Snake Lake Author:Jeff Greenwald In a circular valley beneath the looming peaks of the Himalaya lies Kathmandu, Nepal. It?s a city of shimmering prayer flags, sacred cows, lavish festivals, and violent political turbulence—and a world that journalist Jeff Greenwald has come to call home. — Snake Lake unfolds during 1990?s dramatic “people power? uprising against Nepal?s long-ent... more »renched monarchy. The story follows Greenwald as he wins the friendship of a high lama who reveals the pillars of Tibetan Buddhism; embarks on a passionate romance with a spunky but curiously unlucky news photographer; and discovers what democracy means to rural Nepali citizens—all while covering the revolution for a major American newspaper. Meanwhile, back in the U.S., Greenwald?s brilliant but troubled younger brother descends into a deepening depression. The author is forced to choose between witnessing Nepal?s long-overdue revolution and reconnecting with an alienated brother in desperate need of help.
Snake Lake is primarily a memoir (though the roles of several characters have been recast). Focused on the life-changing events that unfolded during one calamitous spring, the book weaves a vivid tapestry of Buddhism, revolution, and the often serpentine paths to personal liberation.« less