Books

Gates is the W.E.B. DuBois Professor of Humanities and chair of the Department of Afro-American Studies at Harvard University as well as a staff writer for "The New Yorker." In his new book, "Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Black Man," Gates records the thoughts of some of society's most revered black American men. The men debate the current state of black men and the difficulties of race and gender relations in American society.

Korn writes about health and medical issues for "Self," "the Chicago Tribune Magazine," and other publications. He has a new book "Lovejoy: A Year in the Life of an Abortion Clinic," which tells of the protests and controversy surrounding the Lovejoy Surgicenter, an abortion clinic in Portland, Oregon.

Byock talks about his new book "Dying Well: The Prospect of Growth at the End of Life." He is President of the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine and a prominent spokesman for the hospice industry. His book explores how the end of life, whether a person is suffering pain or not, can be an opportunity for deepened spiritual growth and reconciliation with others.

Book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews "Independent People" the novel by Icelandic author Halldor Laxness which was first published in 1946 and has been out of print until now.

Journalist Martin Mayer writes about finance, advertising, education and law, but his expertise is in finance. His written many books. His latest: "The Bankers: The Next Generation: The New Worlds of Money, Credit and Banking in an Electronic Age" is a rewritten, updated version of his best selling book on banking which he wrote 20 years ago.

Book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews "Contesting Tears: The Hollywood Melodrama of the Unknown Woman" by Stanley Cavell about the weepy women's movies of the 30s and 40s.

Legato is the Director of the Partnership for Women's Health at Columbia University. She's co-authored the new book "What Women Need to Know: From Headaches to Heart Disease and Everything In Between."

Newspaper columnist and the etiquette expert, Judith Martin, otherwise known as Miss Manners. Her new book is "Miss Manners' Basic Training: Communication" (Crown News) about the social issues of phone answering machines, e-mail, and cyberspace.

British writer Jonathan Raban. His new book "Bad Land: An American Romance" is based on memoirs, diaries, photographs and letters of immigrants who in the early 1900s traveled to Montana to homestead. Raban himself is something of an immigrant; he settled in Seattle in 1990.

Theologian and author Rev. Peter J. Gomes. He has written the new book "The Good Book: Reading The Bible with Mind and Heart." Gomes is black and gay, and brings a unique and sometimes controversial interpretation to the Bible. He has been a minister at Harvard University's Memorial Church since 1974. Time Magazine called him "one of the seven best preachers in America."