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The mariachi Mass brings an ensemble of garishly dressed folk musicians — with their guitars, trumpets and violins — right down to the front of the church, where they play liturgical music.

A master of the Brazilian version of the mandolin, Hamilton de Holanda is determined to show the world what the instrument can do — and he's found friends in disparate musical worlds who are helping him prove is point.

Say so long to chia seeds and cronuts — so 2013 — and get ready to welcome freekeh, an ancient, fiber-rich grain. Eating local goes into overdrive, and cauliflower is poised to become the new Brussels sprout.

Also: Martin Amis on his stepmother, the novelist Elizabeth Jane Howard; journalist and author Simon Hoggart has died; the best books coming out this week.

Qiu Xiaolong has written eight detective novels based in his hometown of Shanghai. Qiu, who lives in St. Louis, embraces the advantages and problems of writing detective fiction in the Internet era, when Chinese people know so much more dirt about their system and leaders.

Guiseppe Tornatore (Cinema Paradiso) turns in an English-language romance-cum-mystery about an art auctioneer (Geoffrey Rush) obsessed with a young heiress and collector (Sylvia Hoeks). With Jim Sturgess and Donald Sutherland.

In Watsonville, Calif., 82 percent of residents are either immigrants or descendants of immigrants. It's an example of what some are calling "racial isolation."

The year 2013 saw some of the worst brush fires on record in Australia. Hundreds of home were destroyed. The BBC's Phil Mercer reports on the rebuilding effort after those fires.

The author of a number of acclaimed children's books including "Because of Winn-Dixie" and "The Tale of Despereaux" has been named the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature.

NPR's Charlie Mahtesian joins us to discuss the new year in Congress, as the Senate takes up a bill that would provide an extension of unemployment benefits. The House goes back to work tomorrow.