Monthly Book Feature--November, 2011
Each month I hope to feature a book that has some relevance to what is happening in the world today. The House on Sugar Beach tells the story of Helene Cooper's early years as a child in Liberia and then her move to the US after the revolution in 1980. The current president of Liberia, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, has just won the Noble Peace Prize and is in a run-off election to retain her position. Reading this book will help you better understand what is happening in Liberia today.
Each month I hope to feature a book that has some relevance to what is happening in the world today. The House on Sugar Beach tells the story of Helene Cooper's early years as a child in Liberia and then her move to the US after the revolution in 1980. The current president of Liberia, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, has just won the Noble Peace Prize and is in a run-off election to retain her position. Reading this book will help you better understand what is happening in Liberia today.
Monthly Book Feature--December, 2011
This month the United States is withdrawing its troops from Iraq. Early in the Iraq war, I read Desert Queen and found myself reading about the places that were appearing on the nightly news but through the lens of Gertrude Bell, almost 100 years before. Bell was a British citizen educated in Oxford who traveled by camel through the deserts, became friendly with Arab leaders and influenced Churchill and others when decisions were being made about the way Middle Eastern countries were to be run after WWI. A contemporary of Lawrence of Arabia, her life is equally fascinating. She is buried in Baghdad along with many others who have given their lives in pursuit of peace in this part of the world.
This month the United States is withdrawing its troops from Iraq. Early in the Iraq war, I read Desert Queen and found myself reading about the places that were appearing on the nightly news but through the lens of Gertrude Bell, almost 100 years before. Bell was a British citizen educated in Oxford who traveled by camel through the deserts, became friendly with Arab leaders and influenced Churchill and others when decisions were being made about the way Middle Eastern countries were to be run after WWI. A contemporary of Lawrence of Arabia, her life is equally fascinating. She is buried in Baghdad along with many others who have given their lives in pursuit of peace in this part of the world.