Life for the very poor in India today. Nominated for Booker Prize.

Good mystery with a surprise ending

Mme Ratoswe, etc.

This is a book for the mature reader. It deals with the grief of people who suffer horrific events and experiences. Stephen Levine has worked in the area of death and dying for many years. He says in the introduction it may be too difficult to read these stories, and they are very upsetting, but you ultimately see a common way to approach grief by softening the heart around the pain.

found it repetitive until heroine's change in attitude....it then became heartwarming

Fun irreverent read

From the first sentence, "Lydia is dead," i could not put this book down. The book explores the complexity of mixed race familial relationships following a tragic loss. The author writes in such a poignant way, you care very much about each personality. Best book I have read in a long time and I highly recommend it.

Loved this book. Well written nonfiction that tells a compelling love story between two cryptanalysts, Elizabeth Smith and William Friedman, who were at the heart of what eventually became the NSA. The story starts in the Chicago area at the estate of a eccentric millionaire who hoped to change the world and prove that Francis Bacon wrote the works of Shakespeare. It proceeds through World War I, Prohibition, and ends with first William and then Elizabeth's greatest feats during World War II.

At 690 pages, this is really too long for a mystery, especially one that is interesting but not riveting.

James Rollins is a worthy successor to Michael Crichton. He is the master of the scientific thriller.