Takedown Twenty: Review Haiku

Nothing really
happened in this one, right?
The giraffe was a nice touch.

Takedown Twenty by Janet Evanovich. Bantam, 2013, 320 pages.

Go: Review Haiku

Proto-designers
of the world, unite!
Self-promoting, but still cool.

Go: A Kidd's Guide to Graphic Design by Chip Kidd. Workman, 2013, 150 pages.

Marathon: Review Haiku

RUN RUN RUN RUN RUN
BATTLE SWORDS GREEKS BLOOD WHAT THE
HELL IS GOING ON.

Marathon by Boaz Yakin. First Second, 2012, 192 pages.

Wicked Business: Review Haiku

I can't even do
this anymore. Trash is fun --
but sometimes, just trash.

Wicked Business by Janet Evanovich. Bantam, 2012, 320 pages.

Enchantment: Review Haiku

Compelling message
made less palatable by

insuff'rable author.

Enchantment: The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds, and Actions by Guy Kawasaki. Portfolio, 2011, 240 pages.

There Is No Dog: Review Haiku

Take one Joan Osbourne
song; add the awesomesauce of
Meg Rosoff; stir. Squeeeeee.

There Is No Dog by Meg Rosoff. Putnam, 2012, 256 pages.

The Detention Club: Review Haiku

Convoluted story
full of comma splices.
Try Scieszka instead.

The Detention Club by David Yoo. Balzer + Bray, 2011, 299 pages.

Explosive Eighteen: Review Haiku

FINALLY Stephanie
acts like something more than
a two-dollar whore.

Explosive Eighteen by Janet Evanovich. Bantam, 2011, 320 pages.

The Grief of Others: Review Haiku

Normally love her,
but could not get into this
one. Too depressing?

The Grief of Others by Leah Hager Cohen. Riverhead, 2011, 384 pages.

Cocktail Hour Under the Tree of Forgetfulness: Review Haiku

It's books like this that
make me appreciate my
sainted Swedish mom.

Cocktail Hour Under the Tree of Forgetfulness by Alexandra Fuller. Penguin, 2011, 256 pages.

Breadcrumbs: Review Haiku

And another one:

Yes, it really is that good.

My Newbery pick.

Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu. Walden Pond Press, 2011, 320 pages.

Little Bets: Review Haiku

Nothing shocking, but
a good reminder that
incremental change works.

Little Bets: How Breakthrough Ideas Emerge from Small Discoveries by Peter Sims. Free Press, 2011, 224 pages.

Knowing Your Value: Review Haiku

Fairly obvious
platitudes, repeated ad
nauseam, for girls.

Knowing Your Value: Women, Money, and Getting What You're Worth by Mika Brzezinski. Weinstein Books, 2011, 208 pages.

My Life, the Theater, and Other Tragedies: Review Haiku

High school theater geeks,

unite! This will feel oh so
very familiar.

My Life, the Theater, and Other Tragedies by Allen Zadoff. Egmont, 2011, 288 pages.

Amy and Roger's Epic Detour: Review Haiku

The best kind of love
story: slow, natural, and
full of cream soda.

Amy and Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson. S&S, 2011, 368 pages.

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children: Review Haiku

Is it normal that
I found the pictures scarier
than the monsters?

Miss Pettigrew's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs. Quirk, 2011, 352 pages.

Delivering Happiness: Review Haiku

Rah-rah memoir from
a Young-Turk CEO who
got lucky with shoes.

Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose by Tony Hsieh. Business Plus, 2010, 253 pages.

Sex, Murder, and the Meaning of Life: Review Haiku

Debunks "lizard brain"
idea, but not as clever
as he thinks he is.

Sex, Murder, and the Meaning of Life: A Psychologist Investigates How Evolution, Cognition, and Complexity Are Revolutionizing Our View of Human Nature by Douglas T. Kenrick. Basic Books, 2011, 256 pages.

Smokin' Seventeen: Review Haiku

Oh, Stephanie. You
claim a cursed sex drive, but you're
quickly turning skank.

Smokin' Seventeen by Janet Evanovich. Bantam, 2011, 320 pages.

Verily, Verily: Review Haiku

Not for scholars: a
mish-mash of KJV things
the author finds cool.

Verily, Verily: The King James Version: 400 Years of Influence and Beauty by Jon Sweeney. Zondervan, 2011, 224 pages.