Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., turns out to be quite the little gossip. In his bestselling Journals: 1952-2000 (Penguin Group USA), he shares insights from his 50-plus years of being at the center of American political life. The massive (928 pages) book makes accessible the journals he faithfully kept for so many decades. Edited by his two oldest sons, the book displays not only his incredible grasp of history, public affairs and the American character, but it also gives us some really juicy tidbits about some of the most famous and infamous figures of the last half of the 20th century. Schlesinger's bona fides are unassailable—he won the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award twice—but he also turns out to be a wonderfully witty and lively chronicler of our times.

There are always new books coming out about what we should all do to make our lives better. For example, dog whisperer Cesar Millan gives us Be the Pack Leader: Use CESAR'S WAY to Transform Your Dog…and Your Life (Crown Publishing Group.) He applies his principles of dog psychology to show us how to develop the calm-assertive energy of a successful pack leader. Kathleen Flinn hopes to use the metaphor of food to share her life's lessons, in The Sharper Your Knife, the Less You Cry: Love, Laughter and Tears at the World's Most Famous Cooking School (Penguin Group USA.) After being fired from her high-powered job, she spent a year in Paris at the Cordon Bleu, where she learned something about cooking and a lot about picking up the pieces, moving on and falling in love.

If you don't find inspiration in food, you might find it in Look Me in the Eye: My Life with Asperger's (Crown Publishing Group) by John Elder Robison. The author, older brother to Augusten Burroughs (Running with Scissors) writes movingly about growing up with Asperger's, a form of autism—something he didn't even know he had until he was 40 years old. This is the story of his journey from isolated outcast to a new life as husband, father and successful entrepreneur.

Another noted historian and social commentator, Garry Wills, explores Christianity's place in American life, from the Puritans to the presidential administration of George W. Bush. In Head and Heart: American Christianities (Penguin Group USA), Wills argues that throughout our nation's history, the struggle at the core of Christianity is between the head and the heart, between reason and emotion. This tension is not a new topic for Wills—he's been studying religion and its role in our lives for many decades. While the book takes our current president to task as having betrayed and endangered modern Christianity, it also offers some hope that we can find a balance between piety and reason, to reach a uniquely American faith.

In the fiction arena, there are some exciting new books just out. In The Dilemma (Overlook) Penny Vincenzi explores the complexities of a highly-charged, wealthy English family led by a mogul who makes Donald Trump look like a wimp. In Eureka (Random House), Jim Lehrer is as entertaining as ever with his story of an insurance executive in the throes of a midlife crisis who goes on a spending spree, buying everything he ever wanted as a child, from a miniature fire truck to a BB gun to an antique red Cushman motor scooter.

On a more serious note, we have another opportunity to enjoy the exquisite writing of Irène Némirovsky. This is another posthumous work unearthed by the author's (Suite Française) biographers. Fire in the Blood (Knopf) appears to have been undertaken between 1938 and 1942—she was deported to Auschwitz that year—and is the story of a middle-aged man who squandered his youth and inheritance and is now living alone with only his dog for company. His "fire in the blood" spent, the narrator becomes intertwined with indiscreet characters whose lapses and antics eventually inspire him to cry, "I want my youth back." Némirovsky writes with great beauty and compassion, making us feel all the more sharply the loss of her talent in the horror of Auschwitz.

For young readers, we can celebrate the arrival of the newest Brian Jacques book, #9 in the Redwall series, Eulalia! (Penguin Group USA.) The heroes are animals who must protect their homes against evil in medieval England. This time a new Badger Lord must rise to fight against foxes and other enemies who threaten Salamandastron. These books have captivated readers worldwide, with their mix of fantasy laced with clear distinctions between right and wrong, good and bad.

In Dragonhaven (Penguin Young Readers Group), Robin McKinley creates a world where dragons, threatened with extinction, are protected, but not without danger or controversy. This is a set up for the main character, Jake Mendoza, who lives at the Makepeace Institute of Integrated Dragon Studies. What he does when he finds a baby dragon will affect the future of the institute and the dragons it shelters.

In Spud (Penguin Group USA), John van de Ruit recreates 1990 South Africa, where Apartheid is crumbling, Nelson Mandela is being freed and the world is changing. Into this milieu comes Spud Milton, 13 years old and starting his first year at an elite boys' boarding school. Sounds heavy, but it's actually a hilarious, charming tale that will engage every reader, at any age. Thankfully, the author's already at work on a sequel.

In Waggle (Candlewick Press) Sarah McMenemy introduces preschool children to Rosie and her new puppy, who needs a name. Charmingly retro illustrations and engaging writing make this book a delight.

These are just a few of a harvest of new books for every age and taste. Stop by soon to pluck a few for yourself.