To the Mattresses Week 17 - Across the Pond

With all the volcanic action of the past few weeks, my attention has been turned to Europe, and their inability to travel.  How would I react if I was stuck in place, unplanned,  for well over a week, most likely without the funds to feed and shelter myself?  (I've never purchased travel insurance.)  Would I turn to minor crimes to provide for myself?  Shoplifting?  Pick-pocketing?  Who knows?  But it sounds like a great start to a novel.

Not that Europe is in need of great crime stories.  So, for the month of May, I'm going to focus on Europe, and the stories they have to tell.

For movies, I'm going British all the way.  Movies such as 44 Inch Chest, Rock 'n' Rolla, Get Carter, The Italian Job, Mona Lisa, and countless others will hopefully find their way into my DVD player.  I'm ready to get more than enough Michael Caine into my system.  That sounds weird.

But fo the twist, I'm going to theme my reading habits as well.  Stieg Larsson's final book in the "Girl" series, The Girl Who Kicket the Hornet's Nest comes out May 25th.  This is cause for celebration, not only for a hightly anticipated book, but also of an entire country's contribution to the crime genre.  Writers such as Larsson, Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo, and Henning Mankell have all written amazing books, or so I have heard.  I've only read Larsson, but The Man Who Smiled and The Laughing Policeman are sitting on top of the pile, waiting to be read.  And who knows, I might not limit the reading to Sweeden.  Both Norway and Finland have great writers as well, Jo Nesbo coming to mind.

Anyway, I'm open to suggestions for any writers I might have not mentioned yet.