'The Take' and 'The Left and the Lucky' explore peculiar friendships across age

Two new novels center vital, but unusual connections across age. In The Take , an aspiring writer named Maggie agrees to an outlandish deal with Ingrid, an established Hollywood producer. Author Kelly Yang spoke with NPR’s Ailsa Chang about the medical procedure at the center of the novel, which accelerates Maggie’s aging while reversing Ingrid’s. Then, The Left and the Lucky tells the story of an 8-year-old boy and a man in his 40s who bond one night over a quesadilla. Author and musician Willy Vlautin told NPR’s Scott Simon about his commitment to stories with working-class characters. 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/bookoftheday 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

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'The Take' and 'The Left and the Lucky' explore peculiar friendships across age is an episode from NPR's Book of the Day by NPR.

This episode is 17:47 long.

This episode was published on May 1, 2026.

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