All mySimon Books Shopping Picks

HBO is promoting the June 10 grand finale of The Sopranos with this new book cleverly titled The Sopranos: The Book. Packed with 200 full-color photos and more than 50 interviews with cast, crew, and producers (not to mention an episode guide and food glossary), the book is a must-have for any die-hard Sopranos fan. But we still wish HBO would make Sopranos action figures. More gifts under $50 for Dads and Grads.

Schadenfreude n. Pleasure taken from someone else's misfortune, plenty of which can be found in The Pop-Up Book of Celebrity Meltdowns. This satirical celebration of celebrities gone wild contains 10 spectacular crack-ups, from Tom Cruise jumping Oprah's couch to Janet Jackson's Super Bowl "wardrobe malfunction," with hilarious artwork and some ingenious paper engineering. Also funny: The Pop-Up Book of Phobias.

Great news for Lord of the Rings fans: The Children of Hurin, which J.R.R. Tolkien first started writing in 1918, comes out this week, thanks to the efforts of the author's son, Christopher, who spent 30 years pulling together the various published and unpublished pieces. The jacket, paintings, and pencil drawings were done by Allan Lee, who also illustrated The Hobbit. More J.R.R. Tolkien books.

Either Sidney Poitier's autobiography was a quick read, or Oprah's got an ambitious plan for her book club in 2007. Check out her latest pick, Cormac McCarthy's The Road, the story of a father and son, survivors of some civilization-ending apocalypse, walking along through America, with nothing to defend themselves but a pistol. We're thinking it's probably not a comedy. Previous Oprah Book Club picks.

Last night we watched the Food Network's "Cookography" of Nigella Lawson, the British beauty, journalist, cooking show host, and writer. Although she's not a trained chef, her approach to cooking (simple, social, and, dare we say, sexy) has earned her a worldwide following. We can't decide if we want to be her or marry her, but we certainly want to eat the food she prepares. Check out Nigella Lawson's cookbooks - and set an... more

In The Castle in the Forest, the latest novel from literary powerhouse Norman Mailer, Satan assigns the devil Dieter to help watch over the childhood of a young Austrian boy named Adolph Hitler. For who is better suited to tell us about Hitler's childhood than the devil himself? No details are spared, and Dieter watches with pleasure as "Adi" develops a psychosexual obsession with feces, power, violence, and mass-murder. More books by Norman... more

If you've resolved to get fit this year, pick up LL Cool J's Platinum Workout. The book has a 4-week program for beginners, a 5-week program for intermediates, and a hardcore 3-week fat-torching program for overachievers - the same one LL used for the "Control Myself" video. Of course, LL hasn't forgotten the ladies; he's got a special 4-week program for women who want to shape up fast. Also included are meal plans, recipes,... more

Remember Spy magazine? During its heyday (1986 - 1993) Spy broke important ground in journalism and design, defining smartness for its generation. Packed with all the hilarious stories on pretty much everyone who was anyone during the late 80s and early 90s, Spy: The Funny Years is the definitive anthology, inside story, and scrapbook. We're keeping our fingers crossed for a Might Magazine anthology someday too. More great holiday gifts under $50.

Don't let the incredibly boring cover of this book turn you off. The Thinking Fan's Guide to the World Cup - a collection of essays by famous writers, journalists, and even politicians - is a must have for World Cup fans who can read. The book features original pieces about the 32 nations that qualified for the world's greatest sporting event, as well as all kinds of facts and figures to satisfy your inner... more

Make your bland cubicle stand out with a dollar-sign paperweight, gold push-pins, disco ball, some leopard print fringe, and other pieces of pimp flare. The Pimp My Cubicle kit will transform you from Team Player to #1 Playa (if it doesn't get you fired first). The kit comes with a book with more themes - Taj Mahacubicle anyone? - to help you impress that new chick from Logistics and keep you awake while doing... more

What happens when you send a 27 year-old British reporter, who has never even been camping, to Iraq to cover the war? Find out in War Reporting for Cowards. In the tradition of M*A*S*H, this new book tells the on-the-ground story of Iraq in a way that is at once honest, heartfelt, and bitterly hilarious.

Oprah's latest book club pick is actually three books by William Faulkner ("As I Lay Dying," "The Sound and the Fury," and "Light in August"). The books have been repackaged into an exclusive three-volume boxed edition, that includes a special reader's guide with an introduction by Oprah. All for less than $20.

Happy Easter! David Sedaris' Me Talk Pretty One Day is not a new release, but it's our Easter shopping pick because of his hilarious story "Jesus Shaves." In it, several international students try to explain the concept of Easter using rudimentary French.

Runny Babbit lent to wunch
And heard the saitress way,
"We have some lovely stabbit rew
Our Special for today."

Explore the world of Runny Babbit and his friends Toe Jurtle, Skertie Gunk, Rirty Dat, Dungry Hog, Snerry Jake, and many others who speak a topsy-turvy language all their own.

Saturday by Ian McEwan, the author of the #1 bestselling and Booker Prize-winning Atonement, comes out this week. Set within a single day in February 2003, Saturday is the page-turning story of a neurosurgeon whose day goes from ordinary to extraordinary after a minor car accident with a small-time thug.