if India is on the brain, check out The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy. It’s her only book, but the essayist/activist portrays the cultural mishmash and contricts of life in Southern India in a touching (and disturbing) way. I’m a fan of Indian-American writers like Jhumpa Lahiri as well.

I’ve just finished “The Last Days of Dogtown” by Anita Diamant. Fabulous; highly recommended. About the demise of a (real) village (now ghost town) on Cape Ann, in the 1850s.

In the process of “Elizabeth I” by Anne Somerset; I’ve read pretty much every book I can find on her! Also reading “It’s All Too Much: An Easy Plan for Living a Richer Life with Less Stuff” by Peter Marsh (of TLC’s Clean Sweep fame). Unlike many “get organized” books, thank goodness.

Next is a book about the Lost Boys.

I bought the Wooden book used on Amazon. The title is “Wooden on Leadership”, by John Wooden and Steve Jamison. Published by McGraw-Hill in 2005. ISBN # 0-07-145339-3 (hardcover)

On a more serious note, the other book that I will read next, is The Audacity of Hope, by Barack Obama. My husband brought home this signed copy of his book, after he spoke here in Louisville.

For dog lovers, I would tell anyone to read Marley and Me, by John Grogan. It is a laugh out loud, and cry out loud book, but well worth it.

Another great quick read for women, is I Feel Bad About by Neck, by Nora Ephron.

Love Mullentown Holly!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revisionist_history

I suggest you spend some time familiarizing yourself with what is called revisionist history and not assume just from the word that you know what it means. Wikipedia is a good place to start.

We finished this book somewhere around Vegas on the way home and then listened to the Iraq Study Group Report. Fascinating but discouraging in the light of how Bush has almost totally ignored their 79 recommendations.

Also,our beloved VP has an open invitation from Botswana to come shoot a zebra (horse) and Cape buffalo (cow).To avoid the fate of Francis Macomber I hope the guides stand well behind him (like out of range).

Mr.Theroux taught school in the early 60s for the Peace Corp.Nyasaland (Malawi)and Kampala. The book makes the point that Africa has regressed…miserable governments,more and poorer people. NGOs that cause more harm than good.

Anyway, a good read.

A very different Africa is one my neighbors visited “on safari”. They spent $1500/per day to ride around in a Land Rover taking photos of bored wildlife and staying in tented luxury…having a Kikuyu wait on them and dining with other snobs (”Nigel,please pass the wine”).I made the mistake of mentioning my dislike of Hemingway and his machismo b.s. That ended the show and tell.

Is the management book “Wooden on Leadership: How to Create a Winning Organization”? You’ve got me interested in pursuing it, but I can’t find the title you mention. Thanks!

I’d recommend it if you are into the fantasy genre — but I’m finding myself getting a little irritated over details this time around. For example: the adventuring characters always come across people who can feed them elaborate meals which would require a garden or a nearby market and or several hours baking bread for example — and yet this food can sometimes be found in remote places, like Morgan Leah’s hunting lodge which is located in a remote area and reached by the owner by walking which just happens to have fruit and vegetables and bread in the cold locker several days after the main characters arrive.

It’s obvious the book was written by a man of an earlier generation who hasn’t had to think too much about how his meals arrive at the table.