Mighty Be Our Powers

Like Barbara Demick's Nothing to Envy (about North Korea's famine from the 1990s), this was a book that confronted me with my embarrassing ignorance about recent world events. In this case, the scale of the Liberian civil war, and the fact that an incredible women's protest movement came out of it. I knew very little about the former, and zero about the latter. So: wow. And a must read, on this account.

Also a must-read since it was gut-wrenching, inspiring, and told with so much clarity and heart. This book managed to pull me out of my not-into-reading-any-more post-holiday funk, because it was absolutely compelling, and Leymah Gbowee's voice was so open and straight.

Definitely recommended.