November. I doubt we’ve had such a great autumn in Sweden for quite some time. Autumn is my favourite time of year, with all its colours it’s really inspirational. This month I’ve read several books in several different genres. I’ve read an amazing historical biography by James Wyllie, an inspirational read on leadership and industry businesses by Percy Barnevik..and I also started anew on Margit Sandemo’s beloved romantic series: ”Legend of the Ice People”.

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Leaving Mother Lake: A Girlhood at the Edge of the World is written by Yang Erche Namu, a Chinese pop singer. Sorry to say, I didn’t enjoy this book as much as I thought I would. To me it felt bland, and missing of the essence that makes the words come alive.

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The Best Technology Writing 2010 put together by Julian Dibbel.

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The Warlord and the Renegade by James Wyllie tells of the Goering brothers and their distinctive traits, goals, and hopes while telling of their special relationship with each other. Hermann has always fascinated me the most out of all the ”big” nazi generals/figures. Why? I can’t say, but reading this book really convinced me that Hermann was more interested in the miliraty itself rather than the nazi ideology – and the fact that he hated communists above all else, is no secret, not to him, not to anyone. James Wyllie writes a great book with focus on Hermann’s actions and thoughts in relationship to his brother Albert. A brother who did everything he could to save jews from the growing hands of the Third Reich, but also actively working against war manufacturing and support of the German war ”machine”. Truly recommended read – follow the link and you can read two of the most memorable quotes from this book.

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Jag vill förändra världen, an autobiography by Percy Barnevik. Percy Barnevik is a big name in the industry world. I found his book a very interesting read, very much due to the historical re-telling of his time at Asea/ABB. I very much appreciated and enjoyed reading about his moments with many successful people, from Wallenberg to George W. Bush.

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Legend of the Ice People, #1-6, an almost legendary, or at least well-known, series written by Scandinavian author Margit Sandemo in the 1980′s. A series in historical romance, Legend of the Ice People begins with a young woman, Silje Arngrimsdotter, who lost her entire family in the plague rushing through Norway in the 1500′s. While on the brink of life in the cold outside the city walls of Trondheim, Silje meets with a dark, intimidating creature with unnatural sharp shoulders, and there the story begins…

During the course of November, I’ve read the first six novels out of 47 in the series. They are an easy read, 3-4 hours/book, but the story is captivating (!) – Margit Sandemo is clearly an exception in my reading genres, Legend of the Ice People is one of the few romantic novels that I can barely put down once opened.