In many countries, politicians are looked upon as untrustworthy and politics as a rigged game. Do we really need these officials to function as a civil society? Then, author and political science professor Alex Marland on how power is exercised in Ottawa, the topic of his new book, "Whipped: Party Discipline in Canada."

Timmins and many other northern Ontario communities continue to be challenged by a growing opioid epidemic and homelessness. What actions are being taken to address these issues? Then, New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof discusses the economic crisis facing working-class Americans, the subject of his new book, "Tightrope: Americans Reaching for Hope."