I Know Who You Are and I Saw What You Did, a new title from lawyer Lori Andrews, looks at what we give away when we cavort in social media cyberspace--mainly, privacy. The title is made of two independent clauses joined with a conjunction, and some grammar fiends would insist on a comma after the "ARE." Why do commas matter? And what does this have to do with baby seals?

"I was so head-over-heels in love with the cover for my first novel, The Violets of March, that I was worried that I wouldn't end up being able to love a cover as much as the first. And yet, I had no vision for what the new cover should be or look like. The book is set in Bora Bora, so I did imagine blue skies, turquoise waters and maybe a beach bungalow in the distance, but that was all I could think of..."

Susan Cain's new book Quiet looks at introverts, those among us who more often than not choose solitary pursuits over team play, contemplation over action, our own counsel rather than group discussions. It made me wonder about grammar lovers: Are most of us introverts or extroverts? Book lovers tend to be introverts, and many hard-core readers love grammar. But extroverts thrive on mass communication, and grammar is the study of the structure of language--how we communicate. Might not extroverts love grammar, too?

"For a while, as I was writing the book, I had this idea that the cover would be mostly black with simple lettering, like The Road, since this has so much to do with the apocalypse. But I'm really glad that's not what it ended up being. It's been done and it doesn't exactly scream fun and romantic. It moans tragic and bleak..."

The 11 tales featured in Chesya Burke’s short story collection Let's Play White explore a diversity of subject matter: racism, poverty, sexism, addiction, revenge, redemption, etc. and the social commentary that fuels these dark fantasy gems is far from subtle – in fact, some of the stories are so powerful that reading them is like getting pummeled by a brass-knuckled fist...

Bruce Springsteen's hotly awaited new single hit the internet January 19. His (oft-obsessive) fans quickly analyzed the lyrics, seeking even the most minute shades of meaning--no literary critic could be more attentive, it seems, than Bruce's legion of fans. And they found . . . a big goof? What did Bruce get wrong--or right? And what's the deal with calvary and cavalry, anyway?

"[With the original cover] the lawyers balked, citing privacy concerns for the soldier depicted in the image. It's a fairly close shot of a US soldier in uniform (fatigues, helmet) in a Vietnam PX surrounded by consumer goods. He is holding a can of Planter's peanuts that is conveniently obscuring the naked lady on the pornography he is buying. It is a great image--provocative, deeply suggestive of consumerism, and apparently totally off-limits..."

My motivation for picking up and reading books varies from title to title – generally it’s because I’m already familiar with the author or series, oftentimes the interest is based on a particularly positive review or suggestion, and sometimes it’s something as simple as intriguing cover art. None of these, however, are why I was compelled to seek out and read Barry Graham’s The Wrong Thing – it’s because of Barry Graham himself...