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The Week's Best Stories From NPR Books This week: Meg Wolitzer's latest, Charles Frazier returns to the Civil War, the pressures of being the only black person in the room, a new Macbeth, and marriage-saving tips from a divorce lawyer.
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The Week's Best Stories From NPR Books

This week: Meg Wolitzer, Charles Frazier, Jo Nesbo, Nafissa Thompson-Spires and James Sexton.
'Heads Of The Colored People' Takes On The Pressures Of Being 'The Only One'

'Heads Of The Colored People' Takes On The Pressures Of Being 'The Only One'

Nafissa Thompson-Spires' new story collection is full of characters coping with being not just black in a white world — but the only black person in their worlds. She says that's a hard role to fill.

'Heads Of The Colored People' Takes On The Pressures Of Being 'The Only One'

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In 'Varina,' A Confederate Contemplates Her Complicity
Ecco/HarperCollins

In 'Varina,' A Confederate Contemplates Her Complicity

Charles Frazier was done writing about the Civil War after his award-winning novel Cold Mountain. Then he discovered the true story of the first lady of the Confederacy.

In 'Varina,' A Confederate Contemplates Her Complicity

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'No One Meant To Be In My Office': A Divorce Lawyer's Tips On Staying Together
Bombaert Patrick/EyeEm/Getty Images/EyeEm

'No One Meant To Be In My Office': A Divorce Lawyer's Tips On Staying Together

James Sexton has seen the demise of more than a thousand marriages — which inspired him to write a new book on how to keep it together. His advice? Keep communicating, and be painfully honest.

'No One Meant To Be In My Office': A Divorce Lawyer's Tips On Staying Together

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'This Guy Had Really Done A Great Job Before I Started': Jo Nesbo's 'Macbeth'
Hogarth

'This Guy Had Really Done A Great Job Before I Started': Jo Nesbo's 'Macbeth'

The Norwegian crime novelist says he tries to avoid other people's ideas. Then he was offered the chance to adapt one of Shakespeare's masterpieces.

'This Guy Had Really Done A Great Job Before I Started': Jo Nesbo's 'Macbeth'

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Meg Wolitzer's 'Female Persuasion' Honors The Women Who Helped Her On Her Way
Eric Lee/NPR

Meg Wolitzer's 'Female Persuasion' Honors The Women Who Helped Her On Her Way

Wolitzer's new novel tells the story of two women: an 18-year-old college freshman and the famous feminist who befriends and inspires her.

Meg Wolitzer's 'Female Persuasion' Honors The Women Who Helped Her On Her Way

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An 'Exhausted' Martin Luther King Jr.'s Final 31 Hours

Martin Luther King Jr. stands with fellow civil rights leaders on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tenn., on April 3, 1968 — one day before he was assassinated while standing in approximately the same place. From left are Hosea Williams, Jesse Jackson, King and Ralph Abernathy. Charles Kelly/AP hide caption

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Charles Kelly/AP

An 'Exhausted' Martin Luther King Jr.'s Final 31 Hours

A bomb threat, a march turned violent and a militant black power group all weighed heavily on the civil rights leader during his last speech in 1968, says Redemption author Joseph Rosenbloom.

An 'Exhausted' Martin Luther King Jr.'s Final 31 Hours

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Madeleine Albright Warns: Don't Let Fascism Go 'Unnoticed Until It's Too Late'

Madeleine Albright served as secretary of state under President Clinton from 1997-2001. Timothy Greenfield Sanders/Harper Collins hide caption

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Timothy Greenfield Sanders/Harper Collins

Madeleine Albright Warns: Don't Let Fascism Go 'Unnoticed Until It's Too Late'

Fresh Air

The former secretary of state describes President Trump as "the most anti-democratic leader that I have studied in American history." Albright's new book is Fascism: A Warning.

Madeleine Albright Warns: Don't Let Fascism Go 'Unnoticed Until It's Too Late'

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Ousted Marine Commander Aims To 'Fight Like A Girl' Against Gender Bias In Marines

Former Marine Corps Lt. Col. Kate Germano worked to hold female recruits to tougher standards. Then, she says, she was fired for it. Courtesy of Ars Nova Images hide caption

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Courtesy of Ars Nova Images

Ousted Marine Commander Aims To 'Fight Like A Girl' Against Gender Bias In Marines

Kate Germano worked to hold female recruits to a higher bar. Then she was fired. In a new book, the retired officer talks about her efforts to improve training for women throughout the Marine Corps.

Ousted Marine Commander Aims To 'Fight Like A Girl' Against Gender Bias In Marines

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Mindful Eating Authors' Secret Recipe For Cooking And Living? There Is None

Mindfulness gurus Geneen Roth and Ed Espe Brown have long championed the idea that how we relate to food affects other aspects of our lives. In new super-personal essay collections, they reassess their past self-help advice. Neil Webb/Getty Images/Ikon Images hide caption

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Neil Webb/Getty Images/Ikon Images

The Salt

Mindful Eating Authors' Secret Recipe For Cooking And Living? There Is None

Gurus Geneen Roth and Ed Espe Brown championed the idea that how we relate to food affects other aspects of our lives. In new personal essay collections, they reassess their past self-help advice.

'Americanized' Recounts What It's Like To Grow Up Undocumented

Fresh Air

Sara Saedi was two when her parents fled Iran to California. Her new memoir describes her 18-year-long path to citizenship, and the lingering anxiety of being undocumented.

'Americanized' Recounts What It's Like To Grow Up Undocumented

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Arcade Firewall: 'Ready Player One' REALLY Loves The '80s

Wade (Tye Sheridan) is the teen hero of Spielberg's latest big-budget action flick Ready Player One, based on the novel of the same name. Jaap Buitendijk/Warner Bros. hide caption

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Jaap Buitendijk/Warner Bros.

Review

Arcade Firewall: 'Ready Player One' REALLY Loves The '80s

Spielberg returns to his cinema-as-thrill-ride roots in this adaptation of Ernest Cline's YA novel. The nostalgia gets a bit overwhelming — and, frankly, sad — but the visuals are compelling.

Arcade Firewall: 'Ready Player One' REALLY Loves The '80s

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The 'Father Of Christian Rock' Larry Norman's Battles With Evangelicalism

The life of musician Larry Norman, pictured left, is chronicled in Why Should the Devil Have All the Good Music?: Larry Norman and the Perils of Christian Rock Kristy Douglas/Courtesy of the Larry Norman Estate hide caption

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Kristy Douglas/Courtesy of the Larry Norman Estate

The 'Father Of Christian Rock' Larry Norman's Battles With Evangelicalism

Gregory Alan Thornbury's new book Why Should the Devil Have ALl the Good Music? chronicles the life of the father of the Christian rock genre.

The 'Father Of Christian Rock' Larry Norman's Battles With Evangelicalism

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'The Italian Teacher' Paints A Troubled Father-Son Relationship
Eslah Attar/NPR

'The Italian Teacher' Paints A Troubled Father-Son Relationship

Tom Rachman's new novel The Italian Teacher takes place in the art world, where a bigger than life artist named Bear Bavinsky makes it hard for his adoring son to form his own indentity.

'The Italian Teacher' Paints A Troubled Father-Son Relationship

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