Author: Elizabeth Gilbert
Title: Eat, Pray and Love
LSU
Rating: 5
Summary: It was about a woman who was trying to find happiness after an unahappy marriage and divorce. She tavels to Italy where she learns the language and eats lots of pastry. She then travels to India where she succeeds at meditation. Lastly, she travels to Indonesia where where she spends time with an old medicine man, learns how to have peace within herself and also finds unexpected love.
While this isn’t as enthralling or epic as the "Dark is Rising" series, Cooper uses time travel and alternate possibilities to excellent effect. While the book isn't very detailed in regards to historical accuracy, what notes Cooper chooses to include create a vivid and authentic experience.
Author: Stephen Colbert
Title: I Am America (And So Can You!)
LSU
Rating: 4
Summary: If you're familiar with "The Colbert Report," you won't find any surprises in this book. Colbert’s overblown, extreme right-wing Republican schtick is as a delicious a spoof in print as it is on live television.
He and his team insert marginal notes and footnotes frequently, mimicking the popular segment, "The Word," to great affect. Random inclusions of quizzes, "common person" testimonials, "facts," and stickers continue the thematic straddle between a textbook gone wrong and TV segments structured for viewers with short attention spans.
The prevalence of short attention spans, however, might be the major weakness of the book. While "I Am American (And So Can You!)" is a fun diversion, the joke wears thin after the first few chapters. Fans might prolong their enjoyment by imagining the text performed in its original context, but in the end, the show itself is just as much fun, without so many empty calories.