RTB Radio News
This month we're excited to have 20 new books premiering!
As always, if you have comments about current books, you’d like us to broadcast or other programming issues, please be in touch: 651-539-2316 or joseph.papke@state.mn.us.
Here are this month’s book offerings from the Minnesota Radio Talking Book Network:
Chautauqua
Monday – Friday 6:00 a.m.
Air-Borne – Nonfiction by Carl Zimmer, 2025. The fascinating, untold story of the air we breathe, the hidden life it contains, and invisible dangers that can turn the world upside down. Read by Carol McPherson. 21 broadcasts; began Monday, January 12. Listen to a promo of Air-Borne.
Radical Endurance – Nonfiction by Andrea Gilats, 2025. A personal guide to the transformations, hard truths, profound pleasures, and infinite possibilities of aging. Read by Yelva Lynfield. 10 broadcasts; begins Tuesday, February 10. Listen to a promo of Radical Endurance.
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; begins Tuesday, February 24. Listen to a promo of How the World Eats.
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; begins Monday, February 2. Listen to a promo of Tudor England.
Bookworm
Monday – Friday 12:00 p.m.
The Paris Express – Fiction by Emma Donoghue, 2025. A clever, ambitious, and richly researched historical novel about the infamous 1895 disaster at the Paris Montparnasse train station. Read by Joanne Turner. 8 broadcasts; began Thursday, January 22. Listen to a promo of The Paris Express.
The Cannibal Owl – (re-broadcast) Fiction by Aaron Gwyn, 2025. A novella of austere, cinematic prose steeped in Native American culture, set in 1820s Texas. Read by Jim Gregorich. 2 broadcasts; begins Tuesday, February 3. Listen to a promo of The Cannibal Owl.
Playground – (re-broadcast) Fiction by Richard Powers, 2024. A story of friendship, technology, oceans, and an engaging, eloquent message for this fragile planet. Read by Carol McPherson. 17 broadcasts; begins Thursday, February 5. Listen to a promo of Playground.
The Writer's Voice
Monday - Friday 1:00 p.m.
Booth Girls – Nonfiction by Kim Heikkila, 2021. A thoughtful and emotional multigenerational story of contested motherhood and the stigma of adoption—equal parts biography, oral history, history, and memoir. Read by Carol McPherson. 11 broadcasts; began Monday, January 26. Listen to a promo of Booth Girls.
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; begins Tuesday, February 10. Listen to a promo of F. Scott Fitzgerald: A Composite Biography.
Choice Reading
Monday - Friday 2:00 p.m.
In Tongues – Fiction by Thomas Grattan, 2024. A young gay man grows from a life of “reckless impulses” into a reflective adult in this affecting novel. Read by John Schmidt. 7 broadcasts; began Thursday, January 22. – L, S. Listen to a promo of In Tongues.
The Silver Squad – Fiction by Marty Essen, 2025. A smart, funny tale of a Good Samaritan crime spree that celebrates living life to the fullest. Read by Tom Speich. 8 broadcasts; begins Wednesday, February 4. – L. Listen to a promo of The Silver Squad.
Every Tom, Dick, and Harry – Fiction by Elinor Lipman, 2025. An estate-sale manager in a small Massachusetts town stumbles on its worst-kept secret in this charming tale of love and criminality. Read by Jan Anderson. 9 broadcasts; begins Monday, February 16. – L. Listen to a promo of Every Tom, Dick, and Harry.
Afternoon Report
Monday – Friday 4:00 p.m.
On Democracies and Death Cults – Nonfiction by Douglas Murray, 2025. A New York Times bestselling author explains how no less than the future of the Western World is at stake in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Read by John Potts. 10 broadcasts; began Monday, January 26. Listen to a promo of On Democracies and Death Cults.
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; begins Monday, February 9. – L. Listen to a promo of Charlottesville.
Night Journey
Monday – Friday 7:00 p.m.
Lethal Prey – Fiction by John Sandford, 2025. Lucas Davenport and Virgil Flowers join forces to track down a ruthless killer who will do whatever it takes to keep the past buried. Read by Phil Rosenbaum. 12 broadcasts; began Wednesday, January 28. – L, S, R. Listen to a promo of Lethal Prey.
Night in the City – Fiction by Michael McGarrity, 2025. Accused of the murder of his former lover, Korean War veteran Sam Monroe is forced to abandon his job as an assistant district attorney and fight to clear his name. Read by Paul Ranelli. 10 broadcasts; begins Monday, February 16. – L, S, V. Listen to a promo of Night in the City.
Off the Shelf
Monday – Friday 8:00 p.m.
The City and Its Uncertain Walls – Fiction by Haruki Murakami, 2024. A love story, a quest, an ode to books and to the libraries that house them, and a parable for our peculiar times. Read by Dan Sadoff. 19 broadcasts; begins Monday, February 2. – S, V. Listen to a promo of The City and Its Uncertain Walls.
Potpourri
Monday – Friday 9:00 p.m.
Miracles and Wonder – Nonfiction by Elaine Pagels, 2025. An extraordinary new account of the life of Jesus that explores the mystery of how a poor young man inspired a religion that reshaped the world. Read by Jim Gregorich. 9 broadcasts; began Monday, January 26. Listen to a promo of Miracles and Wonder.
Home Club – Nonfiction by Patrick Strait, 2025. The story of how a soft-spoken Chinese immigrant and his small Minneapolis club changed comedy and kept the lights on. Read by Michelle Juntunen. 8 broadcasts; begins Monday, February 9. – L. Listen to a promo of Home Club.
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; begins Thursday, February 19. Listen to a promo of Traveling.
Good Night Owl
Monday – Friday 10:00 p.m.
The Unworthy – Fiction by Agustina Bazterrica, 2025. A thrilling work of literary horror about a woman cloistered in a secretive, violent religious order, while outside the world has fallen into chaos. Read by Holland Richner. 5 broadcasts; begins Monday, February 2. – S, V. Listen to a promo of The Unworthy.
The Contortionist's Handbook – Fiction by Craig Clevenger, 2025. A neo-noir about an unusually gifted forger who must continually reinvent himself to stay one step ahead of his past—and the authorities. Read by John Schmidt. 8 broadcasts; begins Monday, February 9. – L. Listen to a promo of The Contortionist's Handbook.
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; begins Thursday, February 19. – L. Listen to a promo of Nether Station.
RTB After Hours
Monday – Friday 11:00 p.m.
Great Big Beautiful Life – Fiction by Emily Henry, 2025. Two journalists compete for the chance tell the larger-than-life story of an aging heiress with more than a couple of plot twists up her sleeve. Read by Cintra Godfrey. 15 broadcasts; begins Monday, February 2. – L, S. Listen to a promo of Great Big Beautiful Life.
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; begins Monday, February 23. – L, S. Listen to a promo of Fan Service.
Weekend Books
Your Personal World (Saturdays at 1 p.m.) presents How Sondheim Can Change Your Life by Richard Schoch, read by Stuart Holland; followed by Choosing Freedom by Karen Stohr, read by Dan Sadoff.
For the Younger Set (Sundays at 11 a.m.) presents The Hotel Balzaar by Kate DiCamillo, read by Julia Brown; followed by The Island of Whispers by Frances Hardinge, read by Andrea Bell.
Poetic Reflections (Sundays at noon) presents Natural History by Brandon Kilbourne, read by Philip Lowry; followed by The Best American Poetry 2024, edited by David Lehman, read by Julia Brown.
The Great North (Sundays at 4 p.m.) presents Perpich: A Minnesota Original by Ben Schierer, read by Michelle Juntunen.
Abbreviations
V – Violent content
R – Racial epithets
L – Strong language
G – Gory descriptions
S – Sexual situations
All listings are US Central Time (CT)