In the latest novel from author Emma Straub, a newly-divorced woman named Annie reluctantly goes on a cruise with her sister, a cruise designed for fans of one 90s era boy band. But Annie's experience changes when she meets a member of the band who is lonely, and looking for a friend. Straub discusses American Fantasy, out today. Straub will be speaking with Lin Manuel Miranda on April 7 at 7 pm at the First Unitarian Church.

In the latest work of investigative journalism from Patrick Radden Keefe, the author attempts to get to the bottom of the mysterious death of Zac Brettler, a British teenager who plunged to his death from a luxury building in 2019. After his death, it was revealed that Brettler had been living a secret life, one that involved shady characters in the London underworld. Keefe discusses his new book, London Falling: A Mysterious Death in a Gilded City and a Family's Search for Truth, out today. Keefe will be speaking on April 7 at the 92Y with Sarah Jessica Parker.

The April "Get Lit with All Of It" book club selection is the novel Lake Effect by Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney. It follows one woman's affair in 1970s Rochester... and the continued fallout years later as she lives in New York City and prepares to attend a family wedding. D'Aprix Sweeney discusses the novel ahead of the April 27th "Get Lit" event. Click here to grab your tickets and find out how to borrow your e-copy of the novel, courtesy of The New York Public Library.

April kicks off a busy season for books, with many big name authors publishing great new reads. All Of It and "Get Lit" producer Jordan Lauf discusses some of the new books you can pick up this spring. Plus, listeners recommend books they've been reading and loving.

Photo by Jordan Lauf/WNYC

In the new novel Yesteryear, a popular tradwife influencer finds herself confronting the harsh realities of the lifestyle she promotes when she mysteriously is sent back in time to 1855. Author Caro Claire Burke discusses the novel, out April 7. Burke will be speaking on April 7 at Symphony Space at 7 pm.

Cover art courtesy of Knopf

The series "The Testaments," which is based on Margaret Atwood's novel, is set in the same universe as The Handmaid's Tale. It follows Agnes, a teenager attending an elite prep school for future wives. Actor Chase Infinity talks about the series, along with creator/showrunner Bruce Miller, ahead of its April 8th premiere on Hulu.

Still courtesy of Disney+

Cleo de Lasa, an information assistant at The New York Public Library, highlights a thoughtful selection of books in recognition of both National Arab American Heritage Month and National Poetry Month. Her picks celebrate the richness and diversity of Arab American culture and contributions, while also showcasing the power of poetry to illuminate identity, history, and lived experience.

*Tomorrow night, there will be an event to honor the rich poetic tradition of Arab American literature at Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library at 6:30pm EST. To read the library's full list of Best New Poetry Books, visit their website here.

Graphic courtesy of NYPL

This month the Criterion Channel curated a series of corporate thrillers, from "Wall Street" to "The Firm" to "Michael Clayton." Criterion curator Clyde Folley discusses some of the films in this series, and listeners share their favorite corporate thrillers.

Image courtesy of the Criterion Collection

The new exhibit "Raphael: Sublime Poetry" at the Metropolitan Museum of Art is the first major survey of the Renaissance master's work ever featured in America. The exhibit features paintings, sketches, and even tapestries from Raphael's short but illustrious career. Curator Carmen Bambach, who spent years working on the exhibition, discusses "Raphael: Sublime Poetry," open through June 28.

Photo by Eileen Travell, courtesy of The Met

For National Poetry Month, actor, author, and woodworker Nick Offerman hosts "A Wonder Is What It Is," an audio series from All Of It with Alison Stewart dedicated to poet, activist, author, and Nick's personal hero: Wendell Berry. In four short installments, released every Friday throughout April, Nick will read a poem by Berry – poet, farmer, and environmental activist – and share his reflections.

In this first episode of four, Nick reads the poem “A Warning to My Readers.”

Do not think me gentle
because I speak in praise
of gentleness, or elegant
because I honor the grace
that keeps this world. I am
a man crude as any,
gross of speech, intolerant,
stubborn, angry, full
of fits and furies. That I
may have spoken well
at times, is not natural.
A wonder is what it is.

Produced by Simon Close