RTB Radio News
Chautauqua
Monday – Friday 6:00 a.m.
How the World Eats – Nonfiction by Julian Baggini, 2025. An exploration of how we grow, make, buy, and eat our food around the world—and a proposal for a global philosophy of food. Read by Yelva Lynfield. 21 broadcasts; began Tuesday, February 24. Listen to a promo of How the World Eats.
The Ultimate Hidden Truth of the World – Nonfiction by David Graeber, 2025. Essays on politics, culture, and economics by the late anthropologist and activist. Read by Lannois Neely. 16 broadcasts; begins Wednesday, March 25. – L. Listen to a promo of The Ultimate Hidden Truth of the World.
Past is Prologue
Monday - Friday 11:00 a.m.
Tudor England – Nonfiction by Lucy Wooding, 2023. A compelling, authoritative account of the brilliant, conflicted, visionary world of Tudor England. Read by Eileen Barratt. 30 broadcasts; began Monday, February 2. Listen to a promo of Tudor England.
Iron and Blood – Nonfiction by Peter H. Wilson, 2023. A masterful, landmark reappraisal of German military history, and of the preconceptions about German militarism since before the rise of Prussia and the world wars. Read by Charles Gould. 42 broadcasts; begins Monday, March 16. Listen to a promo of Iron and Blood.
Bookworm
Monday – Friday 12:00 p.m.
Buckeye – Fiction by Patrick Ryan, 2025. An earnest and empathetic family drama that weaves the intimate lives of two midwestern families across generations, from World War II to the late twentieth century. Read by Carol McPherson. 18 broadcasts; begins Monday, March 2. Listen to a promo of Buckeye.
A Lesser Light – Fiction by Peter Geye, 2025. A piercing story of selfhood and determinism as a loveless marriage runs aground on the rocky shores of Lake Superior. Read by Rick Seime. 19 broadcasts; begins Thursday, March 26. Listen to a promo of A Lesser Light.
The Writer's Voice
Monday - Friday 1:00 p.m.
F. Scott Fitzgerald: A Composite Biography – Nonfiction edited by Niklas Salmose and David Rennie, 2024. A comprehensive study of the life of F. Scott Fitzgerald, related in two-year chapters by twenty-three leading writers on the Jazz Age author. Read by Greg Olson. 15 broadcasts; began Tuesday, February 10. Listen to a promo of F. Scott Fitzgerald: A Composite Biography.
Eminent Jews – Nonfiction by David Denby, 2025. Leonard Bernstein, Mel Brooks, Betty Friedan, and Norman Mailer. Brilliant, brash, yet soulful, they were 100 percent Jewish and 100 percent American. They upended the restrained culture of their forebears and changed American life. Read by Yelva Lynfield. 25 broadcasts; begins Tuesday, March 3. Listen to a promo of Eminent Jews.
Choice Reading
Monday - Friday 2:00 p.m.
Bad Nature – Fiction by Ariel Courage, 2025. Armed with a terminal diagnosis, a grudge, and a rental car, Hester sets out to fulfill her lifelong dream of killing her father in this brilliantly subversive and bleakly funny debut novel. Read by Therese Murray. 10 broadcasts; begins Monday, March 2. – L, S. Listen to a promo of Bad Nature.
Mothers and Sons – Fiction by Adam Haslet, 2025. A mother and son, estranged for years, must grapple with the shared secret that drove their lives apart in this enthralling story about family, forgiveness, and how a fleeting act of violence can change a life forever. Read by Andrea Bell. 12 broadcasts; begins Monday, March 16. – L, S. Listen to a promo of Mothers and Sons.
Afternoon Report
Monday – Friday 4:00 p.m.
Charlottesville – Nonfiction by Deborah Baker, 2025. An in-depth history of the murderous white supremacist march on the Virginia city in 2017. Read by Pat Ocken. 16 broadcasts; began Monday, February 9. – L. Listen to a promo of Charlottesville.
Original Sin – Nonfiction by Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson, 2025. An authoritative indictment of a denial-plagued presidential run and why so few spoke up. Read by Robb Empson. 11 broadcasts; begins Tuesday, March 3. – L. Listen to a promo of Original Sin.
Murder the Truth – Nonfiction by David Enrich, 2025. An in-depth exposé of the broad campaign—orchestrated by elite Americans—to silence dissent and protect the powerful. Read by John Potts. 13 broadcasts; begins Wednesday, March 18. Listen to a promo of Murder the Truth.
Night Journey
Monday – Friday 7:00 p.m.
Dead Catch – Fiction by Cary J. Griffith, 2024. A murdered conservation officer and a multi-million-dollar poaching business—how are they connected to Sam Rivers’ childhood friend? Read by Glenn Miller. 11 broadcasts; begins Monday, March 2. – L, S. Listen to a promo of Dead Catch.
Buried Road – Fiction by Katie Tallo, 2024. In this edge-of-your-seat thriller, Gus Monet and her daughter embark on a perilous road trip to find a missing person. Read by Karen Ray. 12 broadcasts; begins Tuesday, March 17. – L. Listen to a promo of Buried Road.
Off the Shelf
Monday – Friday 8:00 p.m.
Something Rotten – Fiction by Andrew Lipstein, 2025. An interrogation of the nature of truth, virtue, and reality, cloaked as a page-turning novel where a former NPR personality and his Danish wife have their lives upended by a summer in Copenhagen. Read by Paul Ranelli. 11 broadcasts; begins Monday, March 2. – L, S. Listen to a promo of Something Rotten.
I See You've Called In Dead – Fiction by John Kenney, 2025. A coming-of-middle-age tale about having a second chance to write your life’s story and a touching ode to the people who make life worth living. Read by Tom Speich. 9 broadcasts; begins Tuesday, March 17. – L. Listen to a promo of I See You've Called In Dead.
Stone Yard Devotional – Fiction by Charlotte Wood, 2025. A woman abruptly exits her life for a cloistered religious community in this Australian novel about forgiveness, grief, and what it means to be good. Read by Jodi Lindskog. 8 broadcasts; begins Monday, March 30. – L. Listen to a promo of Stone Yard Devotional.
Potpourri
Monday – Friday 9:00 p.m.
Traveling – Nonfiction by Ann Powers, 2025. An exploration of the life and career of Joni Mitchell in a lyrical style as fascinating and ethereal as the songs of the artist herself. Read by Mary Beth Redmond. 15 broadcasts; began Thursday, February 19. Listen to a promo of Traveling.
Dinner With King Tut – Nonfiction by Sam Kean, 2025. An archaeological romp through the entire history of humankind—and through all five senses—from tropical Polynesian islands to forbidding arctic ice floes, and everywhere in between. Read by Carol McPherson. 18 broadcasts; begins Thursday, March 12. Listen to a promo of Dinner with King Tut.
Good Night Owl
Monday – Friday 10:00 p.m.
Nether Station – Fiction by Kevin J. Anderson, 2024. A thrilling mix of epic science fiction and Lovecraftian horror about explorers to a remote wormhole. Read by John Holden. 12 broadcasts; began Thursday, February 19. – L. Listen to a promo of Nether Station.
The Buffalo Hunter Hunter – Fiction by Stephen Graham Jones, 2025. A chilling historical horror novel that unravels a supernatural mystery from the darkest depths of the Wild West. Read by Paul Ranelli. 17 broadcasts; begins Monday, March 9. – V, G. Listen to a promo of The Buffalo Hunter Hunter.
RTB After Hours
Monday – Friday 11:00 p.m.
Fan Service – Fiction by Rosie Danan, 2025. When an actor who once played a werewolf starts to turn into one for real, he seeks out his former biggest fan for help in this paranormal rom-com. Read by Pat Muir. 14 broadcasts; began Monday, February 23. – L, S. Listen to a promo of Fan Service.
Say You'll Remember Me – Fiction by Abby Jimenez, 2025. A long-distance romance about a woman who moves back to California to care for her mother, and the Minnesota veterinarian she can't forget—despite only having one perfect date with him. Read by Pat Kovel-Jarboe. 11 broadcasts; begins Monday, March 16. – L. Listen to a promo of Say You'll Remember Me.
Native Love Jams – (re-broadcast) Fiction by Tashia Hart, 2023. A 2024 Minnesota Book Award finalist romance set in a Native American community. Read by Mary Beth Redmond. 4 broadcasts; begins Tuesday, March 31. – L, S. Listen to a promo of Native Love Jams.
Weekend Books
Your Personal World (Saturdays at 1 p.m.) presents Choosing Freedom by Karen Stohr, read by Dan Sadoff.
For the Younger Set (Sundays at 11 a.m.) presents Scattergood by M. Bouwman, read by Michelle Juntunen.
Poetic Reflections (Sundays at noon) presents The Best American Poetry 2024, edited by David Lehman, read by Julia Brown. - L
The Great North (Sundays at 4 p.m.) presents Perpich: A Minnesota Original by Ben Schierer, read by Michelle Juntunen; followed by The Scenic Route by Arnold R. Alanen, read by Yelva Lynfield.
Abbreviations
V – Violent content
R – Racial epithets
L – Strong language
G – Gory descriptions
S – Sexual situations
All listings are US Central Time (CT)