One Book Information
Past Events |
2007-2008 Book Nominations
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The Creation: An Appeal to Save Life on Earth
Reasons: The author is an extremely influential evolutionary biologist and naturalist.
This book summarizes why there is an urgent need for us as a society to take
action to save our planet and ourselves from the worldwide ecological disaster
that is unfolding. Wilson is known to write trade books that have literary as
well as scientific merit, and this book is no exception. The book is written in
the form of a letter to Wilson's childhood pastor and much of the book concerns
the relationship between science and religion, presented in the context of his
call to action.
Thus, this book centers on an issue of central importance
that should prompt discussion of ecology, biodiversity, geopolitical issues,
relationships between religion and science in working toward the goal of
protecting the future of our and other other species.
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Sweet Diamond Dust
Reasons: It's a one-of-a-kind several-generation look at a Puerto Rican family and the
way in which American influence and economy sort of infiltrates the sugar
industry. Christian Von Haesenbruck (sp) is Spanish is a Ferre expert. It's
really neat!
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Life is So Good
Reasons: This memoir celebrates how the grandson of slaves learned to read at age 98.
George Dawson recollects life in the segregated South, his travels across the
country, and how personal optimism and principle can help one succeed in
life--without the story's being sappy. The story is told in connection with
specific events in American history raised by his co-author, history teacher
Richard Glaubman, a collaboration which raises further discussion points.
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The Art of Happiness
Reasons: The Dalai Lama is one of the most inspriring and interesting people alive
today. His messages appeal to people of all faiths, nationalities, and ages.
This book is an easy read (something I think is necessary after Blood Done Sign
My Name, a great book/choice but difficult to get through) and it provides great
messages to our students. Please read the following review by Brian Bruya from
Amazon.com (http://www.amazon.com/Art-Happiness-Handbook-Living/dp/1573221112/sr=8-1/qid=1165074159/ref=pd_bbs_1/102-7839192-0672914?ie=UTF8&s=books):
Have
you ever wondered what it would be like to sit down with the Dalai Lama and
really press him about life's persistent questions? Why are so many people
unhappy? How can I abjure loneliness? How can we reduce conflict? Is romantic
love true love? Why do we suffer? How should we deal with unfairness and anger?
How do you handle the death of a loved one? These are the conundrums that
psychiatrist Howard Cutler poses to the Dalai Lama during an extended period of
interviews in The Art of Happiness: A Handbook for Living.
At first, the
Dalai Lama's answers seem simplistic, like a surface reading of Robert Fulghum:
Ask yourself if you really need something; our enemies can be our teachers;
compassion brings peace of mind. Cutler pushes: But some people do seem happy
with lots of possessions; but "suffering is life" is so pessimistic; but going
to extremes provides the zest in life; but what if I don't believe in karma? As
the Dalai Lama's responses become more involved, a coherent philosophy takes
shape. Cutler then develops the Dalai Lama's answers in the context of
scientific studies and cases from his own practice, substantiating and
elaborating on what he finds to be a revolutionary psychology. Like any art, the
art of happiness requires study and practice--and the talent for it, the Dalai
Lama assures us, is in our nature.
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The Memory Keeper's Daughter
Reasons: This powerful novel deals with familial secrets and issues surrounding life.
The story is ultimately redemptive and hopeful in a very Augustinian way.
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THE LAST OF HER KIND
Reasons: THE LAST OF HER KIND by Sigrid Nunez (coming in paperback January
1, 2007). Ann Drayton and Georgette George meet as freshman roommates at
Barnard College in 1968. Ann, who comes from a wealthy New England is
brilliant and idealistic. Georgette, who comes from a bleak town in upstate
New York, is mystified by Ann’s romanticization of the underprivileged
class, which Georgette herself is hoping college will enable her to escape.
An intense and difficult friendship is born. Years after a fight ends their
friendship, Ann is convicted of a violent crime. As Georgette struggles to
understand what has happened, she is led back to their shared history and to
an examination of the revolutionary era in which the two women came of age.
Only now does she discover how much her early encounter with this
extraordinary, complicated woman has determined her own path in life, and
why, after all this time, as she tells us, “I have never stopped thinking
about her.” A novel of sisterhood—that granted b
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WE WISH TO INFORM YOU...
Reasons: WE WISH TO INFORM YOU THAT TOMORROW WE WILL BE KILLED WITH OUR
FAMILIES: Stories from Rwanda (Picador; Trade Paperback; 0-312-24335-9;
$15.00; 356 pages). Philip Gourevitch’s New York Times Bestseller and
Editors’ Choice is winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award for
Nonfiction, the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, the Helen Bernstein Award for
Excellence in Journalism, the George K. Polk Award for Foreign Reporting,
the Overseas Press Club Cornelius Ryan Best Book Award, and the PEN/Martha
Albrand Award for First Nonfiction. In April 1994, the Rwandan government
called upon everyone in the Hutu majority to kill each member of the Tutsi
minority, and over the next three months 800,000 Tutsis perished in the most
unambiguous case of genocide since Hitler's war against the Jews. Philip
Gourevitch’s haunting work is an anatomy of the war in Rwanda, a vivid
history of the tragedy's background, and an unforgettable account of its
aftermath. This account will endure as a chilling do
In March 2005, Philip Gourevitch was named editor of The Paris Review,
succeeding the late George Plimpton. Gourevitch is also a long-time staff
writer at The New Yorker, where he has reported extensively from Africa,
Asia, and Europe, and from around the United States, notably during the 2004
presidential election. He is the author of one other book, A Cold Case. He
lives in Brooklyn, NY.
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The Namesake, A Novel
Reasons: The Namesake is the Pulitzer Prize winning book by Jhumpa Lahiri. It is
essentially a story about identity and the struggles that help to define a
person. "In The Namesake, Lahiri enriches the themes that made her collection
an international bestseller: the immigrant experience, the clash of cultures,
the conflicts of assimilation, and, most poignantly, the tangled ties between
generations." It is easy to read and speaks to a wide range of readers. As the
immigration debate intensifies in the U.S., this novel can be helpful in
exploring the immigrant experience and sacrifices from a different perspective.
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The
Inheritance of Loss
Reasons: 1) The Booker Prize judges (the novel took
2006 prize ) called it "a magnificent novel of humane breadth
and wisdom, comic tenderness and powerful political acuteness."
Social justice and immigration are main themes.
2) The last two One Book Villanova selections have been written
by men and have hardly featured women as characters. It's time
for something different.
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My House in Umbria
Reasons: Written by Irish author William Trevor, this poignant novella examines life and
emotional survival in the wake of terrorism. Set in the Italian countryside, My
House In Umbria follows the lives of four Europeans--an aging British general,
an orphaned American girl, a young German radical, and a disillusioned
expatriate inn keeper known as Mrs. Delahunty (from whose perspective the story
is told)--as they seek to recover from a train bombing that radically alters all
of their lives. Recovering at Delahunty's villa in the heart of Umbrian Italy,
each character must learn to confront his or her own demons--both externally and
internally. Comedic at times but profoundly heart rendering in moral and
message, the story examines how one moves forward from disaster and
devastation. It is a story of hope, redemption, and the human determination
that come with pain and sorrow.
Trevor is one of the 20th century's
finest master's of short fiction. His novels are not terribly difficult to
read, but possess a deeper context that begs both attention and detailed
analysis. The ideals, virtues, and conflicts raised by My House In Umbria are
particularly poignant for Americans living in a post-9/11 culture, as it
addresses the ramifications of terrorism both from the perspective of the
victims and the perpetrator (we learn as the novella progresses that the young
German radical is tied to the terrorist bombing). Of greater consequence,
however, Trevor's story examines other forms of "terrorism"--psychological,
emotional, spiritual--and the failed crutches we use to cope with them (Mrs.
Delahunty, for one, is an alcoholic).
The novella was recently made
into an HBO motion picture starring Dame Maggie Smith and is available for a
small fee from Penguin Books.
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The Monkey Wrench Gang
Reasons: Issues regarding preservation and restoration of our
environment are becoming more of an ethical issus each year. The year
2004 was the first time that the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded an
environmentalist, Wangari Matthai, because the loss of natural resources
WILL affect our ability to grow food and will likely be the cause of
major world conflict. The Monkey Wrench Gang (Edward Abbey) brings light
to the beginning of this crisis, in the Southwest US in the 70's, in a
very different, almost humourous way. It follows four characters with
diverse personalities as they try to destroy the "man" that is taking
over their beloved wild land. It is not a book filled with facts, but
one that will likely stir people's thoughts and will definitely provide
a forum for discussion. If anything at all, it will hopefully motivate
students and faculty to be aware of the things they can do to help this
global problem.
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The Tortilla Curtain
Reasons: The Tortilla Curtain is a powerful novel by noted author
T.C. Boyle that deals with issues of race, class and immigration. The
novel is set in California in the 1990's and features the interlocking
stories of two families - one a couple of stereotyical wealthy
Yuppie-types and one a couple of "illegal alien" Mexicans. This work
will provide fertile ground for discussing one of the most pressing
social and political issues of the day.
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Kaffir Boy
Love in the Time of Cholera
Reasons: Love in the Time of Cholera offers a picture questioning
the nature of true love and what it actually means to love someone. It
touches questions of family, fidelity, and the power of relationships in
forming one's worldview and outlook on life. At the very least, it
offers an example of what true love really means-a true friendship.
Given that Villanova is an institution founded on the belief in the
power of truth and love united in a strong community, this book would
make a wonderful fit.
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Silence by Shusaku Endo
Reasons: Endo is a Japanese Catholic who struggled with the
contradictions posed between his faith and his culture. Silence dramatizes
that conflict by portraying the struggle of Portugese missionaries in 16th
century Japan. It raises fundamental theological and cultural questions
such as the meaning of obedience and suffering. It does so in a way that is
respectful of religious attitudes but also critical of the ways they
sometimes foster blindness. |
One Book Villanova is a program
that spans the academic year. Check back for updates to this Calendar of Events.
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