NPR's Book of the Day Folgen

It's been nearly a month since Vladimir Putin attacked Ukraine, so we are taking another look at how we got here. First, an interview from 2014 with the late political scientist Karen Dawisha on how Putin and his cronies became so fabulously wealthy. She told NPR's Arun Rath that leveling economic sanctions would have been effective because Putin expected military action instead. Second, we have a new memoir from Marie Yovanovitch who was ousted as ambassador to Ukraine by President Trump and played a key role in his impeachment. She told NPR's Mary Louise Kelly it was a painful experience.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Romance writer Jasmine Guillory writes beautiful love stories – but that doesn't mean they aren't based in reality. Her novel Party of Two from the summer of 2020 is about a Black woman and a white man who have a meet-cute and start a casual long distance relationship. But race does have an impact on their connection because of the different ways the world has impacted them. Guillory told former NPR host Lulu Garcia-Navarro that real life couples have these conversations so her characters should too.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The nameless narrator in author Claire-Louise Bennett's new novel, Checkout 19, absolutely loves books. Their mere presence puts her at ease. But her lifelong love of reading is, in part, because she feels let down by the people around her. Bennett told NPR's Scott Simon that loving to read is amazing, but there's a danger in always living other's experiences before having some of your own.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy