NONFICTION  |  CLASSICS  |  CRIME/MYSTERY/ADVENTURE  |  FANTASY/SCI-FI/OTHER NERDERY  |  WAR

CRIME/MYSTERY/ADVENTURE

Devil May Care, Sebastian Faulks
Though critics have panned the latest installment in the seemingly boundless Bond series, the book is selling like hotcakes—quickly breaking Penguin's record for the fastest-selling hardcover ever. Which proves, much like the movie series, that any 007 adventure is entertaining as all hell. Faulks ties Devil May Care close to the original series by setting it in 1967 and making it a direct continuation of the Ian Fleming classic The Man With the Golden Gun. You'll probably plow through this entertaining read faster than you can pronounce Quantum of Solace.
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The Endurance: Shackleton's Legendary Antarctic Expedition, Caroline Alexander
By setting off to cross Antarctica at the beginning of WWI, Sir Ernest Shackleton displayed either an incredible amount of bravery or a blatant disregard for the well-being of himself and his crew. Either way, we admire the hell out of him and his incredible story. Plus, this book has more pictures than most of the books on the list, so you can give your brain a little break from reading.
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Education of a Felon, Edward Bunker
Anyone who has ever been there will tell you that jail is a terrible place to go, but it's sure interesting to read about. At only 17 years old, Bunker was doing hard time at the notorious San Quentin prison, where he learned the "convict code," a set of rules that will definitely help keep you from being gutted with a sharpened toothbrush if you ever end up in the joint.
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The Spy Who Came in From the Cold, John Le Carre
If you dig reality over Bond's gadgets and implausible scenarios, then try John Le Carre's The Spy Who Came in From the Cold. Widely regarded as the greatest spy novel of all time, Le Carre's epic book about '60s espionage pits West against East, and upstanding morality against the shady world of cutthroat covert operations.
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The Big Sleep, Raymond Chandler
Without hard-boiled detective writer Raymond Chandler, we wouldn't have a clue about private dicks, seductive damsels, and late-night crime capers. Chandler created the detective genre with The Big Sleep, a crafty and complex debut novel that involved blackmail, gambling, nymphos, porno, double-crossing, triple-crossing, and the grim realty of private eye work.
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Savage Night, Jim Thompson
During his early life, Thompson subsidized his blue-collar salary by partaking in all kinds of illegal activities, which is probably why he was able to make his crime novels feel so authentic and downright brutal. Savage Night is the story of a hit man sent to a small New York town to whack someone who did wrong by the mob. It's a quick read, and feels grittier than a 50-gallon drum of Lava soap.
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NONFICTION  |  CLASSICS  |  CRIME/MYSTERY/ADVENTURE  |  FANTASY/SCI-FI/OTHER NERDERY  |  WAR