Sadly, my book count went down in 2011. I blame it on getting engaged, teaching school five days a week, and getting married, all very good things. :) Looking at my list, I read twelve-fourteen of the books after I got married. I guess I was a little busy; haha!
I read parts of several books on marriage, but I didn't actually finish any of them, so I didn't include them here. If you want the titles, I can give them to you in an e-mail.
Here is the key that I came up with last year:
Key:
* fun
# favorite
+ career reading
And without further ado,
Middle East
# Princess, Jean P. Sasson - the story of one of the many princesses in Saudi Arabia. It was shocking, to say the least, but "a real page-turner." Recommended by my grandmother
Honeymoon in Tehran, Azadeh Moaveni - an Iranian-American journalist who married another Iranian and lived in Tehran. It was interesting to read between the lines to see her growing paranoia about living in Iran.
Walking the Bible, Bruce Feiler - a Jewish-American explores the region and stories of the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Old Testament. He visited places like ancient Ur, Egypt, Jordan, Israel, and Sinai. This too was an enjoyable read, though I constantly had to be aware of his secular worldview and counter it with my own worldview.
The Media Relations Department of Hizbollah Wishes You a Happy Birthday, Neil MacFarquhar - this book took a while to get through, but I did like it. It covered many different countries in the Middle East and included history and personal anecdotes of encounters with many different people.
# With Lawrence in Arabia, Lowell Thomas - I am really fascinated by Lawrence as a result of this book. I even watched the really long movie, "Lawrence of Arabia"! Lowell Thomas is an excellent writer who traveled to different countries as a journalist, I believe. I've read another book by him (see below) and am looking forward to reading more.
The Good Daughter, Jasmin Darznik - another Iranian-American author. Darznik told the hidden story of her mother's first marriage to a man who ended up being mentally "off," if you will, and her triumph over obstacles, in spite of living in a society with strict social rules. The story was fascinating, but the writing was bad. Sad.
# Down the Nile, Rosemary Mahoney - I loved this book. You can read about my amazing discovery here.
Beyond Khyber Pass, Lowell Thomas - The second Lowell Thomas book I read, this time about Afghanistan. It was intriguing to read some of the history of the country as well as to follow Thomas' personal anecdotes.
The Bookseller of Kabul, Asne Seierstad - Another book about Afghanistan, this one written nearly 80 years later than Thomas', I believe. Seierstad lived with an Afghan family for several months and later wrote their stories in book form. The content was informative, but I think something was "lost in translation" as it was originally written in Norwegian.
# Guests of the Sheik, Elizabeth Warnock Fernea - This was one of my favorite books of 2011. Elizabeth and her husband Robert moved to an Iraqi village in the 50s, I think it was, in order for Robert to conduct anthropological studies. Elizabeth interacted with the women of the village to help Robert with his research. It was engaging, entertaining, and informative. After spending two years in the village, the couple moved elsewhere in the Middle East before finally ending up in Texas as university professors and experts in Middle Eastern culture. I loved this book. I have two more books by Elizabeth Warnock Fernea that I want to read.
Persian Adventure, Anne Sinclair Mehdavi - an American girl who married an Iranian man and went to visit his family in Iran a few years after their marriage. This book had several entertaining stories, and I read it rather quickly.
Christian
# The Reason for God, Timothy Keller - Another favorite book of 2011. I am a huge fan of Timothy Keller. I found this book to be very helpful, though I will have to reread to remember why exactly. Oh dear. Any way, one two-fold point he made that stuck with me was that 1) we are worse than we hoped and thus have no reason to be proud and 2) God loves us more than we dared believe and thus we don't have to prove anything to anyone. I am looking forward to rereading parts of The Reason for God as well as reading The Meaning of Marriage.
A Chance To Die, Elisabeth Elliot - a biography of Amy Carmichael, missionary in India. I read a biography of Amy Carmichael when I was little (thanks, Mom, for having missionary biographies around). I was excited to read a book about Amy, especially one that was written by Elisabeth Elliot. I found out that Amy traveled to a few different countries before she settled in India and that she was a human with some rather *interesting* ways of doing things. It is definitely worth reading. One of the points that Amy made in a few of the letters recorded in the book is that you should not go to the mission field unless you are totally committed to the Gospel and the work in the country; any and every thought of "romance" should be abandoned.
Et Cetera
Gentlemen's Agreement, Laura Z. Hobson - I took this book to the Dodgers game back in July, but I didn't read it there (I was afraid I was going to be bored). My mom likes the movie by this name, but I've never watched it myself. This book is about Jewish prejudice following World War II and about prejudice in general. The mindset of each of the characters was carefully delineated in the book, showing how different people view prejudice and how they can change. I thought it was a good book.
The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood - This book had me captive. I wouldn't recommend it, necessarily, but I was stuck in the pages until the end. I even asked Amos to make dinner one night because I wanted to finish it (he's a nice husband). This is basically another book about super-controlled future society; I would put it next to 1984 and Fahrenheit 451 on my shelf. I thought it was very well written.
Sometime in the not-too-distant future, I might put up books that I want to read this year. I've already read one so far this year! I'd better write it on my list...
I read parts of several books on marriage, but I didn't actually finish any of them, so I didn't include them here. If you want the titles, I can give them to you in an e-mail.
Here is the key that I came up with last year:
Key:
* fun
# favorite
+ career reading
And without further ado,
Jennica-Ayelet's 2011 Reading List
Middle East
# Princess, Jean P. Sasson - the story of one of the many princesses in Saudi Arabia. It was shocking, to say the least, but "a real page-turner." Recommended by my grandmother
Honeymoon in Tehran, Azadeh Moaveni - an Iranian-American journalist who married another Iranian and lived in Tehran. It was interesting to read between the lines to see her growing paranoia about living in Iran.
Walking the Bible, Bruce Feiler - a Jewish-American explores the region and stories of the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Old Testament. He visited places like ancient Ur, Egypt, Jordan, Israel, and Sinai. This too was an enjoyable read, though I constantly had to be aware of his secular worldview and counter it with my own worldview.
The Media Relations Department of Hizbollah Wishes You a Happy Birthday, Neil MacFarquhar - this book took a while to get through, but I did like it. It covered many different countries in the Middle East and included history and personal anecdotes of encounters with many different people.
# With Lawrence in Arabia, Lowell Thomas - I am really fascinated by Lawrence as a result of this book. I even watched the really long movie, "Lawrence of Arabia"! Lowell Thomas is an excellent writer who traveled to different countries as a journalist, I believe. I've read another book by him (see below) and am looking forward to reading more.
The Good Daughter, Jasmin Darznik - another Iranian-American author. Darznik told the hidden story of her mother's first marriage to a man who ended up being mentally "off," if you will, and her triumph over obstacles, in spite of living in a society with strict social rules. The story was fascinating, but the writing was bad. Sad.
# Down the Nile, Rosemary Mahoney - I loved this book. You can read about my amazing discovery here.
Beyond Khyber Pass, Lowell Thomas - The second Lowell Thomas book I read, this time about Afghanistan. It was intriguing to read some of the history of the country as well as to follow Thomas' personal anecdotes.
The Bookseller of Kabul, Asne Seierstad - Another book about Afghanistan, this one written nearly 80 years later than Thomas', I believe. Seierstad lived with an Afghan family for several months and later wrote their stories in book form. The content was informative, but I think something was "lost in translation" as it was originally written in Norwegian.
# Guests of the Sheik, Elizabeth Warnock Fernea - This was one of my favorite books of 2011. Elizabeth and her husband Robert moved to an Iraqi village in the 50s, I think it was, in order for Robert to conduct anthropological studies. Elizabeth interacted with the women of the village to help Robert with his research. It was engaging, entertaining, and informative. After spending two years in the village, the couple moved elsewhere in the Middle East before finally ending up in Texas as university professors and experts in Middle Eastern culture. I loved this book. I have two more books by Elizabeth Warnock Fernea that I want to read.
Persian Adventure, Anne Sinclair Mehdavi - an American girl who married an Iranian man and went to visit his family in Iran a few years after their marriage. This book had several entertaining stories, and I read it rather quickly.
Christian
# The Reason for God, Timothy Keller - Another favorite book of 2011. I am a huge fan of Timothy Keller. I found this book to be very helpful, though I will have to reread to remember why exactly. Oh dear. Any way, one two-fold point he made that stuck with me was that 1) we are worse than we hoped and thus have no reason to be proud and 2) God loves us more than we dared believe and thus we don't have to prove anything to anyone. I am looking forward to rereading parts of The Reason for God as well as reading The Meaning of Marriage.
A Chance To Die, Elisabeth Elliot - a biography of Amy Carmichael, missionary in India. I read a biography of Amy Carmichael when I was little (thanks, Mom, for having missionary biographies around). I was excited to read a book about Amy, especially one that was written by Elisabeth Elliot. I found out that Amy traveled to a few different countries before she settled in India and that she was a human with some rather *interesting* ways of doing things. It is definitely worth reading. One of the points that Amy made in a few of the letters recorded in the book is that you should not go to the mission field unless you are totally committed to the Gospel and the work in the country; any and every thought of "romance" should be abandoned.
Et Cetera
Gentlemen's Agreement, Laura Z. Hobson - I took this book to the Dodgers game back in July, but I didn't read it there (I was afraid I was going to be bored). My mom likes the movie by this name, but I've never watched it myself. This book is about Jewish prejudice following World War II and about prejudice in general. The mindset of each of the characters was carefully delineated in the book, showing how different people view prejudice and how they can change. I thought it was a good book.
The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood - This book had me captive. I wouldn't recommend it, necessarily, but I was stuck in the pages until the end. I even asked Amos to make dinner one night because I wanted to finish it (he's a nice husband). This is basically another book about super-controlled future society; I would put it next to 1984 and Fahrenheit 451 on my shelf. I thought it was very well written.
Sometime in the not-too-distant future, I might put up books that I want to read this year. I've already read one so far this year! I'd better write it on my list...
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