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The Wells Street drawbridge carries cars, buses, bikes, pedestrians and elevated trains across the Chicago River. Half of the 91-year-old bridge will be replaced in just nine days. The project is so complex that one Chicago transportation official compares it to open heart surgery.

Mohsin Hamid chooses an unusual second-person structure throughout his new novel, How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia. NPR's Steve Inskeep says that, though largely mute in a narrative told to an unnamed "you," the hero "speaks powerfully through his ambition and his longing."

The world is speculating furiously about who will be the next Pope. The wait was too much for one German man, who tried to sneak into a closed-door meeting of cardinals. He was thrown out by the Swiss Guard after someone noticed his crucifix was too short and his sash was just a purple scarf.

The circus is hard to categorize and easy to overlook as an art form. But author Duncan Wall decided to take a closer look at circus history — and maybe learn some clowning skills along the way — in his new book The Ordinary Acrobat.

Two car thefts, one in the U.S. and one in China, have transfixed many in China. In both cases, babies were in the vehicles. The American case ended happily when the thief phoned police to tell them where to find the child. In China, the suspect has confessed to killing little Haobo.

In West Haven, Connecticut, a man ordered coffee at a drive-thru Dunkin Donuts. He then announced a robbery and tried to climb through the window. Police say the clerk threw hot coffee in his face.

Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley has vetoed a Franklin County school safety bill that would have authorized some teachers to carry firearms. The bill would…

Also: The influence of Victor Hugo's Les Miserables on Hugo Chavez; Jeb Bush's new book on immigration; and a 9-year-old saves himself and friends from quicksand after reading a survival guide.

Winter storm Saturn, which has already left Chicago digging out from 10 inches, is expected to dump more snow on Maryland and Virginia.

The job market remains "sturdy," according to the latest ADP National Employment Report. Much more will be known about the labor picture when the Bureau of Labor Statistics releases its figures on Friday.