 | Twinkie, Deconstructed: My Journey to Discover How the Ingredients Found in Processed Foods Are Grown, Mined (Yes, Mined), and Manipulated Into What America Eats by Steve Ettlinger
Buy new: $17.96 / Used from: $1.83 I really enjoyed this book. Learning about how the ingredients of Twinkies are created and mined was very fulfilling. The title of this book belies the insight it yields into modern manufacturing and processed food in particular.
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 | The World Without Us by Alan Weisman
Buy new: $16.47 / Used from: $4.35 |
 | China Road: A Journey into the Future of a Rising Power by Rob Gifford
Buy new: $17.79 / Used from: $4.90 Great insights into modern China by NPR's former China correspondent.
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 | Born on a Blue Day: Inside the Extraordinary Mind of an Autistic Savant by Daniel Tammet
Buy new: $16.32 / Used from: $2.73 I enjoyed the rhymes used to memorize the digits of pi.
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 | Bait and Switch: The (Futile) Pursuit of the American Dream by Barbara Ehrenreich
Buy new: $20.32 / Used from: $0.01 This book is terrible. If you want to get depressed about your prospects of finding a job this is the book to read.
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 | Between Good and Evil: A Master Profiler's Hunt for Society's Most Violent Predators by Roger L. Depue
Buy new: $25.95 / Used from: $0.07 An insightful and engrossing memoir of an FBI agent.
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 | The Travels of a T-Shirt in the Global Economy: An Economist Examines the Markets, Power, and Politics of World Trade by Pietra Rivoli
Buy new: $11.53 / Used from: $6.61 |
 | The Wild Trees: A Story of Passion and Daring by Richard Preston
Buy new: $10.88 / Used from: $6.42 This is a somewhat odd work of Natural History mixed with biographies of the quirky people who love to climb the tallest trees.
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 | The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
Buy new: $9.59 / Used from: $5.45 I thought this book was overrated. I found the World War II subject matter depressing and the plot seemed plodding to me.
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 | The Geography of Bliss: One Grump's Search for the Happiest Places in the World by Eric Weiner
Buy new: $17.15 / Used from: $8.45 I loved this book. It's a highly entertaining combination of travel writing and philosophy.
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 | The Family That Couldn't Sleep: A Medical Mystery by D.T. Max
Buy new: $10.85 / Used from: $6.42 An entertaining popular science book on prion disease.
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 | 10 Days That Unexpectedly Changed America (History Channel Presents) by Steven M. Gillon
Buy new: $11.16 / Used from: $5.53 Ten thought-provoking and insightful essays on American History. Includes excellent bibliographies at the end of each chapter.
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 | "Why Do I Love These People?": Understanding, Surviving, and Creating Your Own Family by Po Bronson
Buy new: $11.66 / Used from: $0.01 A collection of interesting anecdotes on people dealing with their relationships: spouses, parents, children, extended family.
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 | Beautiful Boy: A Father's Journey Through His Son's Addiction by David Sheff
Buy new: $9.60 / Used from: $5.86 A superb memoir.
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 | Your Inner Fish: A Journey into the 3.5-Billion-Year History of the Human Body by Neil Shubin
Buy new: $16.32 / Used from: $9.50 Entertaining comparative anatomy
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 | Planet India: The Turbulent Rise of the Largest Democracy and the Future of Our World by Mira Kamdar
Buy new: $10.20 / Used from: $4.95 A thorough analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of modern India
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 | The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
Buy new: $17.79 / Used from: $14.75 |
 | The Art of Mingling: Proven Techniques for Mastering Any Room by Jeanne Martinet
Buy new: $9.95 / Used from: $4.99 An entertaining and inspiring set of tips for being a better mingler.
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 | In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto by Michael Pollan
Buy new: $14.93 / Used from: $9.99 In many areas a rehash of material from John Robbin's "Healthy at 100" and T Colin Campbell's "China Study". It nonetheless presents solid new ideas in a compelling way.
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 | Screamfree Parenting: The Revolutionary Approach to Raising Your Kids by Keeping Your Cool by Hal Edward Runkel
Buy new: $14.93 / Used from: $8.50 |
 | Love, Magic, and Mudpies: Raising Your Kids to Feel Loved, Be Kind, and Make a Difference by Bernie Seigel
Buy new: $13.46 / Used from: $1.95 A delightfully upbeat and humorous book about parenting
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 | The Middle Place (Voice) by Kelly Corrigan
Buy new: $16.29 / Used from: $4.88 A memoir of cancer survival (her own and her father's) by a thirty-something mother married to a Tivo executive in the Bay Area.
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 | How Doctors Think by Jerome Groopman
Buy new: $10.85 / Used from: $1.49 |
 | Super Crunchers: Why Thinking-by-Numbers Is the New Way to Be Smart by Ian Ayres
Buy new: $16.50 / Used from: $8.49 Describes the power of data-mining in an entertaining way.
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