This is the story of a boy whose mother (a poet with delusions of grandeur) gave him away to be raised by her psychiatrist, a dead ringer for Santa Claus and a certifiable lunatic. Suddenly at the age of 12, Augusten found himself living in a dilapidated Victorian house in perfect squalor.

The making of the Oxford English Dictionary was a monumental 50 year task requiring thousands of volunteers. One of the keenest volunteers was a W C Minor who astonished everyone by refusing to come to Oxford to receive his congratulations. In the end, James Murray, the OED's editor, went to Crowthorne in Berkshire to meet him.

Explores the links between Hollywood and the fast food trade, and the tactics used to target ever younger consumers. This title is a meticulously researched account.

As an editor at Esquire , AJ Jacobs had built up knowledge of celebrity trivia - and the cure was going to take a long time. While others read a broadsheet at the weekend, or become casual newsnight enthusiasts, Jacobs elected to read the Encyclopaedia Britannica . Part assemblage of trivia, part journey through adulthood, this is fun to read.

Brothers Ron and Dan Lafferty insist they were commanded to kill by God.

A brilliant, savage, hilarious new collection of writings from David Sedaris - it's as if Garrison Keillor's evil twin meets Woody Allen'