Thanks to those who offered suggestions about what books to pick up. I didn't choose any of the suggested titles (sorry!) but I was able to find cheap used copies of some that I've been meaning to pick up for quite some time;
Elephants: A Short Account of Their Natural History, Evolution, and Influence on Mankind
Dynamics of Dinosaurs and Other Extinct Giants
Fundamentalism and American Culture
Hunter and Hunted: Relationships between Carnivores and People
The Evolutionary Synthesis: Perspectives on the Unification of Biology
Adam's Ancestors: Race, Religion, and the Politics of Human Origins
God--or Gorilla: Images of Evolution in the Jazz Age
Again, many thanks to everyone who has used this blog as a springboard to purchase books and other items from amazon.com. It's a little thing, but it is definitely helping my self-education. What I read ultimately fuels what I write, and as I devour the new arrivals I hope to incorporate what I learn into my work here and elsewhere. (I've got to get cracking on my own book before the summer is over!) Now the only question is "Where am I going to put them all?"
[And if you want to do me one more favor you can make my Overlords happy by filling out a reader survey about ScienceBlogs. It only takes a few minutes and you get the chance to win some cool stuff, so give it a look if you have a couple of moments to spare.]
A friend took a look around my residence once and noted that I would have little to fear from burglars:
"Really? I hope so. But why? Because once inside my house they'd think they were in a branch library and just leave?"
"No, because they'd trip over one of the stacks on the floor and break their neck!"
I really should do something about that, but why diminish my home security?
Whoever dies with the most books wins.