Books Read Recently: Part 2

Continuing my post from yesterday, here are the rest of the books I read this month:

The Swan Thieves by Elizabeth Kostova

I think I would have liked this book if I had not had high expectations for it.  I really loved her first novel, The Historian.  Who doesn't love a good vampire novel?  The Swan Thieves just didn't pack the detail-ridden punch of the last novel.  In this story, an artist attacks a painting in a museum and is arrested.  When he is placed under psychiatric care, his psychiatrist tries to unravel what drove this him to attack that specific painting.  I think I would recommend the book to art lovers and possibly Dean Koontz fans.

The Invisible Kingdom: From the Tips of Our Fingers to the Tops of Our Trash, Inside the Curious World of Microbes by Idan Ben-Barak

This was a very entertaining, quick read about microbes.  It doesn't go deep into the real science; it briefly explains the world of microbes and their importance in a fun way.  You get the sense in reading this book that Ben-Barak really loves microbes.  He'll make you love microbes too.  I recommend this to people who like pop science books. 

The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

This book was surprisingly good.  I say that because I made the horrible mistake of seeing the movie first.  Do me a favor and do not see the movie.  If you must see it, fast forward and watch only the parts with Stanley Tucci in them.  

I actually only read the book by accident.  I had already reserved a copy from the library long before I saw the movie.  It happened to arrive 2 days after I watched the movie and I only picked it up because I didn't want the librarians to get mad at me for making them ship it, label it and shelve it just for me.  I'm glad my guilt made me take it home.  

It is an amazing book.  Not only was it fast and easy to read, but it is well written and about a serial killer.  Those are all elements for a great, late-night read, preferably by flashlight.  I recommend this book to everyone.  I do not recommend the movie version.

Eat Me: The Food and Philosophy of Kenny Shopsin

I grabbed this book from the library because it was new and it had recipes.  I had no idea what it was about.   I was laughing from the first page.  It is a memoir of Kenny Shopsin, a very peculiar restaurant owner and self-taught chef with a very peculiar customer service philosophy.  He does not believe the customer is right.  Here is a quote to give you an example:

Some people tell me that they're deathly allergic to something and that I have to make sure it's not in their food.  I kick them out, too.  I don't want to be responsible for anyone's life-or-death situation.  I tell them they should go eat at a hospital.  Often, after I do that, they'll back down and tell me, well, they're not that allergic.  And then I really want them to leave because now I know they're assholes.

That passage made me laugh so hard that I had to read it out loud to Brian.  

The most surprising part about the book, however, was not just the philosophy of food service, but the off-hand way that he name drops.  You'll be reading the introduction to a recipe for chicken salad and read, "Bob Dylan, who lived in the neighborhood was hooked on it for years."  Now I totally want to make that chicken salad.  

If you like thinking about food, food service, cooking and customer service, read this book.  

That concludes this month's installment of "books read recently."  Next month, I hope to have read Darkly Dreaming Dexter, Await Your Reply and some other awesome books.