dour

The NPR Curious Listener's Guide to World Music
$13.95
This is the best book of its kind on the market today - it's simple, thorough, direct, and comprehensive, and serves exactly the purpose it sets out to serve - helping people find new music to listen to from around the world. It's not as dry as I expected it to be, either - Nickson peppers the chapters (divided by country and region) with anecdotes about the artists who make the genres great, thereby humanizing the music. The recommended listening section at the end is also very good, though as he was really only able to choose one or two recommended CDs per genre, it's easy to bicker with his choices if you have a different favorite. All-in-all, a winner, though.

A new history of Dover. To which is added A new Dover guide
$0.99

Wake Up - It's Africa Calling
$0.00

Egypt
$18.98
I am unfamiliar with the artist, I came across this CD all by accident, but from the first song I knew I'd like it. With a very 'world' taste to it, the music is uplifting, playful, and beautiful. As with most African languages, the singing is pleasant, easy on the ear.
What's special about this CD, though, is that there are multiple instruments alongside the singer, which makes for a rich performance. It's almost like a mix of African and Mediterranean sounds -- a mix I like surprisingly well.

There are only 8 songs, but they run 4-5 minutes, so it's not too short, and it's the type of music you could play over again without it being a bother (that saying, the songs are quite different from each other, they just go together well).

Should you like world music at all, or the style of 'pure moods', I think you will enjoy this CD.