Non-Fiction Pick of the Week: The Big Short

The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine by Michael Lewis 2010, Reviewed as a Book on CD

What a great title to be held captive with on a recent road trip!

This book might be called required reading for anyone with an eye on the stock market and a desire to understand causes and effects of the Great Recession of 2008. The author, Lewis, is very “hot” right now, with a past and current portfolio of books on various financial events and topics. In this book, he explains how the financial industry obscured credit risk by packaging and repackaging low-quality subprime mortgages into complicated securities that would receive secure, high credit ratings. Included are the main players and banks, and sadly it leaves you believing there are few honorable players in the industry. The audio version contained a bonus interview with the author on the aftermath of the collapse. I’m now looking forward to reading the author’s next book, Boomerang, a travelogue about the European debt crisis.

Cozy Christmas Audiobooks!

With Christmas fast approaching, we have been receiving some cozy Christmas stories on audibook. Why not place a hold so that you can listen to a story while doing Christmas baking, running around doing errands in the car, or just sitting by the fire?

Here is a list of our latest books, some by some very well-known authors!

1225 Christmas Tree Lane by Debbie Macomber

Christmas Note by Donna VanLiere

The Christmas Wedding by James Patterson

The Nine Lives of Christmas by Sheila Roberts

The Snow Angel by Glenn Beck

Fiction Pick of the Week: Girl in Translation

Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok 2010

Narrated by an eleven-year-old girl, this is the inspiring story of Kimberly and her mother who make the move from Hong Kong to New York City in the 1990s. They are leaving Hong Kong before China takes over and incorporates communist rule. However, they are not prepared for the impoverished living conditions of New York City after leaving a comfortable lifestyle back home. Her mother ends up working in a textile sweatshop and has trouble learning the language and customs of the city. Kimberly must assume a leadership role in her small family to protect her mother and to get ahead in her education. We follow Kimberly’s progress as she masters the language and excels in school. Her journey is not always easy and is heartbreaking at times, but her strong spirit helps her to overcome the obstacles to succeed.
Compelling coming-of-age fiction which would be interesting to teens as well as adults.

Fiction Pick of the Week: Wicked Appetite

Wicked Appetite by Janet Evanovich 2010

Lorelei King reads the first in the series of the “Seven Deadly Sins” in which Evanovich brings back the hunky and unmentionable Diesel from the Stephanie Plum Novels. This time Diesel is paired with pastry chef Elizabeth Tucker whose character is reminiscent of the infamous bounty hunter Plum. Set in Salem, Massachusetts, this duo has to track down the gluttonous stone of power before Wulf (Gerwulf Grimoire) gets his hands on it. Sure to please Evanvovich fans who like her fun romps and simple writing style. Familiar and new eccentric characters make this tale different but similar to her more famous series.

Fiction Pick of the Week: Baking Cakes in Kigali

Baking Cakes in Kigali by Gaile Parkin 2009

First time author Gaile Parkin, who was born and raised in Zambia, has set her debut novel in Rwanda. Angel Tungaraza is a transplanted Tanzanian, professional baker, amateur matchmaker and is raising her five orphaned grandchildren. There are many characters each with their own story to tell of how Rwanda has affected them. Angel is the medium through whom Parkin tells the stories of tragedy, humour, love, reconciliation and ultimately hope that are Rwanda. Parkin has written a funny, poignant and moving first novel. Fans of Alexander McCall Smith’s No. 1 Detective Agency will like this book too.

Non-Fiction Pick of the Week: A Lion Called Christian

A Lion Called Christian by Anthony Bourke and John Rendall 1971, revised in 2009

If you know anyone who likes to send email forwards, you may have received a touching video recorded in the early 1970s of two long-haired young men being reunited in Africa with a lion they had bought as a cub at Harrod’s in London a couple of years prior. The lion quickly recognizes them and gives them the most affectionate and playful greeting and is obviously overjoyed to see them. Anthony “Ace” Bourke and John Rendall were these two young Australians and unbeknownst to them the video “went viral” on the Internet a couple of years ago. A Lion Called Christian is the memoir they wrote about their time with this beautiful creature, re-released after the lion reached international fame in 2008. The book talks about the amazing adventure they had after falling in love with this little cub they saw while sight-seeing in Harrod’s and how they took care of him in London for several months before realizing that Christian was outgrowing his home in a furniture store. By a stroke of luck, they encountered the actors who had performed in the movie Born Free and who were still in touch with conservationists in Africa. With their help, John and Ace took Christian to Kenya and released him into the care of George Adamson, an expert on rehabilitating lions and preparing them for life in the wild. The audio version is beautifully narrated by British actor John Lee, who assumes a slight Australian accent for this recording. It is very entertaining to listen to the wonderful, humorous stories about the lion’s life in London and heartwarming to hear that what seemed to be an ill-advised decision on the part of John and Ace turned out to be the best possible thing that could have happened to the beautiful lion Christian.