Reading Recommendations: My Life in France, Julia Child with Alex Prud'homme

Julia Child single handedly awakened America to the pleasures of good cooking with her cookbook Mastering The Art of French Cooking and her television show The French Chef, but as she reveals in this best selling memoir, she didn't know the first thing about cooking when she landed in France.

Indeed, when she first arrived in France in 1948 with her husband, Paul, she spoke no French and knew nothing about the country itself. But as she dove into French culture, buying food at local markets and taking classes at the Cordon Bleu, her life changed forever. Julia's unforgettable story unfolds with the spirit so key to her success as a cook and teacher and writer, brilliantly capturing one of the most endearing American personalities of the last fifty years.

And, Going Rogue, An American Life, Sarah Palin

On September 3, 2008 Alaska Governor and Vice President nominee Sarah Palin delivered a speech at the Republican National Convention that electrified the nation and instantly made her one of the most recognizable women in the world.

As chief executive of America's largest estate, she had built a record as a reformer who cast aside politics as usual and pushed through changes other politicians only talked about: Energy independence, ethics reform, and the biggest private sector infrastructure project in U.S. history. While revitalizing public school funding and ensuring the state met its responsibilities to seniors and Alaska native populations, Palin also beat the political "good ol' boys club" at their own game and brought Big Oil to heel.

Like her GOP running mate, John McCain, Palin wasn't a packaged and overproduced candidate. She was a Main Street American woman: a working Mom, the wife of a blue collar union man, and the mother of five children, the eldest of whom was serving his country in a yearlong deployment in Iraq and the youngest, an infant with special needs.

But as the campaign unfolded, Palin became a lightning rod for both praise and criticism. Supporters called her "refreshing" and honest, a kitchen table public servant they felt would fight for their interests. Opponents derived her as a wide-eyed Pollyanna unprepared for national leadership. But none of them knew the real Sarah Palin.

In this eagerly anticipated memoir, Palin paints an intimate portrait of growing up in the wilds of Alaska, meeting her lifelong love, her decision to enter politics, the importance of faith and family, and the unique joys and trials of life as a high profile working mother. Regardless of how the reader feels about Palins politics, one gets a view of high stakes politics entwined with Palins unfailing hope in the greatest nation on earth.

And, The Time of My Life, Patrick Swayze and Lisa Niemi

In a career spanning more than thirty years, Patrick Swayze has made a name for himself on the stage, the screen, and television. Known for his versatility, passion, and fearlessness, he's become one of our most beloved actors.

But in February 2008, Patrick announced he had been diagnosed with Stage IV pancreatic cancer. Always a fighter, he refused to let the disease bring him to his knees, and his bravery has inspired both his legion of fans and cancer patients everywhere. Yet this memoir, written with wisdom and heart, recounts much more than his bout with cancer. In vivid detail, Patrick describes his Texas upbringing, his personal struggles, his rise to fame with North and South, his commercial breakthroughs in Dirty Dancing and Ghost, and the soul mate who's stood by his side through it all: his wife, writer and director Lisa Niemi.

A behind the scenes look at a Hollywood life and a remarkable love, Patrick and Lisa's marriage is a journey of two lives intertwined and lived as one throughout their years in Hollywood and at home on their working ranch outside Los Angeles, and culminating in the hope and wisdom they've imparted to all who know them.

See you at Rylander!