One very good use of PCV time is reading. In the day and age of the electronic book reader.. we are able to carry many many books around with us at once.. so we are able to read lots and lots of books.
*books books books*
The Left Hand of Darkness – Ursula Ruin
Loved this book. Loved the idea, the story, and I love that I thought to read it because it was quoted in one of our Peace Corps workbooks.. just saying. If you enjoy sci-fi... I think you should read this book. The reason it stood out to me at this point in my life is because of the theme of cultural understanding (or misunderstanding?) and communication. I was able to relate to that feeling of being completely lost and out of place.. luckily I'm still on Earth. Seriously though, this book was amazing.
Lamb – Christopher Moore
I'm not a super religious person. I don't generally enjoy religious themed books. This book was suggested to me by another volunteer.. and I picked it up as a paper back to carry around with me. This book was HILARIOUS and well written. Exactly the type of book you need on a bad day.. when you have very little to cheer you up.
The Princess Bride – William Goldman
If you know me, you know I am a huge stickler about reading the book before watching the movie.. or TV show.. or what have you. In this case, I was a little hesitant to read the book because.. OBVIOUSLY this is a movie my entire generation grew up knowing by heart and loving every line. Except for one thing (which I'm not going to give away on here!) I want to say that the movie was completely true to the book. Not only was the book an enjoyable read.. but after reading it.. I appreciated the quality of the movie even more (which I didn't think was possible!) And as for that one difference.. I think the change was the right decision for the film.
The Outsiders – S.E. Hinton
Another paper back I picked up in the Peace Corps library (all of our workstations have really well stocked library's full of books that past volunteers brought along and then left behind. It is really wonderful). The Outsiders is a quick read (not just because it's short – also because I didn't want to put it down). A coming of age story about greasers. Completely unrelated but I was surprised to see that this book was written by a girl (based on the subject matter -- I know I know) and more surprising was how young she was when she wrote it!! Really well written. I have yet to see the movie.
Breakfast at Tiffany's – Truman Capote
Like The Princess Bride.. I have seen this movie many times, and was a bit hesitant to read the book. In the case of Breakfast at Tiffany's I liked the book way better than the movie. I thought it was more realistic.. and more thought provoking than the movie. I still love the movie... but the book is definitely better and was really surprised by how much I actually enjoyed reading it.
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Books I am currently reading:Existentialism From Dostoevsky to Sartre – Selected and Introduced by Walter Kaufman
I always am in the process of reading at least one “physical” old fashioned hand held book – for situations where I might not feel completely comfortable pulling out fancy electronics. Especially since most Beninese people swear up and down that you are using an I-Pad when they see your Kindle no matter how hard you argue the fact. – This book is a collection of existentialist essays. I just finished Notes from Underground – so not very far yet, but I am really enjoying it.
1776 - David McCullough
This is a book that has always been on my reading list. So I started reading it on the 4th of July.. because I am also a bit of a nerd. Unfortunately, I haven't had much time to sit and read the past two weeks. I hope to finish this book next week. I love historical books.. so this is a very refreshing break (which I needed) from Game of Thrones.
A Dance With Dragon (Book 5 Game of Thrones) - George R. R. Martin
To be completely honest I am not enjoying this book series. Each book has been a struggle with lots of required breaks... and I just want to be done reading them. I am being stubborn and finishing the whole series with the hope that maybe something will click and I will start enjoying them. We shall see. It is funny because I really expected to enjoy this series.. it seems right up my ally. Up there on the list for biggest reading disappointment during my Peace Corps Service.. it isn't alone though so don't worry. Please, don't crucify me over this.. but I just don't get the hype.
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Missing my book club girls <3
Z
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