This week's oddest headlines will make you thankful for even the lamest first dates, your freedom to make quirky fashion choices, and more. Let's see how: • Florida man allegedly carjacks his date:Ah, young love. Nimeha Milien, 21, says she met Donald McGhee, 19, for a blind date and took him for a "romantic stroll" at Ocean Inlet Park in Palm Beach County. At the end of the enchanted… Read More >>

Once again, senseless carnage has been visited upon the innocent. And once again, we are following the terrible events and their aftermath with an all-too familiar mix of shock, sadness and anger. Here at Reader's Digest, as we have struggled to process the news from Boston, we have taken comfort in the stories of the heroes who ran toward the danger, and in moving columns like this oneby the Washington… Read More >>

Since I spend a lot of time perusing cookbooks, I'm used to seeing adventurous takes on standard meals, but this nontraditional twist on your typical pasta  + sauce supper from Nigella Lawson's new book Nigellissima, is so out of the ordinary I just had to try it myself. The result? Secondservings-issima!  Chocolate Pasta with Pecans and Caramel(serves 2) •4 ounces cocoa or chocolate pasta, such as cocoa… Read More >>

The other day, I received a package of coconut oil in the mail from Carrington Farms. Since I had already cooked dinner for the night, I put it aside in my kitchen for later use (Truffle Pie with Sea Salt, anyone?). Turns out, I needed it sooner than I thought: That night, when I discovered I had run out of chap stick, I started googling around for alternatives and found that I could swap… Read More >>

There were notable losses this week—film critic Roger Ebert, artist Carmine Infantino, and America's oldest woman all passed away—which means laughter in the headlines was more important than ever. Here's our look at the week in weird: • German authorities quarantine Justin Bieber's pet monkey: After landing in Munich for a concert, lil pop dude Justin Bieber surrendered his pet capuchin to customs agents because he lacked proper paperwork for the beast (seen left). There's got to be a Jimmy…in here… Read More >>

Movie lovers worldwide today mourn the passing of Roger Ebert, the famed film critic who pioneered the "thumbs up, thumbs down" rating system and brought a deep affection for cinematic art to the masses. He was 70 years old and died after a long struggle with cancer. What you may not realize, however, is that Reader's Digestwas instrumental in bringing Ebert to the… Read More >>

What if you could fit a library’s entire collection in the palm of your hand? That’s the idea behind an upcoming bookless public library in San Antonio. Called BiblioTech, the system will lend out e-readers loaded with 10,000 titles for two-to-three-week periods. But don’t bother holding on to the device longer than that because it’s programmed to go dead. Other libraries have tried similar… Read More >>

Filippo Gozzoli , Executive Chef at Sirio Ristorante in New York City is renowned for his  "à la minute" cooking style, a technique of preparing dishes as they are ordered, rather than prepping them in advance (as most restaurants do). For the amateur chef, this may induce fear of last-minute stress, epic food fails and a table of guests with growling stomachs (as it… Read More >>

File under: Yes, Please. This mouthwatering recipe from a new book, Vegan Secret Supper by chef Mérida Anderson, has me ready to skip dinner tonight and go straight to dessert. Truffle Pie with Sea SaltMakes 8–12 servings. •⅓ cup (80 mL) coconut oil •4 oz (115 g) chopped chocolate •1 cup (250 mL) raw cashews, soaked in 2 cups water overnight and drained •1 14-oz… Read More >>

As withrecentweeks, the Vatican, Batman, and Dennis Rodman seem to be hot topics. Let's see why: •Vatican posts about the Caped Crusader: The Pontifical Council For Social Communications on Thursday posted and tweeted an article about how Batman has grown "bitter" over the years, which naturally caught religious followers off guard. Initial reportsthat the Vatican's website was hacked by Batman fanboys proved… Read More >>