This is the time of year when people compile lists of books read in the past year (I've done that) or their intended reading list (that's always a bit deceptive -- like other new year's resolutions -- good intentions, etc.). But for this year I thought I would highlight the books I've read from authors who were substantially formed by a worldview, culture, identity, experience, that is different from my own. There's one qualifier -- these books were read in English, which may not have been the first language of the author, or have been translated from the original language the author wrote in. So that's a thing.
I've been reading books written by authors from outside my cultural framework for many years. When we lived in Egypt in the late 80s, I read a lot of Naguib Mahfouz' books; in South Africa in the 90s, Es'kia Mphahlele, Rian Malan, and Mamphela Ramphele (among many others).
In 2020 about 1/3 of my reading was from "other" authors.
- Maya Jasanoff (The Dawn Watch)
- Brenda Salter McNeil (A Credible Witness and Roadmap to Reconciliation 2.0)
- Tomson Highway (Kiss of the Fur Queen)
- Orhan Pamuk (Snow)
- Soong-Chan Rah (Prophetic Lament)
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