BBC推荐：6月必读书单

2. Nick Laird, Modern Gods
《当代诸神》尼克•莱尔德

Laird's intimate and searing look at the aftereffects of violent conflict and religious fanaticism, revolves around two sisters facing personal crises. Liz, a New York-based academic, is preparing to travel to the rainforest of Papua New Guinea to make a BBC documentary about Belef, the charismatic woman leader of a cargo cult. But first she's back in her hometown of Ballyglass in Northern Ireland, for her sister Alison's second wedding. Before the honeymoon begins a newspaper headline reveals Alison's new husband's past as a member of the Ulster Freedom Fighters involved in a pub massacre. And now she is morally implicated. Half a globe away, Liz is drawn into Belef's rituals, with tragic consequences. Finely etched, impeccably structured, Modern Gods has the enduring echoes of a classic. (Credit: Viking)
莱尔德围绕着两姐妹身上发生的危机，近距离审视了暴力冲突和宗教狂热带来的恶果。利兹是来自纽约的学者，她准备前往巴布亚新几内亚的热带雨林为BBC制作一部关于魅力超凡的货物崇拜运动女领袖比利芙的纪录片。但是，利兹要先返回家乡巴利格拉斯——位于北爱尔兰的一个小村落，参加姐妹艾莉森的第二次婚礼。艾莉森开始度蜜月之前，一家报纸的头条新闻曝光了其新婚丈夫的过往，他曾是阿尔斯特自由战士组织的成员，这个组织与一起酒吧大屠杀有关。于是现在艾莉森也被牵连其中，遭到道德批判。而在地球的另一端，利兹被比利芙的宗教仪式所吸引，最终引祸上身。《当代诸神》文笔细腻，结构缜密，是一部耐人寻味的经典之作。（来源：维京出版社）