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F.X. Toole wrote fiction all his life, but didn't see his stories in print until he was 70. Now, four years after his death, his first novel — Pound for Pound — has been published.

Writer John Hodgman expounds on a variety of fascinating and sublimely ridiculous subjects — historical, literary and hobo — in his book The Areas of My Expertise.

Journalist Adam Roberts of The Economist talks about his new book, The Wonga Coup: Guns, Thugs and a Ruthless Determination to Create Mayhem in an Oil-Rich Corner of Africa. Roberts tells the story of a group of mercenaries and merchants who hatched a plan to topple the dictatorship of Equatorial Guinea in order to reap the profits from the country's oil resources.

In 1851, two chess masters sat down for a practice game in London. What should have been a throwaway game intensified and was quickly dubbed "the immortal game." David Shenk, author of a new history of chess called The Immortal Game, describes the historic match.

Years before the current economic crisis, former derivatives trader Frank Partnoy warned about the dangers of tricky financial trading. He joins Fresh Air to explain how we got where we are.

In his new book As They See 'Em, the journalist provides an insider's perspective on the dedicated umpires who face angry fans, disgruntled coaches and poor pay for the game they love.

In his new book One Nation Under Dog, Michael Schaffer investigates the booming pet-care industry. He discusses how the $43 billion business reflects our ideas about consumerism, family, politics and domesticity.

Recently issued in paperback, Joseph O'Neill's novel Netherland emerged to immediate acclaim in 2008, and many critics — including Fresh Air's Maureen Corrigan — placed it on a footing with The Great Gatsby.

If sinking your teeth into a big novel seems like biting off more than you can chew this summer, then may be you should try short stories. A collection of short stories is like a box of chocolates, you can select one or two for now and save the rest for later. Or, if you prefer, you can eat them all at once.

The Mad Ones is the tale of real-life gangsters Larry, Albert "Kid Blast" and "Crazy" Joe Gallo — a Mafia clan that inspired Bob Dylan's "Joey" and were a major inspiration for The Godfather.