Every month the books pour into this office and, given the volume, I always consider myself fortunate to find a few that make me want to keep reading to the very last page. Here are my picks for June.

If you really want to know what really happened as the office of the Independent Counsel found itself investigating a tawdry sex relationship of President Clinton and a White House intern, ultimately revealing he had committed perjury under oath and tried to influence the outcome of the Paula Jones suit through deception, then you must read Truth At Any Cost: Ken Starr and the Unmaking of Bill Clinton by Susan Schmidt and Michael Weisskopf ($26.00, HarperCollins Publishers). The effort to demonize Starr was a successful tactic, but history will judge the investigation and the truths that led to Clinton’s impeachment. A book like this provides a much-needed telling of the actual events and facts. Finally, it must be said, this was a fascinating story, as much because it is about real people, though it well could have been a great novel, too!

It’s hard to know what’s true and what is not when it comes to all the so-called science as reported in the nation’s press. Well, Voodoo Science ($25, Oxford University Press) is a breezy, fun to read book by Robert L. Park, the former chairman of the Department of physics at the University of Maryland. It is a wake up call to the American public and the media to use some common sense when they read or write about something that, like every successful con game, is just too good to be true. The author happily debunks many of today’s most foolish and fraudulent scientific claims like magnetic therapy, cold fusion, the movement to build colonies in space. The serious side of what is at stake is often the millions of taxpayers’ money spent on NASA projects that defy the laws of gravity and thermodynamics. You don’t have to be a scientist to enjoy this book and I promise you, you will enjoy it.

While moderating a writer’s panel for the eastern regional conference of the Society of Professional Journalists, I met Dan Holly, a journalist who has written an wonderful novel, Sometimes You Get the Bear ($14, August Press, Newport News, Virginia). Dan is an editor at the News & Observer in Raleigh, NC and has worked at newspapers in Newark, Miami and Detroit. He brings a journalist’s sharp eye for detail and a novelist’s sure sense of storytelling to his story. Everything that can go wrong in the life of Steve Holland, a college dropout and drug addict, gets even worse when he accidentally kills a Columbia University student during a fight. Worse, his solid citizen brother, Chris, gets caught up in the mess. It would be unfair to reveal too much of a very rich story that deserves not only a lot of readers, but one that would make a great movie as well. Are you listening, Hollywood? By the way, the title comes from some ancient wisdom, "Sometimes you get the bear and, sometimes, the bear gets you!"

Three cheers for Rhino Records who have issued a three-CD boxed edition, The Remains of Tom Lehrer ($49.98). Growing up in the 1950’s and 60’s, I regard my original recording of Lehrers’ extraordinary satiric songs to be a treasure. Now an entire new generation can discover him. In a little book that comes with the collection, Dr. Demento writes, "Tom Lehrer is the most brilliant song satirist ever recorded." That says it all. The joy of this boxed set is that, if you are feeling low or just in a mood to celebrate, you can play it and laugh yourself silly over and over again. You will hear his classics, "Poisoning the Pigeons in the Park", "The Masochism Tango", and "The Old Dope Peddler."

The Collectors Press of Portland, Oregon publishes some of the best books in America today. For anyone who has ever read comic books or collected them, Comic Book Culture ($49.95) by the acknowledged expert, Ron Goulart, is an eyeful of joy and knowledgeable text. The author takes the reader on a full-color journey through the Golden Age of comic books from the 1930’s through the late 1940’s. The book’s 208 pages are filled with the covers and artwork that distinguished the work of those who produced Tarzan, Superman, Wonder Woman and Sheena, among others. This book, like the others this company publishes, is an instant collector’s item.

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Some of my favorite reading is biographies and autobiographies. Quite a few have arrived of late, so let’s look at them.

Now available in softcover is Ian Kershaw’s excellent biography of Hitler: 1889-1939 Hubris ($21.95, W.W. Norton). There are, of course, quite a few books about this evil man whose "thousand year Reich" lasted twelve years, but left its mark on Europe, the United States and the world. Kershaw helps us understand how and why such a man came to power in a most thoroughly researched book, often making use of primary sources that have been unavailable to other scholars. Beyond that, he brings a felicitous grace to his writing that recommends this book.

The Quest for the Historical Muhammad, edited and translated by Ibn Warraq ($34.95, Prometheus Books) is interesting in part because Muslim societies have long resisted an objective historical look at the life of the prophet. Christianity has long since undergone such a process. So this book is important because it brings together the best studies of Muhammad and early Islam ranging from the very beginnings of Islamic studies in the l9th century to contemporary research. If you are interested in Islam, you will want to add this book to your personal library.

The world of entertainment seems to be generating an endless stream of books these days. One publisher, Renaissance Books, headquartered in Los Angeles, is producing quite a few. Among its latest titles are Roger Corman, an unauthorized biography by Beverly Gray ($23.95) of the man acknowledged to be the king of the independent filmmakers. Gray was Corman’s story editor for many years and thus is uniquely qualified to take us behind the scenes. A legend in his own right, Corman had a talent for spotting directing talent, giving men like Francis Ford Coppola, Martin Scorsese, and James Cameron their shot at directing and then young actors, Jack Nicholson, Peter Fonda, and Sylvester Stallone, their breaks too. If you’re a film buff, you’ll want to read this book. John Sayles is another unauthorized biography, this time by Gerry Molyneaux ((23.95). A film director famed for his passion to do films his way, the reader is treated to extensive interviews with Sayles’s family, friends, and fellow artists. His has been a life well worth reading about for anyone with similar dreams or for anyone who has enjoyed his films. Lastly, there’s the love affair that rocked the world of country music. When Vince Gill met Amy Grant during a Christmas concert in 1993, he never dreamed he’d be reading about it in Mark Bego’s authorized biography, Vince Gill ($22.95), but now you can read about it and their marriage that broke the marriages both had when they first met. You will, of course, read much more about this giant of country music and thoroughly enjoy it.

Fans of Donny Osmond will enjoy Life is Just What You Make It: My Life So Far ($6.99, Hyperion paperback) written with Patricia Romanowski. It’s an honest story of a life lived on the public stage and we learn what we always learn, it’s not all bright lights and glamour. Wake Up, I’m Fat! is by Camryn Manheim, the wonderful actress who held up her Emmy in 1998 and proclaimed "This is for all the fat girls!" Ms. Manheim came to fame for her role on "The Practice" but it took her decades to let go of her self-loathing and make peace with the fact that she was a fat girl, albeit a very talented one. Others who have struggled with her "problem" will find this book inspirational.

Coming next month on July 4^th, the anniversary of his death in 1997 is the official publication of Remembering Charles Kuralt by Ralph Grizzle ($25, Kenilworth Media, 28 Kenilworth Rd., Asheville, NC 28803, order it from 800-456-1505). Based on nearly a hundred interviews with Kuralt, his family, friends, and colleagues, it is the story of a North Carolina farm boy who became one of America’s most admired television journalists. Kuralt had an abiding interest in people and his series, "On the Road", reflected that. Grizzle, for all his intense research, says he never met anyone who didn’t like Kuralt and we don’t find that surprising. This is a totally pleasurable reading experience.

Lennon in America 1971-1980 by Geoffrey Guiliano ($39.95, Cooper Square Press, an imprint of Rowman & Littlefield Publishers) is based in part on some formerly lost John Lennon diaries of those last years. If you are seriously interested in his life, then you will find the book of interest but, it must be said, it is filled with very intimate and unflattering information that will leave even the most devoted fan revolted. In real life, Lennon was nothing like his public image. Still, if the truth counts, you will find it here. Sometimes, rather wistfully, I often wish I didn’t know all that much about people like Lennon, preferring to just remember the music.

There’s a publisher, Beckett Publications (15850 Dallas Parkway, Dallas, TX 75248), who specializes in sports heroes and it must be said, the books are quite handsomely illustrated. I, who have virtually no interest in sports, found A Yankee for the New Millennium: Derek Jeter ($24.95) very interesting. These books will work well for the younger reader because they are light on text and heavy on beautiful, full color photos, but anything that gets anyone reading is okay with me! Among the titles available are ones about Dan Marino, Brett Favre, and John Elway. Someone at Beckett is an auto-racing enthusiast because, among its new titles are Racing Families: A Tribute to Racing’s Fastest Dynasties, and brief biographies about Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Jeff Gordon. Great gifts.

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One of the best publishers of reference books is Facts On File, Inc., an imprint of Checkmark Books in New York. I was fortunate to receive three of their most recent titles and want to recommend them to you. There’s The Dictionary of Wars ($50) newly revised and updated by George Childs Kohn. This volume contains detailed summaries of all notable wars from earliest recorded history to the present day, spanning 4,000 years, featuring more than 1,800 entries. Among the new material is the Persian Gulf War, the civil war in Bosnia and Yugoslavia, the hostilities in Africa and elsewhere. Since war has defined history, this is a treasure of information. The media is filled with misinformation about the weather and, in particular, catastrophic events that are now characterized as the result of global warming, despite the fact the earth has not warmed in the past half century. To get the real facts, read The Encyclopedia of Hurricanes, Typhoons, and Cyclones ($l9.95) by David Longshore and learn why they are simply a part of Nature and nothing else. Finally, if you love radio from its golden age to modern times, you will thoroughly enjoy Ron Lackmann’s The Encyclopedia of American Radio: An A-Z Guide from Jack Benny to Howard Stern, now updated with more than a thousand entries ($l8.95). If you’re of a certain age, it will bring back memories of gentler times, as well as provide tons of data about current shows and personalities.

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If, like me, you’re over 50, let me recommend the 12^th updated edition of John Rattner Heilman’s book, Unbelievably Good Deals and Great Adventures That You Absolutely Can’t Get Unless You’re Over 50 ($12.95, Contemporary Books) that is especially useful to anyone who loves to travel. My friend Joan provides the latest information on all sorts of travel opportunities and others that can make the second fifty years even better than the first!

One of my favorite publishers of travel books is Blue Panda Publications (3031 Fifth Street, Boulder, CO 80304). It has an Internet site at travelbooks123.com. I admit a bias because Evelyn Kaye, a longtime friend, so naturally I was delighted to receive her latest book, Adventures in Japan ($21.95) that is a lively, entertaining story of the author’s experiences following the steps of a Victorian traveler, Isabella Bird, who visited northern Japan in 1878. When Bird visited the nation, it had been cut off from the outside world for 200 years. Evelyn discovered the memory of this intrepid woman was alive and well in Japan today. Three memorials have been erected to commemorate her journey. If you’re thinking of visiting Japan you should read Evelyn’s book. Or read it just for its lively story.

Other Blue Panda titles by Evelyn Kaye worth checking out are Free Vacations & Bargain Adventures in the USA ($19.95), Travel and Learn ($19.95), Active Woman Vacation Guide ($17.95) and Family Travel ($19.95). Each is a gold mine of information, tried and tested tips that can make the traveling experience everything you want it to be.

Another woman writer makes an impressive debut this month with Mattenza: Love and Death in the Sea of Sicily ($25, Perseus Publishing) by Theresa Maggio. In 1986, she witnessed her first tonnara, an elaborate ritual of trapping bluefin tuna in the Mediterranean Sea that dates back to the Stone Age. The mattanza is the climax of the fishing season when the huge animals are wrestled from the sea and killed. Since then, Ms. Maggio, the great grand-daughter of Sicilian immigrants who grew up in New Jersey, has made many trips back to the city of Faviganana to learn about the lives of the fishermen. The result is a stunning reading experience. Another part of Italy is captured by Frances Mayes, Bella Tuscany ($15, Broadway Books) now available in softcover. What she discovered is la dolce vita that has seduced so many visitors who fell in love with Tuscany and she produced a wonderful book as the result, one that stayed on the bestseller lists for weeks when it was first published. This is another "keeper" if you love to travel from your armchair.

Another excellent publisher of travel books is John Muir Publications. They have many fine titles among which are two new ones, Yoga Vacations: A Guide to International Yoga Retreats by Annalisa Cunningham ($16.95) that, as the title says, provides lots of information for those who love yoga or want to take it up as an antidote to life’s stress. For those contemplating moving to Mexico, there’s Live Well in Mexico: How to Relocate, Retire, and Increase your Standard of Living by Ken Luboff ($15.95). It is filled with information about renting or buying real estate, prime living locations, residency requirements and all the other things such a move involves.

If you’re more inclined to Europe, check out Dream Sleeps: Castle & Palace Hotels of Europe by Pamela L. Barrus ($17.95, Carousel Press, Box 6038, Berkeley, CA 94706) that will tempt you from your home to visit places like England’s Hampton Court Palace and dozens of other places in Scotland and Wales, as well as Austria, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Spain, Portugal. The author provides the intriguing history of each place, plus the facilities and services you can expect. She even includes email and website addresses. You can even order the book directly from the author by calling 800-990-9FUN.

Ever dream of buying a motorhome and traveling the USA? Published in 1997, the best book on this subject is At Your Own Pace: Traveling Your Way in Your Motorhome by Bernice Beard ($16.95, plus $3.50 shipping, Arbor House Publishing, 332 One Forty Village Rd., Suite 7-197, Westminster, MD 21157 or call 800-966-4146). This book combines the important "how to" information you will need and tells of a five-week trip the author took from Maryland to Arizona. You will learn how to shop for a motorhome, driving one, adjusting to living in close quarters, and how to keep in touch with family and friends, among many other things you will need to know.

New Jersey isn’t New England and that’s just fine with those of us who live here! That’s why I enjoyed New Jersey: Off the Beaten Path ($12.95, Globe Pequot Press) by William G. and Kay Scheller. This excellent guide dispels the popular notion of New Jersey as just a strip of lane with a turnpike between New York and Delaware. In fact, the State has lots of interesting places to visit, having been part of the history of the US Revolution, the place where Bruce Springstein got his start, and, of course, home to Atlantic City’s gambling palaces. There are forests, lakes, miles of great shoreline, and lots to do.

If you would like to receive an almost free copy of Bureau of Reclamation Lakes Guide then you should send $3.00 to Roundabout Publications, Free Lakes Guide, PO Box 19235, Lenexa, KS 66285 with your name and address. Now, I know that doesn’t sound as romantic as the other books noted above, but the guide lists 250 lakes and reservoirs in the Western United States where you can enjoy a great getaway vacation for camping, fishing, boating, sailing or hiking. Hey, you can’t beat the price!

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Let’s start, however, with American Appetite: The Coming of Age of a National Cuisine by Leslie Brenner ($14, Perennial, imprint of HarperCollins). I know the first reaction to a title like that is to think it’s some kind of terribly intellectual approach to a thorough enjoying pastime, but the author serves up the history of American cuisine in a thoroughly researched, but delightfully written story, interspersed with interviews with America’s leading culinary innovators. Americans came late to the table when it comes to an appreciation of various cuisines, being most a meat and potatoes crowd. World Wars 1 and 2 changed that as soldiers returned with a taste for European and other national foods. Immigration contributed too as native foods were introduced. Whoever thought the lowly bagel would become an American passion? If you like food and reading about it, you will enjoy this book.

For some strange reason, I have a couple of cookbooks about Mexican cuisine. Go figure?

Rick Bayless who doesn’t even look Mexican is, nonetheless, an expert on our neighbor nation’s cuisine and, in case you haven’t noticed, a lot of Americans of every description have taken to it big time. So, I am happy to report that Rick Bayless’s Mexican Kitchen ($35, Scribner) is now available, having already earned the Julia Child Cookbook Award as the Book of the Year. It is quite simply a definitive book, filled with beautiful full color photos and with more than 150 recipes. You’ll be cooking like you’re from Yucatan in no time! A Companion book by the same author is Salsas That Cook $18, Fireside imprint of Simon & Schuster. Salsas are sauces and this book introduces you to their use to enhance anything you prepare.

From Resort Gifts Unlimited, Inc (1156 W. Southern Ave., Suite 106, Tempe, AZ 85282) comes two unique softcover books, Tacos y Mas ($12.95) and Arizona Eats! ($6.95) with self-explanatory titles both by Carol Haralson. Both feature the cuisine introduced there by those who ventured across the border to settle. Check them out at resortgifts.com.

I was raised eating Italian cuisine thanks to my father’s ancestry, so naturally Risotto by Jenny Stacey and Kathryn Hawkins ($l9.95, Firefly Books Ltd) caught my eye and I say that literally because, in addition to more than 120 healthy and delicious rice-based recipes, there are many mouth-watering full color photos to tempt you to try each one of them. Most can be prepared in forty minutes or less. Generally, we don’t think first of Scandinavia when food comes up in conversation, but The Great Scandinavian Baking Book ($l8.95, University of Minnesota Press) by Beatrice Ojakangas will change your mind when you tried out the recipes she’s gathered from Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Iceland. Your mouth will water as you read this definitive book that even novice bakers will enjoy as they create pastries, breads and cookies, along with other treats.

The Greenmarket Cookbook ($29.95, Viking) by Joel Patraker and Joan Schwartz with photos by Marry Kim responds to the hunger for fresh, seasonal, locally grown foods found greenmarkets, farmer’s markets and roadside stands, as well as upscale supermarkets these days. Drawing on nearly twenty years experience with Manhattan’s world famous Union Square market, Patraker offers many unique recipes, tips and anecdotes from farmers, shoppers, chefs, and celebrities who have made his markets a success, along with l50 gorgeous photos. Arranged by season, there’s a world of delicious eating to be found in this excellent book.

Mommy Made (and Daddy too): Home Cooking for a Healthy Baby & Toddler by Martha and David Kimmel ($16.95, Bantam) is a big softcover using the latest guidelines from the American Academy of Pediatrics, along with a blueprint for introducing your baby to solid food. A great gift for new parents. If you want to have fun with your kids, pick up Hey Kids! You’re Cooking Now! By Dianne Pratt ($19.95, Harvest Hill Press, PO Box 55, Salisbury Cove, Maine 04672). It was named the 1999 Parent’s Choice honor winner along with eight other national awards. This is a great way to teach children basic life skills and prepare them for their lives with a book they will love to read. Wonderfully illustrated, this book is truly a winner.

Everybody seeks to find a personal road to self-discovery and happiness. Some find it in spiritual pursuits. Others seek answers through stress-reduction alternatives.

Organized religion is changing itself and Spiritual Manifestos by Niles Elliot Goldstein offers "visions for renewed religious life in America from young spiritual leaders of many faiths." ($21.95, Skylightpaths Publishing, PO Box 237, Sunset Farms Offices, Route 4, Woodstock, VT 05091) This is a book for and about the generation of spiritual leaders who have grown up and been educated in a world of racial, gender and religious diversity. The book looks at ten of them representing different religious faiths in a time when more and more people are eager for a more spiritually-based life.

One religion that is not generally associated with meditation, but is among the most meditative of faiths and Discovering Jewish Meditation is by Nan Fink Gefen ($16.95, Jewish Lights Publishing) who says you don’t have to leave the faith to explore Eastern spiritual traditions. The practice of Jewish meditation is a growing trend and Ms. Gefen is a teacher who provides step-by-step directions, along with the tools you will need to learn this ancient practice on your own. Though written for those of the Jewish faith, this book is a great way for anyone to find their way back to a relationship with the Creator.

12 Simple Secrets of Happiness: Finding Joy in Everyday Relationships by Glenn Van Ekeren ($11, Prentice Hall Press) will prove a big help to people who have difficulty in this important aspect of their lives. The book is filled with easy to apply advice. A nice companion volume is Heart Warmers: Award-winning Stories of Love, Courage, and Inspiration by Azriela Jaffe ($9.95, Adams Media). Here you will read of a Holocaust survivor, a US Army nurse, and others whose lives will, indeed, inspire you.

Oddly, I have received two books about how a regime of running can transform one’s life, physically, emotionally, and spiritually, and, certainly, lots of people have taken up this exercise as the plethora of marathons and other events attests. Angeles Crest: A Memoir by Michael Modzelewski ($24, Adventures Unlimited, Seacrest Villas, 1810 New Palm Way, Suite 4l0, Boyton Beach, FL 33435) a host and writer of Discovery Channel adventures tells how taking on the challenge of the Angeles Crest 100 mile endurance run changed his life. The author has lived a life of adventure in different parts of the world, but the book is ultimately about an inner journey. Magical Running is a motivational book by Bobby McGee ($17.95, Magical Life, PO Box 17866-011, Boulder, CO 80308-0866 or 877-9-MAGICAL), an Olympic coach explores not just the technical aspects of running, but the way mental preparation is involved.

Let’s make room for the doubters, too. From Prometheus Books come two books. Are Souls Real? ($28) by Dr. Jerome W. Elbert, Ph.D. takes on this ancient question with a deep study of the concept of the soul, its role in Christian beliefs, and how science has affected our understanding of the brain and consciousness. He concludes that we can account for the nature of life and other big questions without attributing them to having a soul. I disagree, but for those who find this of interest, he has penned a provocative book. Robert M. Price, a professor of biblical criticism at the Center for Inquiry Institute, has written Deconstructing Jesus that takes issue with concepts of the "historical" Jesus that produces a religious figurehead, saying that the Jesus of the Gospels a literary invention of those who believed in a messiah cult. If you doubt the existence of an actual Jesus, Price provides a wealth of information to support that view.

By contrast, there’s Sally E. Stuart’s Christian Writers’ Market Guide 2000 ($21.99, Creative Media Resources, PO Box 1665, Sandpoint, ID 83864) with more than 1,1000 markets for the written word that includes publishers, contests, writer’s conferences and groups, plus information about editorial services, literary agents, and much more. For all you writers on Christian topics, this is the reference you just have to buy.

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Most of the books noted above can be purchased by clicking on Amazon.Com. If you have seen a title that instantly appeals to you, don’t hesitate. Go read it!