The Books I'm Reading Now
I'm reading The Last Green Valley, World War II-set historical fiction by Mark Sullivan (author of Beneath a Scarlet Sky); I'm listening to wonderful, smart, entertaining Bill Bryson's nonfiction winner The Body: A Guide for Occupants; and I'm reading Kate Bowler's absolute gem No Cure for Being Human (And Other Truths I Need to Hear).
What are you reading and enjoying these days, bookworms?
01 The Last Green Valley by Mark Sullivan
Mark Sullivan, author of Beneath a Scarlet Sky, here tells a tale of a family's incredible bravery and determination in the waning, cruel days of World War II.
It's 1944, and Stalin's forces are rolling through the Ukraine, leaving destruction and horrors in their wake. Emil Martel makes a haunting deal in order to keep his beloved wife, sons, and extended family safe under the umbrella of the retreating Nazi's power.
The Martels run west with the Nazi wolves, finding themselves caught between the two ruthless, warring armies in their desperate journey toward freedom.
Sullivan built this historical fiction around the true story of an ethnically German family running from the Ukraine at the end of World War II, filling in gaps by using his own imagination.
02 The Body: A Guide for Occupants by Bill Bryson
“We pass our existence within this wobble of flesh and yet take it almost entirely for granted.”
The Body: A Guide for Occupants is made up of fascinating, funny, odd, and often unexpected information about the complicated corporeal shell we each inhabit.
With his signature wit and curiosity, Bryson delves into everything you didn't know that you didn't know about the body (and, I'm glad to say, he narrates the audiobook edition of the book).
I'm willing to accompany Bill Bryson anywhere he wants to take me, and an adventure through body systems, grievous injury, and wondrous healing is no exception.
I mentioned The Body in the list Shhh! Books I'm Giving as Gifts This Holiday.
03 No Cure for Being Human (And Other Truths I Need to Hear) by Kate Bowler
Reading memoirs centered around cancer is not always a go for me, but a Kate Bowler book is.
My friend James's Pastor's Book of the Month Club pick for this month turned out to be No Cure for Being Human, which I found out the same day my library hold of the book became available.
This isn't actually a book I'm reading--I finished the whole book in one evening, tabbed many, many passages, immediately bought my own copy, re-tabbed everything, and was immediately perfectly willing to read the book in its entirety again.
This is beautiful, funny, heartwarming, practical, and so wise and wonderful. Spoiler alert: it's going to get five stars from me.
Annnnnd I'm going to get to hear Kate speak this week to my book group!
I mentioned Kate's book Everything Happens for a Reason (And Other Lies I've Loved) in the Greedy Reading List Six Powerful Memoirs about Facing Mortality.