What makes a book a book? Is it just anything that stores and communicates information? Or does it have to do with paper, binding, font, ink, its weight in your hands, the smell of the pages? To answer these questions, Julie Dreyfuss goes back to the start of the book as we know it to show how these elements came together to make something more ...

When you’re just too busy to curl up with a good book, these talks bring the beauty of literature in audio form.

This is our first episode of a new series — the TED Talks Daily Book Club. Join Elise as she interviews TED speakers about their books and their ideas beyond the page. First up: Geena Rocero, an award-winning producer, model, director and the author of "Horse Barbie: A Memoir." A stunning narrative at the center of transgender history and activi...

A list of the talks mentioned in TED Talks: The Official TED Guide to Public Speaking. Chris Anderson's comments on each talk (in the grey italics) indicate why they were included in the book. Use the book index for more info.

Software developer Mike Matas demos the first full-length interactive book for the iPad -- with clever, swipeable video and graphics and some very cool data visualizations to play with. The book is "Our Choice," Al Gore's sequel to "An Inconvenient Truth."

This is our second installment of the TED Talks Daily Summer Book Club series. Join Elise as she interviews TED speakers about their books and their ideas beyond the page. As a sex educator and author, Emily Nagoski is renowned for dismantling the sexual myths that surround us, and replacing them with healthy ideas, backed by science. And then…...

Deep inside Yale's Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library lies a 240 page tome. Recently carbon dated to around 1420, its pages feature looping handwriting and hand drawn images seemingly stolen from a dream. It is called the Voynich manuscript, and it's one of history's biggest unsolved mysteries. The reason why? No one can figure out what i...

Libraries are a magical place full of life and endless stories — both real and imagined. We're delighted to share these TED Talks as a love letter to libraries, librarians and the community they build.

Whether you're a budding bibliophile or already in the throes of whirlwind romance with your favorite writers, these talks are for you!

In 1998, a school district removed one of American literature's most acclaimed works from its curriculum. Parents pushing for the ban said the book was both "sexually explicit" and "anti-white." The book at the center of this debate was Maya Angelou's "I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings." Why was the memoir so controversial? Mollie Godfrey digs int...

During the span of a single life, how do you reinvent yourself? Take a page out of the book of these speakers who have found creative ways to fit many lives into one.

"From populist demagogues, we will learn the indispensability of democracy," says novelist Elif Shafak. "From isolationists, we will learn the need for global solidarity. And from tribalists, we will learn the beauty of cosmopolitanism." A native of Turkey, she has experienced firsthand the devastation that a loss of diversity can bring -- and s...

A surprisingly empathetic and practical volume, behavioral economist Dan Ariely’s slim, 100-page primer on motivation will be the book you wish your boss had read. –– Fortune About the book Explore the jungle of motivation's true nature, as well as our blindness to its strangeness and complexity. Rather than seeing motivation as a simple, rat-...

First impressions are the key to how we perceive the world, and are perceived by it. They are our introductions to everything: acquaintances, the workplace, products, experiences, retail stores, the Internet, entertainment, relationships, design. And based on our first impressions, we judge things. About the book Press and reviews About the author

Can cellphones influence architecture? Architect Marc Kushner, author of a new book, 'The Future of Architecture in 100 Buildings' thinks so—especially as more people look to take selfies with interesting backgrounds. His book showcases 100 buildings that capture what he sees as the future of architecture. — The Wall Street Journal About the bo...

These well-known writers weave beautiful words on the page ... and on the stage.

[A] compact, important book… Ebrahim’s life is an eloquent plea to terrorists — indeed, to anyone who commits violence out of bigotry and hatred — to stop and consider the impact on children. — The Washington Post Where to buy The Terrorist's Son About the book Everyone has a choice. Even if you're trained to hate, you can choose tolerance. You ...

At a time when everything seems mapped, measured, and understood, this river challenges what we think we know. It has forced me to question the line between known and unknown, ancient and modern, scientific and spiritual. It is a reminder that there are still great wonders to be discovered. We find them not just in the black void of the unknown ...

Intriguing nuggets regarding the intersection of work and happiness… a call, in a few pointed words, for an expanded, genuine work ethic. — Kirkus Review About the book For the overwhelming majority of people, work falls short—very short. The question is: why? Press and reviews About the author

Provocative, thoughtful and inspiring... The Globe and Mail About the book This book is aimed at everyone — from the CEO to the janitor — who wants a better place to work. It looks at the accumulation of small, everyday thoughts and habits that generate and sustain culture: ways of speaking, listening, arguing, thinking, seeing. These aren’t mu...

This is a dinosaur book with a difference. —Dr. Jane Goodall About the book As we move into an uncertain environmental future, it has never been more important to understand the past. Press and reviews About the author

Libraries have the power to create a better world; they connect communities, promote literacy and spark lifelong learners. But there's one thing that keeps people away: the fear of overdue book fines. In this thought-provoking talk, librarian Dawn Wacek makes the case that fines don't actually do what we think they do. What if your library just ...

In our cosmic backyard, close to Earth, discoveries await us. About the book Press and reviews About the author

Childhood is surreal. Why shouldn't children's books be? In this whimsical talk, award-winning author Mac Barnett speaks about writing that escapes the page, art as a doorway to wonder -- and what real kids say to a fictional whale.

Rich Benjamin is a cultural critic, anthropologist and author of the new memoir "Talk to Me: Lessons from a Family Forged by History." In this interview with "TED Talks Daily" podcast host Elise Hu, Benjamin discusses the power of history in shaping generations — and how the intimate search for answers in his own family’s past helped him tell th...

You might be wondering how much your personal projects could really affect something that seems as stable as your personality and sense of self. The answer, as I’ve discovered: a lot more than you’d imagine. About the book Press and review About the author

Okorafor’s gripping account of her recovery will inspire any reader. —Publishers Weekly About the book Growing up, most science fiction novels and films presented bold white male-dominated worlds where I knew I could never exist on my own terms. About the author

A beautifully written field guide to being weird. —Kirkus Reviews About the book Misfits, from my point of view, are everything. The world needs us. Press and reviews About the author

A smart, snappy guide to romance… On-screen and on the page, Fry has a wry, chatty voice that illuminates age-old questions in brainy yet simple language. — The Washington Post About the book Thankfully, love—as with most of life—is full of patterns: from the number of sexual partners we have in our lifetime to how we choose who to message on a...

What he writes is important, and he does so in an elegant, engaging fashion. This is a moving, deeply humane book. — Los Angeles Review of Books About the book The 'laws of medicine' are really laws of uncertainty, imprecision, and incompleteness. They apply equally to all disciplines of knowledge where these forces come into play. They are law...