If life were a carnival, which book would be the bearded lady?

Ah, the work of Benjamin: alienated and alienating, but overwhelmingly wondrous in its ability to present a glimpse of the miraculous.

When you're feeling blue, which book will sing you gently to sleep?

The sweet, melancholy voice of Everything Yearned For: Manhae's Poems of Love and Longing brings peace and beauty to the most restless of nights.

Which book most consistently beats you at chess?

Neither Bobby Fischer's skill nor his staunch anti-Semitism stands a chance against the Zen art and compassion of The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien, a precisely crafted and mindful commentary on the Vietnam War. . . er, I mean, "police action."