Book List

Here are the books I’ve read over the last few months:

Letter to a Christian Nation, by Sam Harris – Sam Harris is an atheist opposed to all religions, so his “letter” is really to people of all religions. He makes many good points but doesn’t make room for the ecumenical movement, and blames all religions for the world’s social ills. As an atheist myself, I agree with his reasoning about the problems belief in god cause, but he doesn’t seem to understand that most Americans are not fundamentalist in their belief. This is a quick and easy read with lots to chew on.

The God Delusion, by Richard Dawkins – Dawkins is another atheist, and in this book he debunks the myths of all beliefs. It is a well-reasoned and insightful book. Recommended for those ready to “go there.”

Noah’s Compass, by Anne Tyler – This is a novel like many of Anne Tyler’s books; it creates characters who meander around not doing much with their lives and then finally arriving at a comfortable place.

The Lilac Bus (and Dublin 4), by Maeve Binchy – A book of short stories revolving around a group of Irish people who drive from Dublin each weekend to their home village in the west. I enjoyed the characters and their stories. An interesting read.

The Shadow of the Wind, by Carlos Ruiz Zafon – This is an odd book that I threatened to stop reading at regular intervals along the way. It takes place in Barcelona, Spain, spanning a time from the 1920’s through the 1950’s. I still haven’t made peace with the book and would only recommend it to those who enjoy a bit of mystery.

Suzanne’s Diary for Nicholas, by James Patterson -- I thought this book was pathetic. James Patterson is known for mysteries, which are not my favorite genre. This is not a mystery; maybe he should have stuck to the tried and true. It is a love story that is so sappy I could hardly stomach it and ended up skipping through most of the book just to see the unsurprising ending. Don’t bother unless you are a hopeless romantic.

The Partner, by John Grisham – I don’t know how I missed this Grisham novel when it came out in the 1990’s; I thought I had read them all. It’s another good lawyer tale with lots of detail and twists and turns. Recommended.

The True and Outstanding Adventures of the Hunt Sisters, By Elisabeth Robinson – This is a novel about two sisters propping each other up as one sister battles cancer. It has some interesting sidelights about the movie-making business, something I know nothing about. It’s an okay book.

The Dive from Clausen’s Pier, by Ann Packer – A novel about a young woman whose fiancé dives into shallow water and breaks his neck. She then must decide whether she is up to the task of taking care of him for the rest of his life. It’s an interesting character study.

The Lacuna, by Barbara Kingsolver – I’ve enjoyed all of Barbara Kingsolver’s fiction; not so much her books about growing crops and eating healthy. This book is about a man who got caught up with Communism in Mexico during the 1930’s and 40’s, who was then investigated for un-American activities during the 1950’s. It’s not her best book but is plenty interesting about the period and the conflict. She has interesting peripheral characters who were real people: Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera, the Russian Lev Trotsky. Recommended.

The Tao of Physics, by Fritjof Capra – This is a favorite book of a friend of mine, and she encouraged me to read it. The premise of the book is that there are parallels between modern physics and Eastern religious beliefs. Mostly I didn’t understand the physics parts and skipped over them, so I was left with a short course in Eastern religions. They were presented well but I’m not sure I would recommend this book. It is a difficult read for someone with no physics background.

And one that I didn’t read: The Lost Symbol, by Dan Brown – I was not a big fan of The Da Vinci Code but thought it was an okay read. I started this book, but not far into it I realized that it was going to be too intense for me. A man’s hand is chopped off early in the book, and a woman works in a lab with no lights getting to it. Why doesn’t she use a flashlight at least? Not my cup of tea, so I quit then and there.