My War Shelf

This week for fun I reorganized my books and realized we have a war section in the living room. Since we are already talking about the next tax-paid conflict, I thought I'd pass along this excellent reading selection, straight from our living war shelf.

Here goes, from left to right on this picture:

The Bottom Billion, by Paul Collier (This book is not explicitly about war, but rather about the reasons why a billion people on this planet remain in desperate poverty, mostly due to reasons around war. The author is an Oxford Economist, so you could say this is almost like an international socio-economics textbook).

The Forever War, by Dexter Filkins (This New Yorker writer has much experience in Afghanistan and Iraq. He writes like a reporter, not so creative, but super wonky if you're into analysis. Plus, have you ever thought how a team of soldiers defecates while doing house to house searches? He describes it in detail, and it ain't pretty.)

Memories in Mosaic, edited by Maria Lopez Vigil (Letters and stories leading up to the assassination of Salvadoran Archbishop Oscar Romero, smack dab in the middle of presiding over communion, aka, body and blood of Jesus Christ, paid for my the tax dollars of yours truly.)

Jarhead by Anthony Swofford (U.S. Marine writes about his tour in Iraq. He's such a good writer that he went on to Iowa Writer's Workshop after he returned. You probably already know that the Iowa Writers Workshop is the premier writing program in the world. Yes, the world. Anyway, I really liked this book, probably because I love the literary memoir style so much. He's written a couple more books, which are on my list.)

The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien (Critically acclaimed memoir about Vietnam. The book is a collection of stand alone essays that work together to tell a greater story. It's exquisite. You must read this book.)

War is a Force That Gives Us Meaning, by Chris Hedges (If you can only read one book on this list, I'd say read this one. Author talks about his addiction to war, why we love war, and how he got out of the business of war. Since he's a classics scholar, he weaves in a lot of Roman and Greek mythology into his writing.)

Romero, a VHS-tape of my hero, Archbishop Oscar Romero, starring the late, great Raul Julia. (See earlier reference, Memories in Mosaic.)

All I Could Be, My Story as Woman Warrior in Iraq, by Miyoko Hijiki (Someone, send this book to Reese Witherspoon for her next movie project. Thank goodness there's at least one book written by a woman who served in combat, and combat she did, and writer she is. It was such an honor to meet this Des Moines-based author. Since I have her book on my e-reading gadget, she was prepared with this nice postcard of her cover art, the opposite side includes a personal inscription. I'm so honored. This book is so important and I hope you read it.)

Also, because I link propaganda to war:

A Handmaiden's Tale by Margaret Atwood
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley (which I admit, I need to read)
Animal Farm by George Orwell

There you have it, my war shelf. I wish these books never existed, never had to be written, never needed to be recommended. But please let me know what you think, if you've read them, or if you have additional recommendations.

Thanks so much for coming over to my blog.

With love from yours truly,

Natural Born Bleeding Heart