Jason and Travis Kelce are great podcasters. Authors? Don't bet $24 on it
Jason and Travis Kelce are great podcasters. Authors? Don't bet $24 on it
Clare Mulroy, USA TODAYTue, June 2, 2026 at 1:01 PM UTC
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No one expected the Kelce brothers to become authors. That includes the Kelce brothers.
"You’re about to read a book that was written by two people who both got kicked out of preschool,” Jason Kelce writes in the introduction to “No Dumb Questions: And All Of Our Dumbest Answers” (out now from William Morrow). Travis Kelce writes it's a “plot twist for the guy who claims he can’t read well.”
After a bit of brotherly gratitude, the book matches the unfiltered stream-of-consciousness banter that keeps listeners returning weekly to their podcast, “New Heights," which boasts more than 3 million subscribers on YouTube. The book's title and format borrow from the fan-submitted Q&A segment on their podcast.
The Kelce brothers’ foray into the literary world promises ruminations on life, football and "what ifs." It doesn’t promise to be “life-changing or even close to accurate,” as Travis writes. But what the Kelces and their publisher don’t tell readers is that they’re about to spend $24 on almost entirely recycled material from their podcast.
Jason and Travis Kelce’s book doesn’t have anything new to say
When Kelce fans read the back of the book, it may seem like they’re getting never-before-seen, intimate stories from the brothers. But don't expect new off-the-field anecdotes or anything about Travis' upcoming nuptials with Taylor Swift (she's mentioned only once).
It doesn’t advertise it, but “No Dumb Questions” is a glorified transcript printout. Only five of the questions are new, and USA TODAY excerpted one of them last week. Even the audiobook version is edited from the podcast, except for the introduction and the five exclusive questions.
At 226 pages, the book reads like a high school student fiddling with the margin sizes to meet their page count. And there are illustrations. Many. How about some white space with an illustration of a gorilla? Or a pull quote from a sketched Travis that reads “No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Cinnamon Toast Crunch”?
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Amazon first approached William Morrow Group about turning the podcast segment into a book, a publisher spokesperson said in an email to USA TODAY. The Kelce brothers signed an exclusive ad-sales and distribution rights deal with Amazon's Wondery for over $100 million in 2024, according to Variety.
"Turning it into a book seemed like a natural extension of the show, especially when you think about successful books based on podcasts and/or radio programs, like 'We Can Do Hard Things,' 'Howard Stern Comes Again,' or Springsteen and Obama’s 'Renegades,'" the spokesperson wrote, adding the publisher does not comment on advances.
"No Dumb Questions" by Jason and Travis Kelce is out June 2.
I suppose the case could be made that this is the new media equivalent of bound film scripts. I treasure my copy of “Fleabag: The Scriptures” and it doesn’t matter that I’ve already seen the show a dozen times. Maybe hardcore “New Heights” fans will seek that same experience. It might work as a Father's Day fail-safe.
But how enjoyable can it be to read five whole pages of the brothers debating how many holes a straw has?
The most redeeming section of the book is when the boys get nitty gritty about football secrets, breaking down lesser-known terminology, debating plays and talking about the celebrity of it all. But if you’re already a dedicated “New Heights” fan, this doesn’t offer any new revelations.
I’m not naive enough to believe that every celebrity who writes a book does it from a place of pure literary love. People need to make money. Publishers need to keep the lights on. But just because we can publish a book doesn’t mean we should.
Clare Mulroy is USA TODAY’s Books Reporter, where she covers buzzy releases, chats with authors and dives into the culture of reading. Find her on Instagram, subscribe to our weekly Books newsletter or tell her what you’re reading at cmulroy@usatoday.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jason and Travis Kelce's 'New Heights' book may disappoint fans
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