Just a few more books

I forgot to mention that I read one of the most enjoyable books that I have read in a long time and it's called City of Tranquil Light.  My mom loaned it to me and when I called her to talk about it after I'd finished it she said, "You're not mailing it back to me are you?"  I stumbled around and said, "well, I want to read it again" and I blundered on.  My mom finally said, "I'll go buy a new one."

It certainly isn't going to win a Pulitzer (and the reviews were mixed on Amazon) but I loved it.  It's the story of a Mennonite missionary in China at the turn of the century.  It was one of the most thought provoking books that I have ever read about religion.

The other book is one that I haven't started yet but I will soon.  This week I got this package in the mail.

Inside was this book with this recommendation from my friend Claire (and a drawing from her Eli for my Claire)

"I thought it was pretty good--perhaps not as great as the Amazon reviews led me to believe, but worth a read. It did give me a bit of validation--which I have also been searching for."

And taking a lesson from Claire's kindness, I will mail the book (when I'm finished) to the first person who comments that they want it (be warned that I dog-ear pages and underline haphazardly).