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A. J. Jacobs: The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible
Here's my interview with AJ Jacobs, who is pretty much the king of the "One Man's yearlong journey to...." genre.
A. J. Jacobs: The Know-It-All: One Man's Humble Quest to Become the Smartest Person in the World
I never had as much fun writing a review as I did with this one. Now I'm a big fan of all his work. For fans of reference books -- I know, I know, but we are out there -- this is a treasure, especially as the Encyclopedia era is now coming to a close.
Beth Lisick: Helping Me Help Myself: One Skeptic, Ten Self-Help Gurus, and a Year on the Brink of the Comfort Zone
My Q and A and review with the author of this funny, endearing book about a woman spending a year trying to sincerely improve herself.
Bill Geist: Way Off the Road: Discovering the Peculiar Charms of Small Town America
I know the rap is that TV people have huge egos, but Bill Geist is just the same in an interview as he is on TV: funny, self-deprecating, really a joy. Here's my interview with him, and this is the review.
Bruce Bawer: While Europe Slept: How Radical Islam is Destroying the West from Within
For those who are still in denial about the global war on terror being waged against Western Civ., I recommend this book highly.
David Shields: The Thing About Life Is That One Day You'll Be Dead
This was one of the harder reviews for me to write because of the odd structure, content and theme of the book. It was fun to do, though, and I still think about the book and the concepts all the time.
Edited by Dan Gediman: This I Believe: The Personal Philosophies of Remarkable Men and Women
My interview with Gediman. Anyone who's heard the series on NPR or seen the book knows of the power of these stories.
Ellen Currey-Wilson: The Big Turnoff: Confessions of a TV-Addicted Mom Trying to Raise a TV-Free Kid
This is a funny book. I still cringe thinking about how obsessive the author was. Here's my review.
James Frey: My Friend Leonard
I typically only review non-fiction for the Rocky. I've always been proud of this review because well before the Frey scandal erupted, I pointed out that Frey was writing a non-fiction book that just didn't add up.
Ken Jennings: Brainiac: Adventures in the Curious, Competitive, Compulsive World of Trivia Buffs
I did an awesome interview with Ken Jennings, but this one, also has left Rocky's site. Here's my review.
Ken Silverstein: The Radioactive Boy Scout: The Frightening True Story of a Whiz Kid and His Homemade Nuclear Reactor
Half of a great book, but an amazing story. My review has the best tidbits of the amazing story.
Michael Sokolove: The Ticket Out: Darryl Strawberry and the Boys of Crenshaw
Great baseball book. Here's my review. I think this is one of the 100 reasons that baseball is better than football: There are a lot of great baseball books, and more come out each year.
Nathaniel C. Fick: One Bullet Away: The Making of a Marine Officer
I challenge anyone who looks down on the men and women who serve us in the military to read this excellently written book.
Neal Pollack: Alternadad
Typically if the books editor sends a reviewer a book that is awful, they agree to just not review it. With this book, however, I felt an obligation to write this review to make sure that nobody buys this book. Pollack's "parenting" he trumpeted so gladly was not just narcissistic, but dangerous.
P. J. O'Rourke: On The Wealth of Nations: Books That Changed the World
As I wrote in my review, "Few writers could so accurately use an Angelina Jolie reference to illustrate points made by a writer who's been dead for more than 200 years. It was a great honor doing this interview, especially because I was able to admit his shame over two different Paris Hilton references.
Ralph Steadman: The Joke's Over: Bruised Memories: Gonzo, Hunter S. Thompson, and Me
My laborious Q and A with Ralph Steadman has disappeared from the Interwebs, but my review is here.
