As his new memoir demonstrates, he himself would achieve fame as a visual artist, filmmaker, TV host and formative tastemaker.

In “The Feather Wars,” James H. McCommons pays tribute to the nation’s first conservationists.The Delineator, a creation of the Butterick Publishing Company, set fashion trends and promoted its sewing patterns to home seamstresses. Here, a page highlights the Victorian craze for elaborate plumage, one of several fads to threaten bird species at the time.

Our critic on three terrific new mysteries and a gem-filled story collection.

You’re welcome.Don DeLillo in 1997.

An adaptation has a twist that doesn’t track, and songs that benefit from an excellent cast, including Norm Lewis, Sierra Boggess and Adam Jacobs.