The Drunken Botantist: The Plants That Create the World's Great Drinks by Amy Stewart

This volume contains encyclopedic references to many of the plants that make and flavor our alcoholic beverages. The first section is about the plants that are fermented into alcohols, the second section is about the plants that flavor our drinks, and the third section is about how to grow some of these plants at home. I found this book fascinating--especially the first section. There were lots of explanations about the hows and whys of drinking.

The Garden of Evening Mists by Tan Twan Eng

This book is a beautiful meditation on art, memory, and forgiveness after great inhumanity. Judge Teoh, the narrator, returns to Yugiri, the Garden of Evening Mists, where she served an apprenticeship many years ago. As she sets down the paths her life has traveled, and attempts to bring the garden--the only Japanese garden in Malaysia--back to order, some of the mysteries of the past are unraveled and she is forced to reassess the choices she's made. I really enjoyed reading this book--it's beautiful and mysterious, and it really makes me appreciate how little of the history of Southeast Asia I know.