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The Inquisition revolutionized record-keeping and surveillance techniques that are still used today, says Cullen Murphy. His book God's Jury draws parallels between some of the interrogation techniques used in previous centuries with the ones used today.

As the classic novel celebrates its bicentennial, Paula Byrne's The Real Jane Austen examines some of the key objects in Austen's life and how they reveal a much more cosmopolitan awareness of the world than is commonly credited to her.

Writer Kevin Smokler spent most of 2012 rereading the books assigned in his high school English classes. Smokler, 39, speaks with NPR's Neal Conan about what he learned after returning to the classics.

The National Book Critics Circle has announced that two feminist literary scholars, Sandra Gilbert and Susan Gubar, will receive a lifetime achievement award. Critic Maureen Corrigan says their groundbreaking 1979 book, The Madwoman in the Attic, changed the way we read.

In her new book, Andrea Stuart explores the intersection of sugar, slavery, settlement, migration and survival in the Americas. Stuart's personal history was shaped by these forces — she is descended from a slave owner who had relations with an unknown slave.

When a psychic tells her that her biological father is still alive, Portland, Ore., comic-book artist Nicole Georges begins a quest of self discovery. Critic Carmen Gimenez Smith calls Georges' graphic memoir "a beautiful and innovative portrait" of an artist's journey.

The Night of the Hunter is a much-loved film, but author Julia Keller says the book it is based on is even better — a forgotten masterpiece. Do you have a favorite book that became a movie? Tell us in the comments.

In Jerry Spinelli's latest book, the Hokey Pokey is much more than a children's song and dance. Hokey Pokey is the name of a magical universe where kids are in charge with no adults in sight. There are herds of bikes, endless cartoons, a cuddle station and dessert for lunch every day.

Author Mark Binelli knows it isn't all great, but he still claims Detroit City Is the Place to Be. His book takes readers from decay to possibility in a new look at a city we thought we already knew so much about.

Tracy Chevalier's latest novel, The Last Runaway, is the story of a young Quaker girl's move to America. Author Dolen Perkins-Valdez says it's a richly wrought and evocative tale.