Emily Oster's new book wades through the data on questions relevant to many parents of school-age kids. But the book is less about the data itself and more about how to frame decisions on these topics and others in the most effective, logical and efficient way.

Jonathan Franzen remains among the select few novelists who can vie for a Pulitzer Prize and the top spot on best-seller lists every time out of the gate. His new novel might win him both.

Twice a year we publish an extra issue of America dedicated to books and all things literary; one in planting season and one at harvest time.

I have spent my entire career attempting to pay homage to (and in a deeper sense, to keep alive) all the incredible characters of my Catholic-kid-in-Las Vegas life.

Angel Garcia tells the story of the Rev. Neil Connolly, a priest with a deep faith in his parishioners, who carried their faith from the mountains of Puerto Rico to the streets of the Bronx.

In his portrait of a once ultra-devout country undergoing rapid spiritual decline, Derek Scally paints a vivid picture of Irish indifference toward the church.