For some years, I have offered a holiday-season review of some of the more interesting and/or important books of recent times or noteworthy volumes that have recently come to my attention.
Whether you do your reading by nook, or Kindle, or the old-fashioned way, here are some choices to consider if you haven’t read them already.
I lean toward, but am not limited to, nonfiction on national and international affairs. So I’ll begin with some memorable nonfiction, two books with certain commonalties. One is “Unbroken” by Laura Hillenbrand, author of “Seabiscuit.” Hillenbrand relates the amazing story of Louie Zamperini, now in his 90s, a Californian who competed in the infamous 1936 Berlin Olympics and was touted to become the first fourminute miler. Within a few years, however, he was in the Army Air Corps, narrowly surviving harrowing experiences.
During a search mission over the Pacific, his B-24 crashed and for 47 days he and two mates were adrift before being captured by the Japanese. Zamperini survived a notoriously brutal and degrading Japanese prison camp.
Liberation at war’s end was followed by long struggles with post-traumatic stress before he regained his equilibrium.
A second book about war and a great athlete is “Where Men Win Glory” by Jon Krakauer, the tragic story of Pat Tillman. A college and professional football star, Tillman was known for his fearless style and, like Zamperini, for his irrepressible nature.
Impelled by the events of 9/11, Tillman left a lucrative NFL career and, along with his brother, joined the Army. But he didn’twant to be the poster boy for patriotism. Krakauer draws on Tillman’s journals and letters and interviews with friends and family to depict this complex individualist. Krakauer masterfully describes the events and errors leading to Tillman’s death by friendly fire on a desolate Afghanistan hillside. The Bush administration and military officials initially sought to cover up how he died and to use his death for propaganda purposes.
Non-fiction of another variety, but also the result of dogged investigative reporting, is “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks,” by Rebecca Skloot. This was a great choice for the “One Book, One Community” project in Northwest Arkansas. The subject may not appear intriguing, but it is: Skloot tracks down the story of Lacks, an African-American woman, who died of cervical cancer in 1951 and whose cells, taken without her knowledge or permission, launched a medical revolution and a multi-million dollar industry because they kept replicating. Her family didn’t learn of her “immortality” until years later and received no financial benefits.
While these are biographies of sorts, a fascinating and distinctive auto-biography is “Socialism is Great!” by Lijia Zhang. Don’t be put off by the title. This is a vibrant coming-of-age memoir of life in Nanjing in the ’70s and ’80s, a time when China and the author were experiencing tumultand transformation.
On the subject of transformation, Alex Jones in “Losing the News” tackles a critical issue, the fading of fact-based reporting. He emphasizes investigative reporting’s essential role in democracy.
Football is built on fundamentals as well, but strategies and formations are constantly evolving or being reinvented. For the serious fan, “Blood, Sweat and Chalk” by Tim Laden is a gridiron classic. He traces developments from the single wing, which some of us still revere, to the no-huddle. You’ll find plenty about the wishbone and Emory Bellard, the wildcat and Gus Malzahn, along with Lombardi, Switzer, the West Coast, Cover 2, and the Zone Blitz.
From football to foreign policy. Andrew Bacevich is one of the more interesting voices on the U.S. role in the world, and his latest is “Washington Rules: America’s Path to Permanent War.” Betty Glad’s “An Outsider inthe White House,” is a reminder of the many important foreign policy developments during the Carter administration.
Finally, fiction. Jonathan Franzen’ s “Freedom” is justly acclaimed. I was late coming to the historic novel, “The Bridge on the Drina,” by Nobel laureate Ivo Andric. Originally published decades ago, given to me recently by a Bosnian student, it is a vivid guide to the complex history of the Balkans.
And if you are one of the few who haven’t read Stieg Larsson’s trilogy about an investigative reporter and Lisbeth Salander, the uniquely formidable heroine, don’t wait any longer. Maybe not great literature, but certainly compelling. Meanwhile, with a new movie version appearing, I plan to re-read “True Grit” by Charles Portis, one of my favorites.
Happy reading and happy holidays.
HOYT PURVIS IS A JOURNALISM AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS PROFESSOR.
Opinion, Pages 15 on 12/19/2010