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What's the oldest known dessert? According to a new book by author Michael Krondl, it's a fruitcake-like recipe from ancient Mesopotamia. India gave the world refined sugar — and doughnuts fried in sacred ghee. Krondl leads a sweet journey through the history of dessert.

By the late 1960s, classic horror movies pioneered by Vincent Price and Boris Karloff had run out of steam. What took their place was something different, edgier and altogether more terrifying.

The United States has never seen a moment like this one, the Pew Center says: sustained combat for a decade, and a small fraction of American men and women in uniform. A new Pew study says that's led to some different views on the wars, the value of military service — and even the subject of patriotism.

Writer David Rakoff's received the 2011 Thurber Prize for American Humor for his essay collection Half Empty. In the book, Rakoff explains the powers of pessimistic thought as he analyzes topics such as a pornography trade fair, his neurotic childhood and his recent cancer diagnosis.

Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist William Kennedy says his best writing features his New York hometown. His latest book, Chango's Beads and Two-Tone Shoes, is no exception. "There's a richness of Albany that I couldn't possibly exhaust," says Kennedy, who is now 83.

Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Liberian peace activist Leymah Roberta Gbowee and Yemeni protest leader Tawakkul Karman are being honored as the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize winners.

"Publishing for me is a business, not an ideology," says the bestselling thriller writer. Eisler walked away from a half-million dollar deal offered by a traditional publisher to self-publish — and then teamed up with Amazon. His newest book, The Detachment, was e-released on Amazon in September.

The Yokohama squash was first introduced to North America around 1860, but it disappeared from catalogs in the 1880s — until now. Jere Gettle offers advice on how to save and grow heirloom vegetables in The Heirloom Life Gardener.

Some commodities analysts were warning earlier this year that gasoline could hit $6 a gallon by the end of the summer. Instead, the national average has fallen steadily since May. Experts say the drop is due to three main factors.

Belgium has spent 16 months struggling to form a federal government. Observers say that issue is a microcosm of the financial crisis that has hit the eurozone.