I mentioned in June that Bill Bryson had a new book out, A Short History of Nearly Everything. I haven't yet read it or even bought it. David Foster Wallace has finished a new book on the history of infinity, Everything and More: A Compact History of Infinity.

We now have two traditionally non-science writers releasing books explaining big complicated science stuff. Bryson tells us a little less than everything and Foster Wallace tells us a little more. Please, I just want to know 'everything'.

This is all boring science book talk and you should ignore it. Really. But you shouldn't miss A Walk in the Woods or A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again.

I promise you will:

1. never go on a Carnival cruise
2. go to Blockbuster and rent David Lynch's Lost Highway
3. look at state fairs differently
4. think walking the Appalachian trail is more than just "a neat idea I'd like to try sometime"