Reader's Corner

The recent death of Fidel Castro has once again placed Cuba in the spotlight as the world remembers the fiery dictator who sparred with 11 US Presidents, and questions are what lies next for his country. One of the most infamous incidents between the US and Cuba involved the ill-fated invasion of Cuba's Bay of Pigs in 1961. Jim Rasenberger writes about this tense time in his book "The Brilliant Disaster: JFK, Castro and America's Doomed Invasion of Cuba's Bay of Pigs. It's now out in paperback.

Throughout history, brave souls have answered the call to serve their countries, and to risk it all on the battlefield. But few, perhaps, have done it with more guts and gusto than Winston Churchill. In her latest book, “Hero of the Empire,” Candice Millard introduces us to a young Churchill who believed early on that he was destined to lead, and who thirsted for a chance to be a war hero — mostly so he could be recognized for it. During the Boer War of 1899, in which the British Empire drove

Owyhee County is Idaho’s second largest county and yet one of its least populated. Despite its emptiness, Owyhee County has a rich history, one that has been thoroughly explored and documented by today’s guest, John Bieter.

What’s it like to be an octopus? Is it anything like being a human? Is it even possible to know? In her book, The Soul of an Octopus, Sy Montgomery explores these questions as she delves into the physical and emotional world of this mysterious and deeply misunderstood creature. Octopuses have three hearts, a brain that wraps around its throat, eight appendages, blue blood, and a covering of slime instead of hair. For centuries, they have been portrayed in popular culture as ugly and frightening

In the 1840s, a million Irish citizens died of starvation during what became known as the “Great Hunger.” Taking up the desperate cause of his countrymen was a spirited and wealthy young orator named Thomas Francis Meagher.

In the season of the 2016 general election, we’re discussing the history of voting rights on today’s show with, Michael Waldman. He is the president of the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU’s School of Law, and the author of a new book, titled The Fight To Vote . In the book, Mr. Waldman describes voting rights as an American struggle as old as the country itself. Today, we are continuing to work through many thorny issues that were first faced by the founding fathers. These include fear of

Many of us remember reading The Great Gatsby in our high school English class – and not exactly loving it. What was it about this slim novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald that was supposedly so great, we wondered. And more to the point, why had it remained popular while other worthy books had slowly faded away?

Domestic terrorism has taken many forms since the horrific events of September 11 th . From these disparate acts, a sinister pattern of domestic terrorism has emerged as American Muslim men and women are radicalized from afar by extremist groups like ISIS. Peter Bergen, is an internationally recognized expert on terrorism, a documentary producer and CNN’s national security analyst. In his latest book, titled United States of Jihad , Mr. Bergen discusses the social and political influences that

Imagine a world where you are driven to work by a driverless car, your morning news is written by a computer, and your lunch is prepared by a robot. In such a world, it would not be a stretch to wonder if humans were about to become obsolete. We’ve already seen this scenario play out in movies and popular novels. But according to today’s guest, there are reasons to worry about how new technologies are reshaping the real world right now.

As anyone with children, or grandchildren, knows, parenting isn’t easy. Children and adolescents are growing up in a complex and connected world where smartphones, video games, organized activities and friends vie for their attention. At the same time, parents aren’t exactly always sure what their job description should be – or how to best nurture their child. In his book, The Collapse of Parenting, Leonard Sax presents a compelling case for why parents should remain front-and-center in the