NPR's Book of the Day Folgen

Barbra Streisand spent 15 years working to get her directorial debut, the movie Yentl, made. She writes in her new memoir, My Name is Barbra, that people in Hollywood often told her the story was "too Jewish" to appeal to a mainstream audience. In today's episode, Streisand speaks with NPR's Brittany Luse, host of the podcast It's Been a Minute, about that experience. She also talks about why she feels like her book gives her control over her legacy – and how she approached it as kind of a "director's cut" of her life.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Kerry Washington is well-known for her roles in Scandal, Little Fires Everywhere and Django Unchained. But in her new memoir, she reveals a LOT that the public doesn't know about her – and one big thing she didn't even know about herself until fairly recently. In today's episode, Washington sits down with NPR's Juana Summers for a two-part conversation about how a secret her parents kept for decades challenged – and strengthened – her relationship with them, and how she's managed the vulnerability that comes with sharing that journey with the rest of the world. To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Today's episode is a little different. NPR's David Folkenflik sits down with two writers – Walter Isaacson and Michael Lewis – to ask about their experiences writing biographies of Elon Musk and Sam Bankman-Fried, respectively, and what it means to watch the person you're profiling become a villain in the public eye in real time. They discuss the process of getting close – or keeping their distance – from their sources for Elon Musk and Going Infinite, and confront the criticisms of how they do or don't address the wrongdoings of Musk and Bankman-Fried in their books. To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy