Psychologist Alex Delaware doesn't pack heat or get beat up much in the tradition of L.A. sleuths. Instead—teaming up with a buddy, gay cop Milo Sturgis, to investigate the contract killing of a patient who was once a hooker—Alex draws inferences from the way suspects sweat or blush. Those clues don't help much, though: His fishing expeditions net him nothing but red herrings.
Disappointingly, the main piece of Kellerman's puzzle comes out of the blue. But enjoy the gimlet-eyed prose: "The room was...noisy as a power plant. As we made our way among the tables, I heard a man in a $500 Hawaiian shirt urging the waiter, 'Speak to me of the crab cakes.' "(Random House, $26.95)
Bottom Line: Sly sleuthing
By Michael Allin
The title may sound like the latest Kathie Lee Gifford holiday TV special, but this comic novel has more in common with National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. On the verge of flunking out of college, broke and stranded in Santa Barbara, Calif., Casey Rickert dons a Kris Kringle costume and, as the "Hitchhiking Santa Claus," becomes a celebrity as he journeys home for the holidays. Allin's prose is brisk, and the book is packed with an agreeable assortment of nuts. But those road-trip oddballs prove only mildly amusing, and Casey's narration never really sparkles. Allin's biggest mistake is tying up his plot in a big red bow; it's an ending so sappy even Kathie Lee would smirk. (St. Martin's, $23.95)
Bottom Line: Holiday hokum
By Jimmy Carter
Book of the week
Not counting the year a grapefruit truck accidentally spread its contents over a half-mile stretch of road near the Carter family home, Christmas in pre-World War II Plains, Ga., probably wasn't a whole lot different from the rest of rural America's: The grown-ups drank whiskey-spiked eggnog, and the kids feared Santa might leave them underwear and socks.
Had Carter remained a peanut farmer, these stories wouldn't travel far beyond his living room, but the 1977-81 President is now a bestselling memoirist. This slender volume, padded with childlike illustrations by daughter Amy, now 34 and a mother, is light enough to digest even after a heavy meal. Few readers will disagree that families are a gift, and so are the memories they create—even the unpleasant ones. Consider 1980, the year Carter was defeated by Ronald Reagan. On Christmas morning, just weeks after he lost 44 states, he was playing the hot game du jour, Trivial Pursuit, with his family, when they discovered this unsettling question: "Who said, 'Sometimes when I look at my children, I wish I had remained a virgin'?" Answer: Lillian Carter. (Simon & Schuster, $20)
Bottom Line: Stocking stuffer
By Rita Rudner
You might be skeptical about a first novel by a comedian, but Rudner proves surprisingly adept at fiction. The story follows Mindy Solomon, a glib, insecure teen who leaves her Florida home for Manhattan after her mom dies of cancer. It's 1980—the era of Brooke Shields's Calvin Klein jeans ads and Rubik's Cubes—and Mindy wants to be a dancer.
She finds a soulmate in Ursula Duran, an aspiring model who is never without a poorly chosen boyfriend. After a serious injury during her first Broadway show, Mindy chucks dancing, finding better luck with stand-up comedy as Ursula rises in the modeling world. But as their lives become more complicated, the plot becomes more melodramatic, with bad marriages, foolish career decisions and terminal illness. Yet Rudner's snappy dialogue and sweet, likeable characters keep the story entertaining throughout. Rudner is a stand-up to curl up with. (Pocket, $25)
Bottom Line: Tickles your funny bone
By David Baldacci
After a blown raid in the nation's capital, G-man Web London, who has already been disfigured in a Waco-like standoff, makes it through an ambush that leaves every other member of his elite squad, the Hostage Rescue Team, dead. Feeling guilty, and mistrusted by colleagues who think he wimped out to save his own hide, Web is determined to find out why he survived.
With the exception of the token love interest, a pretty shrink, the testosterone-fueled cast (some growl "Bang 'em and hang 'em") is engagingly fierce, and Baldacci's thickly layered, brain-teasing plot leaves you wanting more. (Warner, $26.95)
Bottom Line: High-scoring shoot-'em-up
Gift books
'Tis the season to be jolly, but with a war on, that's a taller order than usual. The best of this year's gift books, on topics from cute pups to kids' rooms to vintage Snoopy, offer an abundance of cheer.
Peanuts: The Art of Charles M. Schulz Edited by Chip Kidd Rare early sketches from the Schulz archives, an introduction by his widow and informative comments from graphic artist Kidd (Who knew, for instance, that Schulz didn't like drawing Pig-Pen?) make this a compilation to treasure. (Pantheon, $29.95)
Dogtionary: Meaningful Portraits of Dogs by Sharon Montrose The dictionary conceit is a stretch, but connoisseurs of canines can skip the definitions-that-aren't and drool over the winsome photos. (Viking Studio, $19.95)
I Love Lucy: Celebrating Fifty Years of Love and Laughter by Elisabeth Edwards Which was your favorite episode? The grape stomping? Lucy hawking Vitameatavegamin? The chocolate factory? They're all pictured here, along with trivia quizzes (What was the name of the electrician at the Tropicana Club?) and an interview with Little Ricky, actor Keith Thibodeaux. Best for ardent fans. (Running Press, $39.95)
Rooms to Grow In: Little Folk Art's Great Rooms for Babies, Kids, and Teens by Susan Salzman and Daryn Eller Chances are you'll never get a tour of Madonna's kids' bedrooms. These smart decorating tips from queen-of-cozy Salzman, who has also designed rooms for Steven Spielberg's and Tom Hanks's rugrats, just might be the next best thing. (Clarkson Potter, $29.95)
New York: An Illustrated History by Ric Burns and James Sanders with Lisa Ades It's jarring to turn to the last page of filmmaker Burns's latest epic—a companion volume to the PBS series—and see the World Trade Center towers lighting up the night. (The book was completed in August 1999.) But the authors' thoughtful celebration of the city's many incarnations couldn't come at a better time. (Knopf, $35)
- Contributors:
- Edward Karam,
- Michelle Tauber,
- Debby Waldman,
- Carmela Ciuraru,
- Maggie Haberman.
CELINE’S INFERTILITY STRUGGLE: MY PRIVATE HEARTBREAK
Daily injections, painful tests and four failed IVF attempts: The singer, 41, reveal her dreams for a second baby. ‘I’ll try until it works’
