In “Straight Flush,” Ben Mezrich follows a bunch of fraternity buddies through the rise and fall of what they hoped would be an online poker empire.    

Bill Cheng’s first novel, “Southern Cross the Dog,” is set in Mississippi during the Jim Crow era.    

Four new picture books give the formerly fearsome wolf a makeover.    

Everywhere you look these days, dudes look like ladies. At the movies, Leonardo DiCaprio struts around West Egg like it was his personal runway in Jay Gatsby’s iconic pink suit and beautiful shirts. On television, Michael Douglas inherits Liberace’s feathered, bedazzled mantle in HBO’s Behind the Candelabra. Museum exhibitions—David Bowie Is … at the V&A, Punk: Chaos to Couture at ...

Cooking with fire may be in our DNA, but as our palates evolve, so does grilling. Whether your style is fast and furious grilling or low and slow barbecue, 2013's top crop of guide books includes clever tips and mouthwatering recipes from serious competitive cookers, gourmet-driven and trend-setting staffs of food magazines, and professional chefs with a bent for fine ...