I really dig this book. I’m about a week late in reviewing it, but it was worth the wait. Through a series of essays and interviews, the author makes a compelling case for reasonably free information.

Ok, I’ll admit, it’s taking me awhile. Even though Professor Solomon is hilarious, witty, interesting, and charming, it’s taking me awhile to get through this. Why? Because it’s philosophy. Every 30 seconds or so, I have to put the damn book down and THINK about something. Terribly inconvenient.

(Simpsons comic guy voice) Best. comic. ever.
What would happen to the world if all of the men died in a plague? Answer: Things would be pretty much the same.

I was lucky enough to have Tom Brinck as my professor in grad school, and this book is a great summary of our interface design class. Step-by-step usability tests, design recommendations, and lists of things you probably forgot.

A book of gentle solutions to the armchewing cat problem. My electrical cords are now coated with untasty hairspray, and he gets squirted with a water pistol if he so much as thinks about the table. We’re all happier and safer because of this book.

I crammed in to hear the author speak at SXSWi and it was worth sitting on the floor for an hour with somebody’s foot on my back. I wish more books were written this way. Through a series of short brilliant stories, Gladwell explores how people make decisions, and how we can make our decisions better. This book is so good that I’m reading it slowly to make it last longer.

Hellooo reluctant readers. Seriously. Slip this to your favorite young adult and see if they don’t come back with a better grasp of Iranian history, the variety of the Islamic experience, and a better understanding of the humanity of people so often portrayed as the enemy.

I started watching Father Ted several years ago, and it was so good that I stopped watching. See, the fellow who plays the lead character died, so I knew there would be no more episodes. I was saving the rest for a special occasion. We broke them out this weekend for my birthday and watched them all straight through. The Funny! Recommended for ex-Catholics or practicing ones with a sense of humor about the whole thing. Favorite episode: Kicking Bishop Brennen up the Arse

Librarians and frustrated English majors will get a kick out of Nunberg’s essays on the current state of the the English language. He does a great rant against software grammar checkers, and champions the use of nouns as verbs. Hooray!

This is what happens when someone from the Iowa Writers Workshop points her pen at issues of body image. It’s hilarious, fun, poetic, and about time.