(Bolded are my personal favorites, recommendations)

129. War Without End: Israelis, Palestinians, and the Struggle for a Promised Land - Anton La Guardia
Exceptionally long. I'm still impressed I made it through it. I knew (and still know) very little about the history of the region, and despite some apparent biases (especially as the book gets ( Read more... )

After a successful date on Friday (yey! Even though I thought for a moment or 12 that I was getting stood up :P Still, date!), I managed to squeeze in some more reading time (shock and awe):

The Well of Lost Plots - Jasper Fforde
If you haven't read any of Fforde's Thursday Next series, please pick up a copy.  Any copy of any book.  They're all ( Read more... )

Galileo's Daughter - Dava Sobel
A remarkably wonderful read.  Most are familiar with Galileo, but fewer are aware of the great relationship he had with his eldest daughter, Suar Maria Celeste.  Spanning his lifetime, the book delves into his problems in dealing with his Catholicism in the face of his scientific experiments and theories, unpopular ( Read more... )

Lost and Found - Carolyn Parkhurst
Reality TV becomes novelized, complete with freaky family relationships, bad marriages and other assorted b.s. that evolves on the road to fame and fortune on a worldwide treasure hunt a la Amazing Race.  A feel-good ending, though parts of it raised by ish-factor and turned on my cheese-alert.  The author also ( Read more... )

Hope Diamond: The Cultural History of a Legendary and Cursed Gem - Richard Kurin
Yes, it is, essentially, a biography of a diamond.  300 pages of diamond information and history.  Yet, it's a pretty damn cool diamond.  Shifting through 3 phases of its existence, the Hope diamond has morphed from stunning gemstone to cursed finery - the book explores ( Read more... )

Rebecca - Daphne du Maurier
One of those "What do you mean, you've never read Rebecca?" from your parents' generation.  It's categorized sometimes as a romance, but it's really  more of a mystery/psychothriller.  Written back in the days when people still owned "estates" and had slews of housekeepers and butlers, Rebecca tells the story of a young, ( Read more... )

The nice thing about reading multiple books at once is that you're almost always finishing one.  The bad thing about reading multiple books at once is that you're almost always finishing one and people think you have no life.  Also, you forget which one is which sometimes. o_O

High Five - Janet Evanovich
LULA!  Also, Ranger.  Mmmmm.  Though I can't ( Read more... )

Dearest Friend: A Life of Abigail Adams - Lynne Withey
A biography of Abigail Adams stemming from her extensive letter writing to her family and friends during the revolutionary years.  Considered an early feminist, she was also a bit of a hardass and rather domineering :P  A good read, but not a particularly exciting one, as women during that time ( Read more... )