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So Much For That, Lionel Shriver's new novel, is about a middle-aged man forced to give up his dream of retirement on a tropical island when his wife falls ill and he's forced to go back to work to keep his employee health insurance. Critic Maureen Corrigan says the novel "acknowledge[s] the dramatic depth that fiction can bring to the debate over current events."

Last April, Merchant Marine Capt. Richard Phillips became the first American seaman to be captured by pirates in two centuries. After attempting to escape, Phillips was beaten and bound by his Somali captors. Five days later, Navy SEAL snipers killed the pirates and rescued Phillips. His new memoir,A Captain's Duty, recounts the ordeal.

A senior police official in India says rebels have killed at least 75 paramilitary forces in attacks in the eastern part of the country. That's the most casualties against government forces since they launched an offensive against the rebels last year.

The Bridge, David Remnick's new book, is the story of President Obama's journey to the Oval Office. Remnick, the editor of The New Yorker, tells Morning Edition how Obama's first run for national office — which he lost — helped shape his political career.

No country in the world is more dependent on its computers than the U.S., making it uniquely vulnerable to attack. One official tells NPR that the Pentagon has experienced an "explosion" of computer attacks, currently averaging about 5,000 each day. But is the country ready to wage a cyberwar?

David Remnick has a nearly impossible task in his new biography of Barack Obama: writing "the most complete account yet" of the most famous man on the planet. The well-written and well-researched book may be ahead of its time; the events in it are so familiar right now that its scholarship may resonate better in 20 years.

Once upon a time, it was fashionable to adore all things French. Those days are gone — remember "freedom fries"? — but author Danielle Trussoni is convinced that there are plenty of Americans who still love French culture, fashion and food. Trussoni recommends three books about France — all with a certain je ne sais quoi.

The first two books in Stieg Larsson's Millennium trilogy are megahits, and the third, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest, comes out in May. But some American readers don't want to wait that long — they're importing the book from England, where it was released last year.

In his book Lost States, Michael J. Trinklein reimagines the U.S. with the many states that never made it into the republic: Transylvania, Forgottonia, and Texlahoma, to name a few.

How do Hollywood studios make money? Journalist Edward Jay Epstein goes looking for answers in The Hollywood Economist, explaining the complicated relationship between distributors and studios — and revealing why the humble cup holder may be the greatest technological advancement in the history of Hollywood.