The Two-Way
6:22 am
Mon May 20, 2013

Book News: J.K. Rowling Tells 'Harry Potter' Backstories

Credit Ben Pruchnie / Getty Images
J.K. Rowling.

The daily lowdown on books, publishing, and the occasional author behaving badly.

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New In Paperback
6:03 am
Mon May 20, 2013

May 20-26: A Coup, An Ancient Battle And One Steamy Diary

* Some of the language in the summaries above has been provided by publishers.

Copyright 2013 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.

Europe
6:00 am
Mon May 20, 2013

Germany May Have Paid A Price For Its Financial Power

Germans had to finance bailouts for countries like Greece, and imposed austerity measures in return. Those who disapprove may have struck back. People across the continent and beyond watched the Eurovision song contest. The German entry finished near the bottom, with countries giving the Germans no points at all

Around the Nation
5:55 am
Mon May 20, 2013

Right Lottery Numbers, Wrong Date

A California woman turned on the TV last week and saw she had the winning numbers in Wednesday's drawing. She thought she had won $360 million. It turns out she bought her ticket an hour after Wednesday's drawing.

The Two-Way
5:52 am
Mon May 20, 2013

Nation's Midsection Braces For More Severe Storms

Originally published on Mon May 20, 2013 10:14 am

There's no relief today for folks in the nation's midsection.

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Around the Nation
3:56 am
Mon May 20, 2013

Seeds Are An Economical Choice For Vegetable Gardeners

Originally published on Mon May 20, 2013 4:20 pm

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

It's planting season, at least for those growing things like summer squash, beans and cherry tomatoes. And we're seeing a change. Rather than buy already developed seedlings, which are more expensive, many gardeners are buying seed packets. It's a sign they want to start their gardens from scratch. And seed companies say they've seen an increase in orders since the economic downturn.

Reporter Sasa Woodruff reports that it's easy to read the directions on these seed envelopes, the hard part is following them.

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Energy
3:56 am
Mon May 20, 2013

Calif. Law To Require Ships To Cut Pollution

Originally published on Mon May 20, 2013 4:28 am

California is about to become the first state to require shore power at its ports. A new law mandates at least half of a shipping line's fleet to shut down their diesel engines and plug into shore-side electric power when they unload their cargo. It's part of a larger effort to cut pollution at the state's busiest ports, but costs have been a sticking point.

Business
3:56 am
Mon May 20, 2013

Yahoo To Buy Tumblr In An Attempt To Revitalize Itself

Originally published on Mon May 20, 2013 4:06 am

Yahoo is expected to announce Monday that it's acquiring the social media site Tumblr, in a deal The Wall Street Journal and other news outlets are reporting to be worth about $1.1 billion. Some analysts are calling the acquisition an effort by Yahoo to be "cool and relevant" again.

It's All Politics
2:07 am
Mon May 20, 2013

Is There Really A Second-Term Curse?

Originally published on Mon May 20, 2013 10:15 am

The phrase "second term curse" is so familiar that it's become a cliche of American politics. Whether it's President Richard Nixon's resignation or President Bill Clinton's impeachment, presidents tend to have a tough time during the back half of an eight-year presidency.

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Around the Nation
2:07 am
Mon May 20, 2013

Advocates Struggle To Reach Growing Ranks Of Suburban Poor

Originally published on Mon May 20, 2013 1:30 pm

Poverty has grown everywhere in the U.S. in recent years, but mostly in the suburbs. During the 2000s, it grew twice as fast in suburban areas as in cities, with more than 16 million poor people now living in the nation's suburbs — more than in urban or rural areas.

Elizabeth Kneebone, a fellow with the Metropolitan Policy Program at the Brookings Institution, says this shift in poverty can be seen in Montgomery County, Md., right outside the nation's capital.

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