Testdrive Before You... Roadtrip?

I'm heading to the beach tomorrow for a quick weekend on the Jersey shore. I'll be spending two glorious days in a large empty house three blocks from the ocean, and I will conveniently assign myself the bedroom with water views and water breezes so I can wake up, not move, and launch into my books.

The trouble: which books to bring? I only have about 100 pages left in Michener's Chesapeake (review to follow; preview = fantastic), and find myself debating which books make it into the suitcase and which stay. The four contenders are:

Mr. Muo's Traveling Couch - Dai Sijie
Bonk - Mary Roach
The Law of Dreams - Peter Behrens
A People's History of the American Revolution - Ray Raphael

I've decided tonight to read the first chapter of each before committing myself to a weekend one-on-one with the new title of my choosing - much like dating, I would not want to find myself stuck on the Jersey shore with little to do but wallow away the hours with a book (or man) I do not enjoy, let alone relish.

Does anyone else test-drive before a vacation? If not, how do you decide which books ultimately make the cut - and do you ever regret your decisions?

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