The Shadow Girls - Henning Mankell

Another novel by Mankell from outside his detective series.  This one explores the issue of illegal immigrants in Sweden.  Three characters - one from Africa, one from Russia and one from Pakistan.  An attempt to both tell their stories and get inside their heads.  Looks at issue of culture clashes, incompatibility of values, the tensions in being the child of an immigrant with different family cultural values.
No conclusions, no easy solutions  offered - a look at what is.  Also, an implied critique of the liberal, intellectual, self-congratulatory class with its head stuck up its ass.  The most sympathetic Swedish character in the book is an older man who runs a boxing studio in a poor immigrant area.

A Legacy of Spies - John Le Carre

A clever reprise of the characters, plots and themes of his first two big successes - A Spy Who Came in from the Cold, and Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.  In essence, a criticism of revisionist history as practiced by politicians in search of cheap moral points.  The modern mania of judging all of history in the light of our current values and obsessions.  Cheap idealism vs.  pragmatism in international relations.
There is an acceptance of human imperfection in his work that is also set against the strident moral certainties of those in pursuit of power and influence.

Must go back and reread those two earlier works. 

Putin Country - Anne Garrels

An in-depth look at the rise of Putin and his era.  The book focuses on a small town near the border of Kazakstan.  It looks how systemic collapse, corruption and right-wing ideology affects people's lives.  Also, looks at the corrosive effects on communism and Stalin on society and social realations, and how this continues to affect social structures (or lack thereof) in modern Russia. Very gritty.  The city which is the focus of the book also happens to be one the nuclear hotspots of post-Communist Russia, which gives the author a chance to look at how opaque both the Soviet and current governments can be for their citizens.

The Library and Other Stories - Ali Smith

A collection of quirky short stories, all centred on libraries and books.  Interspersed with the stories are interviews with people about the importance of libraries in their lives.  Worth rereading.

The Ways of Strangers - Graeme Wood

This book is purportedly a look into the kind of people that support and sign up for ISIS.  In fact, it ends up being a bunch of interviews with armchair jihadis who sit at home in the West and write rabid material for ISIS websites.  Each one has a valid (?) excuse for why they can't actually go and join the jihad in Syria...   Intellectual wankers who run no risk of getting their hands dirty.  The proposed topic would have been much more interesting...

After the Fire - Henning Mankell

Continuation of previous book, Italian Shoes.

Italian Shoes - Henning Mankell

Mankell is a Swedish writer who mostly wrote detective fiction.  While this work incorporates some elements of mystery and detective fiction - murders, crimes - its main focus is brilliantly exploring the complex and contradictory nature of humans, especially those a bit outside the norm.  Or in this case, perhaps simply older?  Lovely evocation of the Swedish Island archipelago and how much the modern word has changed in a couple of generations.