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NPR's Book of the Day - ‘South To America’ makes the case that southern history shaped our nation

Author Imani Perry is a child of the South. In her newest book South to America: A Journey Below the Mason-Dixon to Understand the Soul of a Nation, she gives the reader a look at the South's complicated history, interwoven with her own personal anecdotes. Even though the South has a difficult history, Perry contends, it provides important context for America today. Perry told NPR's Mary Louise Kelly that in order to write this book she had to stop romanticizing the place she calls home – and, instead, look at it starkly.
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Consider This from NPR - Along The Russian Border, Some Ukrainians Already Live With War

The world is watching as Russia continues it's threat of invasion with troops at the border of Ukraine. But close to that border, in the Donbas region, people look at you a little funny if you ask whether they're worried about war with Russia, because they are already living through it.

Areas of Eastern Ukraine have been at war since 2014 when Russia-backed separatists moved in and declared breakaway republics. And that's where NPR's Mary Louise Kelly has been, talking with residents about what this new threat might mean for them.

In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.

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NPR's Book of the Day - Enslaved people imagine freedom and beyond in ‘Yonder’

Author Jabari Asim is out with a new novel called Yonder. The story follows a group of enslaved men and women who are forced to work on a plantation by day but dream together about freedom – and what's beyond the world they know – at night. Asim told NPR's Sacha Pfeiffer that he always writes with his ancestors looking over his shoulder: "I feel like I have a responsibility to honor that legacy of labor and sacrifice by doing the best I can and to take what it is that I do very seriously."
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Short Wave - Omicron Ebbing Gives Time to Boost Vaccinations

As COVID-19 cases in the U.S. drop, the hospitalization rate remains high — as does the death rate. Experts say getting a COVID vaccine booster is key to maintaining immunity, but only about half of all vaccinated people in the U.S. have gotten the booster, which increases protection against both serious illness and death from the Omicron variant. Still, many infectious disease experts are cautiously optimistic for the coming months, pointing to it as a time to bolster our defenses against the virus.

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Consider This from NPR - Old Tactics Are Being Used To Find New Extremists

Before he took office, President Joe Biden said stopping domestic extremism would be a priority for him. His administration has now created the Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships to stop radicalization before it starts. But critics say it's a repackaging of failed strategies and inadequate.

NPR correspondent Odette Yousef has been reporting on the efforts of this new program built on old strategies.

In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.

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Short Wave - ‘Station Eleven’: A Home At The End Of The World

Today we're bringing you an episode from our friends at NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour.

They review the new HBO Max miniseries Station Eleven, based on the 2014 novel by author Emily St. John Mandel. The show's premise might sound eerily familiar: it begins with a highly contagious and deadly virus wiping out most of the world's population. The show then follows survivors through the pandemic's aftermath, as they decide how to rebuild what they've lost.

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NPR's Book of the Day - Struggling with burnout? Author Jonathan Malesic might be able to help

After getting his Ph.D., writer Jonathan Malesic struck out in this search for an academic job, so he took a position as a parking attendant across the street from his alma mater. He's had a myriad of jobs since then but Malesic told NPR's Michel Martin that he's never been happier because he was able to maintain such a stark work-life balance. Malesic's new book, The End of Burnout: Why Work Drains Us and How to Build Better Lives, is about how to maintain that balance in any job. And he reminds us that even your dream job is still just a job.
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Consider This from NPR - Reframing The Minimalist Lifestyle

Minimalist lifestyles are in vogue. From books to blogs, to Instagram to YouTube, Marie Kondo and other influencers have popularized living with less.

But many of the dominant voices ignore the ways history and culture influence how and why we consume.

Enter Christine Platt, The Afrominimalist.

Platt is a lifestyle strategist and author of The Afrominimalist's Guide To Living With Less. She examines how a history of oppression shapes a community's views on ownership and consumption.

In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.

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Consider This from NPR - The Omicron Wave Is Receding. What Happens Now?

Cases rates are dropping, but the number of people dying each day is not. Many hospitals are still overwhelmed. NPR's Will Stone reports.

Deaths are a lagging indicator — meaning they, too, will soon fall as the omicron wave continues to recede. What does the next phase of the pandemic look like? NPR's Allison Aubrey explains why some public health experts think the coronavirus may not disappear — but become easier to live with.

In the meantime, workplaces are still reeling from the surge as employees call out sick or must quarantine. NPR's Andrea Hsu says it's even worse than last winter's pre-vaccine surge.

In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.

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