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A mother-daughter author team is on the rise in the teen-vampire world; Stephenie Meyer gives a little help to a friend; and ...

[The Monitor occasionally reprints material from its archives. This book review originally ran on June 18, 1991.] The week before my wedding, I went for my first facial. My friends encouraged me; women's magazines have told me for years that deep cleaning unclogs pores and gives skin a 'healthy glow.'

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Fans of 'American Idol' eliminated Alexis Grace from the show's eighth season on Wednesday when they cast the fewest votes for the Memphis singer's rendition of Dolly Parton's 'Jolene' during the show's country music-themed week.

Exclusives: Arena, Signature opffering up musicals -- When a recession makes live theater a tougher sell, give them musicals. That's the philosophy of Arena Stage and the Signature Theater, two D.C.-area orgs whose 2009-10 skeds will feature mostly familiar tuners on their main stages.

Kevin Costner has signed on to a new drama, and he will join two other famous actors in the film.Costner joins Tommy Lee Jones, and Ben Affleck in 'The Company Men,' a film which explores the impact of corporate downsizing, Variety reports.Affleck will play a company employee who loses his wealth and lavish possessions when he gets laid off -- but is then given a construction job from his brother-in-law(Costner), the trade paper says.

Acclaimed columnist Jon Carroll will host an evening in conversation with world music artist Kelly Takunda Orphan to discuss and perform selections from her debut album 'Give It to The People,' Monday, April 6, 2009 at First Congregational Church of Oakland, 2501 Harrison St., Oakland at 7pm. Tickets ($20) can be purchased online at www.ParkDaySchool.org or by calling 510-653-0317 x103. All proceeds benefit the academic and financial assistance programs at Park Day School in Oakland.

The university said Lucas, Spielberg and Scorsese are slated to attend a tribute Monday, the 99th anniversary of Kurosawa's birth...

Memoirs do not have to be sensational or celebrity-driven to move us. The crime writer Laura Lippman picks her favourite tales of the quotidianThe crime writer Laura Lippman was a reporter for 20 years, including 12 years at the Baltimore Sun. Since 2001, she has been a full-time novelist. Her novels have won almost every prize given for crime fiction in the United States, including the Edgar, Anthony, Nero Wolfe and Agatha awards. She lives in Baltimore with her husband, the writer David Simon, who created the hit TV series The Wire and Homicide: Life on the Street. Her most recent novel, Life Sentences, is published by Avon. Buy Life Sentences at the Guardian bookshop. I love memoirs, although I have promised my family members that I will never try my hand at one. ('Can I get that in writing?' my sister asked.) However, I'm generally not drawn to the addiction/dysfunction stories that have been popular of late; I wanted no part of A Million Little Pieces even when it was masqueradi

Comic Dani Klein is a mother. After Birth is her brainchild. The L.A.-based show gathers actors and writers to talk about their experiences with parenthood. Klein talks about her show.

TV News: Awards to be given on April 30 in Beverly Hills -- 'Brothers and Sisters,' 'Extreme Makeover: Home Edition' and '30 Days' are among this year's second annual 'Television Academy Honors' nominees.