Other finalists this year included:

• Animal Spirits: How Human Psychology Drives the Economy, and Why It Matters for Global Capitalism by George A. Akerlof and Robert J. Shiller
• Good Value: Reflections on Money, Morality, and an Uncertain World by Stephen Green
• Imagining India: Ideas for the New Century by Nandan Nilekani
• The Match King: Ivar Kreuger and the Financial Scandal of the Century by Frank Partnoy
• In Fed We Trust: Ben Bernanke’s War on the Great Panic by David Wessel

It's fall and Minnesota gardens and farmer's markets are full of all sorts of tasty homegrown goods.  Check out these fabulous Minnesota cookbooks, accompanied by all sorts of Minnesota gastronomical lore, for ideas on how to take full advantage of the harvest!

Don't miss your chance to hear three of these local authors, live at your library.  Catherine Friend, author of The Compassionate Carnivore, will read at the Ridgedale Library on Monday, Sept. 28, at 7pm.  The author of Never Trust a Thin Cook!, Eric Dregni, will share his gastronomical and cultural adventures in Italy at the Southdale Library on Thursday, Nov. 19 at 7pm.  And come December, watch for an appearance at the Ridgedale Library by Dara Moscowitz Grumdahl, Minnesota Monthly food critic and author of the forthcoming Drink This!

The Mystery Writers of America just announced the Edgar Award Nominees for 2009, and up for best Fact Crime are:

• For The Thrill of It: Leopold, Loeb and the Murder that Shocked Chicago by Simon Baatz
• American Lightning: Terror, Mystery, the Birth of Hollywood, and the Crime of the Century by Howard Blum
• Havana Nocturne: How the Mob Owned Cuba and Then Lost It To The Revolution by T.J. English
• The Man Who Made Vermeers: Unvarnishing the Legend of Master Forger Hans van Meegeren by Jonathan Lopez
• The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher by Kate Summerscale

You'll find most of these titles on Hennepin County Library's new True Crime booklist, where you can hunt down just the right title for you.  And check out blogs
In Cold Blog and CLEWS Your Home for Historic True Crime for more true crime book news and ideas!

Check out Beliefnet's Books page or The Best American Spiritual Writing 2008 for more spirit-feeding reads.

Tired of the same old meals or want to impress your neighbors at the next dinner party?  Find new recipes and tips in the 2008 James Beard Foundation's book award winners, just announced this weekend! 

Did you enjoy  the movie Into the Wild or  Jon Krakauer's book?  If so try these titles Outdoor Adventure and Survival  too.

Historian and biographer Stephen Ambrose , who passed away on October 13, 2002 from lung cancer , wrote nearly thirty books about generals, presidents, explorers, major military battles, railroads and foreign policy always demonstrated an uncommon ablility to bring history and historical actors to vivid life.
Celebrate his life by reading or listening to one of his wonderful titles!