BOOK REPORT--

Salt to Summit by Daniel Arnold

This is an excellent read about a grueling hike from Death Valley (at 282 feet below sea level) to the peak of Mt. Whitney, 14,505 feet above sea level.  The author, with a Master of Fine Arts degree in creative writing, is a wordsmith of sizzling quality.  He spent 17 days on this hike avoiding all modern things like roads and trails in his quest to sample the experience of his historic predecessors.  He uses a boatload of very original and illuminating metaphors in constructing his very enjoyable tale.


Basket Case by Carl Hiaasen

To me, Hiaasen seems to write like a guy with a constant grin on his face.  In this yarn he is a veteran reporter permanently demoted to writing for the obituary page after slam-dunking his boss at a board meeting.  He then goes on to validate his journalist credentials by solving a complex murder case and falling in love with his youthful editor after a boat battle on an alligator-infested, storm tossed Lake Okeechobee.  Fun read.


The Confession by John Grisham

Another speed-read by one of my favorite authors who, by the way, continues to write his own material (unlike many of his popular contemporaries) and I salute that.  This tale involves a young black fellow who is wrongly accused of murdering a popular white female classmate and, under extreme pressure confesses.  Wrongly.  Convicted, he spends nine years on death row and despite a herculean effort of defense is executed--just hours before the real bad guy confesses.  Stunning story line!  Thanks again Mr. G.


Expelled by Luke Harding

Harding, a correspondent for the British newspaper The Guardian, shares his haunting account of the perils faced by a principled journalist who dares to tell the truth in describing modern Russian government under Vladimir Putin as a "virtual mafia state".  He story is a compelling portrait of Russian government descending into--and beyond--the corruption of its horrendous history under Communism.  I shuddered during this read in recalling Obama had garnered the support of people like Putin, Chavez and Castro's family in his (Obama's) current campaign for reelection.