Atlantic County Library System

In “Heartbreak Is the National Anthem,” Rob Sheffield chronicles how Taylor Swift has made fans, foes and even journalists part of her story.

Nick Harkaway is an accomplished author who also happens to be le Carré’s son. In his latest book, “Karla’s Choice,” he revisits his father’s great spy protagonist, George Smiley.

“Us Fools,” by Nora Lange, is a tale of two sisters living through the diseased expanse of the country’s recent history.

Shanghai straddles the past and the future, a dizzying prism of many histories and cultures. The poet Sally Wen Mao shares books that illuminate this cosmopolitan city.