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A debate is under way in India about the country's economic future, one hampered by persistent widespread poverty. Before it was elected to office, the Congress Party had a grand plan for helping the poor; but the plan has begun to unravel.

Donald Kroodsma is a renowned specialist in the interpretation of bird songs. His new book, The Singing Life of Birds, describes how birds communicate and why. But Kroodsma is also the subject of another book — about those who listen to birds.

Writer Samuel G. Freedman's new book is Who She Was: My Search for My Mother's Life. Freedman's mother died many years ago, when he was just 18, and as he approached his mother's age when she died, he decided to find out all about her life. The result is a narrative fueled by facts.

St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa is considered one of baseball's top strategists — and a likely resident of baseball's Hall of Fame. Pulitzer-winning author Buzz Bissinger's new book is about three games La Russa managed in a tense pennant race.

In a colorful new cookbook, Alabama chef Frank Stitt shares moutwatering recipes from his award-winning restaurant Highlands Bar and Grill. He talks with NPR's Debbie Elliot about the tradition of food in the South.

British cookbook author Nigella Lawson celebrates springtime with special dishes for the holiday feasts of Easter and Passover. She discusses some of her favorite dishes for the season with Michele Norris.

The Indian government considers the adoption of a bill that makes it illegal to copy patented drugs, a practice that has made cheaper medicines available in India and abroad. Health activists are urging members of Parliament to vote against the bill, saying it would make drugs too expensive for millions suffering from AIDS.

History buffs are accustomed to their favorite books having a certain heft to them. But the trend of micro-histories, books that explore specific subjects in depth, is changing that. Librarian Nancy Pearl lists her favorites.

Judith Warner is the author of the new book Perfect Madness: Motherhood in the Age of Anxiety. In it she writes about the "choking cocktail of guilt and anxiety and resentment and regret" that is poisoning motherhood for American women. Warner is a former special correspondent for Newsweek in Paris.

The intricacies of accounting fraud can be confusing, if not dull. But not always. New York Times writer Kurt Eichenwald's new book on corporate deceit and betrayal in the Enron scandal, Conspiracy of Fools, is full of riveting detail. He tells Jennifer Ludden about the reporting process.