• Petite Anglaise. Catherine Sanderson. Spiegel & Grau. 292 pages. $24.95.
Turning young bloggers into rookie book authors has become a publishing trend. Sanderson's appealing memoir covers the young Englishwoman's decision to start a blog (''Petite Anglaise'') about her life in Paris with her French husband (''Mr. Frog'') and their infant daughter (``Tadpole'').
But all is not puff pastry in this Parisian household: Sanderson's marriage is crumbling, and her blog soon attracts an avid Englishman named James who offers unexpected, even frightening romance.
• Shopping for Porcupine.Seth Kantner. Milkweed. 238 pages. $28.
Kantner, a native of Alaska, burst on the literary scene in 2004 with his award-winning Ordinary Wolves, an incandescent coming-of-age novel about a native youth. Shopping for Porcupine is an irresistible collection of his photos and essays. It is not a newcomer's romanticized view of the Last Frontier; this is the native son's gritty look at life, hardships and the bounty of family life.
• Distracted. Maggie Jackson. Prometheus. 266 pages. $25.95.
A prize-winning columnist for The Boston Globe provides a timely and often horrifying look at our technology-addled lives today. Jackson argues that many techno-crazed Americans are suffering a sort of attention-deficient disorder. This is leading to disastrous effects, she writes, such as humans who cannot connect with others, including loved ones, as well as a diminished capacity for contemplative thought or relaxation.
• Vets Under Siege. Martin J.Schram. Thomas Dunne. 289 pages. $25.95.
Schram, a veteran Washington correspondent, provides a searing look at the injustices and outrages foisted upon U.S. veterans over the past seven decades. This powerful indictment of government practices -- from recruiting service members to treating veterans with war wounds -- also offers cogent recommendations for change.
• Descent into Chaos. AhmedRashid. Viking. 404 pages. $27.95.
A respected Pakistani journalist -- author of the bestseller Taliban -- turns his experienced eye on U.S. policies in Central Asia and provides a frightening look at the current crisis in Afghanistan and Pakistan, right up to the assassination of Benazir Bhutto.
John Marshall reviewed these books for The Seattle Post-Intelligencer.
