NBN Book of the Day

NBN Book of the Day

episodes

One book selected daily from those published on the New Books Network.

Kate Brown, "Tiny Gardens Everywhere: The Past, Present and Future of the Self-Provisioning City" (W. W. Norton, 2026)

May 19, 2026

Tiny Gardens Everywhere

Kate Brown
Hosted by Michael Stauch

Kate Brown, Distinguished Professor in the History of Science at MIT joins Michael Stauch to discuss her new book Tiny Gardens Everywhere: The Past, P…

Evan N. Dawley, "Taiwan: A People′s History" (Reaktion Books, 2026)

May 18, 2026

Taiwan

Evan N. Dawley
Hosted by Miranda Melcher

While most English-language histories of Taiwan focus on its geopolitical role, Taiwan: A People’s History (Reaktion, 2026) by Dr. Evan N. Dawley cent…

Drew M. Dalton, "The Matter of Evil: From Speculative Realism to Ethical Pessimism" (Northwestern UP, 2024)

May 17, 2026

The Matter of Evil

Drew M. Dalton

Most of us today would assume that morality and ethics, being value propositions, are questions for inspired leaders, religious creeds, poets—in other…

Tara Mulder, "A Womb of One's Own: Lost Histories of Childbirth in Ancient Rome" (U California Press, 2026)

May 16, 2026

A Womb of One's Own

Tara Mulder
Hosted by Miranda Melcher

In the well-trod history of the Roman Empire, a pivotal moment has long gone unnoticed: It was in ancient Rome that medical men first set their sights…

Silvia Danielak, "Peace Infrastructures: How UN Peace Operations Build Roads, Bridges, and Solar Farms in the Pursuit of Sustainability" (MIT Press, 2026)

May 15, 2026

Peace Infrastructures

Silvia Danielak
Hosted by Miranda Melcher

Roads, bridges, a renewable power plant, and an electricity grid: UN peacekeepers might be unusual infrastructure builders, but they’re certainly not …

Caroline Bicks, "Monsters in the Archives: My Year of Fear with Stephen King" (Hogarth, 2026)

May 14, 2026

Monsters in the Archives

Caroline Bicks
Hosted by Pamela Brown

My guest is Caroline Bicks, whose new book Monsters in the Archives: My Year of Fear with Stephen King (Hogarth, 2026) became a bestseller shortly aft…

Kira Ganga Kieffer, "Unvaccinated Under God: Religion and Vaccine Hesitancy in Modern America" (Princeton UP, 2026)

May 13, 2026

Unvaccinated Under God

Kira Ganga Kieffer
Hosted by Gregory Soden

Kira Ganga Kieffer is a scholar of American religions, history, culture, and politics with a PhD in Religious Studies from Boston University. She is…

Benjamin Robert Siegel, "Markets of Pain: Opium, Capitalism, and the Global History of Painkillers" (Oxford UP, 2026)

May 12, 2026

Markets of Pain

Benjamin Robert Siegel
Hosted by Tom Sojka

Markets of Pain offers a sweeping history of the business of licit opium--following cultivators, merchants, scientists, and policymakers--and shows ho…

Young People and Democracy in Africa: Between Engagement and Disillusionment

May 11, 2026

Young People and Democracy in Africa

Cynthia Mbamalu
Hosted by Temitayo Odeyemi

What explains the growing tension between young people and democracy in Africa? Why are some increasingly frustrated, disengaged, or even open to auth…

Rachel Grace Newman, "The Future in Their Hands: Making Mexico's Foreign-Educated Elite" (U California Press, 2026)

May 10, 2026

The Future in Their Hands

Rachel Grace Newman
Hosted by Miranda Melcher

The Future in Their Hands: Making Mexico's Foreign-Educated Elite (U California Press, 2026), by Dr. Rachel Grace Newman is a deep history of the poli…

Olivier Sylvain, "Recovering the Internet: How Big Tech Took Control-And How We Can Take It Back" (Columbia Global Reports, 2026)

May 9, 2026

Recovering the Internet

Olivier Sylvain
Hosted by Jake Chanenson

Recovering the Internet: How Big Tech Took Control-And How We Can Take It Back (Columbia Global Reports, 2026)is an indictment of how Big Tech cloaks …

Julia Bowes, "Every Man's Home a Castle: Parental Rights and the Makings of Modern Conservatism" (Princeton UP, 2026)

May 8, 2026

Every Man's Home a Castle

Julia Bowes
Hosted by Miranda Melcher

“Parental rights” is a rallying cry for today’s American conservatives, signaling opposition to mandatory vaccination and “woke” public school curricu…

Claudia Goldin, "Career and Family: Women’s Century-Long Journey toward Equity" (Princeton UP, 2021)

May 6, 2026

Career and Family

Claudia Goldin
Hosted by Marshall Poe

A century ago, it was a given that a woman with a college degree had to choose between having a career and a family. Today, there are more female coll…

J. Michael Cole, "The Taiwan Tinderbox: The Island-Nation at the Centre of the New Cold War" (Polity, 2025)

May 6, 2026

The Taiwan Tinderbox

J. Michael Cole
Hosted by Anthony Kao

J. Michael Cole is a Taipei-based security analyst and writer who has spent over two decades documenting Taiwan’s political and security landscape. A …

William Stell, "Born Again Queer: A History of Evangelical Gay Activism and the Making of Antigay Christianity" (Princeton UP, 2026)

May 5, 2026

Born Again Queer

William Stell
Hosted by Jacob Barrett

Evangelicals claim that their opposition to homosexuality is an inherent feature of their faith, rooted in their unchanging beliefs about the Bible. M…

Nicholas Thompson, "The Running Ground: A Father, a Son, and the Simplest of Sports" (Random House, 2025)

May 4, 2026

The Running Ground

Nicholas Thompson

In this episode, Nicholas Thompson, CEO of The Atlantic, and University of Puerto Rico professors Jeffrey Herlihy-Mera and Maritza Stanchich, discuss …

Michelle P. Brown, "Illumino: A History of Medieval Britain in Twelve Illuminated Manuscripts" (Reaktion, 2025)

May 3, 2026

Illumino

Michelle P. Brown

The history of medieval Britain through twelve remarkable illuminated manuscripts. Illumino: A History of Medieval Britain in Twelve Illuminated Manu…

Katie Batza, "AIDS in the Heartland: How Unlikely Coalitions Created a Blueprint for LGBTQ Politics" (UNC Press, 2025)

May 2, 2026

AIDS in the Heartland

Katie Batza
Hosted by Donna Anderson

This episode features a conversation with Dr. Katie Batza on their recently published book, AIDS in the Heartland: How Unlikely Coalitions Created a B…

Caroline Kuzemko, "Climate Politics: Can't Live with It, Can't Mitigate without It" (Cambridge UP, 2026)

May 1, 2026

Climate Politics

Caroline Kuzemko
Hosted by Stephen Pimpare

By exploring the dynamic relationships between politics, policymaking, and policy over time, Climate Politics: Can't Live with It, Can't Mitigate with…

Samira K. Mehta, "God Bless the Pill: The Surprising History of Contraception and Sexuality in American Religion" (UNC Press, 2026)

April 30, 2026

God Bless the Pill

Samira K. Mehta
Hosted by Miranda Melcher

Most people today understand contraception as central to women’s liberation, and when the birth control pill arrived in 1960, the media thought it wou…