A Few FavoritesLike this list

16 items

1. 1. Me Talk Pretty One Day

   Sedaris, David

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   In a collection of essays, observations, and commentaries, the humorist describes his recent move to Paris, life as an American in Paris, his struggle to learn French, his family, and restaurant meals.

2. 2. The Devil in the White City

   [Murder, Magic & Madness and the Fair That Changed America]

   Larson, Erik

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   Chilling and fascinating at the same time! Larson does a great job of telling the suspenseful true stories during Chicago's rise to world fame.

3. 3. The Journal of Best Practices

   a Memoir of Marriage, Asperger Syndrome, and One Man's Quest to Be a Better Husband

   Finch, David,

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   Honest, humorous, helpful, hopeful. This hit close to home as I learn more about important people in my own life who cope with life on that side of the autism spectrum.

4. 4. Travels With Charley

   in Search of America

   Steinbeck, John, 1902-1968

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   Author John Steinbeck was 58 when he set out to rediscover the country he had been writing about for so many years. With his elderly French poodle, Charley, he embarked on a quest across America, from the northermost tip of Maine to…Read moreRead more of this annotation

5. 5. A History of the World in 6 Glasses

   Standage, Tom

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   An interesting lens to trace the steps of human history, easily digestible (drinkable?) read that doesn't require past knowledge of historical events or memorization of dates. Good casual and educational read.

6. 6. Eats, Shoots & Leaves

   the Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation

   Truss, Lynne

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   In Eats, Shoots & Leaves, former editor Lynne Truss dares to say, in her delightfully urbane, witty, and very English way, that it is time to look at our commas and semicolons and see them as the wonderful and necessary things they are.…Read moreRead more of this annotation

7. 7. Thing Explainer

   Complicated Stuff in Simple Words

   Munroe, Randall,

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   Randall Munroe creatively breaks down a variety of complex systems with simple illustrations and concise descriptions using only the 1000 most common English words. It's not necessarily the clearest explanation, but the fun illustrations…Read moreRead more of this annotation

8. 8. My Year of Running Dangerously

   Foreman, Tom

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   Combining two of my favorite topics, memoirs and running, acclaimed journalist Tom Foreman puts his storytelling skills to good use as he recounts his all-in return to distance running after his daughter prods him out of a decades-long…Read moreRead more of this annotation

9. 9. Never Have Your Dog Stuffed

   and Other Things I've Learned

   Alda, Alan, 1936-

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   Alan Alda has written a memoir as elegant, funny, and affecting as his greatest performances. More than a typical celebrity biography, it is a moving and funny story of a boy growing into a man who then realizes he has only just begun to…Read moreRead more of this annotation

10. 10. The Annotated Pride and Prejudice

    Austen, Jane, 1775-1817

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    Human foibles and early nineteenth-century manners are satirized in this romantic tale of English country family life as Elizabeth Bennet and her four sisters are encouraged to marry well in order to keep the Bennet estate in their family.…Read moreRead more of this annotation

11. 11. The Night Circus

    [a Novel]

    Morgenstern, Erin

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    A fierce competition (and love story) is underway, a contest between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood to compete in "a game," in which each must use their powers of illusion to best the other.…Read moreRead more of this annotation

12. 12. Neverwhere

    Gaiman, Neil

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    Richard Mayhew's life is forever changed after he rescues a young girl named Door and finds himself living in a city of monsters, saints, murderers, and angels, and he must help Door on her mission to save this strange underworld kingdom…Read moreRead more of this annotation

13. 13. The Presidents Club

    Inside the World's Most Exclusive Fraternity

    Gibbs, Nancy, 1960-

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    An interesting personal take on the recent U.S. leaders who at times have been arch enemies and at others have been close comrades and mentors.

14. 14. Cubed

    A Secret History of the Workplace

    Saval, Nikil

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    This is a light-hearted and interesting account of how the workplace has evolved over time, mixing in topics like architecture, furniture, social change and more.

15. 15. Blood, Bones, and Butter

    [the Inadvertent Education of a Reluctant Chef]

    Hamilton, Gabrielle

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    The chef of New York's East Village Prune restaurant presents an account of her search for meaning and purpose in the central rural New Jersey home of her youth, marked by a first chicken kill, an international backpacking tour, and the…Read moreRead more of this annotation

16. 16. Dad Is Fat

    Gaffigan, Jim

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    Stand-up comedian Jim Gaffigan, who's best known for his legendary riffs on Hot Pockets, bacon, manatees, and McDonald's, expresses all the joys and horrors of life with five young children everything from cousins ("celebrities for little…Read moreRead more of this annotation