Search results for

From 1935 to 1939, an army of folklorists and writers went in search of tales both real and tall. These stories of America in the Great Depression were gathered by literary giants like Ralph Ellison, Zora Neale Hurston and Jim Thompson. A new book revisits the project.

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.

The Newsweek journalist writes that the NYPD has become one of the world's best intelligence-gathering operations; his book Securing the City explores New York City's creation of an elite counter-terror force.

A handful of airlines are introducing onboard Internet access, letting passengers surf the Web and check their e-mail — for a fee. For the airlines, it's a much-needed source of revenue. For some business travelers, it's a way to stay productive in the air. But critics have raised concerns about security and privacy. Commentator Eric Weiner also is worried — for different reasons.

Washington Post senior correspondent Thomas Ricks says the Iraq war is likely to last at least another five to 10 years. He has written a new book about General David Petraeus and the Iraq war called The Gamble.

Memoir writers Azar Nafisi and Azadeh Moaveni chronicle life in pre- and post-revolution Iran — and offer a glimpse of a people struggling to find pockets of freedom within a repressive regime.

Every generation of Americans reinvents Abraham Lincoln in its own image. Among the crush of recent Lincoln books, these three help us understand his personality, power and relationship to his times.

In his new book, The Tyranny of Bad Ideas, author Matt Miller says Americans need to let go of certain outmoded beliefs. On the list? The idea that our children will earn more than we do and the notion that taxes are bad and free trade is good.

Author Breena Clarke's latest book, Stand the Storm, uncovers the often forgotten history of African-Americans in Washington, D.C.'s Georgetown neighborhood. Host Jacki Lyden visits Georgetown's historic Mount Zion United Methodist Church for a conversation with Clarke and several Mount Zion members about their roots in the neighborhood.

Throughout recorded history, philosophers have made light of death — in some cases, they've even taught us to embrace it. Author Simon Critchley has compiled the thoughts of more than 190 philosophers on the subject of death in The Book of Dead Philosophers.