Monday Recommendations

Monday Recommendation List

Random list of 10 books Monday! I have read and enjoyed each of these enough to flag for a potential personal library purchase.

Be bold and just choose randomly, stick to your normal genre...or step outside of your normal reading zone and try something you usually wouldn’t. You can look up the descriptions at Amazon.com, or search my blog for old posts by entering the title in the little search box in the top left-hand corner and clicking the magnifying glass.

This week-- 10 recommendations (in no particular order):

1. Love Me to Death by Allison Brennan
2. Husband and Wife by Leah Stewart
3. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman
4. Sister Queens by Julia Fox
5. The Art of Happiness  by Dalai Lama XIV
6. Bhagavadgita
7. Dark of the Moon by John Sandford
8. The Heart of Buddha’s Teaching by Thich Nhat Hanh
9. Being In Balance by Wayne Dyer
10. All I Ever Wanted by Kristan Higgins

Monday Recommendations

Monday Recommendation List

Random list of 10 books Monday! I have read and enjoyed each of these enough to flag for a potential personal library purchase.

Be bold and just choose randomly, stick to your normal genre...or step outside of your normal reading zone and try something you usually wouldn’t. You can look up the descriptions at Amazon.com, or search my blog for old posts by entering the title in the little search box in the top left-hand corner and clicking the magnifying glass.

This weeks 10 recommendations (in no particular order):

1. Last Night at Chateau Marmont by Lauren Weisberger
2. Not Without Hope by Nick Schuyler
3. The Black Lyon by Jude Deveraux
4. The 10 Greatest Gifts I Give My Children by Steven Vannoy
5. Don’t Cry by Beverly Barton
6. Crush on You by Christie Ridgway
7. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman
8. Fragile by Lisa Unger
9. A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah
10. Devil’s Knot by Mara Leveritt

The Spirit Catches You

The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman

This book explores the clash of two cultures--Hmong and American. Lia Lee, a Hmong child is very ill. The Californian doctors diagnose her with epilepsy. Her parents don't understand American medicine. Tragedy ensues as the cultures clash on what is best for Lia. The American doctors want to heal her using Western medicine, the parents want to care for her using their own customs. Both people want what they think is best for the child.

The part where Lia is taken away from her parents was heartbreaking for me. I cannot imagine the pain that she was in being separated from her very loving family. And my heart was with her Mother. I cannot fathom having a sick child ripped away from me.

This was my first introduction to the Hmong. The author does a good job of explaining their history in Laos and the reasons for their immigration to America. At times it felt as if she were generalizing an entire group of people, as I'm sure not all Hmong are identical to the Lees. Overall I think her depiction is balanced.