Proof of Heaven by Eben Alexander

  I'm sure everyone is aware of the basic essence of Dr. Alexander's book Proof of Heaven, but for those of you who have been living under a rock, I'll explain.  Dr. Alexander is a well respected, academic neurosurgeon who contracted a rare E. Coli infection that attacked his brain and left him in a coma.  During his coma, he was monitored by some of the best physicians in the country, and his brain was completely inactive.  While in the coma he experienced a profound, spiritual and life-altering journey.  When he awoke, this man of science, of evidence and explanation was left wondering how to describe what had happened.  Such near death experiences are often attributed to random activity in different parts of the brain while a patient is physically unresponsive.  Proof of Heaven is Dr. Alexander's attempt at explaining that these events were not random or physical, but spiritual.
  I don't come from a particularly religious family, but I do believe in God.  Sometimes that faith waivers in times of difficulty and strife, when I see bad things happen to the people I love, or when bad things happen to the innocents in our society that I simply cringe at while watching the news.  This book, while not preachy or given to a specific religion, does reaffirm my belief in the spiritual realm.  It also left me full of hope and inspiration.  If for any reason you find yourself doubting that we are part of something bigger than ourselves and this world, or if the state of humanity in general has left you wanting - read this book.

Mr. Penumbra's 24 Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan

A book about a book store - are you snoring yet? While the quiet and unassuming Mr. Penumbra's Bookstore in San Fransisco is a focal point of this novel, technology, cryptology, mystery, science fiction and a secret society are what the story truly revolves around.  It is 2008 and the once gainfully employed Clay Jannon is a jobless Graphic Designer who begins working the night shift in Mr. Penumbra's Bookstore to pay his bills.  As he gets to know the quirks of the store's regular customers he uses his tech and programming skills to inadvertently crack a code of a secret society hundreds of years old.  Thus begins the unexpected unraveling of a code breaking race between a technology giant and an old intellectual society, exploring the unlikely communion of technology and the origins of printmaking.  As a lover of both technology AND the tried and true paper book, this book satisfied my belief that there is room and a need in our world for both.  If nothing else, there are some great chapters taking place at the Google campus that make for fascinating and entertaining commentary on the lifestyles of the technological elite. That, and the books on the cover glow in the dark.