PAWAC Reads! Book Club

Four times a year, members of the programming committee select a title for the PAWAC Reads Book Club.  The books could be fiction or non-fiction but all will have an international element.  Each selection includes a discussion just ahead of the selection of the next title.  Whether you attend the discussions or just read along at home, we hope this book club broadens your horizons.  Don't forget you can help raise funds for PAWAC by ordering books via www.amazonsmile.com and selecting Peoria Area World Affairs Council.  The 2019 meeting dates are:  January 27, April 28, July 28, and October 27 (the last Sunday of the month) from 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM at the Peoria Public Library - North Branch.

Current Selection

July 28, 2019 Selection

​The Spy and the Traitor, by Ben Macintyre 

The Spy and the Traitor can be called the Greatest Espionage Story of the Cold War. This is a real-life portrayal of a KGB officer, Oleg Gordievsky, recruited to the British Secret Intelligence Service, where he served as senior KGB officer for 11 years. Under Oleg Gordievsky, a large amount of secret information transferred to British hands.

This book details the dirty and highly risky nature of espionage; As opposed to earlier stories, this is one where Russian spying was beaten Ultimately, he came under suspicion by way of a leak from a CIA officer. A detailed plan for escape, devised years earlier saved his life. The dramatic rescue went precisely as planned. Spying is complex and dirty business. Macintyre does a superb job in this fascinating and true story. This has all the twists of a James Bond thriller and is also  historically accurate. 

Support PAWAC by purchasing your book through Amazon Smiles.  Use this link, or search for Peoria Area World Affairs Council as your charity to support when you make purchases on Amazon!

Sunday, July 28 at 2 pm in the Peoria Public Library North Branch.

In the PAWAC Library

Like War: The Weaponization of Social Media
by Peter W. Singer and Emerson Brooking

Flu: The Story of the Great Influenza Epidemic of 1918 and the Search for the Virus That Caused It
by Gina Kolata

War on Peace by Ronan Farrow

Democracy: Stories from the Long Road to Freedom by Condoleezza Rice

How Democracies Die by Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt
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​Outpost: A Diplomat at Work by Christopher Hill

Writer, Sailor, Soldier, Spy; Ernest Hemingway’s Secret Adventures, 1935-1961 by Nicholas Reynolds

Russia Focus Titles -
Putin’s Kleptocracy by Karen Dawisha; Should We Fear Russia by Dimitri Trenin; Russia, What Everyone Needs to Know by Timothy Colton

Thank You For Being Late: An Optimist's Guide to Thriving in the Age of Acceleration by Thomas Friedman

A Spy Among Friends: Kim Philby and the Great Betrayal by Ben Macintyre.

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On the Bookshelf

Have you ever wondered what international-themed books PAWAC members are reading?  Look no further than the list below.  This list is not an endorsement of the books on behalf of PAWAC.  It represents the suggestions of members.  If you have a suggestion, email it to director@pawac.org for consideration by the PAWAC Reads and Programming Committee.

The Coldest Winter: America and the Korean War by David Halberstam
The Euro: How a Common Currency Threatens the Future of Europe  by Joseph Stiglitz
Red Notice: A True Story of High Finance, Murder, and One Man’s Fight for Justice by Bill Browder
Capital in the Twenty-First Century by Thomas Piketty
Hitler's American Model: The United States and the Making of Nazi Race Law by James Whitman
What We Owe: Truths, Myths, and Lies about Public Debt by Carlo Cottarelli
Gorbachev: His Life and Times by William Taubman
The Alchemy of Air by Thomas Hager
Promise Me, Dad: A Year of Hope, Hardship, and Purpose by Joe Biden
A Constellation of Vital Phenomena by Anthony Marra