The Adventures of Fat Rice

You can tell even from the thumbnail cover to the left how this item, from Chicago's acclaimed Macau-inspired restaurant Fat Rice, jumps out from the usual cookbook crowd. Hidden behind the comic-book facade is a traditional cookbook, but the style is not just for show: the goofball illustrations and photo-heavy design get across the beautiful, delicious cross-cultural chaos of the little-known Macanese cuisine, which blends the Portuguese, Chinese, Indian, Malay, and African influences of that crossroads island. (And the comics-style demonstrations are a perfect way to communicate cooking techniques.)