Cover Story

Bumps in the long and winding road to loveFour top relationship memoirs

Love stories never get old, and one couple’s romance is always different from the next. With Valentine’s Day on the horizon, a number of authors are sharing their own tales of dating, mating and trying again. Learn from others’ trials and successes with four of this year’s best relationship memoirs.

Dating disasters
Julie Klausner still hasn’t found what she’s looking for, but as the lengthy subtitle of her dating memoir suggests, she’s spent time with a lot of the wrong guys. In I Don’t Care About Your Band: What I Learned from…

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Author Interviews

Finding faithOne woman's midlife search for meaning

Interview by Amy Scribner

A few weeks ago, author Dani Shapiro, her atheist husband and their young son went to hear a children’s choir perform on a village green near…

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Austen city limitsModern-day master delivers a sparkling suburban comedy

Interview by Katherine Wyrick

Ambient city sounds—horns, sirens—provide a fitting soundtrack for a recent conversation with Cathleen Schine, a New Yorker who has written so…

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A failing grade for boys

Interview by John T. Slania

Richard Whitmire is a longtime education reporter and editorial writer who has chronicled a critical shift in the national education debate: While…

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Shattered hearts and second chancesKristan Higgins explores the landscape of loss and new love

Interview by Karen Elley

The seeds of Kristan Higgins’ writing career were sown when, at the age of 13, she swiped Shanna—a notorious bodice ripper by…

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Trouble in paradiseThe surprising twists of a small-town murder mystery

Interview by Alden Mudge

A conversation with Chris Bohjalian about his gripping new novel, Secrets of Eden, is sprinkled with unexpected observations and…

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Features

New books examine key eras and figures in African-American life

Feature by Ron Wynn

Critics who decry Black History Month celebrations often claim they focus too much on well-known figures and personalities and don’t reaffirm…

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Lifestyles: Engaging projects for your crafty side

Feature by Joanna Brichetto

In the worst economic downturn since Herbert Hoover, DIY consciousness is pure gold. The three books reviewed here will help you save money by…

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What do (younger) women really want?Trends in romance

Feature by Christie Ridgway

Did you know that romance novels are in the hands of more readers than any other fiction genre? According to the Romance Writers of America’s …

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Finding your own happily ever after

Feature by Carla Jean Whitley

Don’t let your reading about love end with stories of others’ relationships. Whether you’re looking for Mr. or Miss Right or have already…

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Behind the Book: Modern-day echoes of a world turned upside down

Column by Thomas Mullen

First allow me to say that I had nothing to do with our current financial meltdown. A few years ago I found myself starting a novel about a family…

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Meet the Author

Meet the Illustrator