I, of course, had heard of the Dalai Lama, and have seen posters and bumper stickers that say “Free Tibet”. But I never really knew what it was all about. This book gives a recent history of Tibet through the amazing experiences of three generations of women in a remarkable family. The story of Buddhist nun Kungsang and her family’s escape over the Himalayas is harrowing and moving. I kept looking at the beautiful faces of the book’s subjects on the cover and admiring them for their strength. There will be additional photographs in the finished book which will be a wonderful complement to the story. There is also a great deal about Buddhism in the book, which I found very interesting. This will be a great selection for the International Book Group I lead at our library – there will be lots to discuss.

Like many memoirists these days, when Lisa Napoli experienced a mid-life crisis, she jumped at an opportunity to travel to a remote part of the world – in this case, Bhutan. My favorite parts of the book were her nuggets of information about this tiny Himalayan country: why the Bhutanese paint phalluses on their buildings, the extreme spiciness of the food, why the University of Texas at El Paso designs all their buildings in the Bhutanese style (minus the phalluses, I assume) and the country’s serious pursuit of Gross National Happiness instead of a Gross Domestic Product. As she says, Bhutan was "an ancient, once-secluded kingdom now transitioning at warp speed". A few years ago TV was finally allowed in the country and it has brought images of the US –via Baywatch and Sex and the City. Will young Bhutanese's Gross National Happiness change?

I was interested in this book because I lead an International Book Discussion at the library where I work and we had just read another book about Bhutan. This was a fun and enjoyable read about current events in Bhutan, and I will recommend it to others in our group who want an update about this country, and any other armchair travelers.

How to Build a House by Dana Reinhardt would make a lovely summer read
but lacks the depth of an excellent novel. The plot line follows a
basic summer love and loss story that occasionally overdoes the
comparison between building a house and building a relationship. Also,
the authors attempt at imitating high school love turns what is
supposed to be a story about healing love into one where a
relationship is mainly based on its physicality. Still, this kind of
substance makes it worthy of a "pool side" read. The character are
simple and humorous and the plot is easy to keep track of and,
overall, has a cute meaning.