Mailbox Monday: Books to Think By

Thanks for joining me for Mailbox Monday! MM was created by Marcia, who graciously hosted it for a long, long time, before turning it into a touring event. Mailbox Monday has now returned to its permanent home where you can link to your MM post.

Four diverse nonfiction books came into my house last week:



An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of States: How Taxes, Energy, and Worker Freedom Change Everything by Arthur B. Laffer, Stephen Moore, Rex A. Sinquefield, and Travis H. Brown.  Now, cozying up with a critical and detailed analysis of state tax policy may not sound like the most exciting way to spend your evenings, but the writing is not as dry as the title and description suggest.  It actually looks really interesting.



To Win the Indian Heart: Music at Chemewa Indian School by Melissa D. Parkhurst, published by Oregon State University Press, as part of its collaborative First Peoples series.  Chemewa Indian School in western Oregon is one of the oldest, continuously operating federal boarding schools for Native American children. Parkhurst relies on archival records and oral histories of Chemewa alumni to examine the role of music in the school's teaching program and social life.



The Wax Bullet War: Chronicles of a Soldier & Artist by Sean Davis, published by Ooligan Press, the graduate student run publishing company at Portland State University.  Davis enlisted after September 11, served in Iraq, and came home to, eventually, use art and writing to deal with his demons.



The Queen of Katwe: One Girl's Triumphant Path to Becoming a Chess Champion by Tim Crothers. Phiona Mutesi is an 18-year-old Ugandan chess champion who grew up in the Katwe slum.  She was the speaker at a Chess for Success fundraiser here in Portland last week.  Her story is amazing and inspiring, as is the educational achievements of the Chess for Success organization.