Jill McCorkle's renown was given a jump-start with the simultaneous publication of her first two novels, The Cheer Leader and July 7th. And ever since that much-acclaimed beginning she's kept her ...

Someone suggested that her club of young mothers read the “Thorn Birds,” Bette Oveson recalled. For a group of women living in Richfield, Utah, it was more than eye-opening; it was life-changing.

"For my money, the best pop groups are girl bands," says Andy McCluskey, frontman of OMD and the mastermind behind Atomic Kitten. "Boy bands are absolutely horrible. They only sell records because ...