Around the World discussion

Alright, this is mostly a work in progress right now as I'm trying to come up with books that I'd like to read.

1. Albania (The Ghost Rider by Ismail Kadare) or (Rot wie eine Braut by Anilda Ibrahimi)
The latter is, unfortunately, not available in English - but I could get it from my local library so it's cheaper than having to buy a book.

2. Algeria (What the Day Owes the Night by Yasmina Khadra)

3. Angola (The Book of Chameleons by José Eduardo Agualusa)

4. Antarctica - TBD (one of the many books from my local library)

5. Australia Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley or Raw Blue by Kirsty Eagar

6. Austria Herr Mozart wacht auf by Eva Baronsky

7. Belize Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard

8. Bhutan - TBD

9.Botswana The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith

10. Cambodia First They Killed My Father by Loung Ung

11. Dominican Republic In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez

12. Egypt Zaat by Sonallah Ibrahim

13. Fiji Stalker on the beach: A novel by Daryl Tarte

14. France Chocolat by Joanne Harris

15. Ghana Children of the Street by Kwei Quartey

16. Iceland Jar City by Arnaldur Indridason

X. India Are You Experienced? by William Sutcliffe

17. Israel The Lemon Tree by Sandy Tolan

18. Italy Nathan Fox. Dangerous Times by Lynn Brittney

19. Jamaica Gold. Pirate Latitudes by Michael Crochton

20. Kenya The White Masai by Corinne Hoffmann

21. Malaysia A Most Peculiar Malaysian Murder by Shamini Flint

22. Morocco The Sand Child by Tahar Ben Jelloun

23. New Zealand Guilt by Charlotte Grimshaw

24. Papua New Guinea Child of the Jungle by Sabine Kuegler

25. Russia Die Kosakenbraut by Katerina Timm

26. Scotland Trainspotting by Irvine Welsh

X. South America The Gringo Trail by Mark Mann

27. Spain Alhambra by Kirsten Boie

28. Sudan Emma's War by Deborah Scroggins

29. Syria The dark side of love by Rafik Shami

X. Vietnamm Backpack by Emily Barr

30. Zimbabwe The Boy Next Door by Irene Sabatini

"In the Time of Butterflies" is set in the Dominican Republic, Ilona.

I'm looking forward to Alexander McCall Smith's Dream Angus: The Celtic God of Dreams. The title by him on your list looks wonderful, too.

*headdesk* I wonder why I put that one as Argentina? Thanks for letting me know!

"Dream Angus" sounds amazing, too. I've never read anything by that author, so I'm looking forward to "The No 1 Ladie's Detective Agency".

Ilona, you just take all the time you need. Your list has some really unique stuff on it, and I've updated everything you have so far on the master list, so just comment here if you add anything.

I've added your Kenya and PNG picks to my to-read list, if not for this challenge, then later on. I've known people who have lived with the Massai, so that memoir sounded so interesting!

Ilona, I am so happy when I see people reading The Lemon Tree: An Arab, a Jew, and the Heart of the Middle East? I really appreciated it b/c I believe it gives a balanced pov. I too am interested in Child of the Jungle: The True Story of a Girl Caught Between Two Worlds and In the Time of the Butterflies. I really appreciated that you included the book titles next to the book covers. I have trouble reading the teeny font visible when you slide over the book covers. Thanks! I am curious to see what else you add.

Jenny, I just added another book for New Zealand that's not on the master list. I wanted to go for the Bone People first, but the book Guilt by Charlotte Grimshaw is one that I can find in our library.

Has anybody read The Sand Child? I just came home from a holiday in Morocco and I'm so much looking forward to that one!

Chrissie, yeah, I just needed to add the titles. I find it such a pain otherwise and I'm too lazy to wait for the tiny font to appear when I hover my mouse over the cover ;)

Okay added the two.

Ilona, :0) and the the Sand Child does look good. I would like to read it. Please let us know what you think of it.

Ilona wrote: "Has anybody read The Sand Child? I just came home from a holiday in Morocco and I'm so much looking forward to that one!"

I have The Sand Child on my list, but am having a little trouble tracking a copy down and am thinking about swapping it for another one of Tahar Ben Jelloun's - I'd love to hear what you think of it if you get to it before I do.

Ilona, I really like how your links show the book covers. I will admit that I'm a sucker for a great cover. [Book: Child of the Jungle] looks good and I'm also considering [Book: In The Time of the Butterflies] for my DR pick. Great start.

Check out this cover:

I love it.

Tanya wrote: "I have The Sand Child on my list, but am having a little trouble tracking a copy down and am thinking about swapping it for another one of Tahar Ben Jelloun's - I'd love to hear what you think of it if you get to it before I do..."

Tanya, I'm seeing that it's available on Amazon!

Ooh I need a pick for Greece too.

Jenny wrote: "Ooh I need a pick for Greece too."

Well, if you go by just the cover....

But I think it's supposed to be a good read too.

Anne wrote: "Jenny wrote: "Ooh I need a pick for Greece too."

Well, if you go by just the cover....

But I think it's supposed to be a good read too."

I read the description!

Anne, that looks good and now I've got three Greece choices.

Jenny, you're shopping for Greece too?

Jenny wrote: "Anne wrote: "Jenny wrote: "Ooh I need a pick for Greece too."

Well, if you go by just the cover....

But I think it's supposed to be a good read too."

I read the description!"
And what did you think?

Mikki wrote: "Anne, that looks good and now I've got three Greece choices.

Jenny, you're shopping for Greece too?"

Yeah, I had an obscure travel one on my list but haven't found a copy yet, so I'm looking for an alternative. If anyone wants a somewhat challenging psychological-literary read, and doesn't care that the author isn't Greek, The Magus could be in interesting pick.

I already have 3 very different picks for Greece:

Oh, The Magus. That's on my tbr, but not on my Greece shelf. Now I have four choices. Yikes.

[Book: My Family and Other Animals] brings to mind [Book: A Year In Provence]. Unfortunately, I'm not going by setting, so [Book: Eleni] is still in the running.

Mikki wrote: "Tanya, I'm seeing that it's available on Amazon! "

thanks Mikki - have just found it there ... I keep forgetting to look at non-kindle books ...

Oh, you're of the Kindle variety! :D

Mikki wrote: "Oh, you're of the Kindle variety! :D"

Ipad actually ... but I usually only ever buy electronic from Amazon as their freight costs to Australia are pretty horrible ... plus I moved a couple of years ago, and had to deal with the 100's of boxes of books I'd accumlated so have sworn to avoid buying an actual book unless absolutly necessary.

Tanya wrote: "Mikki wrote: "Oh, you're of the Kindle variety! :D"

Ipad actually ... but I usually only ever buy electronic from Amazon as their freight costs to Australia are pretty horrible ... plus I moved a ..."

Oh, I can imagine! Four dollars per book here in the U.S. is bad enough. I signed up for the Prime account which charges a yearly flat fee for shipping of 79.00 which works out well for me since I order a lot from them.

Tanya, you're in Australia! I had forgotten that; I need to see whether you started or added to an Australia folder.

Tanya where are you? I have friends who found pretty solid bookstores in Melbourne.

Jenny wrote: "Tanya where are you? I have friends who found pretty solid bookstores in Melbourne."

I'm on the Gold Coast, which is known for sun and surf, not books! I can usually find stuff online or up in Brisbane, but I love going to Melbourne bookshops (or Melbourne shopping generally) - they're another world.

Ooh I've been to Gold Coast for one day, so beautiful! Okay cheers, I just want you to be able to get to books, don't mind me.

Mikki wrote: "Tanya wrote: "Mikki wrote: "Oh, you're of the Kindle variety! :D"

Ipad actually ... but I usually only ever buy electronic from Amazon as their freight costs to Australia are pretty horrible ... p..."

Wow! Not that is expensive. Amazon has free shipping for books here in Germany, otherwise I'd never use it. I've got a bookstore close to where I live and they can order any book I wish. German books always arrive the next day, English books might take two days, so it's really fast, just not as convenient as Amazon for me as I need to pick up the book from the store the next day.

Also, the one good thing about the Prime Membership is that you have free access to their streaming. A little bonus.

Ilona, are most of your books categorized by setting or origin of author?

Mikki,
I have Prime Membership and know nothing about access to their streaming. Can I get whole movies?

Yes! Go to their website to sign up. I watch my selections through my Roku box which streams it to the TV (Same way I stream Netflix).

Mikki wrote: "Yes! Go to their website to sign up. I watch my selections through my Roku box which streams it to the TV (Same way I stream Netflix)."

Okay. Thanks, Mikki.

Thanks, Don. I've been having a difficult time choosing a book for The Dominican Republic -- not wowed by anything yet.

Anne wrote: "Mikki wrote: "Yes! Go to their website to sign up. I watch my selections through my Roku box which streams it to the TV (Same way I stream Netflix)."

Okay. Thanks, Mikki."

You're Welcome! I'm still upset about my Pumpkin Eater Movie. :(

Why are you upset? You said it's in your queue and you're getting it soon.

Mikki wrote: "Ilona, are most of your books categorized by setting or origin of author?"

They're categorised by setting because that's what interests me most. In the beginning, I was looking at the origin of the author, but then I remembered I once read a book set in Laos by an author who was British (if I remember correctly) but had lived in Laos for a couple of years and he portrayed the country wonderfully. Plus, some authors have moved around the world so much that it's hard to put them to one country. So I figured going by country would be easiest.

I took some freedom and added a book for South America in general because I really want to read it and it's set in so many different countries there that I couldn't decide on one.