Thanks to recent movies and TV appearances, a few books have been getting a lot of attention recently. Check out this list of books that have people buzzing:

Food Rules: An Eater’s Manual by Michael Pollan

The documentary film Food, Inc. has been getting a lot a buzz recently thanks to its nomination for an Academy Award and thanks to a recent feature on Oprah. Author Michael Pollan appears in the film and talked to Oprah about his new book, Food Rules. In it, Pollan gives advice about eating through common sense principles like “Don’t eat anything your great-grandmother wouldn’t recognize as food” and “Don’t eat anything that won’t eventually rot.” I’m currently reading one of his previous books, In Defense of Food, and it’s been an eye opening experience (my review is coming soon). Food Rules is currently the #1 bestselling book on Amazon.

The Politician by Andrew Young

From entertainment shows to news programs—everybody’s talking about all the drama surrounding John and Elizabeth Edwards. As you probably know, Andrew Young was John Edward’s longtime assistant and even pretended to be the father of Rielle Hunter’s child to cover for Edwards. In The Politician, he spills lots of unflattering details about the Edwards and it isn’t pretty. The Los Angeles Times has a great review of the book and calls the Young/Edwards relationship a “bromance gone bad.” With Elizabeth finally kicking John to the curb and rumors of a John Edwards/Rielle Hunter sex tape swirling, it looks like this story isn’t going away anytime soon.

Dear John by Nicholas Sparks

The Dear John movie is currently in theaters and stars Channing Tatum and Amanda Seyfried (for more coverage go to Daemon’s Movies). It’s based on the bestselling book by Nicholas Sparks, who is known for writing romantic tearjerkers (I once made the mistake of watching a movie based one of his books on a plane and let me tell you that sobbing in public is embarrassing). But if you saw the movie over the weekend and enjoyed it, be sure to check the book out too.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

Walk into a bookstore this week and you will probably see a large display of Percy Jackson books. That’s because the highly anticipated movie opens on February 12, 2010. I recently attended a Q&A with the young cast members, which you can read here.

The Cure: How a Father Raised $100 Million–and Bucked the Medical Establishment–in a Quest to Save His Children by Geeta Anand

Have you seen Harrison Ford’s new movie, Extraordinary Measures? It’s based on the true story of John Crowley detailed by Geeta Anand in the book The Cure. Crowley, a biotech CEO, developed a treatment for Pompe disease when two of his children were diagnosed with the rare genetic disorder. Crowley has also written his own book called Chasing Miracles: The Crowley Family Journey of Faith, Hope, and Joy.

Thinking in Pictures: My Life with Autism by Temple Grandin, Ph.D.

HBO has a new movie premiering in February called Temple Grandin (check out the review over at Daemon’s TV). Claire Danes plays Temple Grandin, a highly functioning autistic woman who grew up in the 60s and 70s–a time before autism was really understood. Grandin’s autobiography, Thinking in Pictures, has been reissued as a tie-in to the movie. In the book, she gives an inside look on how an autistic person experiences the world. Her insights have proven invaluable to many parents of autistic children. Grandin currently designs humane livestock holding equipment and credits her autism for giving her a great deal of empathy for animals. I think both the book and the movie sound interesting and are worth checking out.