Is Xara the right software for book configuration and layout?

Xara is WYSIWYG so it is easier to put things on the page where you want them. Word is more rigid.

Don't missunderstand me. My book project was done for a professional printinghouse. If You need to put together pictures and text in a layout, so Xara is made for this. It's easy handling with objects, photos and text is a pleasure to do. But if You wil set a professional book like I did so there are some limits You may know. I work over 30 years in the graphic industry, so I know how to achieve things.

If You have scans from old photos and need to clean them up, You can do this in Xara as well. That was the aproach for my book to do all the thinks in one program. That's why I choose Xara.

If You don't wan't spend money for a software You can try the Opne Source Scribus. But believe me with Xara You will be comfortable. Scribus needs a long learningtime.

scribus is good for scripts novels etc
but if you need photos you need a photo editor if they need tweaking