My favoritest historical fiction ever is River God (http://www.amazon.com/River-God-Novel-Ancient-Egypt/dp/0312954468) by Wilbur Smith, which follows a Pharaoh's slave as he helps them get through a slice of ancient Egypt's history.

Also, i'd suggest my baked chicken which is the easiest thing to make ever (duh, if i can cook it anyone can) and is very versatile: slap any number of chicken legs or thighs or drumsticks in a shallow pan, season as you desire (i put salt, garlic powder, paprika, & basil) and bake at 350 (after preheating to 450 or so and immediately turning it down after putting the chicken in) for an hour. Done'd!

Also Also, don't let anyone make you feel guilty for not loving cooking and/or not being good at it. :| It's just not everyone's cup o' tea, dangit. And, of course, it's my own personal hobby horse 'cause i'm supposed to like cooking 'cause i'm a *girl* AND a mother so everyone's always trying to *fix* me and say "You'll like it better if you only get more practice and it gets easier blah blah blah" and i get highly resentful of this. And so on. So no getting guilty or i'll set your negvox on fire, so there. *shakes an enraged ferret fist*