"Blonde" by Joyce Carol Oates took forever to read but was worth it. It's her fictionalized account of the life of the tragic Marilyn Monroe. Oates was able to show her fragility and vulnerability. It was very nicely written, one of the best adult fiction books I've read in a long time. I can't believe I've never read anything by Oates before! She might become a new favorite.
"Three Cups of Tea" by Greg Mortenson was another good one. Back in 1993 Greg, a nurse and mountain climber, went to Pakistan to scale the world's second largest peak, the K2. He unfortunately didn't make it to the top, but the small village that took care of him on his descent down touched him so much by their shining brilliance despite their crushing poverty that he vowed to go back and build them a school after seeing the students trying to learn outdoors with sticks. After returning to the United States, Greg had no idea how to go about raising the $12,000 needed to build the school (can you even imagine? Without all the bureaucratic red tape how much money would be saved?) but he persisted and today he has helped build schools all over Pakistan and Afghanistan. As a librarian, I totally agree with his assessment that the way to win wars is with knowledge and the eradication of ignorance. He showed, humbly, without asking for praise, what one man with determination who refuses to take "no" for an answer really can do. The next time someone says that one person can't make a difference, steer them to Mortenson.
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