"ugly To Start With" A Handsome Suite Of Stories By John Michael Cummings

Spoiler alert: Mr. Rochester is keeping a horrible secret from Jane Eyre, and the longer he delays telling her what it is, the more horrible his secret had better be. After months of anguished sighing, we don’t want to find out that he cheated on his taxes or ripped the tag off his mattress.

In his new book of portraits, artist William Stout renders the blues in just about every color. Lucille Bogan smiles amid bubble-gummy swirls of pink. Willie Dixon radiates amber rays. A rosy-cheeked B. B. King sits framed by a fog of red that approximates the hue of molten maraschino cherries.

Preview a documentary about beloved writer and editor George Plimpton.

Musician Questlove has published a memoir that recounts his upbringing and celeb encounters.

Peek at a new animated trailer for the cartoonist's memoir.