SRI—socially responsible investing—is a concept that is not, it seems to me,  getting enough attention these days. Wouldn’t we all like to feel that our  savings investments are doing some good as well as giving us a nominal return?

There are shining examples of new fields like micro-credit banks and large-scale solar energy businesses, but what about all the other issues that may be on your mind? And how does one figure out the right balance for oneself between this kind of selectivity and potentially diminished investment return? Recently I selected two books that might suit the library, and after reading them have added them to the library. But I need more help with this matter; please let me know what ideas you have.

First, I recommend SRI for Dummies by Ann Logue (2009) because it seems like a balanced overview. One of its suggestions is a Presbyterian family of funds, NewConvenantFunds.com, that anyone can invest in. That fund is committed to following the Mission Responsibility Through Investing (MRTI) guidelines of the PC(USA). The second book, Good Returns; making money by morally responsible investing by George Schwartz (2010), is a strong sales pitch for one fund, the Ave Maria Fund. It is heavy with autobiographical material, seasoned with some political commentary, but relatively skimpy on investment principles.

One other addition this month comes as a result of a recent Kaleidoscope book discussion. If you missed the session on The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy, you may discover this book is for you. In that discussion I learned that this melodramatic novel set in southern India is unique in its descriptions of the characters and their ongoing relationships, with the result that the reader feels grabbed and touched almost constantly.

Other books are being reviewed for possible addition or discard, and your assistance is always welcome. This month one book reminded me of my youth in southern California in the late 1940s when an evangelical movement was gathering considerable momentum. The movement was exciting. Fuller Seminary was just starting at our church in Pasadena, and First Presbyterian Church in Hollywood had more than one pastor who was a “leading light” in the movement. Once when Billy Graham came to the L.A. Coliseum, many churches collaborated to provide the hundred or so trained teams of conversion counselors who were preparing to go to work towards the end of the event.

You might be surprised at what you find on our bookshelves— and how something might grab you. Drop by the library in the Fireside Room and check it out!

Rudy Dyck, Librarian