David’s Summer Reading List
Alida describes David’s reading as “dark, eastern European, morose, and depressing.”
Well, mostly. Above all, he looks for books that make us think about the big issues:
life, death, faith, hope, struggle, courage, God, good and evil…. and how people deal
with it all. Here’s David’s list for your summer.
The Search Committee, by Tim Owens
This is fun! A realistic, fictional look at how a church hires a pastor! Some good
insights about church life, enough to face us blush.
The Street Sweeper, by Elliot Perlman
A brilliant novel matching American Civil Rights struggles and the Holocaust, set
mostly in NYC.
American Gods, by Neil Gaiman
Our ancestors came to America with their “gods”, myths, and stories. What are our
“gods” today? A fascinating, mind-tripping, provocative novel.
The Book of Strange New Things, by Michael Faber
A pastor signs up to be a missionary in outer space with the aliens. An interesting
way to explore the whole idea of “mission”.
Redeployment, by Phil Klay
Powerful short stories that show the human cost of war, by an Iraq War Veteran.
Gutenberg’s Apprentice, by Alix Chrstie
The competition, intrigue, and personalities behind the first printing press and the
Gutenberg Bible.
The Book of Unknown America, by Christine Henriquez
A beautiful, heart-felt novel about the immigrant experience in America.
The Blind Man’s Garden, by Nadeem Aslam
Aslam’s novels open up Islam and Afghanistan brilliantly.
The Opposite of Loneliness, by Marina Keegan
Keegan died shortly after graduating from Yale three years ago. This collection of her
writings shows the loss of a true voice of her generation.
In Paradise, Peter Matthiessen’s final novel.
One hundred and forty pilgrims spend a week on a “retreat” in Auschwitz, observed
by a professor. How should we remember? Can we observe from a distance?
A Curse on Dostoevsky, by Atiq Rahim
Take Dostoevsky’s classic “Crime and Punishment”, set in now Afhanistan, and come
away with first-rate knowledge of that broken world and Islam within in.
Children of Dust, by Ali Eteraz
A true and spellbinding story of a Muslim boy’s childhood in Pakistan, teenage years
in America, and his relationship with Islam. A deep, thorough look.
The UnAmericans, by Molly Antopol
Impressive short stories, which would be better titled “not yet American”; stories of
people near and far to America.
Patience with God, by Tomas Halik
The most important Christian book I have read in decades. Halik is a widely popular
priest in Prague, after year of Communist oppression.
e.e. cummings, by Susan Cheever
Excellent biography of the avant-garde poet, his life and times.
Citizen: An American Lyric, by Claudia Rankine
A prose-poem, really vignettes, on subtle and not-so-subtle racism right now.
Act of God, by Jill Ciment
A quirky short novel that looks at reactions to inexplicable events that turn life upside
down.
And the Mountains Echoed, by Khaled Hosseini
Another novel by the author of The Kite Runner, exploring the sacrifices the families
make, emerging from his experiences in Afghanistan.
NOTE: David will teach his annual course on “Literature That Feeds
our Faiths” at the Fairfield Senior Center September-October. For
information and to register call 203-256-3166