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Both the House and the Senate were in session Sunday evening, but a bipartisan push by Senate leaders fell short. Monday is the last day to avoid the tax hikes and spending cuts, though Congress may still reach a deal over the next few days.

Wonks from across the political spectrum look at the upside of the cliff.

From a charming tale of the tooth fairy to the very grown-up fiction of Graham Greene, read by the very grown-up Colin Firth, Robin Whitten of AudioFile magazine picks some of 2012's best audiobooks for your holiday listening.

Europe spent much of this year trying to hold its common currency pact together. Greece, Spain, Italy and other countries flirted with disaster as interest rates spiked, forcing the debtor nations to accept austerity programs. The turmoil was bad enough to push much of the eurozone into recession.

Superstorm Sandy is what most people will remember from the 2012 Atlantic hurricane season. But Sandy was just one of 10 hurricanes this year during a season that was both busy and strange. From an El Nino that never materialized to meandering tropical storms, meteorologists were baffled.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is in a New York hospital for treatment of a blood clot. Clinton suffered a concussion after a fall earlier this month.

Despite what has been called a status quo election, the 113th Congress will bring with it generational changes and some history, including the first all-female delegation for a state, and the fewest number of military veterans since World War II. Here are some of the noteworthy newcomers.

The clot is located in a vein that's in the space between her brain and skull. A statement by Clinton's physicians released by the State Department said the clot did not result in a stroke or neurological damage. The statement added that the doctors were "confident she will make a full recovery."

Also: Hillary Clinton being treated for blood clot; big banks reportedly near settlement over foreclosure abuse accusations; body of Newtown killer is claimed; Venezuela's Chavez suffers new cancer complications; nine killed, 36 injured in Oregon bus crash.

All large classes elected to Congress want to change Washington. The Tea Party has found that there are all kinds of tripwires built into the American system of checks and balances that prevent newcomers from quickly remaking the political culture into their own image.