And the Mountains Echoed helps the reader to understand what a gift it is to be able to aid and positively impact someone’s life. The message it brings home is that if you are offered a door of opportunity to be of service, be sure to walk though.

'Venus on the Half Shell' is fun to read, and very interesting from the perspective of the history of science fiction. But from a feminine perspective much of the sex, and the accompanying quest for erudition, bears more than a passing resemblance to a sci-fi version of Erica Jong’s search for the “ultimate zip-less f**k.”

Bill Bryson’s latest book, 'One Summer: America, 1927,' describes the major historical events of the summer of said year. But far from being dry history, Bryson’s writing brings it all alive, makes it vivid and captivates the reader without resorting to devices of historical fiction.

'R.E.M.' is a great example of the wonderful, creative works that can be produced through unorthodox sources of capital like Kickstarter. The sum total of the well-crafted story and stunning artwork of this graphic novel is a reminder of how far comics have evolved as a serious creative genre.

In "We Are Water," Wally Lamb has once again successfully written an account of a very dark psychical place, imbedded with the glimmers of optimism, without becoming overly sentimental.

With the combination of a fascinating story, superior wit, and a traditional hard-boiled detective fiction plot swerve at the end, "Something More Than Night" makes for an all-around great read.

"The Paris Wife" is a meticulously researched account of the life of Ernest Hemingway's wife, Hadley, in Paris prior to the author's rise to fame. For an entertaining story, though, give me the glitzy, “sex-on-a-mink-coat,” jazz-age story of the Fitzgeralds any day over this one.

The artwork in "Dept. of Monsterology" is impressive with fabulous drawings by Holden of a wide variety of monsters, and the concept of exploring obscure supernatural myths from a variety of cultures is excellent.

The value in "The Wit and Wisdom of Tyrion Lannister" is that it makes you want to return to the original source and context of the quote whether you’ve already read the books and want to freshen your memory or are approaching them for the first time.

A certain Character Alignment meme I recently ran into got me wondering about a possible genetic predisposition towards certain Character Alignments. Ok, let's collect data: RPG fans, what Character Alignment do you consider yourself to be in real life? And if you have a significant other, how about him/her? What about the kids?

In Anne Rice's capable hands, werewolf mythology takes on newly sensual, erotic, philosophical and even heroic dimensions. Both "The Wolf Gift" and the new "The Wolves of Midwinter" are worth sniffing out for any fan of horror and dark fantasy.

'The Dinner' commits the cardinal sin of not having any likeable characters. But if you go in forewarned and willing to absolve Koch of this transgression, the book is worth the steady, hard look it gives a number of unpleasant topics we’d rather not discuss.

We review three early novels by Michael Crichton previously published under the pseudonym John Lange: 'Scratch One,' 'Easy Go,' and 'Grave Descend.'

'Numbercruncher's storyline itself is what you might call “trippy” but nonetheless enjoyable, with mind-boggling artwork and caustically humorous narration by the pinstripe suited-character Bastard Zane.

'Delia's Shadow' is very well-constructed and makes for a spooky, captivating read, particularly for the cool, windy, early-darkness of fall nights.