In its assessment of Henry Miller's "Tropic of Cancer," the Saturday Review observed, "who touches this book touches living tissue." These same words could be applied to displaced Cleveland native Scott Raab's remarkable The Whore of Akron: One Man's Search for the Soul of LeBron James
- a visceral and raucously funny rant that's more about Raab himself than it is about his target of disdain, LeBron James. And that's a good thing, because less is more than enough when it comes to the duplicitous hoopster.

Official debut of my new book, “Pass the Nuts,” will be Wednesday night, Nov. 9, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Herb’s Tavern in Rocky River. Everyone is welcome. Books are fifteen bucks, two for thirty.

Herb’s is a small, free-standing building at 19925 Detroit Road. It’s almost a mile into Rocky River from Lakewood. It’s on the south side of Detroit Rd. next to the bike shop, which is one block east of St. Christopher Church, to give you a landmark. Lots of parking around there, but not on the street.

Thanks to The Plain Dealer’s Mike McIntyre and Michael Heaton for generous plugs. No doubt I’ll buy them several beers. Hope that’s not a NCAA violation. I’d hate to see them banned from post-season play.

This is a busy week. Tuesday night I’ll be on the Les Levine TV Show and American Work Force Radio with Flash Ferenc. Wednesday morning at 11 a.m. I’ll be on the Rizz Show on WKNR (850 AM). Thursday night I’m speaking at the Stow Library. Friday morning I’ll be on the Lanigan & Malone Show WMJI (105.7) at 7:30 and Wills and Snyder (WTAM 1100) at 8:15.

I’ll sign books Friday from noon to 2 p.m. at the “Only Cleveland Store,” 230 West Huron Road downtown. Saturday’s book signing is 1 p.m. at Barnes and Noble, 28801 Chagrin Blvd., Woodmere.

Paul McCartney's very first cookbook, The Meat Free Monday Cookbook, is now available for purchase. The meat-free cookbook went on sale on Monday, with a goal of encouraging people to eat less meat.

Proceeds from the sales of the book all go towards his family's campaign, Meat Free Monday. Meat Free Monday dares people to have meat-free meals at least one day a week. By going vegetarian for just one day a week, the former Beatle believes that people can "make a huge difference for the better and set a new pattern for the future of this beautiful planet that we all inhabit."

The cookbook contains McCartney family vegetarian recipes as well as contributions from famous friends like Kevin Spacey and Twiggy.

In the book's forward, Paul suggests that going meat-free even just once a week will help curb pollution, improve health, and promote the ethical treatment of animals. He also believes that skipping meat for a day each week will also save consumers money. He explains:

Tonight's airing of "60 Minutes" featured a segment on the late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, which offers something for both fans and those who don't think very highly of the tech genius. But even if you don't have an opinion on Jobs, the show was definitely worth watching for the intrigue factor alone.

The "60 Minutes" broadcast included tapes of Jobs, who's known for his insanely secretive nature, talking about the most intimate details of his life and character as well as his inevitable death with Walter Isaacson, the author of Jobs' biography "Steve Jobs", which will go on sale this week.

Steve Jobs passed away at the age of 56 after a long battle with pancreatic cancer on October 5. The book wasn't slated to be released until November, but in light of his death and the immediate interest surrounding his life, the publication date was pushed up.

It's not been three weeks since Jobs has died, and watching him talk about his death definitely gives you a bit of a creepy feeling. But the show itself is not all doom and depression, and is rather a character study of a man who had a profound effect in shaping life as we now know it through his involvement in technology.

My new book “Pass the Nuts: More Stories About the Most Unusual People and Remarkable Events from My Four Decades As a Sports Journalist
” is coming out in early November. Here’s a preview of the book– taken from Chapter 1.

Mike Cleary was the first person ever fired by George Steinbrenner and it was the best thing that ever happened to him. It was good for two reasons. First, he never had to work for Steinbrenner again. Second, everything else that ever happened to him was an upgrade.

Cleary was the general manager of the Cleveland Pipers, Steinbrenner’s pro basketball team in the American Basketball League, a short-lived renegade league a notch below the NBA.

Steve Jobs is getting a biography published after his sudden death, and so is the late singer Amy Winehouse. The "Rehab" singer's father, Mitch, will pen a memoir about his daughter after signing a book deal that will benefit the charity that has been set up in her name.

Winehouse, who fought a very public battle with drugs and alcohol died in July. Mitch says that writing the true story of his daughter in the book "My Daughter" will help him come to terms with her death.

The book will be released next summer by HarperCollins. All proceeds will benefit the Amy Winehouse Foundation that has been set up to help children and young adults facing difficulties. The book is said to be a "heartfelt and revelatory memoir" that will bring "the many layers of her life together- the personal, the private and the public."

Speaking of the book, Mitch said:

"I feel that I need to write this book to tell the true story of Amy and to help with my personal recovery. I also want to raise as much money as possible for Amy's foundation, so all proceeds from the book will go directly to help children who are disadvantaged through illness and substance addiction. I believe that through Amy's music, her foundation, and this book, her name will live forever."

Apple co-founder, former CEO, and chairman passed away this week, and in just weeks his official biography will be released. "Steve Jobs", which was penned by Pulitzer Prize nominee Walter Isaacson, has seen is release date moved from November 21 to October 24. According to Isaacson, the notoriously private and secretive Jobs approved of the biography because he wanted his kids to understand why he wasn't always there for him.

Jobs was quoted as saying:

"I wanted my kids to know me. I wasn't always there for them, and I wanted them to know why and to understand what I did."

Isaacson last visited Jobs in his Palo Alto, Calif., home a few weeks ago and found him curled up in pain in a downstairs bedroom. Jobs moved there because he had become too weak to go up and down stairs, however Isaacson notes that "his mind was still sharp and his humor vibrant."

Borders Group Inc. has said that it will liquidate after the second largest bookstore chain in the U.S. failed to receive any offers that would save it. Borders scrapped a bankruptcy court auction that was scheduled for Tuesday, and said that it would ask a judge on Thursday to approve a sale to liquidators lead by Gordon Brothers Group and Hilco Merchant Resources. The liquidation of of Borders remaining 399 stores could begin as soon as Friday, and the store is expected to go out of business completely by the end of September.

In February, Borders filed for bankruptcy court protection. Since then, the bookstore has continued to bleed cash and has had difficulties in persuading publishers to ship merchandise to it on normal terms that would allow them to pay bills later, instead of immediately.

Borders employs about 10,700 people. The bookstore's best chances for survival fell through last week when negotiations with private equity investor Jahm Najafi to buy the company collapsed. Over the weekend, Borders scrambled to find other potential buyers, but was ultimately unsuccessful.

Borders President Mike Edwards said:

While at the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2 red carpet premiere, J.K. Rowling changed her tune about writing another Harry Potter book. Fans packed Trafalgar Square in London for the premiere, where for the first time the Harry Potter author said that she might one day pen another book in the best-selling series.

Rowling wore a whimsical green dress with pinned-on pink flowers, and stepped onto the red carpet with a huge smile on her face. She greeted fans before joining Daniel Radcliffe for an interview.

Radcliffe asked Rowling if her promise not to write anymore books still stands. She joked:

"Oh Dan, you say that now!" she joked. "You'll ring me in 10 years."

Rowling has long-insisted that the Deathly Hallows, the seventh book in the series, would be the absolute end of the series. However for the first time, she admits that one day, she might decide to write another book, saying:

"It's my baby and if I want to take it out and play, then maybe one day I will."

Rowling and Radcliffe shared an emotional hug as fans cheered on.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2 opens in theaters July 15 in 3D.

Days after filing for divorce from Arnold Schwarzenegger, Maria Shriver has been offered a huge sum of money to tell her side of the story. She has reportedly been offered $15 million as an advance for a tell-all memoir.

Maria and Arnold did not have a prenuptial agreement in place when they got married, so there is a very good chance that she'll walk away from the marriage with potentially hundreds of millions of dollars.

Shriver has authored six best-selling books, including And One More Thing Before You Go and What's Happening to Grandpa?.