Learn the many layers of Padma Lakshmi
If you ever happen to interview Padma Lakshmi, do yourself a favor and let her pick the location. That way, you might just find yourself enjoying a piping hot plate of spicy orecchiette at an...
View Article11 new baseball books to add to your lineup
The story of baseball is the story of heroes and villains, legends and little details, hope and disappointment. This lineup of new baseball books tells that story in different ways, with new...
View ArticleDevastating tale of a Texas small-town crime
“The Long Shadow of Small Ghosts: Murder and Memory in an American City” by Laura Tillman; Scribner (256 pages, $26) “The Long Shadow of Small Ghosts,” the poetically titled book about the most...
View ArticleBeverly Cleary at 100: A salute
When we first meet Ramona Quimby, she's only 4 years old and already showing signs of greatness.She can secretly summon 15 friends to her house without her mother suspecting a thing — at least until...
View Article‘Apostle’ takes a trip into faith, history and skepticism
The life and legacy of the apostle Thomas were a shimmer of myth and fact that sent Tom Bissell across oceans and down alleys; he scribbled notes with a high fever and cried with dysentery and diarrhea...
View Article‘26 Songs in 30 Days’: How Woody Guthrie wrote those great songs — for $266
“26 Songs in 30 Days” by Greg Vandy, with Daniel Person; Sasquatch Books (208 pages, $24.95)Woody Guthrie, the great populist singer-songwriter from Oklahoma and formative inspiration for Bob Dylan,...
View Article‘Breakfast for Dinner’ author gives meal its respect
Asked why she wrote the cookbook “Breakfast for Dinner” (Ryland Peters & Small, $19.95), author Carol Hilker admits that the morning meal doesn’t always get the time and respect it deserves: “We...
View ArticleJane Austen meets ‘The Bachelor’ in Curtis Sittenfeld’s ‘Eligible’
Scrutinizing eligible men for fun and profit — and our entertainment — did not begin with “The Bachelor.” Jane Austen’s novels dramatized this pastime so artfully and with such wit that nearly every...
View ArticleStunt driver’s self-help book key: Set limits
"When you say it’s over, you have to be ready to quit, to walk away," says stunt driver/actor Patrick Malcolm. "Your limit is when you say stop: enough is enough. Not when someone else says stop. When...
View ArticleBook review: ‘The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu’
“The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu” by Joshua Hammer; Simon & Schuster (288 pages, $26)Joshua Hammer’s narrative of Abdel Kader Haidara’s effort to save thousands of priceless manuscripts dating...
View ArticleJane Hamilton ponders love, future of farms in ‘Excellent Lombards’
After living and working on an apple orchard for decades, Wisconsin writer Jane Hamilton knows a few things about cultivating distinctive varieties. “The Excellent Lombards,” her new novel, is both a...
View Article‘Paul McCartney: The Life’ offers thorough account of ex-Beatle
“Paul McCartney: The Life” by Philip Norman; Little, Brown (853 pages, $32) Behind the double thumbs-up, impish smile and round, half-moon eyes lies a Paul McCartney more complex than public perception...
View ArticleQ&A: Marcia Clark on ‘Blood Defense’
Years ago, when Marcia Clark was a criminal defense attorney, she took great pains to remind jurors that she wasn’t Perry Mason.Her job was to create reasonable doubt and to get an acquittal for the...
View ArticleTake a break by reading a book for fun
School is a full-time job. The better part of the day, five days a week, is spent in class. Then, there’s homework to do at night and often on the weekends. And, many kids are involved in...
View ArticleWWII saga hits on love, life, death
“Everyone Brave is Forgiven” by Chris Cleave; Simon & Schuster (432 pages, $26)The characters in Chris Cleave’s novels are well acquainted with suffering. The grieving widow in “Incendiary” who...
View ArticleHot new books will transport readers
Traveling with a new book is wonderful. But traveling through a book provides passage over time and space (and it’s easier on the budget and gas tank). This summer’s titles will take readers to...
View ArticleExhibiting compassion, kindness teaches kids to do the same
Kindness and compassion come in many different forms. Making room in your heart and your life for a new friend. Doing something nice for someone without being asked. Taking the time to listen to...
View ArticleSherman Alexie discusses ‘hardest thing I’ve ever had to write’
Does it matter to author Sherman Alexie that he’ll be discussing his new children’s picture book just a few miles from a school district that targeted one of his books a couple of years ago? “No, not...
View ArticleMeet the bookish extrovert
Lisa Lucas is a rare combination: a high-energy bookish extrovert. “If I can convince a small fraction of people to feel the same way that I feel about reading, then I’ve done my job,” she said. It was...
View Article‘The Never Ending Wars’: A scathing account of U.S. military failure and...
“America’s War for the Greater Middle East: A Military History” by Andrew J. Bacevich; Random House (480 pages, $30)Andrew Bacevich studied at West Point and Princeton University and served in the U.S....
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