READING L.A.

Lynda Stenge, music manager:

“Next of Kin,” by Roger Fouts (William Morrow).

“I was really excited to learn about the relationships between chimpanzees and humans. The book is an amazing learning experience, and it’s one of my top five favorite books.”

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Woods Davy, sculptor:

“The Day After Tomorrow,” by Allan Folsom (Little, Brown).

“This story is typical of Folsom’s knack for international suspense with a unique storyline. It offers a great escape after an intense day working with wood, stone and metal. The book is entertaining and provocative, and isn’t that what reading should be?”

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Kafi MacLeod, attorney:

“The Color of Water,” by James McBride (Riverhead Books).

“This is the unusual story of a black man and his Jewish mother, who raised 12 children alone in Harlem. As a child, he’d ask her, ‘Why are you white?’ and she’d say ‘I’m not white; I’m just light.’ I’m anxious to see how the relationship is tested.”

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Ellen Crawford, actress:

“Sonnets To Orpheus,” by Rainer Maria Rilke (W.W. Norton).

“Conceived in response to the death of a young girl, these poems are mysteriously beautiful. They contain a message of hope, as grief and death become joy and rebirth. Each sonnet spurs us on to embrace nature’s transformations.”