Dianestm Global Reading

I will be including books based on the location they are set in and not the author.

Will be interesting to see how far I can get.


visited 34 states (15.1%)
Create your own visited map of The World

AUSTRALIA / PACIFIC

AMERICAN SAMOA

ANTARTIC
The White Darkness by Geraldine McCaughrean

AUSTRALIA
Slap by Christos Tsiolkas

COOK ISLANDS
FIJI
FRENCH POLYNESIA
GUAM
KIRIBATI
MARSHALL ISLANDS
MICRONESIA
NAURU
NEW CALENDONIA

NEW ZEALAND
Bonkers by Michelle Holman
Eating Peacocks by Barbara Else
Dreamboat Dad by Alan Duff
Sonata for Miriam by Linda Olsson
Swimmers Rope by Stephanie Johnson
Picking up the Pieces by Heather Marshall
Mothers Day by Laurence Fearnly
The Life and Death of Laura Friday and Pavarotti her Parrot by David Murphy

NIUE
NORFOLK ISLAND
NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS
PALAU
PAPUA NEW GINEA
PITCAIRN ISLANDS
RAROTONGA & COOK ISLANDS
SOLOMON ISLANDS
TONGA
TUVALU
VANUATU
WESTERN SAMOA

EUROPE

ALBANIA
ANDORRA
ARMENIA

AUSTRIA
The Morning Gift Eva Ibbotson

AZERBAIJAN
BELARUS

BELGIUM
I Choose to Live Sabine Dardenne

BOSNIA
The Cellist of Sarajevo Steven Galloway

CHANNEL ISLANDS

CROATIA
Trespass Valerie Martin

CYPRUS
CZECH REPUBLIC
DENMARK
ESTONIA
FAROE ISLANDS

FINLAND
Let the Northern Lights Erase Your Name Vendela Vida

FRANCE
The Piano Shop on the Left Bank Thaddeus Carhart

GEORGIA

GERMANY
Red Rage Brigette Blobel

GILBRALTAR

GREECE
The Island Victoria Hislop

HUNGARY

ICELAND
Silence of the Grave Arnaldur Indridason

IRELAND
The Woman Who Walked into Doors Roddy Doyle

ITALY
Death at La Fenice Donna Leon

LATVIA
LIECHTENSTEIN
LITHUANIA
LUXEMBOURG
MACEDONIA
MALTA
MOLDOVA
MONACO
MONTENEGRO
NETHERLANDS

NORWAY
Don't Look Back Karin Fossum

POLAND
PORTUGAL

ROMANIA
The Keep F Paul Wilson

RUSSIA
Child 44 Tom Rob Smith

SAN MARINO
SERBIA
SLOVAKIA
SLOVENIA

SPAIN
The Club Dumas Arturo Perez-Reverte

SWEDEN
When the Snow Fell Henning Mankell

SWITZERLAND
The Unfinished Angel Sharon Creech

UKRAINE

UNITED KINGDOM
Made in Heaven Adele Geras - England

VATICAN CITY

visited 7 states (14%)Create your own visited map of The United States

Massachusettes
Tethered by Amy Mackinnon

New York
The Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt

California
A Step From Heaven by An Na

Washington
Stuck in Neutral Terry Trueman

Kansas
Dark Places Gillian Flynn

Missouri
Sharp Objects Gillian Flynn

Oregon
One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest Ken Kesey

AFRICA

ALGERIA

ANGOLA
BENIN

BOTSWANA
The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency Alexander McCall Smith

BURKINA FASO
FURUNID
CAMEROON
CAPE VERDE
CENTRAL AFRICIAN REPUBLIC
CHAD
COMOROS
CONGO BRASSAVILLE
CONGO KINSHASA
BIJIBOUTI
EGYPT
EQUATORIAL GUINEA
ERITREA

ETHIOPIA
Cutting for Stone Abraham Verghese

GABON
GAMBIA
GHANA
GUINEA-BISSAU
GINEE CONAKRY
IVORY COAST
KENYA
LESOTHO
LIBERIA

LIBYA
In the Country of Men Hisham Matar

MADAGASCAR
MALAWI
MAIL
MAURITANIA
MAURITUS

MOROCCO
Secret Son by Laila Lalami

MOZAMBIQUE
NAMIBIA
NIGER
NIGERIA
REUNION
RWANDA
SAO TOME AND PRINCIPE
SENEGAL
SEYCHELLES

SIERRA LEONE
Bite of the Mango Mariatu Kamara

SOMALIA

SOUTH AFRICA
Spud John Van de Ruit

SUDAN
SWAZILAND
TANZANIA
TOGO
TUNISIA
UGANDA
WESTERN SAHARA
ZAMBIA
ZIMBABWE

ASIA

AFGHANISTAN
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini

BAHRAIN
BANGLADESH
BHUTAN
BRUNEI
CAMBODIA

CHINA
Ties that Bind, Ties that Break Lensey Namioka

EAST TIMOR

INDIA
The Heros Walk by Anita Rau Badami

INDONESIA
IRAN
IRAQ
ISAREL
JAPAN
JORDAN
KAZAKHSTAN
KUWAIT
KYRGYZSTAN
LAOS
LEBANON
MALAYSIA
MALDIVES
MONGOLIA
MYANMAR
NEPAL
NORTH KOREA
OMAN
PAKISTAN
PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY
PHILIPPINES
QATAR

SAUDI ARABIA
The Night of the Mi'raj Zoe Ferraris

SINGAPORE
SOUTH KOREA
SRI LANKA
SYRIA
TAIWAN
TAJIKISTAN
THAILAND

TURKEY
Gardens of Water by Alan Drew

TURKMENISTAN
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
UZBEKISTAN
VIETNAM
YEMEN

AMERICAS

ANGUILLA
ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA
ARGENTINA
ARUBA
BAHAMAS
BARBADOS
BELIZE
BERMUDA
BOLIVIA
BRAZIL
BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS

CANADA
Still Life Louise Penny

CAYMAN ISLANDS
CHILE
COLOMBIA
COSTA RICA
CUBA
DOMINICA
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
ECUADOR
EL SALVADOR
FALKLAND ISLANDS
FRENCH GUIANA
GREENLAND
GRENADA
GUADELOUPE
GUATEMALA
GUYANA
HAITI
HONDURAS
JAMAICA
MARTINIQUE

MEXICO
Into The Beautiful North by Luis Alberto Urrea

MONSERRAT
NETHERLANDS ANTILLES
NICARAGUA
PANAMA
PARAGUAY
PERU
PUERTO RICO
SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS
SAINT LUCIA
SAINT VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES
SURINAME
TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO
TURKS AND CAICORS ISLANDS
URUGUAY
VENEZUELA
VIRGIN ISLANDS

The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway

5 stars

It follows three stories - four, if you include the cellist's - of trying to survive and retain one's humanity while living in Sarajevo during the 1992-96 siege. The two men's stories (Keenan and Dragan) are particularly poignant and thought provoking: One man, a husband and a father, who is getting water for his family - a death defying act - and the other man who is trying to cross the city to get bread and have a meal. I've never lived in or through any situation even remotely like what is described, but reading this book makes these situations eerily real.

The writing is incredible - Mr. Galloway is a genius of just the right phrase without showing off. Reading this book reminds me of looking at a beautiful marble sculpture where just exactly just the right amount - no more, no less - has been chipped away. In this case, just the right number of words and the exact choices of words laid in a row in just the right order. Truly a work of art, while being very human and accessible at the same time.

Dark Places Gillian Flynn

4 1/2 stars

The protagonist of this story is a woman, who as a 7-year old child, escaped the brutal massacre of her mother and sisters. One would think these circumstances would almost automatically make this character sympathetic. But somehow, Flynn makes this woman entirely unlikable. When I started the book, I thought I would not like it because Libby was such a dreadful parasite of a person. In fact, I was quickly drawn into the mystery. Libby's testimony as a child helped put her brother in jail for the murders of her family. Libby heard the murders, but didn't actually see them. The psychologists and lawyers managed to convince her, however, that she had, and this was how she testified. Now she begins to question her brother's guilt. Flynn unfolds the mystery bit by bit. I'd sort of figured out part of what happened, but the end definitely held some big surprises. By the end of the book, while I was still disgusted by Libby's character, I felt I understood her a little better, and felt more sympathetic of her despite her many flaws. The writing is dark, kind of disturbing, and very unique. I'd be interested to read more of Flynn's work.

I Choose to Live

3 1/2 stars

Written by one of the two survivors of the 'Monster of Belgium', Marc Dutroux, I Choose To Live is an unsettling, upsetting but genuinley interesting account of what happened to Sabine Dardenne in her 80 days incarcerated in a hideout built into a cellar.

Whilst being very interesting, and I recommend you read this book for a viewpoint not often seen (that of the actual victim of the killer/kidnapper), it isn't a literary masterpiece. It is, however, a quick read that will horrify and sadden you, but grimly astound you also, as it is hard to believe that this actually happened, and is still happening today.

The Keep F Paul Wilson

3 stars

In an eerie mountain fortress in Transylvania, two Nazi officers seek help from outside when an unknown killer sucks out the light and warmth from a room, leaving only bloodless mutilated corpses behind. The Nazis must bring in a Jewish local folklore expert to help them.

The battle has begun: On one side, the ultimate evil created by man, and on the other...the unthinkable, unstoppable, unknowing terror that man has inevitably awakened.

I don't read too much horror, but this book was okay.

Sharp Objects Gillian Flynn

4 1/2 stars

Chicago reporter Camille Preaker’s assignment: to visit her Missouri hometown and come back with career-making coverage of the recent murder of two young girls. However, despite her knowledge of the town, Camille may not be the best person for the job. A self-mutilating cutter not long out of a psychiatric hospital, she requires liberal amounts of alcohol to cope with her painful memories of the younger sister who died on the cusp of adolescence. And the reunion with the rest of her family is no less troublesome … there’s Camille’s half-sister, the mercurial bully Amma. And her cold and very un-motherly mother, who was nevertheless strangely close to both of the murdered girls … In the end, Flynn’s novel is not just a great thriller, it’s a searing portrayal of the damage a dangerously narcissistic mother can inflict on her children.

One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest Ken Kesey

A brilliantly twisted take on the struggle of a hero against the world. The villian, Nurse Ratched, is a perfectly honed tool of the social conspiracy; the hero, McMurphy, is a man with the courage and pride to take on an army; and the narrator, Chief Bromden, is a silent, all seeing, giant of a wise man. Each of them have enough chinks in their armor to keep things interesting, but they are each great stylized heroes that, in another setting could be comic-book super-heroes.

Kesey is a great eloquent writer, and though this book certainly was both a product of and defining factor in its era, it remains even now, a relevant and gorgeous book.

Trespass Valerie Martin

This novel had, in the abstract, very little plot, but was fully captivating and I cared deeply what happened to the characters. In the plot, such as it was, a mother is troubled by her college-aged son's choice of a new girlfriend, while the father, a history professor who's struggling to find meaning in his work, tries to mediate. In a side story, the mother, an artist (specifically, a book illustrator who's working on illustrations for a new edition of Wuthering Heights) becomes obsessed with a poacher on their wooded acreage. The girlfriend's family history in the Balkans also adds considerable dramatic effect in the last half of the book. But it's the characters who are really memorable, along with their experience of war and the dramatic contrast between the Americans' comfortable protest of the buildup to the Iraq war and the girlfriends' family's direct experience of war.

The Morning Gift Eva Ibbotson

Perhaps it is simply that I am in the mood to be delighted by a book or perhaps it is simply that the Morning Gift is truly a book to be delighted in, but I found myself smiling and giggling and railing against the characters when they did stupid things.

It's not a deep book, by any means, or one that offers many twists and turns, but I found myself caring about the brilliant and somewhat ridiculous Ruth, a Jewish girl who is forced to marry a British professor to escape from Austria as Hitler's forces begin to engulf the continent. She quotes German poetry to sheep, earns the affection of even the crustiest of elderly personages, and makes the most dreadful mistakes sometimes.

I'll be adding Eva Ibbotson to the list of authors that I need to read more of.

Spud John Van de Ruit

John Milton (aka Spud), Gecko, Rambo, and the other five members of the crazy eight, as well as Spud's strange parents will have you in fits of laughter from the very first page. So too will the antics of his eccentric English teacher, The Guv. Ah and let's also not forget the blossoming of young love, along with all the hormonal confusion it brings... I recommend this book to everyone between the ages of 13 to 100!

Silence of the Grave Arnaldur Indridason

This is a cold case from a cold country, Iceland. Human bones are found buried on a hill outside Reykjavik, and Detective Inspector Erlendur Sveinsson and his team work to piece together the identity of the bones and the murderer, if indeed the person was murdered.

The reader reads two stories simulaneously. One story is the story of a family where the husband beats and terrorizes his wife and children. You know who you want the victim to be, but you also know it could easily be any one of the family members, one of characters who interact with the wife beater along the way, or another woman who had gone missing years ago.

Erlendur's own family life adds another layer of grey and drear to this suspenseful mystery. His daughter, pregnant and strung out on drugs, spends most of the time unconscious while Erlendur examines his role in his children's lives.

Easy read but not gripping.

Ties that Bind, Ties that Break Lensey Namioka

Can you imagine bound feet with toes that are being folded and you have to relearn to walk. This tiny book written by Lensey Namioka looks at the bound feet culture that had been applied in China. This practice began to die out when a revolution broke out in China during the early 20th century. Third sister in the Tao family refuses this tradition and had to accept bad prejudice from her family because of her "unbound feed". Due to her strong will and efforts, she survives and makes a good life in America with her Chinese husband who accepts her for who she is.

Still Life Louise Penny

I really liked this book, the first in a series featuring Chief Inspector Armand Gamache. This book is set in a small town south of Montreal (Canada) where an old woman, beloved by many in the town, was killed by a hunting arrow through the heart. I loved Gamache, especially the fact that he didn't embody the cliche of the brooding, divorced alcoholic who rebelled against authority. No, Gamache is happily married and is a kind soul who values teamwork. I really disliked the character of Yvette Nichol, the egotistical new agent Gamache tries to take under his wing. She refused to learn and didn't listen to simple instructions and was generally nasty to everyone. I wonder if the character is in future books? I'll definitely be picking up the next in this series.

Switzerland

The Unfinished Angel Sharon Creech

Ethiopia

Cutting for Stone Abraham Verghese

A sweeping, emotionally riveting first novel — an enthralling family saga of Africa and America, doctors and patients, exile and home. Marion and Shiva Stone are twin brothers born of a secret union between a beautiful Indian nun and a brash British surgeon at a mission hospital in Addis Ababa. Orphaned by their mother’s death in childbirth and their father’s disappearance, the twins come of age as Ethiopia hovers on the brink of revolution. Yet it will be love, not politics that will tear them apart and force Marion, fresh out of medical school, to flee his homeland. He makes his way to America, finding refuge in his work as an intern at an underfunded, overcrowded New York City hospital. When the past catches up to him Marion must entrust his life to the two men he thought he trusted least in the world: the surgeon father who abandoned him and the brother who betrayed him. An unforgettable journey into one man’s remarkable life, and an epic story about the power, intimacy, and curious beauty of the work of healing others.

Saudi Arabia

The Night of the Mi'raj Zoe Ferraris

Nouf, a young Muslim girl in Saudi Arabia goes missing, then turns up dead, just a few days before her wedding. A very pious man must team up with a female medical examiner to figure out what happened. Did she run away? Was she kidnapped? What is the family hiding?

Loved it! Beautiful. The author did a great job of placing the reader right in the situations, feeling the discomfort as the fight between the traditional rules and laws in Saudi Arabia clash with more modern ideas.