The Number One Dad Book, is addressed to new fathers who need some advice.

— Episode: Author James Patterson On The Art Of Col...

Listen on Audible 7-day free trial

Episode: Author James Patterson On The Art Of Collaboration

The host noted that Patterson's new book, The Number One Dad Book, offered advice to new fathers.

"

His new book, The Number One Dad Book, is addressed to new fathers who need some advice.

Like, with this, the dad book, How to Be a Better Dad in One Hour, I'll talk to these various people who interview you and they go, what's the one idea? And I go, there isn't one idea.

James Patterson's latest book is the number one dad book the new novel he wrote with Bill Clinton will be published later this summer

Miracle on the 17th Green: A Novel Cover

James Patterson

Miracle on the 17th Green

A Novel

Patterson recalled that his first coauthored golf book, Miracle on the 17th Green, resulted from a conversation after a round of golf.

"

The first one actually was a little golf book and it's a guy that I knew from the advertising days. After we played golf, we just started chatting about a story that I had and we said, well, let's jus...

— Episode: Author James Patterson On The Art Of Col...

Listen on Audible 7-day free trial

Episode: Author James Patterson On The Art Of Collaboration

Patterson recalled that his first coauthored golf book, Miracle on the 17th Green, resulted from a conversation after a round of golf.

"

The first one actually was a little golf book and it's a guy that I knew from the advertising days. After we played golf, we just started chatting about a story that I had and we said, well, let's just try this. And we wrote Miracle on the 17th Green.

26 Beauties: A Women's Murder Club Thriller Cover

James Patterson

26 Beauties

A Women's Murder Club Thriller

The host cited The Women's Murder Club as one of James Patterson's hugely popular series while introducing him as the upcoming Fresh Air guest.

"

Tomorrow on Fresh Air, my guest will be writer James Patterson, who has sold more than 400 million copies of his books. That includes the Alex Cross Detective Series, The Women's Murder Club and Maxim...

— Episode: Questlove On Sly Stone And The Burden Of...

Listen on Audible 7-day free trial

Episode: Questlove On Sly Stone And The Burden Of Black Gen...

The host cited The Women's Murder Club as one of James Patterson's hugely popular series while introducing him as the upcoming Fresh Air guest.

"

Tomorrow on Fresh Air, my guest will be writer James Patterson, who has sold more than 400 million copies of his books. That includes the Alex Cross Detective Series, The Women's Murder Club and Maximum Ride.

On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous: A Novel Cover

Ocean Vuong

On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous

A Novel

Maureen Corrigan cited it as Vuong's celebrated 2019 debut that made her silently pledge to follow his writing wherever it goes.

"

Ocean Vuong's 2019 debut novel, On Earth, We're Briefly Gorgeous, was one of those novels that made me silently pledge, I'll follow you anywhere, whatever you write.

— Episode: Cole Escola's 'Stupid' Dream Came True W...

Listen on Audible 7-day free trial

Episode: Cole Escola's 'Stupid' Dream Came True With 'Oh, M...

Maureen Corrigan cited it as Vuong's celebrated 2019 debut that made her silently pledge to follow his writing wherever it goes.

"

Ocean Vuong's 2019 debut novel, On Earth, We're Briefly Gorgeous, was one of those novels that made me silently pledge, I'll follow you anywhere, whatever you write.

The Vagina Bible: The Vulva and the Vagina: Separating the Myth from the Medicine Cover

Dr. Jen Gunter

The Vagina Bible

The Vulva and the Vagina

Gunter's book debunked Goop's vaginal steaming claim and other health myths, providing medicallybacked explanations for women's health issues.

"

Dear God, no, Gunter wrote in her book, The Vagina Bible, I just can't even.

— Episode: Navigating The 'Wellness' Epidemic

Listen on Audible 7-day free trial

Episode: Navigating The 'Wellness' Epidemic

Gunter's book debunked Goop's vaginal steaming claim and other health myths, providing medicallybacked explanations for women's health issues.

"

Dear God, no, Gunter wrote in her book, The Vagina Bible, I just can't even.

Till Summer Do Us Part Cover

Meghan Quinn

Till Summer Do Us Part

The novel was highlighted as having been shortlisted for the International Booker Prize in 2020.

"

German born writer, Daniel Kelman was shortlisted for the International Booker Prize in 2020 for his novel Till.

— Episode: Best Of: Michelle Williams / Sarah Snook

Listen on Audible 7-day free trial

Episode: Best Of: Michelle Williams / Sarah Snook

The novel was highlighted as having been shortlisted for the International Booker Prize in 2020.

"

German born writer, Daniel Kelman was shortlisted for the International Booker Prize in 2020 for his novel Till.

The Director: A Novel Cover

Daniel Kehlmann

The Director

A Novel

His latest novel was described as being set largely in Nazi Germany and exploring questions of art and collaboration.

"

His latest novel, The Director, is set largely in Nazi Germany and raises questions about art and collaboration.

— Episode: Best Of: Michelle Williams / Sarah Snook

Listen on Audible 7-day free trial

Episode: Best Of: Michelle Williams / Sarah Snook

His latest novel was described as being set largely in Nazi Germany and exploring questions of art and collaboration.

"

His latest novel, The Director, is set largely in Nazi Germany and raises questions about art and collaboration.

Crumb: A Cartoonist's Life Cover

Dan Nadel

Crumb

A Cartoonist's Life

The biography was announced as a new release by Dan Nadel documenting R. Crumb's life.

"

A new biography of R. Crumb is out by Dan Nadel called Crumb, A Cartoonist's Life.

— Episode: R. Crumb, King Of Underground Comics

Listen on Audible 7-day free trial

Episode: R. Crumb, King Of Underground Comics

The biography was announced as a new release by Dan Nadel documenting R. Crumb's life.

"

A new biography of R. Crumb is out by Dan Nadel called Crumb, A Cartoonist's Life.

The Director: A Novel Cover

Daniel Kehlmann

The Director

A Novel

It was a historical novel set in Nazi Germany that examined the moral compromises of artists under totalitarian rule.

"

German-born writer Daniel Kelman was shortlisted for the International Booker Prize in 2020 for his novel Till. His latest novel, The Director, is largely set in Nazi Germany and rais...

— Episode: Having A Child In The Digital Age

Listen on Audible 7-day free trial

Episode: Having A Child In The Digital Age

It was a historical novel set in Nazi Germany that examined the moral compromises of artists under totalitarian rule.

"

German-born writer Daniel Kelman was shortlisted for the International Booker Prize in 2020 for his novel Till. His latest novel, The Director, is largely set in Nazi Germany and raises questions about art and collaboration.

In the German legend, Faust signs a contract... In Daniel Kelman's new novel, The Director, the demonic dealmaking is murkier, more drawn out.

Till Summer Do Us Part Cover

Meghan Quinn

Till Summer Do Us Part

It was a novel that earned a shortlist nomination for the International Booker Prize in 2020.

"

German-born writer Daniel Kelman was shortlisted for the International Booker Prize in 2020 for his novel Till.

— Episode: Having A Child In The Digital Age

Listen on Audible 7-day free trial

Episode: Having A Child In The Digital Age

It was a novel that earned a shortlist nomination for the International Booker Prize in 2020.

"

German-born writer Daniel Kelman was shortlisted for the International Booker Prize in 2020 for his novel Till.

Fantastic Four: Full Circle: A Graphic Novel (Marvel Arts) Cover

Alex Ross

Fantastic Four

Full Circle

It was mentioned as the first Danielle Steel novel Burke read, remembered for its salmonpink cover.

"

Full Circle was the first book of hers that I read and it was like a salmon pink cover and that was what I was reading.

— Episode: Best Of: Inside The Pronatalist Movement...

Listen on Audible 7-day free trial

Episode: Best Of: Inside The Pronatalist Movement / Making...

It was mentioned as the first Danielle Steel novel Burke read, remembered for its salmonpink cover.

"

Full Circle was the first book of hers that I read and it was like a salmon pink cover and that was what I was reading.

The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder Cover

David Grann

The Wager

A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder

The book was presented as a new nonfiction account of an 18thcentury British warship's wreck, mutiny and murder, and was noted to be available in paperback.

"

His nonfiction book The Wager, now out in paperback, is no exception.

— Episode: A Story Of Shipwreck, Mutiny And Murder

Listen on Audible 7-day free trial

Episode: A Story Of Shipwreck, Mutiny And Murder

The book was presented as a new nonfiction account of an 18thcentury British warship's wreck, mutiny and murder, and was noted to be available in paperback.

"

His nonfiction book The Wager, now out in paperback, is no exception.

David Grand writes about this harrowing journey in his new book, The Wager, a tale of shipwreck, mutiny, and murder.

His book, The Wager, a tale of shipwreck, mutiny, and murder is now out in paperback.

The book is called The Wager, a tale of shipwreck, mutiny, and murder.

Grand's book, now out in paperback, is called The Wager, a tale of shipwreck, mutiny, and murder.

The History of the Blues Cover

Francis Davis

The History of the Blues

The book was written as a companion to a PBS series that never aired, and Francis completed it while seriously ill, later promoting it on live TV.

"

He was asked to write the companion book. He wrote the book, but the series was never completed and never broadcast. The status of the series and how it would affect the book was very stressinducing,...

— Episode: Terry Gross Remembers Her Late Husband,...

Listen on Audible 7-day free trial

Episode: Terry Gross Remembers Her Late Husband, Francis Da...

The book was written as a companion to a PBS series that never aired, and Francis completed it while seriously ill, later promoting it on live TV.

"

He was asked to write the companion book. He wrote the book, but the series was never completed and never broadcast. The status of the series and how it would affect the book was very stressinducing, and that was in addition to the pressure of writing the book.

Here's a passage from the 1995 book The History of the Blues, the book that Francis handed in before the hospital. The passage is about blind Willie Johnson...

After Francis' blues book was published, he received a confounding invitation to sell the book live on TV on the cable home shopping network QVC.

The Project: How Project 2025 Is Reshaping America Cover

David A. Graham

The Project

How Project 2025 Is Reshaping America

David Graham authored The Project, How Project 2025 is Reshaping America, which examined the origins, authors, and policy proposals of the extensive Project 2025 report.

"

David Graham is a staff writer at The Atlantic. His new book is The Project, How Project 2025 is Reshaping America.

— Episode: How Project 2025 Is Reshaping America

Listen on Audible 7-day free trial

Episode: How Project 2025 Is Reshaping America

David Graham authored The Project, How Project 2025 is Reshaping America, which examined the origins, authors, and policy proposals of the extensive Project 2025 report.

"

David Graham is a staff writer at The Atlantic. His new book is The Project, How Project 2025 is Reshaping America.

Our guest, journalist David Graham, has a new book about the origins, authors, and policy proposals of the more than 900page report The Project produced.

He's a staff writer for The Atlantic. His new book is The Project, How Project 2025 is Reshaping America.

These days, there is a lot of news. ... David Graham ... His new book is The Project, How Project 2025 is Reshaping America.

The Golden Hour: A WWII Espionage Epic of Murder, Royal Treason, and Scandal in Nassau Cover

Beatriz Williams

The Golden Hour

A WWII Espionage Epic of Murder, Royal Treason, and Scandal in Nassau

The book was presented as a familyandpower saga that explores Hollywood's evolution since the 1950s, mixing cultural criticism with memoir.

"

In his new book, The Golden Hour, a story of family and power in Hollywood, he uses his parents' lives, and his own, to explore how the movies and America have changed since the 1950s...

— Episode: How Trauma Shapes Us

Listen on Audible 7-day free trial

Episode: How Trauma Shapes Us

The book was presented as a familyandpower saga that explores Hollywood's evolution since the 1950s, mixing cultural criticism with memoir.

"

In his new book, The Golden Hour, a story of family and power in Hollywood, he uses his parents' lives, and his own, to explore how the movies and America have changed since the 1950s.

You find that in The Golden Hour, a story of family and power in Hollywood, a new book by Matthew Spector.

This isn't a tellall, pity party, or diatribe. Mixing things up with the brio of an expert bartender, Spector serves an invigorating cocktail of family saga, cultural criticism, fictionalized biography, Hollywood history, and lament for a vanishing world.

Note: The book recommendations on this page are discovered automatically from podcast transcripts, and may be incorrect or incomplete.