Saturday, March 1, 2014

120 Books- 34 down, 86 to go


Last year I decided to read 100 books to try to make a dent in my reeeediculously large amazon.com wishlist.  Since I essentially read 10 books per month from May 2013-November 2013, I decided I should probably continue the effort to read 10 books a month.
The books listed below are sitting in patient stacks in my living room.  Can't hardly wait!

COMPLETED:
1.  Lipstick Jihad:  A Memoir of Growing up Iranian in America by Azadeh Moaveni (Recommend- great exploration of being bi-cultural, not quite fitting in anywhere, and all the issues that plague Iran.)
6.   The Hiding Place by Elizabeth & John Sherrill (highly recommend)
8.  Sweden- Culture Smart! by Charlotte DeWitt
9.  The Swedish Secret: What the United States Can Learn from Sweden's Story by Earl Gustafson
10.  Culture Shock! Sweden by Charlotte Svensson
12.  What Happened to Sweden?  While American Became the Only Superpower by Ulf Nilson (highly recommend.  honest commentary, great voice- really a pleasant read in terms of a history book.  short, sweet, and informative).
13.  Swedish Lessons:  A Memoir of Sects, Love, and Indentured Servitude. Sort of.  by Natalie Burg (a bit crass, but a funny story)
14.  In Honor of Fadime: Murder and Shame by Unni Wikan (HIGHLY recommend.  Very nice compliment to this book).
15.  Of Swedish Ways by Lily Lorenzen (includes some folk songs and proverbs- nice)
16.  Drinking Camel's Milk in the Yurt: Expat Stories from Kazakhstan by Monica Neboli
17.  Kids of Kabul by Deborah Ellis  (I didn't like this compilation of stories as much as the volume she did for Iraqi children, but still worth reading).
18.  Untold:  A History of the Wives of the Prophet Mohammed by Tamam Kahn (interesting, but a little annoying- includes poetry the author wrote in addition to the biographies of the women)
19.  Favorite Wife: Escape from Polygamy by Susan Ray Schmidt
27.  The Silk Route: 7,000 Miles of History by John S. Major (Thanks Susan & Bri)
28.  Culture Shock!  Belgium by Mark Elliott
31.  Quran and Woman: Rereading the Scared Text from a Woman's Perspective by  Amina Wadud (highly recommend for all Mulisms)
32.  Religions of the Silk Road by Richard Foltz (HIGHLY recommend for those interested in the ebb and flow of various religious traditions- Buddhism, Islam, and Christianity)
34.  Strong was her Faith! Women of the New Testament by J. E. Kalas (recommend)
40.  Journey to Freedom: Moroccan Stories by Sascha von Bornhiem (do not recommend)
41.  Paradise Beneath Her Feet: How Women are Transforming the Middle East by Isobel Coleman (Thanks Amy!- HIGHLY recommend, very informative and compelling)
42.  Culture Shock!  Morocco by Orin Hargraves
48.  A Year in Marrakesh by Peter Mayne
50.  In Arabian Nights:  A Caravan of Moroccan Dreams by Tahir Shah (recommend- i love both of his books they include pen-sketches he does.  great story teller and amazing life- survived torture in a Pakistani prison and bought/renovated a villa in Morocco.)
51.  Culture Smart! Morocco: The Essential Guide to Customs and Culture by Jillian York
55.  American Sniper by Chris Kyle (recommend)
56.  The Couscous Genie: 3 Tunisian Stories by Mohamed Bacha (interesting folk tales, but poorly translated)
57.  Four Fantastic Tales from Tunisia by Mohamed Bacha (similar to his other book, including some errors-it is a shame, these would make lovely children's books).
71.  Sesame Street Unpaved: Scripts, Stories, Secrets, & Songs by David Borgenicht (thanks Mom!)



CURRENTLY UNDERWAY:
3.   A-Z Guide to the Hadith by Mokhtar Stork
23.  Cannibals and Kings: The Origins of Cultures by Marvin Harris (feels a bit preachy- some interesting ideas but feels very much like an agenda and not so much an honest discussion)
26.  The Old Testament - KJV
36.  The Alevis in Turkey by David Shankland (academic reading,  information dense)
11.  Christina, Queen of Sweden: The Restless Life of a European Eccentric by Veronica Buckley (good info, but painfully slow-moving.  First 50 pages were not easy to push through, but it picks up now and again the further along I read.)
76.  The Six Great Ideas by Mortimer Adler (layman's philosophy)
49.  An Introduction to Moroccan Arabic & Culture by Abdellah Chekayri
52.  Moroccan Arabic by Aaron Sakulich
43.  Moon Over Marrekech: A Memoir of Loving Too Deeply in a Foreign Land by  Nazneen Shiekh

UP NEXT:
2.   The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals by Charles Darwin
4.   The Bookman's Tale by Charlie Lovett (fiction)
5.   The Things They Cannot Say by Kevin Sites (Thanks Paul)
7.   The Invisible Thread by Laura Schroff & Alex Tresniowski (Thanks Mom)
21.  Kazakhstan: Surprises and Stereotypes 20 Years After Independence by Jonathan Aitken
22.  100 Letters Home: My Two Years in Kyrgystan by Emily Ross
24.  The Crisis of Zionism by Peter Beinart  (Thanks Yvonne!)
25.  Polish Customs, Traditions, & Folklore by Knab (Thanks Paul!)
29.  Stories from the Silk Road by Cherry Gilcrest
30.  I Shall Not Hate: A Gaza Doctor's Journey on the Road to Peace and Human Dignity by Izzeldin Abuelaish
35.  Women in Islam by Nicholas Awade
38.  The Road From Morocco by Wafa Faith Hallam
39.  Stolen Lives: 20 Years in a Desert Jail by Malika Oufkir
44.  Hussein & The Nomad by Rahal Eks
47. The land of Veiled Women: Some Wandering in Algeria, Tunisia, & Morocco by John Foster Fraser
53.  Nobel Laureates in Search of Identity & Integrity by Hallengren
54.   Five Chimneys: The Story of Auschwitz by Olga Lengyel
58.  Silencing the Past:  The Arab Spring , Israel, & the Tunisian Jews by Rob Boublil
59.  Dreaming of a Mail-Order Husband by Ericka Johnson
60.  The Light Between Oceans: A Novel by M. L. Stedman (thanks mom!)
61.  Cairo: Memoir of a City Transformed by Ahdaf Soueif
62.  State of Failure by Jonathan Schanzer
63.  Your Fatwa Does Not Apply Here: Untold Stories from the Fight Against Muslim Fundamentalism by Karima Bennoune
64.  A Fort of Nine Towers: An Afghan Family Story by Qaid Akbar Omar
66.  Bush Wives and Girl Soldiers by Chris Coulter
67.  The Darkest Corner of the World by Urve Tamberg
68.  Shame by Jasvinder Sanghera
69. Jewish Literacy: The Most Important Things to Know About  the Jewish Religion, its People, and its History by Telushkin (Thanks Donna!)
70. The Wisdom of Big Bird by Caroll Spinney (thanks mom!)
72.  Street Gang: The Complete History of Sesame Street by Michael Davis (thanks mom!)
73.  Hindu Wisdom for All God's Children by Francis X. Clooney, S.J.  (thanks Donna!)
77.

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