I did read Christopher Hitchen's book Mortality. It is excellent.
Norman MacLean's book, A River Runs Through it, is one of my favorites.
In The Valley of Light, Noah tests the water, tastes it, to know who and what might be there. Tonight I am soft. We have heat, unusual for here, and all windows are open, and my thoughts are on the East Coast with my Beloved Kate. She puts things in perspective for me, and softens me with the cast of her light.