The history of Nebraska can be told by its landscape. Larkin Powell, the Director of the School of Natural Resources at UNL has a new book called “The Best of Intentions.” It traces the transformation of the Nebraska landscape through historical photographs, personal narratives, and ecological research.

Many people find solace and understanding in reading literature, a few would also include writing and receiving letters. In the novel “The Correspondent” by Virginia Evans, we meet a woman who uses letters to make sense of the world and her place in it.

A PBS documentary called the “Librarians” follows the story of librarians on the front lines of the national battle over restricting access to books that have race-related and LGBTQIA+ content. “All About Books” host Pat Leach talked with the film’s director Kim Snyder and Martha Hickson a librarian featured in the show.

The mysterious circumstances around the disappearance of a young girl’s father begins Susan Choi’s novel, “Flashlight.” A story that spans decades and continents dealing with family, loss, and memory.

Award-winning chef and author Gabrielle Hamilton came from a family of unsentimental non-conformists. They had charisma, but there was brutality and deep rifts too. In her new memoir “Next of Kin”, Hamilton comes to terms with her family with intense honesty and raucous humor.

The writer Geraldine Brooks received the phone call from the ER doctor that her husband, journalist and author Tony Horwitz, had died walking down a sidewalk in Washington D.C. In the scramble to deal with the immediate demands of her husband’s death, Brooks had no chance to truly grieve. Her book "Memorial Day” is a memoir of sudden loss and the journey towards peace.

The writer Geraldine Brooks received a phone call from an ER doctor that her husband, journalist and author Tony Horwitz, had died walking down a sidewalk in Washington D.C. In the scramble to deal with the immediate demands of her husband’s death, Brooks had no chance to truly grieve. Her book "Memorial Day” is a memoir of sudden loss and the journey towards peace.

In the novel “Hard by a Great Forest” by Leo Vardiashvili, two brothers and their father struggle with the past and people they left behind after fleeing the former Soviet Republic of Georgia. Hear a review of this story about the collective trauma of war and the unbreakable spirit of the people who survive and remember those who did not.

It’s 1914 in England and all of Europe is on the brink of disaster. This is the setting for “Precipice”, a novel by Robert Harris. In it, an intelligence officer traces leaked documents back to the Prime Minister and his posh 26-year-old mistress. An affair that could topple the British Government.

Originally from Sydney Nebraska, author Dan Chaon is the guest this week. His latest novel “One of Us”, is a playfully dark thriller about orphaned twins on the run from their murderous uncle who find refuge in a bizarre traveling carnival.