The Great Kapok Tree

Lori from North Carolina is a teacher who loves to do a play with her students based on this book.

Homage to Catalonia, George Orwell

Bill from Oregon wants us all to read Orwell's first person account of the Spanish Civil War.

50 Years of Nobel Prize Winners

Amy, originally from Colorado, is on a quest to read one book from each of the Nobel Prize Winners from the past fifty years. She takes the list of winners with her when she goes to her local library on Second Avenue and borrows the first book by a Laureate that she sees on the shelf. She trusts that each of these authors have, "something to tell me." These authors also give her an international perspective that fits Amy's love of traveling.

Amy recommends:
Palace Walk by Egyptian author Naguib Mahfouz
"I really got a nibble of what it is like to live in a Muslim country. I was able to learn something from the book."

novels written by South African writer Nadine Gordimer

Kaddish for a Child Not Born by Hungarian writer Imre Kertesz
Amy warns, "It takes effort to get through."

The Old Man and the Sea, Ernest Hemingway

Ed from Queens remembers this "easy read" as the first classic he read in high school.

Humboldt's Gift, Saul Bellow

Justin from Jersey City praises Saul Bellows, "great voice in his writing."

A Prayer for Owen Meany, John Irving

Taylor from St. Louis read it in 8th grade and still loves it.

Another fan of the book, Tom from Queens, told us that he, "couldn't put down this great book. It's deep."

Books by Victoria Holt

Zaida from New York likes all of Victoria Holt's books. She enjoys the mystery, and of course the romance. Zaida's work requires her to read serious political science books, so she admits in her free time she likes to read trashy books. She insists, "You can't read serious books all the time."