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Wade Davis' gripping Into the Silence tells the story of the British climbers who attempted to scale Mount Everest in the 1920s, becoming symbols of national pride and imperial ambition.

A new oral history of women working in comedy includes stories from the world of stand-up, the world of late-night, and the world of comedy. Not all of it works, but author Yael Kohen explores some difficult choices the women she profiles have faced, and she gets some pretty good stories, too.

He's appeared in over 100 films and TV shows, but you still might not know his name. In his memoir, The Dangerous Animals Club, actor Stephen Tobolowsky talks about falling in love with comedy — and playing characters who are always on the story's fringes.

Emma Straub's novel, Laura Lamont's Life in Pictures, centers on small-town girl Elsa Emerson's transition into movie star Laura Lamont. Straub says her main character came to her while she was reading an obituary of real-life actress Jennifer Jones. "I was just struck by her life," Straub says.

Arnold Schwarzenegger has lived a long life in just 65 years, from poor immigrant to giant bodybuilder, from Hollywood action star to governor of California. He recounts it all — his successes and failures, his dreams and challenges — in his new autobiography, Total Recall.

The new trove of recordings covers everything from the Cold War to civil rights to Vietnam to the U.S. ice hockey team. Listening In, a new book and CD set, includes more than 260 hours of transcribed conversations and 2.5 hours of audio from inside the Kennedy White House.

A new study from the Kauffman Foundation shows that the number of immigrant entrepreneurs in the country has fallen slightly. But according to Vivek Wadhwa, an author of the study, the drop is especially steep in Silicon Valley.

The Casual Vacancy is worlds away from Hogwarts and Harry Potter. It's a dark comedy of manners, set in a small town in the aftermath of a local politician's death. Rowling says her experiences with poverty informed her gritty portrayal of English life.

Mark Helprin's sweeping midcentury novel, In Sunlight and In Shadow, describes a postwar New York in limbo. Helprin borrowed from his own experiences to write this tale of love and familial obligations. "It's all based on what I know and what I knew," he says.

The former teen heartthrob is best known for his roles in such films as Ode To Billy Joe, Ice Castles, and The Chosen. But he's also survived four open heart surgeries. His journey is the subject of his new memoir, I'm Not Dead ...Yet!