Any good book recommendations for a "waiting room?"

[Sparkly]

I teach piano lessons at home, and my den is a sort of "waiting room" for siblings and often parents, as well. At first it seemed weird and surprising that they were rearranging my pillows and looking through my books and magazines, but actually that's kind of what people do in waiting rooms!

I discovered it one afternoon when one of the moms was in there cracking up at "My First Presidentiary." That helped us discover we were kindred spirits. (Now we discuss politics after every lesson, she sends me emails, we've had dinner together, etc.) But since the kids look through the materials also, I've learned to keep non-kid-appropriate stuff off the coffee tables! (I removed some spoofs of Martha Stewart Living, for example, which had some rather "adult" humor like an arrangement of cocktail weiners and Swedish meatballs for a party celebrating circumcision; and Jon Stewart's "America" is a "no," considering the photos of the naked USSC.)

I now keep children's books there, and boring things like my college alumni magazines. What would you recommend "leaving around" for the parents? They are mostly Republican (as I was shocked to discover when I tried recruiting them for a Clark fundraiser last year). I want to stay in business, but I'd like to enlighten them, too.

Ideas?

[Warren DeMontague]

1. Art is good...

Thought provoking yet superficially politically neutral? Load up on the science books. Merely getting most republicans to think about Science is a political act, these days.

[spooky3]

2. If you like gentle satire, any book by Andy Borowitz is inexpensive and

worth every cent for their humor value, IMHO. See his archives at www.borowitzreport.com for examples. Some books are more political than others. I can't speak for the age-appropriateness.

Business Week is surprisingly balanced (meaning it's not extremely RW) and informative, and has lots of good articles if you are interested in business, but it's expensive to subscribe.

[Historic NY]

3. A few of my friends have......

National Geographic, Smithsonian & believe it or not Mad magazine on they waiting room tables. Another good one is New Yorker. This way they can get some science education, good writing of NY'er and the satire of Mad.

[Journeyman]

4. Comics. . . Boondocks, Doonesbury, maybe. . .

some collections of foreign or American editorial cartoons from the last couple years. And since people usually don't sit for long in a waiting room, some easily read compendiums or digests. . . the Utne Reader springs to mind.

[splat]

5. Net access on a terminal whose homepage is your online favorites

[offcenter]

6. Try No Exit by Sartre

A play about hell being a room where you sit & endure unlikable people for eternity. No sleep, you can't even close your eyes.
Hell is not overt torture, just everyday existence extended indefinitely.

Perfect for a waiting room. ;)

[Getchasome]

7. Demon Haunted World by Carl Sagan.

If they start reading it, maybe one of em will purchase it and read the entire book. It will open your eyes.

[Killarney]

8. Skeptic Magazine has a pullout for kids called

Junior Skeptic.

Good stuff. It debunks myths and legends (like Bigfoot, shit like that) but sets kids on the path of using science and logic to determine truth.