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As America celebrates Mother's Day, Jacki Lyden reflects on the meaning of motherhood through the eyes of her aunt, Ellie Lyden. Nearly 100, Ellie has long nurtured the small village of Clifden, Ireland, from her rose-covered cottage.

Japan's reki-jo, or "history girls," love learning about shoguns' castles and samurai battles, and they idolize historical figures like rock stars. Some observers believe this is more than just a trend: The reki-jo subculture signals a kind of empowerment.

Jane's Fame, Claire Harman's book about the author of Emma and Sense and Sensibility, reveals the gap between her legacy — modest, indifferent to fame and devoted to her characters — and her ambition.

Writer Sue Diaz was surprised when her son Roman told her that he was joining the Army. She writes about the emotional roller coaster her family experienced when her son left for war — and how her relationship with Roman changed — in Minefields of the Heart.

The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet is a complex, historical novel set on a Dutch trading post in late 18th century Japan. Author David Mitchell explains the extensive research that went into re-creating a bygone era.

Let's get one thing straight: Norwegian author Per Petterson is not Stieg Larsson. They may both be Scandinavian, but Petterson's books are as quiet and contemplative as Larsson's are violent and action-packed.

Playwright Quiara Alegria Hudes has gone back to the basics — the very basics of the ABCs. Her latest project — a children's book called Welcome To My Neighborhood! A Barrio ABC — follows a young girl who takes her best friend on an alphabetical tour through her North Philadelphia neighborhood.

Dinaw Mengestu follows up The Beautiful Things that Heaven Bears with a new novel: How to Read the Air. As his own marriage unravels in New York, Jonas — the son of two Ethiopian immigrants — retraces the journey of his parents' lives.

In his new memoir, Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Garry Wills explains his career as a lifelong observer. In Outside Looking In, he talks books, politics and family — and explains how his father's philosophy about the word "cannot" is one reason he became a conservative.

When Paula Butturini's husband was shot, he almost died of his injuries. But physical wounds turned into deep psychological scars. Butturini talks to Linda Wertheimer about her memoir, Keeping the Feast, and how food helped set the stage for recovery.