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When writer Abraham Verghese was 10 years old, he went off to sea in a British frigate to battle Napoleon's navy. Verghese made this perilous journey thanks to C.S. Forester's unforgettable series about the adventures of Captain Horatio Hornblower, books he still loves, years later.

It can be a frightening feeling, being out of place. Entering someone else's world and having to learn the ropes is a daunting task. Granta editor Ellah Allfrey recommends three books about encountering other cultures, from the extraterrestrial to the multicultural.

After the Civil War, the United States seemed poised to grant equal rights to blacks. But the Supreme Court's rulings in the late 19th century kept blacks segregated for decades, says constitutional scholar Lawrence Goldstone.

If Amy Chua's tale of overachievement, Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother, left you looking for a different image of an Asian-American family, writer Ben Ryder Howe recommends Mother on Fire. Sandra Tsing Loh tells the story of her refreshingly "average" Asian-American family.

In The Lover's Dictionary, young adult author David Levithan tackles the grownup material of love and squalor, piece by piece, in a dictionary format. Over the course of the novel, the small details about two lovers combine to create a heartbreaking (and often uplifting) whole.

In light of Miss USA getting to keep her crown after a run of under-age binge drinking, commentator and fellow naughty girl Elizabeth Wurtzel says that going into rehab after you've seriously screwed up is the only way to show contrition in the public eye. A simple apology is not enough anymore.

The opposition movement in Iran includes students, women, exiles, and others. Ray Takeyh of the Council on Foreign Relations describes the Iranian government's "quarantine" strategy for curtailing opposition in the country rather than a sledgehammer strategy.

In his new book, Michael Pollan advises readers to "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." He says that we should make healthy food more of a priority, even if it means spending more time and money, or get used to chronic disease.

With the Supreme Court's opening term only weeks away, author Jeffrey Toobin's new book, The Nine, is bound to make waves. According to NPR's Nina Totenberg, the book's rich detail and well-written narrative sets it apart from the string of latest books about the court.

The Cat in the Hat, the book about a mischievous, irrepressible soul who always seemed kind of ageless, is 50 years old. At the time of its debut in 1957, the Cat was an instant success. The Dr. Seuss classic is still captivating to children and the adults who read to them.