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These new and notable
picks all explore the extraordinary lives of women from around the
world. One story is set in Sarajevo, another in Chicago, another in a
small village in Vietnam, and the final book is set in Karachi,
Pakistan. While only one of these books is non-fiction and another is
merely based on a true story, you will still find yourself stirred by
the larger than life stories leaping from the pages of all four of these
fascinating new releases. (Click on the book cover or title to link to library holdings information.)
When the Serbs begin their ethnic cleansing of Muslims in Sarajevo, Irena Zaric, a normal basketball-playing, pop music-loving teenager, finds herself offered an very interesting job. As she and her Muslim family fight for survival in a place without water, electricity or a dependable food supply, Zaric is recruited to become a sniper. All of her youthful innocence is suddenly lost as she spends her days lining up her targets and taking lives. Though this is a fictional account, the author Scott Simon did base the story on the life of a teenager he interviewed for his Weekend Edition program on NPR. This moving book will haunt you for years to come.
After moving to Chicago at the age of 27, Melissa King finds herself returning to basketball, a game she cherished as a teen, in order to connect with people in her new city. As the story takes you to the multicultural neighborhoods of Chicago and introduces you to a cast of characters, King explores her thoughts on racism, class, and sexual politics in our country today. Basketball is not just a sport for King; basketball is the miracle which got her through a tough point in her life and helped her gain perspective. Her gift for writing makes this book a thoroughly enjoyable read.
When Mien's husband Bon, a man who left 14 years before to fight in the Vietnam War, reappears in her life, she decides it is her duty to return to him. However, this means leaving her new husband Hoan, their son, and the life she loves. Explore the suffering of each member of this love triangle as the book alternates between the different perspectives of the characters. Discover, too, the daily life and culture of people in Communist Vietnam as author Huong describes a a country transformed by war.
Fourteen years ago Aasmaani Inqalab's outspoken feminist activist mother disappeared along with her lover, "the Poet". Now 31, Aasmaani works as a television quiz show researcher and cannot let go of her fear of abandonment. When cryptic letters start arriving, she realizes that her mother's lover may still be alive. This
book works as a thriller, wrapping the reader up in a world of political
intrigue as Aasmaani searches for the truth about her mother and the
father-figure who were so cruelly taken from her years before.
Escondido Public Library. |
