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The Two-Way

Book News: Lydia Davis Wins Man Booker International Prize()  

Lydia Davis poses during a photocall in May for the finalists of the 2013 Man Booker International literary prize in London.

Also: Amazon to begin publishing fan fiction; Paul Ryan and Elizabeth Warren are writing books; Keith Richards' exorbitant library fines.

Summary

Author Interviews

Fictional 'Mothers' Reveal Facts Of A Painful Adoption Process()  

Flower from iStock

May 22, 2013 After years trying to conceive, novelist Jennifer Gilmore and her husband decided to adopt. What they thought would be a relatively simple process was instead a long and painful one. In her latest novel, Gilmore channels these autobiographical experiences into fiction.

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The Two-Way

Book News: Newly Found Pearl Buck Novel To Be Published This Fall()  

At her desk in the study of her Philadelphia townhouse in 1967, Pearl Buck looks at a bound volume of the magazine Asia from 1925 that  contained her first published work.

May 22, 2013 Also: shameless book blurbs; new plays from Ayad Ahktar; and a first edition of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone draws a record price at auction.

Summary

Book Reviews

A Different Kind Of Immigrant Experience In 'Americanah'()  

Nigerian and American flags

May 22, 2013 Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's latest, Americanah, follows the trials and tribulations of Ifemelu, a middle-class Nigerian immigrant to America. Reviewer Jennifer Reese calls Americanah a "rich and gloriously detailed tapestry ... hung on the sturdy scaffolding of a sweet love story."

Summary

First Reads

Exclusive First Read: 'Big Brother' By Lionel Shriver()  

cover image

May 21, 2013 Read an exclusive excerpt of Lionel Shriver's latest, Big Brother. Shriver is no stranger to controversial topics, from school massacres to the American health care system. Big Brother is a comedic take on obesity and its effect on an Iowa family.

Summary

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Author Interviews

After Crashing In Canadian 'Abyss,' Four Men Fight To Survive()  

Into The Abyss cover

May 21, 2013 On an icy night in 1984, a commuter plane crashed in the wilderness. Six passengers died, but four survived: the pilot, a politician, a policeman and a prisoner. Carol Shaben's Into the Abyss describes their fight to make it through that frigid night alive.

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Author Interviews

Courtside Chemistry: How NBA's Phil Jackson Won 'Eleven Rings'()  

Cover of Eleven Rings

May 21, 2013 Jackson is famous for his philosophical take on basketball and for the many stars he led to championship triumphs. He taught his players yoga and gave them assigned reading — but also pushed them to intensely practice fundamental skills. His new book looks back on a legendary coaching career.

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Book Reviews

American Voices On 'The Unwinding' Of America's Values()  

Cover of The Unwinding

May 21, 2013 George Packer's The Unwinding explores the social and economic upheavals that have transformed the U.S. over the past 30 years. In a nuanced work of literary journalism, colorful characters from across the class divide tell their own stories of a social contract in tatters.

Summary

The Two-Way

Book News: Stephen King's New Bogeyman? Digital Publishing()  

Stephen King holds a special pink Kindle given to him at a 2009 unveiling event for the Amazon Kindle 2.

May 21, 2013 Also: the legacy of Kierkegaard; the creator of Lyle Crocodile has died; Aussie airliner Qantas commissions flight-length books.

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New In Paperback

May 20-26: A Coup, An Ancient Battle And One Steamy Diary()  

Cover of 'The End of Sparta'

May 20, 2013 In softcover nonfiction, Jenny Rosenstrach examines dinnertime, Kate Summerscale recounts a scandalous Victorian trial, and John Dramani Mahama looks back on his childhood in Ghana. In fiction, Victor Davis Hanson reimagines an ancient battle, and Marie NDiaye follows three women from Senegal to Europe.

Summary

The Two-Way

Book News: J.K. Rowling Tells 'Harry Potter' Backstories()  

J.K. Rowling.

May 20, 2013 Quidditch was invented "in a small hotel in Manchester after a row with my then boyfriend," writes the Harry Potter creator. Other book news: Ireland puts an entire short story on a postage stamp; Daniel Handler on Midwestern literature; and the best books coming out this week.

Summary

more Books >

Dead Ever After

Hardcover Fiction

Sookie Stackhouse has one last adventure in Charlaine Harris' Dead Ever After. It debuts at No. 4.

Pos. Title Author
1 A Delicate Truth John Le Carre
2 Life After Life Kate Atkinson
3 The Burgess Boys Elizabeth Strout
4 Dead Ever After Charlaine Harris
5 The Woman Upstairs Claire Messud

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Bring Up the Bodies

Paperback Fiction

Bring Up The Bodies, Hilary Mantel's tale of Anne Boleyn, arrives on the paperback list at No. 9.

Pos. Title Author
1 The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald
2 Beautiful Ruins Jess Walter
3 Where'd You Go, Bernadette Maria Semple
4 The Orphan Master's Son Adam Johnson
5 The Light Between Oceans M.L. Stedman

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Midnight in Peking

Paperback Nonfiction

Appearing at No. 12, Paul French explores a British schoolgirl's murder in Midnight In Peking.

Pos. Title Author
1 Wild Cheryl Strayed
2 Proof Of Heaven Eben Alexander, M.D.
3 Quiet Susan Cain
4 Lots Of Candles, Plenty Of Cake Anna Quindlen
5 Thinking, Fast And Slow Daniel Kahneman

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