On a "what makes us tick" non-fiction bent: 1. Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (http://tinyurl.com/33kv6te http://tinyurl.com/33kv6te) - fascinating look at th

On a "what makes us tick" non-fiction bent: 1. Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (http://tinyurl.com/33kv6te http://tinyurl.com/33kv6te) - fascinating look at the author's theory of Flow, the state of total absorption that accompanies total concentration - so called "optimal experience". Anyone who programs knows this feeling. Really excellent book. 2. Stumbling on Happiness by Daniel Gilbert (http://tinyurl.com/38lvdzc http://tinyurl.com/38lvdzc) - not the self-help book it sounds like, but an interesting look at why we're so bad at working out what will make us happy. 3. The Tiger that isn't by Andrew Dilnot (http://tinyurl.com/38hntqx http://tinyurl.com/38hntqx) - interesting guide to our instinctive interpretation of statistics and how the media manipulates it. 4. Bad Science by Ben Goldacre (http://tinyurl.com/3yk8woz http://tinyurl.com/3yk8woz) - at once amusing and horrifying look at various aspects of pseudoscience, especially as applied to healthcare. Fiction: 1. Anything by Iain Banks, especially the sci-fi. 2. If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable Things by Jon McGregor (http://tinyurl.com/3496d34 http://tinyurl.com/3496d34) - worth reading just for the language he uses. 3. American Gods by Neil Gaiman (http://tinyurl.com/3xyr65w http://tinyurl.com/3xyr65w) - great fantasy with a darkly humorous side.