Maria Thomas' stories afford comic insight into life in Africa — minus the stereotypes.

Heidi Julavits' first novel has a Dust Bowl knack.

Tom Friedman's recollection of his days as a correspondent in Beirut help illuminate a region.

Set in a time before the Tamil Tigers, pre-Lanka Ceylon comes alive.

Introducing Frank Bascombe, a New Jersey suburbanite who can't stop thinking about his own life, and that of a nation.

Haruki Murakami's contemplation of separation and self is intriguing and bizarre, but fails to fulfill its promise.

Annie Dillard shops era-to-era, seeking the essence of history by taking heart from the meaning of sand.

Secret powers are Andrew Kaufman's powerful theme in comic stories that expose human flaws.

Rachel Seiffert takes a penetrating and affecting X-ray of the German wartime condition.

Richard B. Wright's descriptions of Rome in the 1930s makes this novel worth reading.