Isn't this the perfect time to lose yourself in a captivating novel?

I think it is (Danny's writing this) - especially when the author is my co-host, David K. Shipler.  Dave's new novel, The Interpreter, takes us into the rice paddies and twisting alleys of Vietnam, right after US troops fled the war there in 1973. But Dave explores provocative issues that would resonate in Iraq or Afghanistan or any other country where interpreters play a crucial role for Americans. David Ignatius, the acclaimed associate editor and columnist of the The Washington Post, reviews it like this: "Shipler captures the awful truth that every correspondent knows - that we are unworthy of the brave men and women who act as our translators and ‘fixers,’ the solitary heroes living between two languages and cultures but refusing to take sides." Dave's novel raises provocative questions, sure, but some of my favorite parts are like Vietnam travelogs, painting images of streets pulsing with motorbikes piled with families, chickens and guavas; lush jungles and spidery canals; and Vietnam's foul-smelling but magical-tasting fish sauce.