Ever asked yourself "What was God thinking?" when contemplating, for example, the difficulty of boring your way into the heart of an artichoke, or the odd beauty of a strange animal species? "How to Create a Flawless Universe" (Andrews McMeel Publishing, hardback, $14.95) is a hilarious little book that purports to put you into the mind of the Creator — if, that is, the Almighty were a product designer. It is laid out like a designer's workbook, full of international symbols (for tools the builder might need or dangers you might face, such as nuclear holocaust), color swatches, diagrams, scribbled notes ("Planet won't dry; there are big puddles everywhere."). If you don't laugh out loud, you're not paying attention.

FITNESS FOR YOU

BUILDING 'PILLAR STRENGTH'

Mark Verstegen has trained soccer great Mia Hamm, pro golfer Billy Mayfair and NFL veteran Trace Armstrong. His focus is always on core strength (he calls it "pillar strength") rather than showy muscles. His goals are to increase mobility, posture, vitality and muscle mass. Now he has teamed up with sports writer Pete Williams to write "Core Performance" (Rodale Books, $18.95). The book features seven core elements identified by Verstegen: movement prep, prehab, physioball, elasticity, strength, energy system development and regeneration.

FINAL WORD

"You want 'My Baby's Got Back.' (But) does that mean my baby's going to check out of here when she's 60?"

Lucille Norville-Perez | national health director for the NAACP, commenting on a report showing blacks and Hispanics are likelier than other Virginia residents to be overweight.