BBC journalist Eliot Stein details customs in many foreign lands in new book

Published July 8, 2026 at 5:01 AM EDT

A man poses for a direct head shot. — Journalist and author Eliot Stein writes about long-held cultural traditions in foreign nations, such as Italy, Scandinavia and Germany in his book *Custodians of Wonder*.

Can't afford to do much traveling this summer?

That’s okay, we're going to take you to far-flung places around the world: western Africa, Italy, Japan, Cuba and more. And we'll introduce you to a handful of people carrying on traditions passed down in their families for generations, even centuries.

In Italy, you'll meet one of the only women making the world's rarest pasta.

In west Africa, the man who plays one of the oldest instruments in the world.

In Scandinavia, the last nightwatchman. And in Germany, a matchmaking tree and a 500-year-old tradition.

All their stories and more are featured in the book, Custodians of Wonder.

We're talking with the book's author, BBC journalist Eliot Stein on this hour of All Sides.

Guest:

Eliot Stein, BBC journalist/author, Custodians of Wonder: Ancient Customs, Profound Traditions, and the Last People Keeping Them Alive