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Pat Conroy credits his mother with turning him into an "insatiable, fanatical" reader. In his new memoir, My Reading Life, Conroy explains how reading has been a lifelong safe haven for him — "the most rewarding form of exile."

The Kitchen Sisters explore the saga of a Texas corn chip and C.E. Doolin, the can-do visionary behind it. Doolin, who envisioned Fritos as a side dish, never imagined anyone would consume an entire king size bag. The story of the Frito is the latest in the "Hidden Kitchens" series.

The sculpture of Martin Luther King Jr. intended for a memorial on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., is too "confrontational," according to the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts. The commission's approval is necessary for any monument or memorial in the capital. The commission says the sculpture needs to be reworked.

In his new book, Secret Identity: The Fetish Art Of Superman's Co-creator Joe Shuster, Craig Yoe explores the risque art of the man behind Superman.

Rebecca Traister's incisive analysis of misogyny and gender roles in the 2008 election takes on Tina Fey's satire, "Iron My Shirt" T-shirts and Hillary Clinton's "Night of the Imaginary Tears."

Classical Greeks and Romans dreamed up some fantastic inventions — including an analog computer to track the sun, and amphitheater surround sound (of sorts). Historian Vicki Leon discusses these innovations and more in her new book, How to Mellify a Corpse: And Other Human Stories of Ancient Science & Superstition.

President Obama holds town hall meetings in Raleigh, N.C., and Bristol, Va., on Wednesday. Raleigh is a fast-growing urban center where Obama did well in last year's election. But the president was far less popular in the mountain town of Bristol. He's expected to face challenges in Appalachia pushing changes to health care.

GPS devices are being used more frequently to help authorities monitor people. Law enforcement officials use them because they save time and money. With GPS, officials don't need to pay to put agents on surveillance details.

Throughout his career, Guru was a unique figure: a veteran who thrived when others faltered and an innovator who never followed a style he didn't help invent. His group, Gang Starr, led a vanguard of other artists who bridged jazz and hip-hop. The rapper died Monday at 47.

President Bush named top White House economic adviser Ben Bernanke as chairman of the Federal Reserve Board on Monday to succeed the near-legendary Alan Greenspan.