President Obama doesn’t really get the whole “vacation” thing. While in Martha’s Vineyard this week he has appointed officials, received daily briefings, held a press conference, played copious amounts of sports, and is working on a reading list that certainly does not resemble proper paperback beach reads. Someone should give him a few good chick-lits.

Want to get a closer look at our commander-in-chief? Check out the list of books he’s planning on breezing through this week, according to USA Today:


The Way Home, by George Pelecanos

A crime thriller involving a father who sent his teenage son to a juvenile prison near DC. Years later the son tries to reform his life, but gets dragged into a world of murder and greed.

Lush Life, by Richard Price

A look at survival in the NYC jungle.

Hot, Flat and Crowded, by New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman

Friedman delves into the upcoming Energy-Climate era, explaining how 9/11, Hurricane Katrina, and the internet have combined to bring climate and energy issues to the forefront.









John Adams, by David McCullough


A 2002 Pulitzer Prize-winning biography of John Adams, who rose to become the second president.










Plainsong, by Kent Haruf

The lives and struggles within a small Colorado town.



















What’s on your summer reading list?

Labels: Barack Obama, summer reading

Fans of The Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons will be able to get Dan Brown’s latest page turner without any actual pages. An electronic version of The Lost Symbol will be released September 15, the same day as the hardcover version, Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group announced, according to the NY Times. But don’t worry if you prefer that new-book scent; the publisher is also planning a first printing of five million copies.
The novel features Da Vinci’s protagonist Robert Langdon in DC this time, and takes place in a 12-hour period, according to Brown's editor.

Over the summer, Doubleday has conducted a campaign of codes, trivia, puzzles and problems on Twitter and Facebook. It’s also offering a chance to win a free book.

Which will you go for? Old-school or E-book?

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Labels: Angels and Demons, Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown, The Lost Symbol

When I moved into my condo last year, my mother bought me a bottle of pink champagne and a Joy of Cooking cookbook*. (And told me only to mix the two with caution.)

Growing up, Julia Child was a fixture in our kitchen, with her batter-spattered pages and a binding so worn it mimicked an accordion. She brought French cuisine to America, but – more importantly – crepes and cakes to me.

And now she’s enjoying a revival in sales with the release of the film Julie & Julia, starring Meryl Streep and Amy Adams. Her first book Mastering the Art of French Cooking shot to No. 1 on Amazon.com’s most-popular list this past weekend, and bookstores nationwide are seeing a surge in sales of Mastering, Julia’s Kitchen Wisdom and My Life in France, Child’s memoir which played a part in the movie.

Mastering publisher Knopf has already ordered 75,000 more copies of the book, according to the Christian Science Monitor.

While Child died nearly five years ago, it’s nice to know her legacy is still piping hot.

*Julia Child's first cookbook was reportedly the 1943 edition of The Joy of Cooking.

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Labels: Julia Child, Julie Powell

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, considered a frontrunner for the next presidential race in 2012, is coming out with a new book next March, the NY Times reported. No Apology: The Case for American Greatness is already written and includes his take on the economy, health care, energy and education.

Labels: Mitt Romney, Sarah Palin, White House race

While ‘Screech’ – Dustin Diamond – was banned from the recent “Saved by the Bell” reunion in People Magazine, fans will still get a chance to see him in print when his tell-all memoir, “Behind the Bell” is released on September 29, the NY Observer reported.

Originally, his book was set to be published by Gotham Books, but the publisher dropped it several months ago after receiving the manuscript. Makes you wonder what’s in it! According to one source, the manuscript was deemed unpublishable by Gotham, partly because it contained many unverifiable claims about Saved by the Bell cast members. But Gotham publisher Bill Shinker refused to comment. "It just didn't fit our publishing program," he said.

Now Transit Publishing plans on publishing the book, which is expected to include "sexual escapades among cast members, drug use, and hardcore partying."

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Labels: Dustin Diamond, Saved by the Bell, Screech