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You'll never suffer from writer's block as long as you've got a copy of Plotto: The Master Book of All Plots. Prolific pulp novelist William Wallace Cook turned his fiction production methods into a wacky manual for aspiring writers. Originally published in 1928, it has just been reissued.

In What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank, Nathan Englander writes about his own faith — and what it means to be Jewish — in stories that explore religious tension, Israeli-American relations and the Holocaust.

A killer is doomed to live out the afterlife as Pooh Bear. A magical goldfish grants wishes, and disgruntled divorced dads abound. Welcome to the absurd and very tender world of Suddenly, a Knock on the Door, the new story collection by Israeli writer Etgar Keret.

In his new book, Heaven on Earth, English barrister Sadakat Kadri describes how early Islamic scholars codified — and then modified — the Shariah laws that would govern how Muslim people lead their daily lives. He then reflects on the present day, describing how today's religious scholars interpret the Shariah.

Politicians love to invoke Honest Abe, often while twisting his legacy to fit their own purposes. But who was the man, really? Three Lincoln historians discuss the books they think best capture the president's character.

In his new memoir, Rodney King explains why he gave his famous "Can we get along?" speech when riots erupted after police officers were acquitted in his beating. His lawyers had drafted a far angrier script for him. He also reflects on his life since the trial: "Things have changed for me," he says.

Tania Head was one of the most visible survivors of the Sept. 11 attacks. She'd been in the south tower of the World Trade Center, lost her fiance in the north tower, and devoted her life to getting recognition for survivors. Just one problem: Her entire story was fake.

There are many books set in the so-called City of Light, but author Rosecrans Baldwin says that none are quite as charming as The Dud Avocado. Have a favorite tale set in France? Let us know what it is in the comments.

Nadine Gordimer has always incorporated political themes into her novels, but her latest work turns its sights toward the domestic sphere. In No Time Like the Present, a South African activist couple struggles to find happiness in a world of their own making.

After a cataclysm decimates the planet, a man wakes up paralyzed and without any memory of the past. Critic Michael Schaub says Immobility is the terrifying tale Brian Evenson was born to write.