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Chapter 1: What is Women's History Month and its significance in literature?
March is Women's History Month, so on NPR's Book of the Day podcast, we're kicking it off with a week of women writers, including one novel about a woman who ditches society and heads to a secluded religious community.
It's something that has really preoccupied me as a writer, that the question of how much should I be in the world, how much should I be out of the world?
That's this week on NPR's Book of the Day podcast.
Chapter 2: What are the recent developments in the U.S. and Ukraine relations?
Live from NPR News, I'm Dale Willman. A potential deal between the U.S. and Ukraine to pave the way for an end to its war with Russia is now up in the air. As NPR's Asma Khalid reports, this follows a heated public discussion on Friday between President Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Trump accused Ukraine's president of being disrespectful and unthankful for American support. The meeting became so heated that Zelensky left the White House earlier than expected. Zelensky was in town to finalize a deal that would give the U.S. access to Ukrainian minerals. But that deal was not signed. And Trump later told reporters that Zelensky does not want to make peace.
But after Zelensky left the White House, he did an interview with Fox News' Brett Baier and insisted he does.
Chapter 3: What are the security concerns of Ukraine regarding Russia?
We want peace. That's why I'm in the United States. That's why I visited President Trump.
But he also repeatedly made it clear he wants security guarantees from the U.S. so that Russia will not re-invade Ukraine. Asma Khalid, NPR News, the White House.
Chapter 4: What is the controversy surrounding U.S. federal employees' work reports?
Federal employees have received a second email from the Office of Personnel Management asking them to describe what work they've done over the past week. A similar earlier request is already under legal scrutiny. The email late Friday night asked the employees to share five bullet points on their accomplishments over the week.
Chapter 5: What progress has been made in the Israel-Hamas ceasefire talks?
Egypt says talks to further the ceasefire agreement in Gaza between Israel and Hamas have opened in Cairo. That says the current phase of the deal is set to expire this weekend. Ampere's Kat Lonsdorff reports from Tel Aviv.
Egypt says that, quote, intensive discussions on the next stage of the ceasefire deal are underway. Israel confirmed it has sent a delegation to Cairo. Qatari officials are also present, mediating for Hamas, which says it remains committed to the deal. President Trump's Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, is also expected in the region soon.
The first phase of the ceasefire deal, which has lasted almost six weeks, ends this weekend, although Israel has expressed interest in extending it while details of the next phase continue to be hammered out. Phase two would see more hostages and Palestinian detainees released, as well as further withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza.
More humanitarian aid would also be allowed into Gaza, which has been critical in recent weeks. Kat Lansdorf, NPR News, Tel Aviv.
There has been no indication yet of the effectiveness of the 24-hour economic blackout that was held on Friday. The activist group, the People's Union USA, encouraged Americans to not spend any money to resist what the group's founder has described as the evil influence of billionaires, big corporations and both major political parties.
Consumer spending has dropped by the most since February of 2021. Data released on Friday show that happened even as incomes rose. Economists say ongoing tariff threats from the White House and major government job cuts are both responsible in part for the spending drop, and they say tariffs will likely push prices higher. This is NPR News.
The pioneering free video calling app known as Skype will be shut down in May. That's according to Microsoft, which has owned the service since 2011. NPR's Scott Newman has more. Remember this sound?
Skype was founded in 2003 and for a few years was at the top of its game, providing video calls that seemed to many like something out of science fiction. It was later bought by eBay, then sold to Microsoft. Along the way, there came a bevy of imitators, apps such as FaceTime and WhatsApp, and video conferencing options like Zoom.
Now, Microsoft says it's winding down Skype and will pull the plug in May. to concentrate on its Microsoft Teams platform. Scott Newman, NPR News.
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