“I'm reading 'Beautiful Trouble,' poems by Amy Fleury. She can put feelings into words that you don't think anyone else is feeling. She finds connections and meaning in the most everyday objects and situations.”

— Roxann Graber, photographer, rural Baldwin City

“'Stealth Democracy,' by John R. Hibbing (and Elizabeth Theiss-Morse). It's about how American citizens think democracy is supposed to work.”

— Owen Cox, Kansas University graduate student, Lawrence

“'Julie and Julia,' by Julie Powell. It's about the author spending a year cooking all the recipes in a Julia Child's cookbook. She calls it her year of cooking dangerously.”

— Diana Buchanan, retail manager, Lawrence

“'The March Up,' by Bing West and Ray L. Smith. It's about the struggle that our boys are going through in Iraq.”

— Greg Stites, pharmacist, Lawrence

“I just got 'Pigs in Heaven,' by Barbara Kingsolver, and I would highly recommend her book, 'The Poisonwood Bible.'”

— Becky Nevergold, principal, Ottawa