Wow, some of you guys have very similar taste in books to me. I have to say, though, that I hated The Pact by Jodi Picoult so much that I refuse to read any of her other books. Aside from all of the ones mentioned by crazybeautiful and Harmonygirl and some by smokycat, i have to add:
The Hours by Michael Cunningham
A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry
Hotel New Hampshire by John Irving
pretty much everything Carol Shields ever wrote
Kit's Law by Donna Morrissey
Fall on your Knees by Anne Marie MacDonald
a great book called the Five Books of Moses Lapinsky by Karen X. Tulchinsky but you'll probably only like it if you're Jewish or from Toronto (i'm both)
and I highly recommend reading the collection of essays "The Bitch in the House" - it's a collection of personal essays by 26 women about mothering, sex, relationships, working, etc....fabulous.
But Crazybeautiful, I have to say that I didn't enjoy Kitchen Confidential nearly as much as a Cook's Tour.
<font size=\"4\"><font color=MAGENTA><font face=\"Times New Roman, Times, serif\">It can, and does, get better with time.</font></font></font>