Animals In Translation, by Temple Grandin & Catherine Johnson

Finished early-September 2012. 3/5.

The Age of Absurdity, by Michael Foley

Completed July 2012. 5/5.

An Ice-Cream War, by William Boyd

Finished early June 2012. 4/5.

The Washing of the Spears, by Donald R. Morris

Authoritative, dense & detailed, almost to an academic level, it covers a lot of ground, including the rise of Shaka & the colony of Natal as a prelude to the main body which deals with the Anglo-Zulu War of the late 19th Century. Completed mid-May 2012. 3/5.

Generations: The History of America's Future, 1584 to 2069, by Neil Howe & William Strauss

Completed mid-April 2012.

The Magic of Reality, by Richard Dawkins

Illuminating & entertaining discussion of various myths & the facts that explain them rationally. Dawkins makes the point that the facts about various phenomena, are just as exciting & interesting as the myths that they have spawned, as he is typically concise, forthright & erudite about the magic of the former. Excellent scientific reading for a younger audience & superbly illustrated throughout. Completed end of April 2012. 4/5.

The Soccer War, by Ryszard Kapuscinski

Completed mid-March 2012.
Another from the famous journalist, & another fascinating read, this time about Africa & its emergence from colonialism. Notable for the author's numerous scrapes with impending execution it also details some of the characters who lead their countries from under colonial rule. It illuminates their personalities & often their tragic fate, with humour & pathos, however not quite as hard-hitting as Imperium. 3/5.

Imperium, by Ryszard Kapuscinski

Finished mid-March 2012.
Fascinating, compelling & often harrowing account of one man's experience of the former Soviet Union. From hellish personal WWII experiences through to survivors stories from the gulags & famines the horror of the former communist state is described through the people it affected & killed. The futility of its efforts at imposing ideologoy for the benefit of a few is tragically exposed through the disastrous consequences it had for the many. Its collapse could not come soon enough & hopefully we'll never see the likes of an empire like this again. 5/5.