Silicon Follies by Thomas Scoville

I really enjoyed reading this book as would anyone else that wants to get a glimpse of the bay area. This book has quite a few characters that are well drawn out and the author does a good job of keeping you turning the pages.

There are quite a few plots in the book from some people wondering how they ended up with the job they have to others just wanting to get a big piece of the action in Silicon Valley.

The ending has an unexpected twist and I'm not about to give it away so if you want to know what happens to the main character (something totally unexpected), you'll just have to read it yourself.

The Art of Choosing by Sheena Iyengar

This book is about choices and it couldn't be complete without mentioning the classic example that everybody has surely heard about. The one where if you wait longer, you'll get a bigger prize. In her chapter, Senses and Sensibility, I thought it was interesting how by hiding snacks under an opaque lid, "the average waiting times increased by up to 60%" among the children.

This might be an especially interesting book if you happen to be taking a statistics class while reading it. It makes the class more interesting.

Solace by Roberta Temes, Ph.D.

This is a book that should be on every bookshelf as it is hard to find someone who has not suffered the loss of a loved one. I found chapter 4 (Help from Others) especially useful...I never thought of looking for websites on this topic.

The part I liked best however was the format of her book. I enjoyed reading the contributions of people coming from all over the place. It gives the book a whole different perspective and makes you feel like you can really connect with someone who has gone through the same things.

Although this is a serious topic, there is a bit of humor in it too. I have to admit that some of the examples of the humorous epitaphs made me laugh.