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Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
Ever thought of running away and joining the circus? This is the story of Jacob who drops out of veterinary school after his parents die. As is turns out his parents spend all their money paying for his school and left him nothing. Distraught, he finds a circus to join. The book chronicles his life as his starts his career at the bottom and works his way up to being put in charge of the animals and puts his veterinary skills to use while falling in love with a co-workers wife, naturally.

Dune by Frank Herbert
I always feel weird talking about books that it seems nearly everybody has read and I have not. The book is about this battle to control some spice that gives peoples long life and psychic powers.

The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals by Michael Pollan
This is the story of where you food comes from. All food it seems come from other living creatures either in the form of animal or plant or whatnot. The author then does his best to look in to the four meals people eat to discover just where they came from. He also in vestiges the “organic food” crazy that is becoming ever so popular. This book sounds really interesting and one I would check out in the near future.

World War Z by Max Brooks
Who doesn’t love a good zombie book, eh? Max Brooks, son of Mel Brooks, follows up his first zombie book with another. This time it is a collections of interviews from people and their thoughts and stories about how the zombie infestation began. I haven’t read this book but this narrative style (people recounting stories with no real protagonist) is becoming increasingly popular. Word on the street though is that the audiobook is the way to go for this book.

Lullaby by Chuck Palahniuk
Finally, a book I have read before. A supernatural story about a children’s lullaby that when told to them before bed kills them in their sleep. When I read this book it reminded me of The Ring, the film about the video tape that kills you. The protagonist, after loosing a wife and child to the lullaby, goes on a quest to make sure every copy of the rhyme is destroyed. This I feel is a good introduction to Palahniuk’s dark sense of humor.

Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs: A Low Culture Manifesto by Chuck Klosterman
First and foremost, Chuck Klosterman is the reason I want to start an all-male Blondie tribute band. His book, aptly named Chuck Klosterman IV, is a book that I hold in very high regard and is a recommended read for anyone who likes music culture. Having said that, there is still the issue of pop culture that needs to be dealt with and that is just what he does in this book. The Sims, MTV’s The Real World, and the importance of Woody Allen in terms of getting laid are all covered in this book. High recommended.

Fluke: Or, I Know Just Why The Caged Whale Sings by Christopher Moore
I’m a big fan of Christopher Moore, but this is one of the few books by him I haven’t read. It’s the story of a marine biologist who one day while doing whatever it is marine biologists do, stops a whale with “Bite Me” written across its tale. In typical Moore fashion there is an eccentric cast of characters who join in on this adventure. Even though I haven’t read this particular book by Moore, i’ve read enough of his other ones to know that this one is pretty much guaranteed to by funny.

Salem Falls by Jodi Picoult
After being released from jail after be accused wrongfully of statutory rape, the protagonist retreats to Salem Falls, NH to start his life over. Naturally things do not go as planned as his secrets come out along with everybody else’s. It’s a story about rape and reputation while at the same time being based on The Crucible. After reading about this book and its characters, I found myself comparing it to Moore’s Fluke in terms of an eccentric cast. Also, she wrote a Wonder Woman graphic novel? Awesome.

Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris
Here is my confession: I am not a big David Sedaris fan. Everybody I speak to loves his books. But I have tried multiple times to read this one only to get bored and set it back in the shelf. I did manage to make it most of the way through Naked before I lost interest in that one. Maybe i’m just odd. I can see his appeal and it does sound like something I would read when a person describes Sedaris to me. He has a new book coming out in June that I will check out to see if my mind can be changed.

The Talisman by Stephen King and Peter Straub
I’ve have only read a handful of Stephen King books. Mainly his Dark Tower series which he describes as his “magnum opus.” What I liked about the Dark Tower series is that instead of being a horror book I saw it as a science-fiction book. The Gunslinger, the Dark Tower protagonist, traveled from one world to another in his quest to reach the Dark Tower. Along his journey he intersects people from King’s other books. The book The Talisman is one of those books that is connected to the Dark Tower. In this book we have a twelve year old boy who travels to a different world in hopes of finding this special Talisman that can cure his mom of cancer. It sounds interesting and I would probably read it just to understand the connections to The Dark Tower.

Drag King Dreams by Leslie Feinberg
The story of Max, a lesbian bartender, who begins to isolate herself(himself?) after the world seems to fall apart after 9/11. But her fighting spirit is rekindled after she receives news that her transvestite gal-pal had been murder on her way home one night.

Them: Adventures with Extremists by Jon Ronson
British humorist Jon Ronson investigates a collection of people who hold some diverse thoughts about how the world is run. From a person who believes the world is ruled by 12-foot tall lizards to a secret group of people who meet once a year to plan out what is going to happen in the world. Sounds like an entertaining book if only to point out how silly people can be sometimes. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a Scientology protest to go watch.

When True Night Falls by C.S. Friedman
The second book in the Coldfire Trilogy. Contradiction aside, I probably wouldn’t recommend jumping in to a sci-fi/fantasy book series and starting with the second book. Just looking in to this book confused me. There were words that confused me probably because they were made for this book series and without reading the first one, I have no clue what their meanings are. This looks to be an tale filled with political and religious backdropped in which people are manipulated and step up to fall for a trap. Also, someone may or may not be stabbed in the end.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling
In this epic fourth chapter of J.K. Rowling, Harry is inadvertently entered in to the Tri-Wizard Tournament where he must face three tests in order to prove himself to be worthy of the coveted Goblet of Fire. This book was the one Harry Potter book best suited for a movie which is why I greatly enjoyed the film that was based off of this book. The book which I read a couple years ago was also enjoyable. But chances are, you’ve already read them all.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling
In the seventh (and final?) chapter in J.K.’s tale about a boy wizard Harry finds himself a wizard school drop-out and must seek out the remaining Horcruxs and destroy them in order to defeat he-who-must-not-be-named. This book is daunting. There is a lot of plot and events that needed to be fit in to it and Rowling gives the boy wizard and very fitting ending.

At Ease With The Dead by Walter Satterthwait
A Joshua Croft Mystery it seems. Joshua Croft is hired to find some missing bones of a Navijo indian leader that vanished many years ago. Joshua Croft looks to be a long running character in Satterthwait’s books.

The Expected One by Kathleen McGowan
Remember when The Da Vinci Code came out and shortly afterwards it seemed like everybody was writing about Jesus and his connection to Mary Magdalene? This is one of those books. A religious thriller which has its tale told through characters recounting their stories. Basically, The Da Vinci Code without any action? It should be noted that this book was first self-published, which I think is admirable, and that the author, Kathleen McGowan, believes that she is a descendant of Jesus of Nazareth and Mary Magdalene, which I think is a little kooky.

Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk
You may have seen the movie this is based off of. It has something of a cult following which is fitting because Palahniuk has the same type of following, especially in the Portland, Oregon area. His website is even named The Writer’s Cult. I have not read the book but having seen the movie I would compare it to Daniel Handler’s The Basic Eight but instead replace the high school seniors with masculine guys and a reason for Brad Pitt to be shirtless. Haunted would be my favorite Palahniuk book so far.

Seduced By Madness: The True Story of the Susan Polk Murder Case by Carol Pogash
Ah, true crime novels. Unless these are written by the killer herself/himself I see these as extended tabloid news which why I guess these tend to sell. Susan Polk was on trial in 2002 for the murder of her husband who she married in 1981. Did she do it? You could either read the book or Wikipedia it to find out I guess.

The Dress Lodger by Sheri Holman
An historical-fiction tale about a prostitute who helps a tarnished doctor by providing him with dead bodies for him to research. Seems like a thriller. Out of all the books I saw people reading this week, this would be the one I would pick up and read if given the choice.