'An American Marriage' author Tayari Jones is out with a new novel 'Kin'
Podcast:NPR's Book of the Day Published On: Thu Mar 05 2026 Description: Tayari Jones, author of the 2018 novel An American Marriage, says her next book was supposed to be about gentrification in the American South. But while writing her draft, Jones says she realized the backstory of that project was actually the real story. That’s how her new historical fiction novel Kin was born. The book follows two cradle friends who grow up without mothers in Honeysuckle, Louisiana and must navigate life in the Jim Crow South. In today’s episode, Jones tells NPR’s Ayesha Rascoe about how she tapped into something “older than herself” in order to write this story.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/bookofthedayTo manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below:See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy