Books 78-81

78. Charlie Wilson's War - George Crile

If I were rating my reads, this would get 6 out of 5 stars.

I loved this book. A review quoted on the cover says "Reads like a best-selling novel ..." and I couldn't agree more. But it's not a fictional novel, it's an unbelievable but true story of how the Afghan war went from a poorly funded and little known covert CIA battle to the massively funded (but still not truly overt) final battle of the Cold War.

Read. This. Book. It's not a fast read, but it is an amazingly rewarding one.

79. Bones to Ashes - Kathy Reichs

Hallelujah - The end of this one didn't find Tempe in the grasp of the bad guys!

80. Drowning Ruth - Christina Schwartz

Well-written, believable characters and an interesting story line. Once I was into this book, I couldn't put it down. I did find the author's writing style a bit ... disjointed, maybe? It was a bit awkward at times, but still a good read.

81. Go Ask Alice - Anonymous

The (allegedly - some controversy surrounds this) true story of a young girl's journey into drug use, Go Ask Alice is one of those 'must read' books I somehow never read. It's heartbreaking and hopeful, and unflinchingly accurate. A haunting book, one I tore through in about an hour. I enjoyed it even more knowing that Sarah Palin sought to have it removed from Alaska's school libraries.