A Washington Post Best Book of the Year

A Spot of Bother is Mark Haddon’s unforgettable follow-up to the internationally beloved bestseller The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.

At sixty-one, George Hall is settling down to a comfortable retirement. When his tempestuous daughter, Katie, announces that she is getting married to the deeply inappropriate Ray, the Hall family is thrown into a tizzy. Unnoticed in the uproar, George discovers a sinister lesion on his hip, and quietly begins to lose his mind.

As parents and children fall apart and come together, Haddon paints a disturbing yet amusing portrait of a dignified man trying to go insane politely.

Remarkably more down-to-earth than its predecessor, the revised Wired Style guide is a handy little reference for digerati, or those who think they are. This version is much more accessible to general Internet users, not unlike the Web, which has become more mainstream in the three years since the original publication was released. (The previous edition was criticized for its pomposity and near-incomprehensibility.) This revision still delivers the inside scoop, though. You'll not only learn how to talk about cyberspace (for example, you can read about the evolution of the term "email" and why Wired prefers it without the hyphen), you'll also get an encyclopedic listing of all the trendy lingo that describes it.

Geared heavily toward high-tech communications writers but of use to any Web surfer, this pocket-size manual employs a very simple structure: it contains a short and well-organized discussion on writing technical material clearly and interestingly; a compact but thorough dictionary of relevant terms; a brief style FAQ (with answers to questions such as, "What's the deal with all those capital letters in the middle of words?"); and a petite index.

The introduction offers 10 "Principles for Writing Well in the Digital Age," encouraging you to "play with voice," "capture the colloquial," and "flaunt your subcultural literacy," all trademarks of Wired's tendency to be esoteric. Sure, it's fun and cool to be colloquial and subculturally in the know, but it's just as important to be widely understood. Luckily, in this edition, the editors have caught on to this, and have produced a guide that is smart, useful, and almost unpretentious. —Teri Kieffer

Building on the enormously successful World's Shortest Stories, here's an all-new collection of super-short fiction-each story a mere 55 words long! With nearly 150 contributors, including Charles Schulz and Fannie Flagg, these stories offer love, betrayal, passion, and death-in less time than it takes to count the words in this blurb!

Of the many stay-at-home mommies who dream of writing the Great American Novel, few actually try; fewer still get published. Though not a novel, The Big Rumpus certainly is the Great American Tale of one woman's schlep through early motherhood—honest, hilarious, and irresistibly naughty. Ayun Halliday, a highly caffeinated and refreshingly immodest city gal, acknowledges that motherhood is pretty much like contending with a cloud of locusts swarming toward one's wheat—then laughs her "heiner" off about it.

Under her gifted muse's care, stories about childbirth, holiday acrobatics (sans religious ties), and raising two kids in a tiny New York apartment read like standup comedy routines; they also give way to bittersweet reflections on her own youth—goofy boyfriends, repressed sexual behavior, and all. Yes, she swears; yes, she delves deeply into issues anatomical, gastronomical, and diaporial. But for hip stay-at-homers who find sustenance in friendships honed at neighborhood playgrounds (not slapped together like cold deli meats at those contrived mommy-and-me meetings), Ayun Halliday might just become the patron saint of blissfully imperfect motherhood. Even mommies who lack Halliday's affinity for "unhusking" their breasts in public will find moments of empathy in this mirthful sprint through life as the family "Milk Monkey." —Liane Thomas

Ayun Halliday's fourth book, Dirty Sugar Cookies, takes readers into the unpredictable mind and comical experiences of a true anti-foodie, giving even the most hopeless cooks a moment of relief from self-criticism, and the least discriminating eaters a reality check. Halliday started out a repressed picky eater without so much as a single fast-food-loving sibling to save her from the gourmet ambitions of a mother whose recipe for Far East Celery once received favorable mention in the Indianapolis Star. Her palate has since expanded to the degree that she'll hork down anything from chili-smothered insects that pass for an exotic destination's local delicacies to a peanut found wedged between the cushions of a theater seat.

From summer camp's unlimited Pop-Tarts to the post-coital breakfasts of a well-traveled actress-waitress and the frustrating payback of cooking for some finicky offspring of the author's own, Dirty Sugar Cookies is an omnivorous, hilarious chronicle of culinary awakening.

During her time in the paid job market, Ayun Halliday has managed to rack up a terrifying array of short-lived stints, including ersatz costumer designer, belligerent artist's model, bane of professional secretaries everywhere (a.k.a. "temp"), and Bert of Sesame Street for enthusiastic department-store crowds.

Clinging to her "true" vision—acting—by a hair, Halliday's diligent avoidance of hard work, regular paychecks, and anything remotely resembling a dress code, will warm the hearts of anyone who has ever served food that fell on the floor, suffered canned lunches in sterile break rooms, or been busted photocopying a résumé on the job. Honest and uproarious, Halliday is an unapologetic, loose-lipped icon for the slacker in us all.

Ayun Halliday may not make for the most sensible travel companion, but she is certainly one of the zaniest, with a knack for inserting herself (and her unwitting cohorts) into bizarre situations around the globe. Curator of kitsch and unabashed aficionada of pop culture, Halliday offers bemused, self-deprecating narration of events from guerilla theater in Romania to drug-induced Apocalypse Now reenactments in Vietnam to a perhaps more surreal collagen-implant demonstration at a Paris fashion show emceed by Lauren Bacall. From taming the wild dog packs of Bali to requiring the services of a bonesetter in Sumatra, Ayun Halliday offers up the best of her itinerant foibles as examples of how not to travel abroad. For instance, on layover in Amsterdam, Halliday finds unlikely trouble in the red-light district—eliciting the ire of a tiny, violent madam,—and is forced to explain tampons, which she admits, "might have looked like white cotton bullets lined up in their box," to soldiers in Kashmir—"They’re for ladies. Bleeding ladies." A self-admittedly bumbling vacationer, Halliday shares—with razorsharp wit and to hilarious effect—the travel stories most are too self-conscious to tell.

In this raucous collection of true-life stories, actress and comedian Chelsea Handler recounts her time spent in the social trenches with that wild, strange, irresistible, and often gratifying beast: the one-night stand.

You've either done it or know someone who has: the one-night stand, the familiar outcome of a night spent at a bar, sometimes the sole payoff for your friend's irritating wedding, or the only relief from a disastrous vacation. Often embarrassing and uncomfortable, occasionally outlandish, but most times just a necessary and irresistible evil, the one-night stand is a social rite as old as sex itself and as common as a bar stool.

Enter Chelsea Handler. Gorgeous, sharp, and anything but shy, Chelsea loves men and lots of them. My Horizontal Life chronicles her romp through the different bedrooms of a variety of suitors, a no-holds-barred account of what can happen between a man and a sometimes very intoxicated, outgoing woman during one night of passion. From her short fling with a Vegas stripper to her even shorter dalliance with a well-endowed little person, from her uncomfortable tryst with a cruise ship performer to her misguided rebound with a man who likes to play leather dress-up, Chelsea recalls the highs and lows of her one-night stands with hilarious honesty. Encouraged by her motley collection of friends (aka: her partners in crime) but challenged by her family members (who at times find themselves a surprise part of the encounter), Chelsea hits bottom and bounces back, unafraid to share the gritty details. My Horizontal Life is one guilty pleasure you won't be ashamed to talk about in the morning.

Flannery Culp wants you to know the whole story of her spectacularly awful senior year. Tyrants, perverts, tragic crushes, gossip, cruel jokes, and the hallucinatory effects of absinthe — Flannery and the seven other friends in the Basic Eight have suffered through it all. But now, on tabloid television, they're calling Flannery a murderer, which is a total lie. It's true that high school can be so stressful sometimes. And it's true that sometimes a girl just has to kill someone. But Flannery wants you to know that she's not a murderer at all — she's a murderess.

Who is Ida B. Applewood? She is a fourth grader like no other, living a life like no other, with a voice like no other, and her story will resonate long after you have put this book down. How does Ida B cope when outside forces—life, really—attempt to derail her and her family and her future? She enters her Black Period, and it is not pretty. But then, with the help of a patient teacher, a loyal cat and dog, her beloved apple trees, and parents who believe in the same things she does (even if they sometimes act as though they don't), the resilience that is the very essence of Ida B triumph...and Ida B. Applewood takes the hand that is extended and starts to grow up.

This first novel is both very funny and extraordinarily moving, and it introduces two shining stars—Katherine Hannigan and Ida B. Applewood.

Orin Hargraves, author of Culture Shock! Morocco knows whereof he speaks. As a Peace Corps volunteer to that North African country in the early 1980s, he learned firsthand about the customs and culture in the Maghreb. Hargraves covers the bases with a basic but thorough overview of Moroccan history, geography, and politics. He delves into the psychological and cultural mores of the Moroccan people, from their attitudes about men, women, and family to their views on homosexuality, hospitality, and religion. The areas for potential misunderstanding between western visitors and Moroccans soon become clear, and Hargraves does his best to offer clear explanations of Moroccan thought and behavior.

Chapters on intangibles, such as friendship, world view, and relations between the sexes are followed by practical dos and don'ts for living in the country. In "Communicating in Morocco," Hargraves gives readers a mini-Arabic lesson. in "Where the Guest Is King," he suggests pacing for the many courses likely to be set before a guest at a Moroccan dinner party and other important tips for how to eat from a communal bowl. He gives advice on finding housing, conducting business, and even how to spend leisure time. Though Culture Shock! Morocco is primarily intended for people making a lengthy stay in Morocco, it also makes a terrific introduction to the country for anyone planning to visit there.

The "radiant baby" and "family dog" were recurring themes for Keith Haring. He drew both motifs in many incarnations: babies radiant with halo and wings, babies dandled on daddy's shoulder, or cradled in mommy' arms. Throughout his too-short life Keith Haring had a special affinity for children. He had many loving relationships with the children of friends and found great rewards in the art projects he frequently did with schoolchildren. Matched with insightful entries from his writings, which reveal his thoughts on life, children, friendship, and art, these joyful drawings continue to entertain and provoke.

While being exposed to a great artist, young readers will also be counting in four different languages before they know it. Numbers one through ten are clearly translated into English, Spanish, French, and German, while Haring's bright, kid-friendly illustrations make counting an entertaining romp .

Vianne Rocher and her 6-year-old daughter, Anouk, arrive in the small village of Lansquenet-sous-Tannes——"a blip on the fast road between Toulouse and Bourdeaux"—in February, during the carnival. Three days later, Vianne opens a luxuriant chocolate shop crammed with the most tempting of confections and offering a mouth-watering variety of hot chocolate drinks. It's Lent, the shop is opposite the church and open on Sundays, and Francis Reynaud, the austere parish priest, is livid.

One by one the locals succumb to Vianne's concoctions. Joanne Harris weaves their secrets and troubles, their loves and desires, into her third novel, with the lightest touch. There's sad, polite Guillame and his dying dog; thieving, beaten-up Joséphine Muscat; schoolchildren who declare it "hypercool" when Vianne says they can help eat the window display—a gingerbread house complete with witch. And there's Armande, still vigorous in her 80s, who can see Anouk's "imaginary" rabbit, Pantoufle, and recognizes Vianne for who she really is. However, certain villagers—including Armande's snobby daughter and Joséphine's violent husband—side with Reynaud. So when Vianne announces a Grand Festival of Chocolate commencing Easter Sunday, it's all-out war: war between church and chocolate, between good and evil, between love and dogma.

Reminiscent of Herman Hesse's short story "Augustus," Chocolat is an utterly delicious novel, coated in the gentlest of magic, which proves—indisputably and without preaching—that soft centers are best. —Lisa Gee, Amazon.co.uk