Very Recent History

A disconnected, scientific voice gives readers a detailed portrait of New York City during the financial crisis.

The Smartest Kids in the World: And How They Got That Way

A look inside some of the world’s best educational systems to find out how and why the U.S. system is falling short.

Rose George

Ninety Percent of Everything: Inside Shipping

A freelance journalist shines a light into the far reaches of the secretive shipping industry.

I Wear the Black Hat: Grappling with Villains (Real and Imagined)

A breezy look into the heart of darkness.

Teardown: Memoir of a Vanishing City

A love poem to arson-prone, deindustrialized Flint, Mich.

Ziad Fahmy

Ordinary Egyptians: Creating the Modern Nation Through Popular Culture

A timely look at the roots of national unity as revolution percolates in the Middle East.

By Elaine Sciolino

La Seduction: How the French Play the Game of Life

The hidden truth about the Gallic approach to living.

By Dan Gardner

Future Babble: Why Expert Predictions Are Next to Worthless, and You Can Do Better

The author exposes the folly in our pursuit of certainty.