You're Different and That's Super

Author: Carson Kressley

First line: The spring that Trumpet was born, there were so many new foals in the pasture that almost no one nticed there was one sassy little colt who didn't belong to any of the mares.

Why you should read this book: With a kind of reverse Glass Menagerie mentality, we have the story of little horse who's popular and well-loved until he starts to grow a horn from his forehead. Finding himself ostracized, he retreats into self-loathing, until the day his horn proves useful and his true identity as a unicorn is revealed. Quirky fun for quirky kids who might not understand how their individuality today will help them weather the transition into adulthood.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You've always dressed your children in identical outfits and you don't want them to get the idea that they are unique.

Something Might Happen

Author: Helen Lester

First line: Twitchly Fidget trembled all over

Why you should read this book: A paranoid lemur lives his life in fear of shampoo, marshmallow, breakfast cereal, and the possibility that something--anything--could go wrong in ways that would not occur to the well-adjusted primate. Twitchly misses out on all the good things in life until his aunt shows up and forces him to confront the world. Strangely, terrible things do not happen.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You have an irrational fear of gym shoes.

Siddhartha

Author: Hermann Hesse

Quote: "Knowledge can be communicated, but not wisdom."

Why you should read this book: Siddhartha, son of a Brahmin, has every advantage in life, and yet he leaves his father's house to follow the path of the ascetic and learn of the Self. Soon, the young man begins to question the wisdom of following leaders, and continues the journey of his own existence, seeking his own knowledge and experience rather than passively believing what others tell him about the world. Throughout his life, he understands that he must follow his own path and that peace and acceptance are attained, not through mindless ritual or material gain, but through embrace of simplicity, through the ability to listen to the universe, to understand its circular nature, and to sense the individual's connection to the divine.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You're the kind of person who pickets the Dalai Lama with signs explaining why Buddhists go to hell.

The Art Lesson

Author: Tomie dePaola

First line: Tommy knew he wanted to be an artist when he grew up.

Why you should read this book: Perennial children's favorite dePaola revisits familiar territory--his own childhood--in this story of artistic integrity versus stubborn establishment. From an early age, little Tommy demonstrates strong artistic talent and style, but, like most young children, his sense of justice is outraged by seemingly arbitrary rules, in this case those imposed upon him by his elementary school's limited art program. Tommy refuses to compromise himself, but must learn to compromise with authority in his pursuit of a true art education.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You think eight colors and one sheet of paper are more than adequate for any child's self-expression.

Diary of a Wombat

Author: Jackie French

Quote: Evening: Have decided that humans are easily trained and make good pets.

Why you should read this book: Wombats are Australian creatures that resemble small bears and love sleeping, digging holes, and eating grass. When a family of humans invade the wombat's territory, she comes to love them for their bottomless stashes of delicious carrots, but humans and wombat must learn to coexist and love one another despite their disparate views on land use. Amusing illustrations help illuminate the wombat's unique point of view.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You've never, ever fed a wild animal.

No More Kissing!

Author: Emma Chichester Clark

Quote: I wish no one had invented kissing.

Why you should read this book: Momo the anthropomorphic monkey wants to know why there has to be so much kissing all the time. Like many independent little boys, he finds the practice disgusting and pointless, and when his brother comes along, the new baby seems to disdain bussing so much that altruistic Momo insists on putting a stop to it. However, familial love wins out, and Momo's instinct for kindness leads him to behave in ways he could never predict.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You're one of those parents who believe children should be made to kiss on command.

Twelfth Night, or, What You Will

Author: William Shakespeare

First line: If music be the food of love, play on, Give me excess of it, that surfeiting, The appetite may sicken, and so die.

Why you should read this book: A tidy bit of Shakespearean tomfoolery with a cold undertone of cruelty: Viola and Sebastian are fraternal (yet identical) twins, separated in a shipwreck, and Viola disguises herself as a boy to find employment with the Duke Orsino, with whom she falls in love. Orsino is in love himself with the disdainful Olivia, and he sends Viola to woo her; a second plot involves Olivia's drunken uncle taking revenge on her pompous steward. When Viola's lost brother rejoins the dance, misunderstandings abound, but all's well in the end, and love flourishes.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You don't like cross-dressing. Or cross-garters.

The Prince of the Marshes: And Other Occupational Hazards of a Year in Iraq

Author: Rory Stewart

First line: In April 2002, after twenty months traveling in Asia, I returned from Afghanistan to my home in the Highlands of Scotland, a mile from the nearest town on the edge of a wood.

Why you should read this book: Picking up where his last narrative left off, the inimitable Stewart begins his new incarnation as Seyyed Rory, the Coalition-appointed deputy governor to two provinces in the marsh regions of southern Iraq, facing off against various political, religious, and feudal-tribal factions as he struggles to create democracy and oversee services in the cradle of civilization. After decades of police rule, most Iraqis reject the Coalition's notions of democracy and insist that security is the most important issue, while Stewart butts heads with both Iraqi and Coalition forces in his efforts to keep the water running, the electricity flowing, and the schools open, all in the face of constant insurgencies and allegiance shifts, and racing against the clock to complete projects before the scheduled handover. In a civilization where revenge and blood feuds pile up one atop the other, in some cases stretching back over 1300 years, Stewart's level head and diplomatic impulses smooth over escalating events and provide an air of good humor in a book that may illuminate for Westerners the true situation in Iraq and the deep clash of cultures inherent in the American invasion.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You're one hundred percent sure that, if you die killing Christians, you'll go directly to heaven.

The Dark Knight Returns

Author: Frank Miller

First line: I've got the home stretch all to myself when the readings stop making sense.

Why you should read this book: Frank Miller reimagines the Dark Knight as a middle-aged man, forced into retirement in his prime, who has spent the last ten years watching Gothan City degenerate into lawlessness and corruption, until the so-called rehabilitation of his old enemies stirs him to don the mask once again. More controversial than ever, Batman must battle the new police commisioner, along with the Mutant Gang, Two Face, and the Joker, but this Batman is tired of the mayhem, and when he decides to put an end to it once and for all, his private fight becomes a federal issue. With nuclear armageddon looming, Batman (and Robin, the girl wonder) must stand off against their own government and the very people who should be their allies.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You know that Superman would kick Batman's ass any day of the week.

SCUM Manifesto

Author: Valerie Solanas

First line: Life in this society being, at best, an utter bore and no aspect of society being at all relevant to women, there remains to civic-minded, responsible, thrill-seeking females only to overthrow the government, eliminate the money system, institute complete automation and destroy the male sex.

Why you should read this book: One part brilliant, two parts insane, equally funny and sad, this document lays out the blueprint for an anarchist gynocentric revolution, using fractured biology and psychology to explain why males are inherently inferior to females and ultimately detrimental to the wellbeing of humanity. There is a great deal here by which to be offended, along with too many interesting ideas for the book to ever go away, making this a classic work of alternative literature. No matter how you feel about gender, there are concepts here that, forty years after the original publication, continue to inform culture, no matter how outrageous they are.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You think society's great just as it is now, but would be even better if you could go back in time sixty years.