Books

As a child, Armenian-American writer Meline Toumani was taught to see Turks as a bitter enemy. She wrote her new book, There Was and There Was Not, in an effort to understand that conflict.

Salena Godden grew up in 1970s England with a Jamaican mom and an absent Irish dad. In her memoir, Springfield Road, she looks back on her struggle to find her personal identity.

Using an e-reader before trying to nod off may disrupt sleep more than reading a paper book, a study suggests. Scientists suspect the screen's blue light is messing with a sleep-inducing hormone.

In Vanessa and Her Sister, Priya Parmar imagines what Vanessa Bell wrote in her journal when she and Woolf were helping to form the Bloomsbury Group, a gathering of London artists and intellectuals.

Valeria Luiselli, who was born in Mexico City and lives now in Harlem, released two slim, multinational books this year: the essay collection Sidewalks and her time-jumping novel Faces in the Crowd.

Now in her late 60s, Martin says she's still "excited and enthusiastic" about her work and doesn't have any intention of retiring. She published a memoir in September called Lady Parts.

The mystery about the disappearance of a young Mormon woman was inspired by a real-life story. Author Mette Ivie Harrison talks about her own struggles with faith and stereotypes of Mormon mothers.

For the holidays, critic Alan Cheuse is making up a list of books to give to each of his family members. Only the best of 2014 for them. Here are his picks.

This week we celebrated not only Christmas, but also the solstice — the shortest day of the year. In honor of this wintry weather, author Edward Carey recommends his favorite winter fairy tale.