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Books on the Nightstand, Episode 29 (22:57)

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In honor of our One Year Birthday, we’ve created a survey that we’re asking all of our readers and listeners to take. The blog readers have inundated us with responses… let’s see if all of you podcast listeners can beat their number!

Ann thanks her daughters for actually giving her books for her birthday and we remind you that books make great gifts for any holiday or special occasion, not just Christmas!

In honor of Earth Day, we pick a few books about the natural world including a classic, a history of the Beaufort wind scale, a novel about Thoreau, and the new book from Daniel Goleman, author of Emotional Intelligence. The green rating site Ann mentions is Good Guide.

In segment three, Ann raves about Colson Whitehead’s new novel, Sag Harbor, which is set during the 80′s in an African-American community in the Long Island resort town. Then Michael finally gets to tell you about The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, one of the most enjoyable novels he’s read in a long time, featuring Flavia DeLuce, an 11-year-old with a predilection for poisons.

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