Books

Novelist Kate Christensen makes a plot line of her own life in a memoir that describes her struggles to come to terms with her family, her relationships and her sometimes violent father. A passionate lover of food, Christensen weaves recipes into a story of survival.

From Darth Vader's grown-up fan base to why people like mysterious vigilantes, Klosterman's I Wear The Black Hat is a meditation on villainy, both real and imagined.

Journalist Alfredo Corchado covers Mexico for the Dallas Morning News. His new book, Midnight In Mexico, is part memoir and part recent history of the upheaval in the country. He talks to Fresh Air about the power of the cartels, the rampant corruption and the hopes for the future of Mexico.

Tash Aw's Five Star Billionaire, set in Shanghai, explores the dynamic tumult of that city. Reviewer Ellah Allfrey says that Aw, with gentle compassion and keen understanding, shows his characters succumb to the lure of a city where everything seems possible.

Mark Kurlansky's book Ready for a Brand New Beat is a history of the song "Dancing in the Street." It was the soundtrack for the summer of 1964, when race riots and war protests spread across the United States.

Critic Alan Cheuse has a review of Charlie Huston's new book, Skinner.

The 19th-century courtesan died at 23 of tuberculosis, but her legacy inspired a successful play, several movies and the great Italian opera La Traviata. In The Girl Who Loved Camellias, Julie Kavanagh tracks her journey from Normandy peasant girl to romantic heroine.

This is the second mystery in Sara Gran's series featuring 40-ish bad-girl detective Claire DeWitt. Critic Maureen Corrigan says that reading a noir novel written by a Brooklyn-born author gave her a rush of private-eye, patriotic pride.

Susan Choi departs from research-heavy books to write about people and relationships — and winds up writing about love and sex. My Education looks at a graduate student who doesn't learn what she anticipated.

Alan Cheuse reviews a thriller The Mehlis Report a novel by Rabee Jaber that was recently translated by Kareem James Abu-Zeid.

The famed author and illustrator broke the rules of American children's literature in the '50s and '60s, but many Americans have never heard of him. A new documentary, Far Out Isn't Far Enough, looks at his life and work.

For decades, no one could crack the code to a mysterious ancient script called Linear B. In her new book, Margalit Fox tells the story of the forgotten woman who almost figured it out.