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Ex-Fed Chief Alan Greenspan will see whether his words will move books as well as markets when his memoir The Age of Turbulence goes on sale. It is already making headlines for its criticism of fellow Republicans over what he Greenspan calls "out of control" federal spending.

The landmark 1963 civil rights march was more than just "I have a dream," says historian Charles Euchner. His new book, Nobody Turn Me Around: A People's History of the 1963 March on Washington, relies on participants and attendees to tell the story of that fateful day.

Literary translation isn't as straightforward as you might think, especially when the choice of a single word can determine the arc of an entire work.

Americans don't buy a lot of foreign novels, but go to any neighborhood bookstore and you'll find whole shelves devoted to international comics. In fact, more than half of the graphic novels sold in the U.S. are foreign-language imports.

Daniel Alarcon's new novel is set in an unnamed, war-scarred Latin American country. The protagonist, Nelson, is an aspiring playwright — though he doesn't pursue his dreams with much diligence. Alarcon discusses his own views on working as an artist and his creative process.

David Vine's new book argues that the hundreds of U.S. bases in other countries come at a high cost, both at home and abroad. He suggests reducing such bases and increasing diplomatic engagement.

In Power Concedes Nothing, civil rights attorney Connie Rice describes brokering peace between the Los Angeles Police Department and minority populations.

James Ward's new book stems from a lifelong love of Post-it notes, pencils and paper clips. He tells NPR's Melissa Block that they remind him of his school days, when life was less complicated.

Will author and artist Eric Carle's famously peckish creation be munching his way through some birthday cake? (Along with the salami, the pickle, the watermelon and the slice of Swiss cheese.)

Sloane Crosley loves winter, which may explain her particular affection for the mysterious, hidden garden in Frances Hodgson Burnett's dark children's classic.

Sherman worked a tight niche: classic songs rewritten to tickle a Jewish audience's funny bone. A new biography, Overweight Sensation: The Life and Comedy of Allan Sherman, explains how the performer's 1960s crossover fell in line with a collective awakening to ethnic identity in America.

In this chilling dystopian novel by Ben Marcus, the speech of children begins poisoning adults, and a married couple must consider abandoning their teenage daughter to save themselves.

How can we understand the experiences of those who have lived through war? What do they have to teach us? Author Hilary Thayer Hamann's favorite book attempts to answer these questions, and reinforces just how beautifully implausible life during conflict can be. It's The War by Marguerite Duras.

The secret to a good fistfight isn't the perfect sucker punch — it's endurance. Victory belongs to the last one standing, says author Alan Heathcock. He suggests three books with characters who never say die as they fight tooth and nail to outlast every obstacle in their way.

In her new, stunning visual biography, Radioactive: Marie & Pierre Curie, A Tale of Love and Fallout, Lauren Redniss describes (and draws) the marriage and discoveries of the famous scientific couple.

Claude Monet, William Butler Yeats, Giuseppe Verdi and Georgia O'Keeffe created some of their great work late in life. In his new book, Lastingness, Nicholas Delbanco explores the work of creative artists who worked into or past their 70s.

One of the most promising video games of the year is out this week: L.A. Noire, a detective thriller set in late-1940s Los Angeles. Playing like an interactive movie, the game often focuses on conversation instead of violence.

Veteran cartoonist Jules Feiffer has just written his first graphic novel, the noirish Kill My Mother. Reviewer Alan Cheuse is discovering graphic novels equally late, but still finds it a good read.

Soul music fan Dori Hadar is addicted to soul music on old vinyl records. That obsession led him to the work of Mingering Mike, a soul superstar of the 1960s and 70s who released over 50 records in just 10 years.

The Pennsylvania Democrat checked himself into Walter Reed hospital on Wednesday night.

Dec. 21 is the shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere. Susan Cooper, who wrote the solstice poem "The Shortest Day," collaborated with illustrator Carson Ellis on a new picture book.

Troubled by her 20-something clients' lack of direction, clinical psychologist Meg Jay decided to write a book about those formative years. In The Defining Decade, she argues that those years are by far the most crucial in our adult development.

Margaret Drabble's The Millstone, set in the 1960s, tells the story of a young, unmarried woman who finds herself pregnant. Author Tessa Hadley says this 50-year-old novel is a weekend must-read.

"Art is about being provocative," says the award-winning poet. "Art is also about beauty and if you leave the latter out, the former doesn't matter."

John Brown, the man who led the 1859 raid on Harpers Ferry, Va., may be among the most polarizing figures in American history. To some, he's a traitor and terrorist; to others, he's a hero. Tony Horwitz discusses his book Midnight Rising: John Brown and the Raid That Sparked the Civil War.