Michelle Obama remains the protagonist in this book. Like her mother, she nurtures her children and her family with consummate skill. Like her family, she encountered racism and discrimination along the way. Unlike her mother, she juggled this with full-time employment, and ultimately with being the most famous woman in the world.

"In Pieces" is eloquent, entertaining, and courageous. Although there are plenty of show business anecdotes, some tender and some quite funny, the real story is about a woman who had to rebuild herself after surviving a terribly damaging childhood.

Fans of David Sedaris will have noticed how his writing, always bitingly funny, has become more infused with pathos over the years. It has only improved in "Calypso."

Today we gather together to celebrate Thanksgiving—our beloved homegrown holiday, a thoroughly admirable American tradition. But is the history of Thanksgiving so admirable?