So let us start with the non-fiction because this list is shorter and there are only three books which rate an honorable mention.
The first I just picked up Friday and am half-way through and find it a compelling storyline for our times, and it should be a particular interest to Canadians considering our adventures in Afghanistan. It tells the story of how an American mountaineer came to Pakistan to climb a mountain and failed; although, he did end up building schools for the children in the remote regions of both Pakistan and Afghanistan. Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin
The second mention is Liberal Fascism by Jonah Goldberg. Forget all the hype from both left and right wing on this book. This is not an indictment of modern liberalism but a period piece on how progressive liberals crossed the threshold to become Fascists. Goldberg has written a scholarly book which is a remarkably easy read due to Goldberg’s entertaining writing style. I am only half-way through this book and don’t expect to finish it until I return out west in mid-December. Another book I have barely started but expect to finish at the same time is The Russian Tradition by Tibor Szamuely.
Fiction:
I do not read everything my daughter or son read but I do make a point of trying to read anything which grips their imagination which is how I ended up reading Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight Trilogy. The first book was not a terribly bad, the second book started to strain the boundaries of my patience, and the third book, Breaking Dawn is a complete bust. I have approximately 100 pages to go to the end and I would rather have a root canal than finish it. I remained amazed at my neuroscientist-in-training still eats up this kind of cheesy nonsense. I blame myself - too much Buffy the Vampire Slayer at too early an age.
Careless in Red. I am a sucker for a detective/mystery stories and have been reading Elizabeth George’s books for years, but this time, I cannot for the life of me get motivated to get beyond all the angst in the early chapters in order to get to the heart of the story. And for the record, I am never careless in red.
Anthony & Cleopatra by Colleen McCullough I enjoyed Colleen McCullough’s Masters of Rome series, well that is until the death of Julius Caesar, but this book has been a huge disappointment. This may be because I have never found anything particularly compelling about either Mark Anthony or Cleopatra. Thirty pages to go and I suspect I am just not going to make it.
The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson. The Last Amazon picked up this book out west and couldn’t put it down until she finished it. I was going to give it a go this weekend but Three Cups of Tea has pre-empted its allotted time slot. I am told it is a well written tale with an unconventional storyline. Take this with a grain of salt - see Breaking Dawn above.
