Books

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'Lucky Alan' Thumbs Its Nose At Convention

7:03am February 24, 2015

by Michael Schaub

Jonathan Lethem's darkly comic sensibilities are on full display in his slim new story collection, Lucky Alan. Reviewer Michael Schaub says it isn't Lethem's best — but it's still a solid read.

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Struggling Writer's Debut Novel Gets Coveted Oprah Winfrey Nod

7:53pm February 23, 2015

by Karen Grigsby Bates

Oprah Winfrey has named Ruby, a novel about a beautiful, abused woman in Texas, as her March book club selection. That could make first-time novelist Cynthia Bond into a literary star.

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Books

Book Review: Ross Ritchell's 'The Knife'

6:40pm February 23, 2015

by Alan Cheuse

Alan Cheuse reviews Ross Ritchell's new novel, The Knife.

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'After Birth' Author On 'Mommy Wars': 'It Doesn't Have To Be This Way'

6:40pm February 23, 2015

by NPR Staff

"We are pitted against each other and ultimately, then, are pitted against ourselves," says writer Elisa Albert. Her new novel is about the singular and universal experience of having a baby.

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Mr. and Mrs. Disraeli: A Strange Romance

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Victorian Romance Meets 'House Of Cards' In 'Mr. And Mrs. Disraeli'

5:11pm February 23, 2015

by Maureen Corrigan

Daisy Hay's new book is a joint biography of 19th century British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli and his wife, Mary Anne, whose fortune and status as a gentile helped boost her husband's career.

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David Treuer is the author of three previous novels and two books of nonfiction, including Rez Life. He also teaches literature and creative writing at the University of Southern California

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Prisoners Of War And Ojibwe Reservation Make Unlikely Neighbors In 'Prudence'

3:09pm February 23, 2015

Native American writer David Treuer bases the World War II camp for German prisoners on a real-life one that existed near the village of Bena, Minn., on the Leech Lake Reservation where he grew up.

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She-Hulk, Dazzler, Medusa and Nico Minoru are some of the characters that make up Marvel's A-Force.

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The Woman Behind Marvel's Newest Team Of Heroines

2:02pm February 23, 2015

by NPR Staff

G. Willow Wilson says it's been a blast creating a team of all-female Avengers for the new Marvel Universe coming in May. "We really got no directives besides 'Pick your team and go nuts,' " she says.

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Barack Obama hands a gift from a supporter to his assistant Reggie Love during his 2008 campaign for presidency.

Obama's 'Body Man' Looks Back On His Presidential Education

1:54pm February 23, 2015

by NPR Staff

Reggie Love went from playing sports at Duke to working as Barack Obama's personal assistant. His new memoir, Power Forward, describes what he learned on the campaign trail and in the White House.

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After 'Fifty Shades,' Could This Be The Next Big Online Hit?

11:49am February 23, 2015

by Petra Mayer

After is an epic, erotic fan fiction loosely based on the British boy band One Direction. It's being republished by Simon & Schuster, which is hoping the story's online fans will buy it in book form.

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A Former Wunderkind Drifts On In 'Some Other Town'

7:03am February 23, 2015

by Carmen Machado

Elizabeth Collison's debut novel follows a young art star who burned out and is now leading a hazily complacent life in her old university town — but that life is upended by an unexpected fling.