Today's episode highlights two books that deal with what it means to be a mom, a wife and a multi-faceted, complicated woman. First, NPR's Danielle Kurtzleben speaks with Claire Lombardo about her novel Same As It Ever Was, which jumps through different phases of protagonist Julia's life to understand her relationship with her son, her husband and an ex-best friend. Then, Danielle Kurtzleben asks Catherine Newman about Sandwich, which takes place during a family's summer vacation in Cape Cod and follows the main character Rocky finding her place between her adult children and her aging parents.
To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookoftheday
Matt Pottinger used to cover China for Reuters and The Wall Street Journal before working as a deputy national security advisor for the Trump administration. Now, he's edited a new book called The Boiling Moat: Urgent Steps to Defend Taiwan. In today's episode, Pottinger speaks with NPR's Steve Inskeep about the global fallout that could result from China annexing Taiwan and the military strategy he thinks the U.S., Australia and other countries should implement to prevent a larger conflict from breaking out.
To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookoftheday
According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the largest library in the world is the Library of Congress in Washington, DC.
The Library of Congress was originally intended to be the library of the United States Congress, but over two centuries since its founding, it has evolved to something much grander, covering almost every subject and language imaginable.
Learn more about the Library of Congress, why it was established and how it works on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily.
Marvel and Star Wars are the crown jewels of Disney’s empire. They’re the highest-grossing movie franchises in history, with devoted fan bases and expansive IP universes, but right now, both are in a bit of a slump. As Disney asked for more and more content to satisfy its business needs, the creative process suffered, and these once mighty hit-making engines have slowed down. There hasn’t been a Star Wars movie in 5 years and this year, Disney’s only releasing a single Marvel movie - ‘Deadpool and Wolverine.’
How did Disney get here? What will it take to rediscover the mojo? And how can Baby Yoda and a foul-mouthed, fourth-wall breaking Marvel character help get Disney’s IP machine pumping at the box-office again?
Before he was the director behind films like Crazy Rich Asians, In the Heights and Wicked, Jon M. Chu was a teenager in Los Altos, California, playing around with a camera and working at his parents' Chinese restaurant. That's the journey behind his new memoir, Viewfinder. And in today's episode, he speaks with another kid from Los Altos – NPR's Ailsa Chang – about how his parents' attitude towards assimilation shaped his upbringing and how they ended up supporting his dreams of making movies.
To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookoftheday
On December 29, 1170, the Archbishop of Canterbury was brutally murdered on the floor of the Canterbury Cathedral by four armed knights while preparing for his evening prayers.
The ramifications of that incident shook the country of England, its king, and the Catholic Church.
Over 850 years later, it is still remembered and remains one of the most significant events in English history.
Learn more about the murder of Thomas Becket and why and how it happened on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily.