Emergency Sex
Just finished reading Emergency Sex, an amazing look into the existence of three kindred spirits, Andrew, Heidi and Ken, who feel compelled to change the world for a variety of reasons. It covers the time they spend in Cambodia, Rwanda, Somalia, Bosnia and Haiti during the '90s, and the humanitarian crises they experience.
This book is full of spirit, and also disgusting. Not disgusting in the way it is written, or in the spirit of the protagonists, but disgusting in the realisation that people can be so devastatingly brutal to each other. I've read a little about Rwanda, and seen the film Hotel Rwanda, but the graphic first hand accounts of the forensic work of Andrew Thomson were shocking in the extreme. I admired the bravery that they showed not only in the original experiences but also in the honest and forthright writing, where they never fail to question the motivations of everyone, including themselves.
A very important book that puts the stress of western life into perspective as truly unimportant.