Who hasn't looked at animals and wondered what they are thinking? In You're an Animal, Viskovitz! Boffa brings us into the minds of such animals as pigs, squirrels, parrots, fish, lab mice and my favorite the dung beetle. In each chapter he faces a different challenge (as a different animal) that is keeping him from his true love Ljuba. It is a thoroughly entertaining book that is so realistic that you would swear that Boffa spent years studying the behaviors of these animals. It will spur the imaginations of both young and old.

The Best American NonRequired reading is a compilation of short stories drawn from a variety of magazines and small presses such as The Onion, Sports Illustrated and The New Yorker. The topics range from humor (such as Rodney Rothman's "My fake Job" where he pretends to be an employee of an internet company and manages to blend in by using an empty desk and having his friends make fake business calls to his phone) to serious journalism (such as Michael Finkel's "Naji's Taliban Phase" the story of a Taliban soldier's defect to the Northern Alliance in Afghanistan after 9/11). It even includes a graphic piece ("Bomb Scare" by Adrian Tomine).

Over all it is a great book, all the stories are well written and interesting. It will have you cracking up at one moment and then gasping in disbelief in another.

The New Complete Joy is such a good introduction to Home Brewing that it is now included in many kits. I have been brewing for about 2 years now and still refer back to it. It gives a good background to the mechanics of brewing and takes you from easy (malt extracts) to more advanced (grain brewing). Though it is an old book the basics of home brewing haven't changed much. Brewing your own beer is not difficult and is extremely rewarding (just think in three weeks you can have 5 gallons of any type of beer you want).

Make the best tasting beer you've ever had... buy this book!

I read Me Talk Pretty One Day while traveling around in Europe and it actually managed to make a 12 hour train ride a joy. When I wasn't rolling on the ground I was snickering to myself. Each chapter is a short story about a different point in his life and all of his experiences are mixed with a bit of absurdity. From his speech therapist who tried and failed to cure him of his lisp to his brother who calls himself the rooster (no one can stop the rooster!) it never ceases to leave you with a bizarre combination of amusement and hope that this is in fact fiction.

In The Botany of Desire Michael Pollan traces the history of apples, tulips, marijuana, and the potato. It is a reminder that we have a great effect on the world around us. He explains how our desires (for such things as sweetness, beauty, nutrition, or simply to get high) can change the fate of other organisms and their success or failure rests literally in our hands. It is a great lesson in evolution, the organisms with the most desireable characteristics will survive to have offspring.

A fantastic mix of comedy and history Driving Mr. Albert will not only keep you laughing but teach you a little about Einstein's life along the way.