Nonfiction

I read and/or attempted to read three nonfiction books during this period: Under the Banner of Heaven by Jon Krakauer, Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand, and Half the Sky by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn. I only read a little Krakauer's book. Really boring. It was about life in the Mormon polygamist compounds in Colorado and Utah. The subject matter itself was fairly interesting, with pretty tough-to-take goings on, but the writing style was SUCH a snore that I couldn't take it. Unbroken was a very good book. It did have one aspect of nonfiction that I don't like - a very didactic, instructive style to the writing - but no one can deny that the plot is harrowing. What Zamparini went through as a soldier in WWII is almost unimaginable, and I'm glad this author told his story. Half the Sky is about the effects of global poverty on women and particularly focuses on sex trafficking. As a professional woman who is very in tune with discrimination issues, this book really hit me. While, of course, discrimination in the U.S. is real and a problem, my concerns in that regard surround professional advancement and pay. My concerns aren't lethal.