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Editors' Picks of 2004

The Abebooks editors have made their choices for the best books of 2004. Any of these titles would make a lovely gift this season - or a nice addition to your own home library.

What would you pick as the best book of 2004? Discuss it in our Community Forum.

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The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Presents America (The Book)The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Presents America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction
Writers of The Daily Show, Jon Stewart

American-style democracy is the world's most beloved form of government, which explains why so many other nations are eager for us to impose it on them. But what is American democracy? In America (The Book), Jon Stewart and The Daily Show writing staff offer their insights into our unique system of government, dissecting its institutions, explaining its history and processes, and exploring the reasons why concepts like one man, one vote, government by the people, and every vote counts have become such popular urban myths.

All Editions: $15.00 - $74.00

 

The Full Cupboard of LifeThe Full Cupboard of Life: More from the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency
Alexander McCall Smith

Alexander McCall Smith’s The Full Cupboard of Life continues the adventures of Precious Ramotswe, the remarkable proprietress of an unusual detective agency in Botswana. Mma Ramotswe begins to fret that she has been engaged to Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni for a while now (in fact, through the first four books of the No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series —The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency, Tears of the Giraffe, Morality for Beautiful Girls, and The Kalahari Typing School for Men) with no wedding date in sight. He, unfortunately, is preoccupied with other things, in particular, a frightening proposition from the bossy matron of the Orphan Farm.

All Editions: $5.75 - $40.00

 

He's Just Not That Into YouHe's Just Not That Into You: The No-Excuses Truth to Understanding Guys
Greg Behrendt, Liz Tuccillo

He's Just Not That Into You is provocative, hilarious, and, above all, intoxicatingly liberating. It deserves a place on every woman's night table. It knows you're a beautiful, smart, funny woman who deserves better. The next time you feel the need to start "figuring him out," consider the glorious thought that maybe He's just not that into you. And then set yourself loose to go find the one who is.

All Editions: $10.39 - $43.95

 

Blue DahliaBlue Dahlia
Nora Roberts

A Harper has always lived at Harper House, the centuries-old mansion just outside of Memphis. And for as long as anyone alive remembers, the ghostly Harper Bride has walked the halls, singing lullabies at night... Trying to escape the ghosts of the past, young widow Stella Rothchild, along with her two energetic little boys, has moved back to her roots in southern Tennessee - and into her new life at Harper House and In the Garden nursery.

All Editions: $4.50 - $9.99

 

CandyfreakCandyfreak: A Journey Through the Chocolate Underbelly of America
Steve Almond

Perhaps you remember the whipped splendor of the Choco-Lite, or the luscious Caravelle bar, or maybe the sublime and perfectly balanced Hershey's Cookies 'n Mint. The Marathon, an inimitable rope of caramel covered in chocolate. Oompahs. Bit-O-Choc. The Kit Kat Dark. Steve Almond certainly does. In fact, he was so obsessed by the inexplicable disappearance of these bars -- where'd they go? -- that he embarked on a nationwide journey to uncover the truth about the candy business.

All Editions: $10.00 - $45.00

Jonathan Strange & Mr. NorellJonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell
Susanna Clarke

English magicians were once the wonder of the known world, with fairy servants at their beck and call; they could command winds, mountains, and woods. But by the early 1800s they have long since lost the ability to perform magic. They can only write long, dull papers about it, while fairy servants are nothing but a fading memory. But at Hurtfew Abbey in Yorkshire, the rich, reclusive Mr Norrell has assembled a wonderful library of lost and forgotten books from England's magical past and regained some of the powers of England's magicians.

All Editions: $15.00 - $917.92

 

My LifeMy Life
Bill Clinton

President Bill Clinton's My Life is the strikingly candid portrait of a global leader who decided early in life to devote his intellectual and political gifts, and his extraordinary capacity for hard work, to serving the public. It shows us the progress of a remarkable American, who, through his own enormous energies and efforts, made the unlikely journey from Hope, Arkansas, to the White House--a journey fueled by an impassioned interest in the political process which manifested itself at every stage of his life.

All Editions: $9.50 - $3,450.00


The Grim GrottoThe Grim Grotto (A Series of Unfortunate Events, Book 11)
Lemony Snicket, Brett Helquist (Illustrator)

Unless you are a slug, a sea anemone, or mildew, you probably prefer not to be damp. You might also prefer not to read this book, in which the Baudelaire siblings encounter an unpleasant amount of dampness as they descend into the depths of despair, underwater. In fact, the horrors they encounter are too numerous to list, and you wouldn't want me even to mention the worst of it, which includes mushrooms, a desperate search for something lost, a mechanical monster, a distressing message from a lost friend, and tap dancing.

All Editions : $5.99 - $79.00

 

Eats, Shoots & LeavesEats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation
Lynne Truss

We all know the basics of punctuation. Or do we? A look at most neighborhood signage tells a different story. Through sloppy usage and low standards on the internet, in email, and now text messages, we have made proper punctuation an endangered species. In Eats, Shoots & Leaves, former editor Lynne Truss dares to say, in her delightfully urbane, witty, and very English way, that it is time to look at our commas and semicolons and see them as the wonderful and necessary things they are.

All Editions: $10.00 - $60.00

 

The 9/11 Commission ReportThe 9/11 Commission Report: Final Report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States
National Commission on Terrorist Attacks

In November 2002 the United States Congress and President George W. Bush established by law the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, also known as the 9/11 Commission. This independent, bipartisan panel was directed to examine the facts and circumstances surrounding the September 11 attacks, identify lessons learned, and provide recommendations to safeguard against future acts of terrorism. This volume is the authorized edition of the Commission's final report.

Signed Copies: $2.40 - $245.50