Summer Reading in Review..

.. but fun books anytime, obviously.

I am just completing the last of Stieg Larrson's trilogy. Too bad Larrson did not live to see his enormous success... not only from his books but from the movies pending. Amazon is offering all three books for $41.47 and I believe this falls into the bargain category. They are: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (and there is a movie available on Netfix with subtitles), The Girl Who Played with Fire, and the Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's nest.  The books are referred to as the "Millenium Series" and reflect Larrson's struggle as a journalist against racism and right-wing extremism.  In 1995 when eight people were killed in Sweden by Neo-Nazis, he was the impetus behind the effort through the Expo-foundation to expose Neo-Nazi activity in Sweden.  The books are a bit dense with details, complex mysteries surrounding the travails of the girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Lisbeth Salander.

Zeitoun, by Dave Eggers, is the winner of the LA Times Book Award for Current Interest.  This is an insiders look at the pre-and post Katrina world of New Orleans through the eyes of main character Abdul Zeitoun, a Syrian-American home builder in New Orleans, married, father of four. Following the flood, through which he remained rather than evacuate, he traversed the city in an old canoe rescuing and feeding people and animals. During the brouhaha that ensued following the flood and the chaos of mingled authorities, Zeitoun himself was victimized but I'm not gonna tell you how.



The Blue Sweater is the pick of several colleges and universities this year for freshman reading. The sub title is "Bridging the Gap Between Rich ad Poor in an Interconnected World". Jacqueline Novogratz left a lucrative career in corporate banking to work with women's groups in microfinance, working to merge market systems with development and social empowerment.  Interesting if you want to know more about microfinance.

Picking Cotton: Our Memoir of Injustice and Redemption, by Jennifer Thompson and Ronald Cotton, is unusual in many ways.  First, it is co-authored by the woman who was raped at knifepoint by a man who broke into her apartment while she was sleeping.  Ronald Cotton is the man who was convicted of the rape and served years in prison before he was exonerated through a DNA test.  This is a story of how the "system" can fail, how forgiveness can heal, and how justice can -sometimes- prevail. Jennifer and Ronald are both North Carolinians.

Also worth a BIG kudos is Cutting for Stone, by Abraham Verghese.  I read this last year, but it remains one of my all-time favorites.  Some reviewers say the book tries to be too many things, but I found it fascinating.  So, we are off to the beach where I hope to finish Hornet's Nest and tromp around through some great antique/consignment shops while the guys golf..

Happy Reading!