Rachael Ray 365: No Repeats--A Year of Deliciously Different Dinners by Rachael Ray is a continuation of the thirty minute meal cookbook series that offers everyday solutions to meal challenged people. The popular Food Network guru lays out recipes for the entire year in format that is organized around an entire meal. So the instructions for the main dish are woven in with the recipes for side dishes. This is great for people who are planning challenged. You will find recipes of all ethnicities and ingredients. Ray encourages cooks to become more instinctual and come up with their own methods of cooking their favorite dishes. For those who love to cook or who would love to know how, Rachael Ray’s latest is a hit.

Bad Cat: 244 Not-So-Pretty Kitties And Cats Gone Bad by Jim Edgar is an edgy, fun look at the funniest of felines: the housecat.
The cats in this book are wackier and more adventurous than many you may already know. There is the Siamese who rearranges his owner’s living room with his claws, the partially shaved oddity who resembles a lion on a bad day, and the pathetic costumed kitty who just wants his owner to give him a break. Unlike other popular cat books that reveal the loveable or philosophical sides of cats, this book takes a look at the deranged and antisocial aspects to the feline family. This is a hilarious book for every cat lover you know.

An Affair with a House by Bunny Williams and Christine Pettel is the story of a love affair with an eighteenth century New England manor house.
Bunny Williams, world renowned interior designer, fell in love with this house when she saw it twenty eight years ago. It was in a sad state of disrepair and she took it upon herself to rejuvenate it in her own impeccable style. With photographs by Fritz VonDerSchulenberg and Richard Felber, the book is a gorgeous tribute to the transformation wrought by Williams over the years. Full of details about the renovation and decoration of the home, the book also includes the input of Williams’ husband, John Rosselli, an antiques dealer, and is full of recipes, how-tos, and personal anecdotes. For the amateur or professional interior designer, this book is a love affair with style.

Makers: All Kinds of People Making Amazing Things In Their Backyard, Basement or Garage by Bob Parks is a continuation of the new magazine entitled Make that launched in February of 2005. Devoted to technical do it yourself projects, Make is the guide for the new age techie and the follow up book is a compendium of tons of great ideas seen to fruition. One hundred people open their homes to Parks who shows you step by step how each one made their various practical and outrageous projects. The results are often astonishing and the book also takes a look at the people behind the ideas. This insider’s look at what makes an inventor, or a maker, tick is one of the best aspects of the book. Plus, photos and full instructions will have the hobbyist in your life rushing off to the garage to get started.

Real Simple Solutions: Tricks, Wisdom and Easy Ideas to Simplify Everyday by the Editors of Real Simple Magazine is the absolute best guide for everything under the sun. This book is crammed with more tricks, tips, and fixes than you could ever possibly use. But if you are the kind of person who likes things done right, this book will help you out with stains, etiquette, and budget beating ideas galore. Dedicated to helping you live better, the everyday solutions in this book touch on every area of your life, from cooking and cleaning to grooming and entertaining. Filled with photographs and beautifully bound, this book is not just one for the shelves. It makes a great coffee table book while telling you how to save money and make life just a little simpler.

1,000 Places to See Before You Die by Patricia Schultz is a travelers dream. If you are sick of all the tourist traps and crowded destinations, this book has got some surprises in store for you. Or if you know someone who is just beginning to explore the world out there, they will love all the ideas and tips in this fun guide. The book is divided geographically and offers about a page per location, so it’s quick reading that packs a lot of information in a small space. You’ll not only get a concise summary of each place, but also the exact location on the globe and the best time of year to visit. For the traveler or armchair tourist in your life, this is the book to give.