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The Book Show

The Book Show

  • Book cover for "Tell Me Everything"
    Random House
    Pulitzer Prize–winning author Elizabeth Strout’s latest, Tell Me Everything, returns to the town of Crosby, Maine, and to her beloved cast of characters as they deal with a shocking crime in their midst, forge new friendships, make difficult decisions about love, and grapple with the question, as Lucy Barton puts it, “What does anyone’s life mean?”
  • Book cover for Ken Follett's "Circle of Days"
    Grand Central Publishing
    Author Ken Follett’s career has ranged from Cold War thrillers to sweeping historical sagas, making him one of the world’s most widely read novelists. His latest work, “Circle of Days,” takes us back thousands of years to when communities on the plains of England first attempted to shape the monumental stones we now call Stonehenge.
  • Acclaimed author Kate Russo's latest, “Until Alison,” introduces us to Rachel Nardelli as she investigates the mysterious death of her childhood rival, Alison. As buried secrets resurface, Rachel is forced to confront their complicated past and her own unsettling memories.
  • Bruce Holsinger’s new novel, “Culpability,” is an emotionally charged story that asks some of the most pressing questions of our time: Who bears responsibility when tragedy strikes? How do guilt and accountability ripple through lives?
  • Jason Mott, National Book Award-winning author of “Hell of a Book,” returns with “People Like Us;” a book that confronts the invisible forces shaping our identities and our relationships. Mott now turns his lens to lives where truth is slippery, memory is contested, and the past refuses to stay buried.
  • It's the perennial question: Are we a product of how we were raised or is our identity hard wired by our genetic inheritance? These questions are explored in Sue Halpern’s new novel “What We Leave Behind.” Halpern is the author of seven books of fiction and non-fiction and scholar in residence at Middlebury College.
  • Jess Walter, the New York Times bestselling author of “Beautiful Ruins” and “The Cold Millions,” returns with “So Far Gone.” The novel centers on Rhys Kinnick, a reclusive journalist forced back into the world to rescue his kidnapped grandchildren and find his missing daughter.
  • Celebrated cartoonist and “Fun Home” author Alison Bechdel returns with “Spent: A Comic Novel,” a sharp, funny, and self-aware look at art, aging, and the absurdity of success. Set on a goat farm in Vermont, Bechdel (both author and character) grapples with writer’s block, late-stage capitalism, and the unintended consequences of cultural fame.
  • Gary Shteyngart’s latest novel, “Vera, or Faith,” is set in a near-future America wrestling with authoritarian politics and cultural anxiety. The story is told through the eyes of 10-year-old Vera - a sharp, observant child navigating a fractured family and a society teetering on the edge.
  • In his latest biography, “Mark Twain,” Ron Chernow brings to life the man known as the father of American literature, Mark Twain. Chernow peels back the layers of this complex figure, showing us the man behind classics like “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” and “The Innocents Abroad.”
  • In his latest novel, “The River Is Waiting,” Wally Lamb gives us a story about one man’s fall and uncertain redemption. Corby Ledbetter, a married, father of twins, makes a tragic mistake that sends him to prison and shatters his family. Behind bars, he faces the consequences of addiction, grief, and guilt—while searching for a path to forgiveness.
  • In the book "The Spirit of Philadelphia," former Congressman Chris Gibson explores the concept of the social state and its potential for renewal in contemporary society. Joe Donahue spoke with Chris Gibson in a WAMC on the Road event at Kinderhook Books in Kinderhook, New York on June 18, 2025. Find out about Gibson's future book events here.