Hey, it's NPR's Book of the Day. I'm Andrew Limbaugh. Okay, so growing up, the family

New Year's tradition is to get together as a big family, you know, me, my folks, my cousins,

all of them, and go around in a circle apologizing for stuff you did last year. So, like,

I would apologize for, I don't know, only getting a 70 in French

class or whatever. And my mom would apologize for not raising a son who could do better in

French class, I guess. Who knows? So, yeah, it wasn't often the highest caliber of apology. But that is

what today's book is all about. Marjorie Engel and Susan McCarthy

have a new book called Sorry, Sorry, Sorry, and they talk to NPR's Mary Louise Kelly about

what words should and shouldn't make their way into an apology. And they also get into the

power of a good apology. In the U.S., national security news can feel far away from daily life.

Distant wars, murky conflicts, diplomacy behind closed doors.

On our new show, Sources and Methods.

NPR reporters on the ground bring you stories of real people

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It is January. New Year, fresh start, and what better way to start anew than by wiping the slate clean and

apologizing for all those lousy things we may have done last year. Well, in their new book, Sorry, Sorry, Sorry, Marjorie Engel and Susan McCarthy

make the case that a good apology feels great to the person giving it, to the person receiving it,

even to other people who may witness it.

Well, Marjorie Engel and Susan McCarthy join me now. Welcome to you both. Thanks for having us.

Thank you. Susan, I'm going to let you kick us off, and I want you to tell us a story I loved. This is in the very

first chapter. It's about someone named Chad Michael Morissette, who, to sum up, he was

...