VANISHED SMILE by R. A. Scotti
Knopf Publishing Group, non-fiction, $24.95.

In 1911, the Mona Lisa was stolen from the Louvre. It took over two years to find it, during which a huge scandal and investigation grippped the attention of the western world. R.A.Scotti explores this puzzling theft in Vanished Smile, a highly readable account of the crime and its still unclear motives (financial gain? Misguided Italian patriotism? Obsession?).

The universal appeal and provenance of the Mona Lisa are also examined, reaffirming her cultural icon status.

Vanished Smile is lively and engrossing, entertaining and informative.

Shane recommends!

THE BELIEVERS by Zoe Heller.
Harper, fiction, $25.99.

Zoe Heller possesses true brilliance as a writer. Her characters, flawed and often unlikable (as in her previous effort: What Was She Thinking- Notes on a Scandal) arouse our sympathy as they desperately struggle for something to "believe in." The Believers is an assured study of a family driven by various passions, beliefs and ideologies (whether it be leftist politics, orthodx judaism, dieting, union organizing, addiction recovery or marriage). The unraveling of the family precipitated by Joel Litvinoff's illness and indiscretions, is at the crux of this subtle, funny, and dark family farce that is intelligently and stunningly written. Joel's wife Audrey is foul-mouthed, hilarious and excoriatingly direct (the reader waiting with gleee for her next tirade)

Like her British compatriot Nick Hornby, Zoe Heller is a skilled social satirist, adept at dissecting her characters' complicated emotions and motivations as they confront the limitations of their ideologically justified lives.

The Believers is a profoundly satisfying novel of ideas, manners and morals and richly drawn characters searching for something to believe in.

NOBODY MOVE by Denis Johnson.
Farrar, Straus, Giroux, $23.00.

Like Cormac McCarthy, Denis Johnson has become adept and depicting what it means to be a decision maker in our violence obsessed world. While Cormac excels at showing that we (Americans) have always been mired in destruction Johnson has shown a more subtle approach to the effects of violence on our psyche and our culture.

Do not be fooled: this is a violent book - an homage to the crimes novels of the 50s and 60s. This novel does not approach the over the top brutality of Cormac McCarthy but it demonstrates that once you (in this case the main character: a gambling addicted, barbershop choir singer named Jimmy Luntz) accept violence as an alternative there is no going back.

Even those that escape are not free.

If you read and like this novella continue on and read Tree of Smoke for a far more in-depth look at violence and the chilly fingers that ripple through a system. Stefan loved.

MY JUDY GARLAND LIFE by Susie Boyt.
Bloomsbury, Memoir, $25.00.

Boyt, the daughter of painter Lucian Freud, has written a brilliant blend of personal history, Garland biography, and reports of her encouters with Liza Minelli, Lorna Luft, and Michey Rooney, as well as other Judy fans. At its core, this is a book about the almost inexplicable way a star can comfrot, change, and inspire us. Boyd's voice is funny, wise, rueful, and self-deprecating.

Robert recommends.

ANGELS OF DESTRUCTION by Keith Donohue.
Shaye Areheart Books, fiction, $24.00.

Much as he did in his first novel, Donahue writes in the realm where fantasy meets literary fiction - in this case the hypnotic story of a strange girl who shows up on the doorstep of a lonely widow, a woman still grieving over her runaway daughter. He gives us angels who are wondrous yet terribly human, and humans in all their fragility and resilience.

Robert loved this beautifully written novel: it ranges from the troubled Nixon era to present-day America and allows for mysteries of love, hurt, and forgiveness both human and beyond.

LOST CITY OF Z by David Grann.
Random House, Memoir, $27.50.

Grann has written the rare book that succeeds both as a compelling first-person narrative and a fascinating historical tale about one of the last great exploreres: Percy Fawcett. from his obsession with a legendary lost city to his disappearance in the Amazon jungle, to the many failed attempts to find him.

Gripping. Informative. Surprising.

Robert most highly recommends.

I LOVED, I LOST, I MADE SPAGHETTI by Guilia Melucci.
Grand Central Publishing, Memoir, $23.99.

If Chelsea Handler were more domestic, if David Sedaris was less snarky (and made good pasta) you'd have something approaching this memoir of failed romance and successful cooking. This might sound, well, cheesy, but Melucci uses her bouyant wit and slightly sarcastic voice to describe her dating life and culinary efforts with an absence of self-pity and a tablespoon of charm.

Good for fans of Sloane Crosley. Robert recommends.