This episode of reading around the world brings me to Mexico and Pedro Paramo. It’s a country that I’ve spent a lot of time in, as a tourist and a Fulbrighter, and I love it so much. This book is a classic of magical realist literature in a new translation that shows why it has… [Read More]
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Monaco: meet Me in Monaco
I found Meet Me in Monaco: A Novel of Grace Kelly’s Royal Wedding in a Little Free Library and grabbed it, because Monaco is a country and I have a long list of countries to read about. This is a fun read that moves along at a nice pace, about people who are tangentially involved… [Read More]
Bangladesh: The Good Muslim
I started this books around the world project in the pandemic, when travel was off limits. It’s taken longer than I thought it would, in part because there are so many countries! It’s a big world out there, and not every place has a lot of good books written about it. Take Bangladesh. I had… [Read More]
Options: Trading with Twisted Sister
With some option strategies, it’s not clear if the strategy was designed to meet a need or to justify a clever name. That’s the case with the Twisted Sister. The opposite of the equally fanciful Jade Lizard, it is a short strangle plus a long put. It offers modest premium income with relatively little risk… [Read More]
Benin: Breaking the Maafa Chain
This novel imagines aspects of a true story. Sarah Forbes Bonetta was born into a West African tribe around 1843, orphaned, and captured with the intention of selling her into slavery or using her for human sacrifice. In 1850, she was given to Frederick Forbes, a representative of Queen Victoria who was working to stop… [Read More]
