Reading these days: Memoirs. The memoir of Malala, Peace nobel prize winner. A cancer memoir. And a book that leads from Germany to Rome, from Goethe to the now.
"I am Malala"
This week, I stopped at the library. They had some new books, one of them was the memoir of Malala, who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace just some days ago. The Prize, it was a good surprise. The Nobel committee is having such a difficult job, I thought, in so many areas. And they do it well. Also, an article pointed out that the peace price now also connects India and Pakistan with a sign of peace, and both nominees said they want to bring their head of states along to the ceremony. The book itself, I started to read it – I don’t think I will read all of it, but it’s inspiring to read Malala's words and feel the energy she has, to stand up for education, for herself and for others. Here's a quote from it:
"“I don't want to be thought of as the "girl who was shot by the Taliban" but the "girl who fought for education." This is the cause to which I want to devote my life.” ― Malala Yousafzai, I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban (more quotes)"An Inconvenient Year"
This is a personal book, in two ways: it's the memoir of Yvonne Joye, an account of her time of dealing with breast cancer. It is written in blog-style book, with notes from the start. And it really was helpful to read this when I found myself in the same situation: finding a knot in ones breast and then wondering: what now? Here’s the book link, it’s a free e-book (Thanks Yvonne, for sharing your story with others!): "An Inconvenient Year"
update: more about my own journey, here in this blog: c is for cancer & for courage, too
And I read 2 German memoirs of writers who have dealt with cancer:
Another one of the lucky telephone box reads - a book I hadn't known before, but enjoyed a lot. And nice timing: I read a part of it at the Day of the German Reunion, which connects to the book: Sigrid Damm is a German author who grew up in East Germany, and focused on the classice authors that are connected to Leipzig, especially on Goethe. She was invited to a writing stay in Rome, and later wrote about her time there, too. So it’s a book that connects East and West Germany, present and past, and also includes Italy, now and to Goethe's time (who travelled through Italy, too).
To get an impression of Damm's work, try this link: Damm's books on Goethe + Schiller + memoirs
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Currently Reading + More Reads:
For 2014, i didn't join a specific reading challenge, but i try to read books / authors from different countries and continents, and also follow the “readwomen2014” initiative. Here’s more about it: 2014 - year of reading women
For more reading notes in this blog, click here: life as a journey with books- and a reading list by regions is online at: World Reads by country
On the left is a photo of the book phone box, it feels a bit like a magic shelf. So far, I always found books there that I didn't even know about, and that I really enjoyed.
More book blogs: What are you reading - link list
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