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When Teddy Roosevelt became a New York police commissioner in 1895, he vowed to clean up the city's endemic vice and corruption. It didn't exactly work out. New Yorkers liked the idea of standing up to corrupt cops, but they rebelled when Roosevelt tried to enforce a ban on Sunday drinking.

When the economy's dropping like an anvil, young professionals have to find ways to make do — and having friends always helps. Reviewer Alex Espinoza says Choire Sicha's Very Recent History is an insightful tale of friends weathering a tough economy in the big city.

Map: Exploring the World is a new collection of maps, selected by an international panel of cartographers, academics and collectors, spanning everything from the Aztecs to modern digital imaging.

Author Denise Spellberg's book draws parallels between the beliefs of the founding father and religious tolerance in the United States today.

Love is messy and complicated. But author and psychologist Harriet Lerner recommends three books that can help. They offer advice for keeping a relationship healthy, thoughtful and mature. Is there a book that has helped your relationship? Tell us about it in the comments.

In honor of National Poetry Month, former poet laureate Robert Pinsky shares the work of one of his favorite writers, Alan Dugan, who died in 2003. Pinksy says Dugan was an amusing, soulful and engagingly nasty poet who sang the truth — often with a splash of high-grade vinegar.

The wait has been long and the predictions many, but according to Christian broadcaster Harold Camping, the enlightened will finally be called home on Oct 21. Author Rhoda Janzen offers three redeeming suggestions to help you prepare for the upcoming apocalypse.

Many of us see weeds as a pest, but nature writer Richard Mabey prefers to think of them as "vegetable guerrillas" and "forest outlaws." Mabey stands up for the incredibly adaptable and disreputable plants in his new book, Weeds.

Earlier this week, international negotiators agreed on a deal to curb the Iranian nuclear program temporarily. Author Ariel Dorfman offers context to the reactions that have followed. He suggests a book of poetry by the Sufi master Rumi, a fascinating glimpse into the lives and ideas that shape Persian identity.

A former vice president at Lehman Brothers says that though the company was "never rotten at the core," it was "rotten at the head." In his new book, A Colossal Failure of Common Sense, Lawrence G. McDonald explores what led to the company's collapse — and who's to blame.

Author Tracy Kidder recounts the story of a refugee from the war-torn African country of Burundi in the new book Strength in What Remains. When Deogratias "Deo" Niyizonkiza arrived in New York City in 1993, he had little beyond the clothes on his back.

Interns in Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski's office doggedly tracked down all 100 senators, and took a selfie with them. Here's how they described some of those encounters.

It's a psychological thriller, with a female protagonist, set in contemporary London. You've probably heard of it — Girl on a Train. Or is it The Girl on the Train you're looking for?

Crosby set the mold for the multimedia star: on radio, on the big screen and on record. The 1940s was the period when his star shone brightest and Swinging on a Star by Gary Giddins tells that story.

The Storied South is a new book by folklorist William Ferris, collecting 40 years worth of oral histories from Southern writers and artists. Ferris tells NPR's Celeste Headlee that the book was a way of getting everyone from Eudora Welty to Bobby Rush to a "common table of conversation."

Buffett and Munger together built Berkshire Hathaway into a multi-billion dollar behemoth.

Like millions of American parents, author Sally Koslow sent her children off to college, only to have them return home due to a bad economy and limited job options. In Slouching Toward Adulthood, Koslow shares her research and interviews on the phase she calls "adultescence."

The opera star died 30 years ago. But you'd hardly know she was gone, judging from the steady stream of releases from her record company. It's a testament to the lasting appeal of a great artist.

After a group of hard-line Hindu activists barged into a pub last month and roughed up female clients who were enjoying a quiet drink, one woman took a stand. She and her allies are set to retaliate against the "moral police" by distributing pink underwear to the group.

Before Moammar Gadhafi came to power, the roughly 140 tribes and clans in Libya helped shape the country's military and political landscape. When Gadhafi took the reins, he used the classic tactic of divide and conquer to reduce the tribes' authority. Now the tribes are striking back.

Democrats are targeting seats with first-term GOP incumbents in states where access to abortion rights could resonate with swing voters.

Airlines employ people from all over the world, including staff from countries barred by Trump's immigration order. Now they're hurrying to reroute flight attendants who could be affected.

Scientists know how the storms are created, but it's nearly impossible to predict where a tornado will touch down, says Patrick Marsh, an NOAA meteorologist.

With President Obama's re-election, states that had postponed creating health insurance exchanges required by the sweeping federal health law will now have to scramble to set them up. These marketplaces are supposed to make it easier for people to shop for health coverage.

They have the technology. Now they need the money. The Science Museum has launched a Kickstarter campaign to rebuild Eric, who wowed audiences after he was created in 1928 — and then vanished.