NPR's Book of the Day Folgen

There's an app for everything. In Kat Tang's debut novel Five-Star Stranger, there's even one that allows you to hire someone you've never met to play a role in your life, like to be best man at a wedding or pretend to be the father of a child. In today's episode, Tang speaks with NPR's Scott Simon about the titular stranger at the heart of her story, who is going around New York taking on a number of roles, and how he starts to crack as he reexamines his relationship to a woman who's hired him to pretend to be her husband – and to the girl who believes she's his daughter. 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/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

John J. Sullivan served as U.S. ambassador to Russia from 2019 to 2022. He was there during Russia's invasion of Ukraine – and he writes about that time frankly in his new memoir, Midnight in Moscow. But in today's episode, he also opens up to NPR's Mary Louise Kelly about some of the other strange, even funny moments during his service, like what it's like to sit across a table from Vladimir Putin or how difficult it is to walk into a store and buy an iPad as a diplomat in Russia. 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/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi says her new book, The Art of Power, is not a memoir. Instead, she says, it's an inside look at specific moments in American history – like the 2008 financial crisis and January 6 – and how she navigated them. In today's episode, the Speaker Emerita sits down with NPR's Mary Louise Kelly to discuss why she didn't want to run for office in the first place, how she looks back on some of the biggest decisions she's made while in power, and what role she played in President Biden's decision to step down from the 2024 race.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/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy