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Lewis Buzbee's account of his idyllic youth in the California public school system is relentlessly positive, though bracketed with criticism of current school policy and a firm call for more funding.

Cold, dark winter nights are the perfect time to dip into Gemma Files' chilling new story collection, We Will All Go Down Together. Critic Jason Heller praises Files' "ghostly, magical storytelling."

Nichelle Gainer's new Vintage Black Glamour, based on the popular Tumblr, collects a wealth of historical and biographical information — alongside gorgeous imagery — on great black entertainers.

For her latest collection, Claudia Rankine mined her and her friends' encounters with racism. She says she wanted to talk about "what happens when we fail each other as people."

The aging characters in Kate Walbert's new novel are learning to go with the flow as waters rise and life takes strange turns. Critic Heller McAlpin praises Walbert's ability to capture women's lives.

Stephen Fry is a world-class wit, a learned fellow and probably a really great guy. Unfortunately, says reviewer Trey Graham, that doesn't come through in More Fool Me, the new volume of his memoirs.

Hurricane Katrina destroyed Mississippi's booming coastal casino business -- taking with it an important source of revenue and jobs. But a year after the storm, the seventh casino is reopening in Biloxi -- the latest sign of the gambling industry's dramatic turnaround.

Roberto Madrazo is the presidential candidate of the party that ruled Mexico for 71 years, the PRI. The fortunes of his party have tumbled since it lost the presidency in 2000 to President Vicente Fox. Madrazo is running a distant third in the polls for Sunday's election.

The Iraqi parliament passes a security pact that allows American troops to stay in the region for an additional three years. The accord was endorsed after the ruling coalition reached an understanding on a separate measure with opposition lawmakers. NPR's Ivan Watson gives Steve Inskeep an update from Baghdad.

Visiting Congress to provide an update on the struggling U.S. economy, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said he expects very slow growth in 2008, but no recession. Bernanke is trying to avoid a recession while keeping a lid on inflation. But so far, he's not getting much help. Inflation is up sharply, and housing prices keep falling.