Book Recs of the Day 11/3-11/6/2008

DR. DOLITTLE
You may know Cesar Millan as the Dog Whisperer, from National Geographic’s TV series of the same name. Though Millan is more fun to watch than to read, his book will help reinforce what he sets forth on screen and will make his training methods easier to apply to your own pets. He teaches you to understand what dogs are “saying,” why they do what they do, and how to make them behave well.

CESAR’S WAY: THE NATURAL, EVERYDAY GUIDE TO UNDERSTANDING AND CORRECTING COMMON DOG PROBLEMS, by Cesar Millan and Melissa Jo Peltier (Harmony, 2006)

CLASSIC

“Obscene, horrid, repellent . . . driving, urgent, candid, searing . . . a fascinating, compelling book!”—New York Post

In one of the most successful literary takes on presidential campaigning ever, Thompson chronicles the year of Nixon vs. McGovern. He offers an insightful look at the adrenaline-soaked ambitions of presidential hopefuls, their staffs, and the press that follows after them. Thompson’s writing is utterly candid, wise, and knowing.

FEAR AND LOATHING: ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL ’72, by Hunter S. Thompson (1973; Warner Books, 2006)

FICTION SHORTS

Anything new by T. C. Boyle is good news, and a collection of short stories is especially good news, since it’s the perfect introduction for readers who don’t yet know him. You will again find stories that feature animals, strange conversations in bars, cheerful ebullience cheek by jowl with ominous menace. T. C. Boyle feels like one of us—an up-to-date guy with exposure to many elements we recognize in the modern world—but he is in fact that rare bird, “a writer who can take you anywhere” (The New York Times).

TOOTH AND CLAW: AND OTHER STORIES, by T. Coraghessan Boyle (Viking, 2005)

WAR OF THE SEXES

In he said/she said format, Gottlieb (author of Stick Figure: A Diary of My Former Self and frequent NPR correspondent) and Bleyer (writer for The Daily Show) deliver some actual dating advice among hilarious true “anecdotes.” This is one of the only dating books you’ll still respect in the morning.

I LOVE YOU, NICE TO MEET YOU: A GUY AND A GIRL GIVE THE LOWDOWN ON COUPLING UP, by Lori Gottlieb and Kevin Bleyer (St. Martin’s Press, 2006)