The UCWbL’s Katrina K. and Joe O. share their top picks….
Katrina recommends…
EVERYTHING IS ILLUMINATED by Jonathan Safran Foer
A good read for…Anyone who appreciates the beauty of language and can laugh at the the absurdity of the darkness in our lives.
What’s it about? A part fiction part non-fiction story of the author’s family history, written in three distinct voices. If you’ve seen the movie, that doesn’t count. Naturally, this is way better!
So why is it a top pick? This is one of the most beautiful books I have ever read. It’s something I pick up every few months and read again… you’ll have to read it to see why!
Katrina’s favorite quote from the book: The woman has too much skin for her bones and too many wrinkles for her years, as if her face were some animal of its own, slowly descending the skull each day, until one day it would cling to her jaw, and one day fall off completely, landing in the woman’s hands for her to look at and say, this is the face I’ve worn my whole life.
Joe O. recommends…
Empires of the Sea: The Siege of Malta, the Battle of Lepanto, and the Contest for the Center of the World by Richard Crowley
A good read for… History buffs will love this book, but Crowley is an excellent storyteller as well as scholar, making this book very accessible to a much wider audience.
What’s it about? A historical account of the clashes between Christian states to the West and the Ottoman Empire to the East, from the Siege of Malta in 1565 to the decisive Battle of Lepanto in 1571.
So why is it a top pick? It’s like reading about epic battles in Lord of the Rings, except these battles actually happened.