CRITIC'S CHOICE
REVIEWED BY LIZA NELSON
MYSTERY
This blockbuster debut, over 500 pages chock-full of literary and pop cultural references and illustrations by Pessl herself, demands attention. The author uses a full arsenal of verbal tricks to tell the coming-of-age story of the brilliant if prematurely sardonic narrator Blue van Meer. Blue has spent a motherless childhood moving with her adored father, a political science professor, as he takes one semester-long position after another. Early in her senior year at a private high school in North Carolina, Blue is invited into an elite clique under the sway of a charismatic teacher. Behind Blue's sarcasm and verbiage is a lonely girl who thinks she's finally discovered friendship. But even before she finds her teacher hanging by an electrical cord in the woods, the novel has turned into a whodunit with overlays of conspiracy, murder and betrayal. As dazzling as they are, Pessl's literary pyrotechnics are just a sideshow; it's her irresistible heroine Blue who makes the novel's heart beat.
NOT JUST FOR NEWS JUNKIES
With the region in chaos, all manner of readers (see: Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban) are turning to books to put the Middle East's intricate politics in perspective. PEOPLE's go-to reads:
• From Beirut to Jerusalem by Thomas L. Friedman: One-stop shopping: In a bestselling memoir about his decade in the Middle East, the New York Times columnist focuses on both people and politics. The conflict becomes an engrossing family feud writ large.
• No god but God: The Origins, Evolution and Future of Islam by Reza Aslan: A brilliant portrait of the faith by a media-friendly religious scholar with a novelist's eye.
• Myths and Facts: A Guide to the Arab-Israeli Conflict by Mitchell G. Bard: For Crossfire and debate-team types, stats and charts galore.
• Understanding the Holy Land by Mitch Frank: Written for young adults by a former TIME reporter, it's perfect for those who want to keep it short (152 pages).
• The Complete Idiot's Guide to Middle East Conflict: Clueless and crave a reader-friendly source? This info-packed tome covers the basics in quick bites.
by Reza Aslan
A brilliant portrait of the faith by a media-friendly religious scholar with a novelist's eye.
by Mitchell G. Bard
For Crossfire and debate-team types, stats and charts galore.
by Mitch Frank
Written for young adults by a former TIME reporter, it's perfect for those who want to keep it short (152 pages).
Clueless and crave a reader-friendly source? This info-packed tome covers the basics in quick bites.
By Stephanie Klein
REVIEWED BY LESLEY MESSER
MEMOIR
You could call her "a real-life Carrie Bradshaw," but it wouldn't do Klein justice. With a fearless voice, the blogger (www.stephanieklein.com) weaves a memoir filled with heartbreak and humor. At 27, she realizes her husband's a cheater and relaunches herself as a singleton. In no time, she finds herself choosing skivvies to wear for a new beau (a teeny tank, lacy underthings ... and sweats) before discovering that he wears a mesh thong. Klein's book will send some readers straight to her racy blog in hopes of delving deeper into the mind of such a compelling writer.
Ahmet Zappa
Son of rocker Frank, Zappa is dyslexic; he struggled with reading until he was 12. Now he's written The Monstrous Memoirs of a Mighty McFearless, meant to lure all kids into books.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR PLOT. Originally it was going to be how to defend yourself against monsters, because I wished for something like that as a child. Now it's about a brother and sister trying to rescue their father from the King of Evil.
WHAT GRABS KIDS WARY OF READING? The doodles and photo illustrations can help them put the story together.
IS THERE A MESSAGE IN MEMOIRS? Kids can do anything they put their minds to.
Disney paid $1.5 million for the rights to the book that Zappa, 32, wrote and illustrated.
I Feel Bad About My Neck
"Every time I read about how great it is to be older, I want to smack someone," says Nora Ephron, 65. Instead, she wrote a funny book about aging.
SO WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOUR NECK? The neck is the first thing to go. You can get elephant neck, turkey gobbler neck—many of them are named after animals.
WHAT ELSE DO YOU HATE? You spend half your time looking in your closet for something compensatory to wear. Lighting becomes incredibly important. And your elbows!
DO YOU TRY TO LOOK YOUNGER? I own up to all kinds of things short of plastic surgery. Restylane—love it! I wish I'd invented it. I had a snaggletooth fixed and it took at least six months off my look.
ARE WOMEN OF A CERTAIN AGE MORE ACCEPTED IN EUROPE? Maybe, but they like hazelnuts in Europe, as my sister says—so what do they know?
Saved by the Bell Reunion
The hookups, the meltdowns, the memoires
The case reveals what was really going on what they think of each other now!
