Toni Morrison's Legacy

The editors at The New York Times Book Review spend almost the entire year discussing, debating and sometimes arguing about the year’s best books. We’re halfway through 2026, which means it’s time for the host Gilbert Cruz and the Book Review editors Joumana Khatib and MJ Frankli ... Show More

Today, we want to bring back an episode from our archives. It’s about a book that has real beach read vibes. There’s a lot of water. It’s a relationship drama. And it’s also a daring story of survival. “Marriage at Sea: A True Story of Love, Obsession and Shipwreck" made it onto ... Show More

If you can’t tell your Eurylochus from your Telemachus, fear not: Your primer on “The Odyssey” is here, just in time for Christopher Nolan’s new film adaptation of the 3,000-year-old epic. Madeline Miller, who reinvented “The Odyssey” in her best-selling novel “Circe,” explains w ... Show More

By the time Toni Morrison died last week, a whole generation of readers had come of age in a world where she was already a legend. So, on this week’s show, we’re talking to women about growing up with Morrison’s books—how they first discovered her work, and what it’s meant to the ... Show More

This week, Oonagh Devitt Tremblay is intrigued by the multiple voices in Sarah Moss's new memoir; and Lucy Dallas speaks to artist William Kentridge.'My Good Bright Wolf', by Sarah Moss'Self-Portrait as a Coffee-Pot', by William Kentridge, streaming on Mubi Produced by Charlotte ... Show More

Today we are celebrating Women’s History Month and looking at the pioneering writer, Toni Morrison. From her poem, ‘Someone leans near’ to her debut novel, ‘The Bluest Eye’, Susie and Gyles delve into the books, poetry, and legacy of the Nobel Literary Prize winner. We encounter ... Show More

In memory of legendary author Toni Morrison, this encore presentation of an “Oprah Winfrey Show” episode features an interview with the Nobel and Pulitzer Prize-winning author. They discusses one of Oprah’s all-time favorite books, Morrison’s “The Bluest Eye.” Oprah and Morrison ... Show More

Toni Morrison's literary and academic career was honoured with a Pulitzer Prize, Nobel Prize and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Her writing explored, celebrated, questioned and critiqued the space of black lives in America, up until her death on Monday at the age of 88. Today ... Show More

This week, we drop in on a conversation between Mary Beard and two former TLS editors; and Anne Enright joins us to talk about turning poet in her new novel.'Emperor of Rome: Ruling the ancient Roman world', by Mary Beard'Big Caesars and little Caesars: How they rise and how they ... Show More

Elissa Washuta discusses essay collection ‘White Magic’ (Tin House, April 27), which Kirkus calls “a fascinating magic trick of a memoir that illuminates a woman's search for meaning” (starred review). Then our editors offer their reading recommendations for the week, with books ... Show More

Emily Bazelon, Dan Kois, and Meghan O'Rourke discuss Alison Bechdel's comic memoir Are You My Mother?: A Comic Drama Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices 

Throughout her prolific writing career, Nell Irvin Painter has published works on such luminaries as Sojourner Truth, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Malcolm X. Her unique vantage on American history pushes the boundaries of personal narrative and academic authorship and asks readers to ... Show More