A scholarly, many-angled examination of what gratitude is and how it functions in our lives.

Gratitude’s Grace Can Be Itself a Gift

Watching Tarell Alvin McCraney’s “Brother/Sister Plays,” you experience the excited wonder that comes from witnessing a new, authentically original vision.

Lives in the Bayou Tap All the Realism of Dreams

Observers of the legendary French chef Pierre Gagnaire wonder how he will wed his audience and his art at his new Las Vegas beachhead.

Trying Tenderness in Las Vegas

Some readers prefer the convenience of small-screen smartphones to e-readers.

Cellphone Apps Challenge the Rise of E-Readers

An agreement passed by the State Assembly would make driving drunk with a child in the vehicle a felony.

New York Is Set for Strict Stand on D.W.I. Cases

A “cash for caulkers” program has the potential to get contractors working again, as well as keep more money in homeowners’ pockets.

A Stimulus That Could Save Money

The sheer size of the airline industry’s emissions makes it hard to judge the effectiveness of carbon offset programs.

Paying More for Flights Eases Guilt, Not Emissions

A program in Philadelphia has enabled hundreds of troubled borrowers to retain their homes.

Philadelphia Gives Homeowners a Way to Stay Put

The college anti-sweatshop movement persuaded Russell Athletic to agree to rehire 1,200 workers in Honduras.

Labor Fight Ends in Win for Students

The appointment of Kenneth M. Jacobs ends weeks of speculation over the successor to Bruce Wasserstein, who died in October.

New Leader at Lazard Is an Insider

The Cafesjian Center for the Arts is a mad work of architectural megalomania and one of the most spectacular museum buildings in ages.

Unveiling the Hanging Gardens of Armenia

“Crazy Heart,” a low-budget film about a washed-up country singer, finds itself at the heart of the Oscar race.

A Surprise Gets Buzz for Oscars

In the Catskills, a New York City builder and real estate developer fulfilled his dream of building a house around a giant stone.

The Real Fred Flintstone

The very slightest hint of a thaw in cultural relations between the United States and Cuba has quietly brought the Cuban band Septeto Nacional to New York.

Opening Arms and Ears to Cuban Music

“The Blind Side” and “Precious” share a premise but sidestep similar issues.

Two Films, Two Routes From Poverty

Lisa Kline, the New York stylist who bought Sarah Palin and her family their notorious $150,000 wardrobes, goes public with details of the spending.

Only Palin’s Stylist Knows for Sure

Paul LeClerc announced that he would step down as president of the New York Public Library in 2011.

Library Leader in Era of Change to Step Down

Senator Harry Reid put forward his version of the health care overhaul, promising it would reduce the deficit while covering most of the uninsured.

Senate Says Health Plan Will Cover Another 31 Million

This couple, both New Yorker cartoonists, live in a sunny three-bedroom apartment in Inwood with enough room for his-and-hers studios.

Where Punchlines Pay the Rent

When families come together, rudeness is often served with the cranberries and yams.

Duck! It’s the Holidays.

Senator Charles E. Grassley asked universities what they are doing about professors who put their names on others’ articles, and how that is different from plagiarism.

Medical Schools Quizzed on Ghostwriting

Because of an editing error, an article on Tuesday about testimony from the secretary to Joseph L. Bruno, the former State Senate majority leader, in his trial on corruption charges misidentified the court in Albany where the trial is being held. It is Federal District Court, not State Supreme Court.

Corrections

Because of an editing error, an article on Monday about General Motors’ early start to repayment of its debt to the United States and Canadian governments misstated, in some copies, the expected amount of the initial repayment at the end of December. It is $1.2 billion toward $6.7 billion in senior debt; the company will not pay the entire $6.7 billion.

A headline on Tuesday with an article about quarterly earnings at the Lowe’s Companies misstated its results in some copies. The company reported a 30 percent lower profit; it did not report a loss.

Austin "Red" Robbins was an American basketball player.

November 18, 2009

Headlines from November 18, 2009

Gratitude’s Grace Can Be Itself a Gift

Lives in the Bayou Tap All the Realism of Dreams

Trying Tenderness in Las Vegas

Cellphone Apps Challenge the Rise of E-Readers

New York Is Set for Strict Stand on D.W.I. Cases

Billboard 200

Play On

Michael Jackson's This Is It (Soundtrack)

My Christmas

Glee: Season One: The Music Volume 1

NOW 32

Notable Deaths

Historical Context for November 18, 2009