Adapted from a recent online discussion . Dear Carolyn: How long does it take for a family to get its groove back after losing a member (to college, not death)? Our daughter left this fall, and my husband, son, and I are missing her tons. Not sure how to establish new routines that don’t include her, we are instead just kind of counting the days till her vacations. Read full article >>

Though it may come as a surprise to some families who are new to the college decision process, annual tuition hikes are the norm at most colleges and universities across the country.

  Ayad Akhtar’s first novel, American Dervish , is a coming-of-age story about a young American Muslim, Hayat Shah, who grows up in 1980s Milwaukee. Raised by secular Muslim parents, Hayat's first real encounter with Islam begins when his mother's best friend from Pakistan, Mina, arrives with her five-year old son, Imran, to live with the Shahs. For years, Mina has been nothing but a photograph ...