The Unofficial Hunger Games Cookbook
From Lamb Stew to “Groosling” – More than 150 Recipes Inspired by The Hunger Games Trilogy
By Emily Ansara Baines
Adams Media
Release Date: December 1, 2011
Hardcover | Kindle

Full disclosure, I cannot cook at all. My best attempts at baking, in any capacity, end with small yet fierce kitchen fires and more wounds than an amateur snake-handler. So, when the opportunity for me to review The Unofficial Hunger Games Cookbook rolled around, I had to take it. After all, who better to judge than someone who is easily confused and frightened by the art of cooking?

The Unofficial Hunger Games Cookbook sells itself as a companion to the dual lives of the book’s protagonist, Katniss. Half of the cookbook is dedicated to hearty salt of the earth style dishes, while the other half concerns itself with the decadent dishes that would be found in the Capitol. Seeing as how most of my meals are hastily eaten in front of a computer screen, I figured that a decadent recipe would be a nice change of pace.

The Big Bag of Weed
Weed: 420 things you didn’t know (or remember) about Cannabis
Written by I.M. Stoned
The Quotable Stoner
Written by Holden Blunts
The Danktionary
Written by Will B. High
Adams Media
Release date: October 15, 2011
Cover Price: $19.95

Fittingly wrapped in a large Ziploc baggie, The Big Bag of Weed is both a delightful trilogy of gateway books for the novice stoner and a buzz-inducing trip down memory lane for the veteran pothead. Written with the hip clarity of Chuck Klosterman and the accomplished vernacular of Snoop Dog, these three booklets are a hilarious and informative tribute to the richness and immensity of pot culture in America.

Authorship is variously attributed to Holden Blunts, Will B. High, and I.M. Stoned, the kind of Hancocks you’ve encountered on bathroom stalls. Don’t worry though. The quality of writing elevates it far above the juvenile and introductory material makes sure that these books aren’t just for the chronic weed smoker.

Someone’s Watching You!
Paperback | Kindle
Written by Forest Lee
Adams Media
Released June 18, 2011

If you’ve ever wondered just how plugged in we all are to the Matrix, you must read Someone’s Watching You!, Forest Lee‘s thorough examination of how all of our personal information is gathered, stored, used, and who’s collecting it and why.

When it comes to technology, we all have our personal comfort zones. We’re highly selective about who we give our name, address, and phone numbers to, among other precious data. Some of us are fine with finding friends on Facebook, but panic at the notion of online banking. Some folks still refuse to shop online, lest some hack pilfer their credit card number. While still some others won’t even enter the arena of online social networking because within moments of signing up on Facebook, their second grade social studies teacher pops up in the right hand corner of the screen under the suggestion “Here’s someone you might know.” How does Facebook know who I might know, you may have wondered. The answer to that question is in this book.

Raising Unicorns
Your Step-by-Step Guide to Starting and Running a Successful – and Magical! – Unicorn Farm
Written by Jessica S. Marquis
Illustrated by Kevin Hedgpeth
Adams Media
Released August 18, 2011
Paperback: $13.95

Raising Unicorns: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Starting and Running a Successful – and Magical! – Unicorn Farm is a joke that goes on far too long. Jessica S. Marquis offers excruciating details on such things as the many varieties of unicorns, how to select the breed that’s right for you, how to dress so you don’t scare a unicorn, and how much glitter each variety farts.