D. J. Waldie's strikingly beautiful book in 1996 about what it was like to grow up in Lakewood, Calif., "Holy Land," is one of many writings by this chronicler of Los Angeles's past and future.

In Los Angeles, people stay for the movie credits. After the awful images of these fires are gone, they will stay to rebuild their city, too.

David Lodge's novels—as well as his many works of nonfiction—made him an important figure in 20th-century British literature. He also captured well the angst of many lay Catholics in the aftermath of Vatican II.

As a young Bob Dylan in "A Complete Unknown," Timothee Chalamet captures some of the iconic singer's enigmatic yet magnetic personality.

Oscar Hijuelos's 'Mr. Ives' Christmas' doesn't start out as a cheery story—but in the end, this parable of good will lost and good will regained is a perfect Christmas tale.

Bishop John Cummins had a significant and lasting impact on the Catholic Church in his own diocese and elsewhere through his quiet leadership and ministry. He was a reminder to many of what Pope Francis meant when he called for bishops who are “pastors, not princes.”

A Reflection for Tuesday of the Second Week of Advent, by James T. Keane

John Banville is surely the only crime novelist in recent memory who has won the Booker Prize and is regularly rumored to be in the running for the Nobel Prize in Literature.

The box office success of “Gladiator II” is a reminder that many Americans are obsessed with the Roman Empire. They've been joined over the years by more than a few ‘America’ contributors.

Doris Grumbach was an accomplished novelist, literary critic, biographer and memoirist and an early pioneer for her books exploring L.G.B.T. themes. She was also a longtime book reviewer and essayist for ‘America.’