The 2007 List: Top Picks

Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia by Elizabeth Gilbert. Everyone seems to be talking about this book: "Fun quick read for travel and food lovers." … "Read it on vacation and thoroughly enjoyed it." … "A journalist recounts a whirlwind year of self-exploration in three countries. This woman experiences more in one year than most of us experience in a decade! Warning: the section on Italy caused me to crave pasta and wine--well, more than usual. This woman's life experiences are so different from mine. I had trouble identifying with the author, but I still enjoyed the book and found it very worthwhile."

Suite Francaise by Irene Nemirovsky: Several people mentioned this book to me in person, plus I got the following reviews: "Beautifully written tale about life during WWII. The book is wonderful, but three times as good once you read the appendix." … "Loved this book. Story is so interesting as is the story of the author."

A Thousand Splendid Suns by Kholed Hosseini No surprise here, I guess. Here are your reviews: "Follow-up to The Kite Runner. Challenging life of women in Afghanistan during the Taliban rule." … "I am enjoying it, though it's depressing! I preferred Kite Runner I think but am only half way through and it's picking up... it's a good read if you are interested in the plight of women in Afghanistan...not light summer reading!" … "I started reading this one, and it's a page- turner. It' got a historic backdrop of some 30 years of Afghanistan turmoil." … "Unbelievably sad yet uplifting, this story centers on two women in modern Afghanistan and the men who love or abuse them. Not for the faint of heart -- I cried like a baby."