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The Best Strangers in the World: Stories from a Life Spent Listening
"The Best Strangers in the World is a witty, poignant book that captures Ari Shapiro's love for the unusual, his pursuit of the unexpected, and his delight at connection against the odds."-Ronan Farrow, Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist and New York Times-bestselling author of Catch and Kill and War on Peace
From the beloved host of NPR's All Things Considered, a stirring memoir-in-essays that is also a lover letter to journalism.
In his first book, broadcaster Ari Shapiro takes us around the globe to reveal the stories behind narratives that are sometimes heartwarming, sometimes heartbreaking, but always poignant. He details his time traveling on Air Force One with President Obama, or following the path of Syrian refugees fleeing war, or learning from those fighting for social justice both at home and abroad.
As the self-reinforcing bubbles we live in become more impenetrable, Ari Shapiro keeps seeking ways to help people listen to one another; to find connection and commonality with those who may seem different; to remind us that, before religion, or nationality, or politics, we are all human. The Best Strangers in the World is a testament to one journalist's passion for Considering All Things-and sharing what he finds with the rest of us.
From the beloved host of NPR's All Things Considered, a stirring memoir-in-essays that is also a lover letter to journalism.
In his first book, broadcaster Ari Shapiro takes us around the globe to reveal the stories behind narratives that are sometimes heartwarming, sometimes heartbreaking, but always poignant. He details his time traveling on Air Force One with President Obama, or following the path of Syrian refugees fleeing war, or learning from those fighting for social justice both at home and abroad.
As the self-reinforcing bubbles we live in become more impenetrable, Ari Shapiro keeps seeking ways to help people listen to one another; to find connection and commonality with those who may seem different; to remind us that, before religion, or nationality, or politics, we are all human. The Best Strangers in the World is a testament to one journalist's passion for Considering All Things-and sharing what he finds with the rest of us.
Editorial Reviews
"The Best Strangers in the World is a witty, poignant book that captures Ari Shapiro's love for the unusual, his pursuit of the unexpected, and his delight at connection against the odds." - Ronan Farrow, Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist and author of the New York Times bestsellers Catch and Kill and War on Peace
"Listening to-and now reading-Ari Shapiro is both revelatory and comforting. Revelatory in how he coaxes out and shapes a story, comforting that he is actually doing so. He is a beacon of idiosyncratic frankness and curiosity in an increasingly banal and complicit journalistic world. Here, though, it is he who is the story, and his scoop is letting us meet his true self: as good and kind and effortlessly brilliant a man as you could hope to meet. Every page exudes his utter positivity and made me long for another adventure with him." - Alan Cumming, New York Times-bestselling author of Not My Father's Son: A Family Memoir and Baggage: Tales from a Fully Packed Life
"Ari Shapiro takes us with him from his boyhood in Fargo, North Dakota, to a globe-trotting journalistic career. The wonderful tale he tells is through the eyes of the people he has met as strangers and the stories of their humanity. Along the way there are lots of laughs and tears and important reflections that will change how readers see the world, too."
- Nina Totenberg, New York Times-bestselling author of Dinners with Ruth
"This book is the dinner party conversation you're always hoping to have-empathetic and erudite essays that circle the globe but find time to zero in on sparkling, tiny details. With his breathtakingly vast set of talents, interests, and experiences, Ari Shapiro is one of the most interesting people you'll encounter. But his beguiling memoir invites the reader to look outward with him. Like a true journalist, he isn't the story. Rather, The Best Strangers in the World captures snapshots of our complex world and its endless capacity for beauty. Infused with queer magic, intellectual curiosity, and music, Shapiro's writing voice, like his reporting and performing voices, greets you like an old friend and invites you into a space you never want to leave.
- R. Eric Thomas, author of Here for It, or How to Save Your Soul in America
"Shapiro's confident, clear voice and self-deprecating humor, familiar t...
"Listening to-and now reading-Ari Shapiro is both revelatory and comforting. Revelatory in how he coaxes out and shapes a story, comforting that he is actually doing so. He is a beacon of idiosyncratic frankness and curiosity in an increasingly banal and complicit journalistic world. Here, though, it is he who is the story, and his scoop is letting us meet his true self: as good and kind and effortlessly brilliant a man as you could hope to meet. Every page exudes his utter positivity and made me long for another adventure with him." - Alan Cumming, New York Times-bestselling author of Not My Father's Son: A Family Memoir and Baggage: Tales from a Fully Packed Life
"Ari Shapiro takes us with him from his boyhood in Fargo, North Dakota, to a globe-trotting journalistic career. The wonderful tale he tells is through the eyes of the people he has met as strangers and the stories of their humanity. Along the way there are lots of laughs and tears and important reflections that will change how readers see the world, too."
- Nina Totenberg, New York Times-bestselling author of Dinners with Ruth
"This book is the dinner party conversation you're always hoping to have-empathetic and erudite essays that circle the globe but find time to zero in on sparkling, tiny details. With his breathtakingly vast set of talents, interests, and experiences, Ari Shapiro is one of the most interesting people you'll encounter. But his beguiling memoir invites the reader to look outward with him. Like a true journalist, he isn't the story. Rather, The Best Strangers in the World captures snapshots of our complex world and its endless capacity for beauty. Infused with queer magic, intellectual curiosity, and music, Shapiro's writing voice, like his reporting and performing voices, greets you like an old friend and invites you into a space you never want to leave.
- R. Eric Thomas, author of Here for It, or How to Save Your Soul in America
"Shapiro's confident, clear voice and self-deprecating humor, familiar t...
Readers Top Reviews
C FeuerLouise Foerst
Very disappointed to get a book I paid $25 for (hardcover) printed on paper that feels as if it is a paperback. Still looking forward to reading the book, but plan on returning it to save the money, and borrow it instead from my local library. They don’t make them like they used to!
CindyC
If you're a fan of Ari Shapiro on NPR, you'll want to read this book. This memoir starts at the beginning of his life, chronicling how he came out as gay as a teenager and began a life of "translating" and presenting cultures in front of groups of listeners. The book is well written and interesting. I would have preferred to skip straight to his professional career, but that's just my personal preference.
JudyD
When I picked up this book, I knew nothing about Ari Shapiro. I had never heard of him nor listened to his radio news program on NPR, All Things Considered. I simply wanted to increase my reading of nonfiction, and thought I might like biographies or memoirs. I did find the book interesting and Ari Shapio's life is full and exciting. Ari Shapiro is a gay man who was the first to come out in his high school. As a kid, he was very curious and this curiosity served him well as he got older. He seems to be a risk-taker and didn't shy away from issues or challenges. He went to war zones as a reporter and you could feel his trepidation about this as he related some of his adventures in different war zones. He was also a White House press person, and I found his account of flying in Air Force One for the first time interesting. What I most like after reading the book, is that Ari Shapiro tries to report the human side of stories rather than just relating the facts. It would seem more interesting to me to find out how events affect the people in the area rather than just the event and the statistics surrounding it. Thanks to HarperOne through Netgalley for an advance copy. This book will be published on March 21, 2023.
