Correction! Update on insights!

Hi all, a quick update - Lynn reminded me that she noted the change in style as Lilly Bart declined and it was Fiona who noted it was a world Edith Wharton didn't know as well. Thanks Lynn for the clarification; you two are brilliant.

Credit where due!

Meeting Dec. 10, what a fun time!

     Well, that was about the most fun book club meeting we have ever had. It was a delight and joy to see everyone laughing and talking and catching up. We had a full house with thirteen showing up! 

     First, our book exchange - a riot! We decided on a Yankee Swap (or White Elephant) format, where everyone's wrapped book went under the tree and we pulled numbers to select one. The person selecting could pick any of the books already opened if they didn't like their own choice. Most were pretty happy with their choices, but it was clear that the Barbara Kingsolver book "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" was the big winner of the evening. It changed hands three times at least! Enough to make it our February selection, along with Michael Pollan's "Omnivore's Dilemma". 

     We were supposed to write a quick note (without our names) on why we had selected that particular book to gift and for those who remembered the directions (not me by the way) it made a big difference and gave some context to the book. This was fun and funny, let's do it again next year! 

     Sadly, by the time we sat down to dinner and  "House of Mirth", it was a bit difficult to focus on an in-depth discussion. It sounded like everyone really liked it, several commented that they had never before read this book and one person said she had never read Edith Wharton!! OMG! Luckily, they got through it all, mostly enjoying it. 

     One excellent comment was that the writing lost its luster toward the end as Lily Bart sank further. Lynn thought perhaps that was because the author was no longer writing about the world she knew and so became less able to convince us. 

     Many of us agreed that the world Wharton created was very believable indeed, at least up to that point. The descriptions and characterizations were just wonderful, and while the people seemed so narrow and shallow, they did seem very authentic. Lilly Bart herself was a wonderfully drawn character, stuck in her world but unable to bring herself to do what it took to stay a part of it. I found that relatively admirable, others were impatient with her unwillingness to act on what she knew was necessary. 

     Net, net a fabulous evening. Our next meeting is set for Jan. 14, tentatively at Maggie's. The book is "Round House" by Louise Erdrich (another of my favorites). The books for February are "Omnivore's Dilemma" by Michael Pollan and "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" by Barbara Kingsolver. These are both food books, so should be fun to have two views. 

Thanks to all who came, I am so happy to be part of such a wonderful group. See you in the New Year! 

Authors can be so much fun!

Hello all, can it really be last Saturday that we met with the author of Into the Wilderness, David Ebenbach at the Fountain Book Store, followed by a stop at the Urban Farmhouse. We had an absolute blast talking with the author, and being part of the hip scene in Shockoe Slip was a welcome change. I am usually cleaning horses and tack on Saturday afternoons, so feeling like an urban sophisticate was kinda nice for a change.

And who better to be a hipster with than David Ebenbach. We owe Fiona a great debt of gratitude for not only bringing us a lovely book with actual likeable characters, but also a wonderful, warm and open author. He was genuinely interested in our questions and opinions and very open with his inspiration for the characters and the stories.  Including the fact that he actually once did lock his mother in the basement; don't tell.

So the Fountain Book Store - on a beautiful Saturday afternoon, right after the Richmond Marathon, with an author event, the place was deserted. We had David all to ourselves and it was a great luxury. What a beautiful spot, at a lovely table in the front looking out over the cobblestones. It was a wake-up call to me though to get out and support our local, independent book stores. The opportunity to wrap ourselves in the literary life in that environment is fast disappearing, so buy your books there!

David spent about an hour or so reading from the book and discussing the characters, the inspiration and the stories. Judith was a big topic as you might expect. As it turns out, she was once a novel and David spent years on it before redirecting to short stories and finding her voice. He talked about compassion for his characters and how much he really loved Judith, not as a creation, but as a living, breathing personality that drove her own story.

It was relatively easy for us to contrast his obvious care for the people of his stories with our last book, A Casual Vacancy, where J.K. Rowling may have liked her characters, but couldn't imagine a different life for them.

The group all loved the book and loved David. I for one, can't wait for his next effort. Thank you Fiona!

On to our next effort, one of my favorite books ever, House of Mirth, by Edith Wharton. We are meeting at my house on December 10 at 6:30 pm. Since it is Christmas time, I want to propose a gift exchange. Can each of us bring a book of our choice, wrapped, and have a random drawing? The book should be one that you love and want to share with others. Write your reasons why on the gift tag - but not your name! What do you think?

Can't wait to see you all!

Our group on 11/10/12...

Our 11/10/12 book group with guest author David Ebenbach, having a snack at Urban Farmhouse.  Our newest member Susan Derco took the above picture, but you can see her (across from Ashley) in the photo below...  

A Casual Vacancy - was there a moral to the story?

Hello all, as usual we had a blast getting together although the general consensus is that Mosaic is not the right environment for us. It is too loud and our usual table is too big for comfortable conversation.

Despite that we had a spirited discussion about J.K. Rowling's first book for grown-ups. We were hampered a bit because many hadn't had time to finish since our meeting was not that long after the publication date. No matter where each of us was in the story, almost all of us liked it with Dawn as a fairly emphatic exception.

The characters drew most of us in and the story moved along with good pace and of course the author knows how to build a plot. Our major question was whether this was just a good story or if she was trying to tell us something.

Dawn thought there were no characters with any appeal and that the conclusion was that the people in this town at least were unable to grow or change in their lives.  Others weren't sure of that but were sure that the town residents were certainly stuck in their ways, reluctant to accept change and for those on the right side of the tracks (or Fields) were pretty darn pretentious about it all.

So, a good read but not Anna Karenina. Or for that matter, House of Mirth by Edith Wharton which is our December book.

As a reminder, our November meeting will be Nov. 10, a Saturday. Our author, Fiona's friend David Harris Ebenbach will be at the Fountain Bookstore at 2pm, discussing his new book Into the Wilderness. Early reviews from our group are really good! We will convene with the author after the public event to the Urban Farmhouse, across from the Fountain for a private discussion. Thanks Fiona for organizing!

 

Our December meeting will be at my house, to discuss one of my favorite books ever, House of Mirth by Edith Wharton. Bring along your favorites of all time, or things you want to introduce to the group so we can plan out as much of 2013 as possible. Our favorite books over time are a great inspiration for future ideas. 

The date is December 10, 6:30 pm and we will have a bit of a Christmas celebration together. As an aside, our group has been together now for over five years. Jean, Julie and I are the only remaining original members, but Mary was not far behind. Thanks to everyone for participating, this is a great group that is truly inspirational. 

Last note, we discussed a number of other books as well. I was stuck in Tinkers by Paul Harding, a true work of art, and so was late to our regular book. We mentioned Lolita (Nabokov), Tinker, Tailer, Soldier, Spy (LeCarre), among others. Remind me of the others! 

Thanks to all! 

Goodbye dear Don Quixote

Well at long last I finished our ambitious summer project of reading Don Quixote and I admit to being a little sad. After so much time together it is hard to say goodbye and I also have lots of questions now that I didn't have 300 pages ago.

For example, who were the Duke and Duchess and why were they tricking Don Quixote and having so much fun at his expense? That just didn't seem right to me and yet the book travels on with no comment on whether  this is acceptable behavior, particularly toward someone they know to be delusional.

Also, why would the good knight suddenly come to his senses on this deathbed and renounce his former life? And isn't it sad that he would then, with no chance of changing the course of his life, see that he had been wrong all along?  Perhaps at that point it is better not to know, but what do you all think?

Jean was absolutely right when she said the last 100 or so pages were the best in the book, I was really unable to put it down once I got to Sancho's brilliant governorship of his insula, his decision to leave it all behind and the end of the Don's knight errantcy at the hand of his neighbor the bachelor.

Now I know why this book has held the interest of so many for centuries. Goodbye, dear Don Quixote.

September - the end of Don Quixote.

Hello to all from gorgeous Montana where Rick and I have come for a week of (hopefully) hiking, trail riding and river rafting in-between hanging out in great towns like Bozeman. Today we lucked into a big treat - the high school's Homecoming Parade down Main St.

We hit the jackpot though with a personal tour of the Museum of the Rockies from a resident paleontologist. This wonderful young man is working on his masters at MSU and is from Louisa, VA. He has discovered, get this, a NEW DINOSAUR!

Despite not being born when the bones were excavated (1985!!!!) Cary was the first to take a serious look at what he describes as a box of bones. Through some pretty exhaustive work, he was able to prove it is a unique species, not a juvenile version of something else. He makes me think I am wasting entirely too much time sleeping at night.

But I digress - we are actually here to talk about Don Quixote with whom I have spent most of my summer. Let me first welcome our newest member, Ashley Silverburg. She naively expected to finish a book in the two weeks she had before our meeting; then she found out is was Don Quixote and over 1,000 pages. Here's the worst part - she got further than I did, all the way to page 695. Way to go Ashley!

As it turns out, only Jean actually finished the book in time for our meeting. The consensus is that we all liked it, but weren't in love with it. One problem was that it wasn't a page turner so there was only so much reading time we could put in at any one time before wandering off to a steamy beach read.

At the same time, it was very entertaining and by now, I am very fond of the old knight and Sancho Panza. Despite so many of his adventures seeming repetitive, I still wanted to spend time with them both and look forward to our time together, which others also said.

The ongoing editorial issues with mis-titled chapters, the beloved donkey disappearing and reappearing without explanation, etc. were a reminder of just how early this novel was and how primitive publishing was at that time. The first part was published in 1605 and the second in 1615.

We were all struck with the way Cervantes included himself, some of his rivalries and the editorial issues as part of the novel. Jean and I both thought that perhaps Cervantes was a bit enthralled with his own voice, enough to seem a bit of a character in the novel itself.

Another thing that struck us was that so many of the very famous anecdotes from the book happen very early on, particularly the tilting at windmills. While perhaps that meant people didn't get very far into the book, it may also be that these episodes were so striking that they really stood out.

So, on to the next book. We are reading The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling. Our meeting is set for Oct. 16. We had hoped to be at Julie's house but that is not going to work now - should we move to the 22nd or 23rd or go ahead at a different location. Please weigh in! Please note this is a Tuesday. Our wandering types, Jean and Val are now in Richmond during the week, so we can branch out from our usual Mondays.

November's book is by Fiona's friend David Ebenbach. The book is called Into the Wilderness. Fiona and David met at an artist retreat. David will be in town at the Fountain Book Store for a signing at 2pm on Nov. 10. We will meet with him for an early dinner (tentatively) around 5pm at Fiona's. This is a Saturday, so take note of that as well. What a treat, thank you Fiona!

As a final aside, Beryl reported that the wedding was wonderful and she had a great time as did her daughter. Pictures to follow. By the way, Jean, can we see pics of your son's wedding as well?

Hope to see you all in October, let me know your preference.

August Recap, thank you Beryl!

Despite being within two weeks of her daughter's wedding AND having her sister in town, Beryl put together an amazing get-together at her house for our discussion of The Shoemaker's Wife. Sadly, we liked Beryl's fabulous brisket and our chance to see each other much more than we liked the book.

Interestingly, the comparison that came up for this book was Jane Eyre, because of all the unlikely coincidences that threw the two main characters together, despite the continents and circumstances that separated them. Jane Eyre came out much the better for the comparison however, as both the writing and the characters were unconvincing.

One thing that several people mentioned is how the mother and brother just disappeared from the emotional context of the book. Despite being described as close and important relationships, once they fulfilled their plot purpose, poof, gone! No pesky emotional hangovers, no future concern, just over and done with. It certainly made me think that I didn't want the (of course handsome and charming) Ciro as my friend.

Those who were lucky enough to read this book while at the beach did like it, because it was an easy and relatively entertaining read that didn't take any effort. There is always room for that and since Carl Hiaasen's Skinny Dip is among our book club reads, no one is casting stones at a good beach read. I just think there are better ones.

And now on to a horse of a different color (I just got a new one, horse that is, and couldn't help myself) we now tackle Don Quixote. Over the past couple of days people have been giving me page updates, as in "what page are you on, I am on ..." There are those among us who may not finish this epic in time for our next meeting which is on September 11, 6:30 at the Blue Goat.

My suggestion is that we forge ahead and just urge everyone to come no matter where they are in the book. If anyone feels otherwise, weigh in so we can consider alternatives. Otherwise, see you then, and please Beryl bring pictures of the wedding!

June, our best discussion yet

If you had asked me what book would generate the best discussion we have had to date, believe me, Home would not have come to mind. In fact, of the seven of us who were able to get to Lynn's GORGEOUS place, only five of us even admitted to liking it.

None the less, we could not stop talking about the book. Even when conversations turned to other topics, it found its way back to the book.

Sooo... what did we talk about? The language, the characterization, the interactions, the time period, leaving home, coming back, staying all along, choosing to change and so much more. Family relationships, life disappointments, pushing away happiness with both hands, indulging oneself, the distant love of siblings, etc.

Some of us had read the companion book Gilead and we had an advantage in understanding the relationship between Ames and Jack which was so much of the tension.

I can't do justice to this rich conversation and the even richer novel. The food was no different so I would like to propose a new format this month. Can each of us post a few sentences about most struck you about the book and the discussion? Don't forget your recipe, there were lots of requests!

FYI, next meeting is July 9 at the Deep Run Hunt Club. This is a bit tentative as that is Pony Club week at the club so I will have to make sure they will be gone when we show up. Our book is
Elizabeth the Queen: The Life of a Modern Monarch by Sally Bedell Smith, a pick from the Book and Author Dinner. Maggie, make sure you come! 

The August book is also a Book and Author pick, The Shoemaker's Wife by Adriani Trigiani, location TBD. Remember that we are gearing up for Don Quixote for September. Plenty of time to knock out those 1000 pages. 

Again, please post your comments from our discussion! 

May - Fiona is just too fun!

Hello all, as usual we had a fun meeting and a wonderful dinner. For the first time that I can remember, I read the wrong book for the meeting! Needless to say, I spent the balance of the time being mad at myself so didn't pay as close attention as usual. One thing that was clear however is that reviews were definitely mixed on The Rings of Saturn.


Several people really enjoyed the way his chapters developed, starting in one place, ending up somewhere  else altogether after covering some amazing territory along the way. Others found that difficult to follow, completely understandably with sentences that could range a page.  While the chapters were ostensibly related to the same trip around England, each read (at least so I heard) as a complete short story, with its own complete, sometimes fascinating world. Still, no plot, no characters, no narrative to follow can make for a tough go. Perhaps this one is best done in bits.

A big welcome to Dawn Cooper, who is joining us from my other book club, centered in Goochland County. If you have not yet met her, just wait, she is another great addition who had wonderful insights into this interesting book and life in general. Thanks for joining in, Dawn!!

So on to the book I read, Home by Marilynne Robinson. Another one that is a bit slow but so beautifully written! We are on for June 12 at Lynn's house. This is a TUESDAY as Jean's son is getting married that weekend and will be traveling back on the 11th. Val is in town on the 12th, so our frequent flyers are both available. Jean, we want pictures! Get to Lynn with what you want to bring, and we will be poolside if the weather cooperates.

For July, we are tentatively on for July 9 at the Deep Run Hunt Club so we can enjoy the beautiful view and pool. If anyone else wants to host, just speak up, nothing is set in concrete. The book for July is Elizabeth the Queen by Sally Bedell Smith. This one was a Book and Author dinner find, interestingly the author is American but she was able to get amazing access to show the more private side of royal life.

Another big favorite at the Book and Author dinner was The Shoemaker's Wife by Adriana Trigiani. Do we want this one for August?

Don't forget the September book is Don Quixote, so get your copies going now so you can finish in time. I have already started and it is amazing. I LOVE it and really never thought I would. Don't let the 1,000 pages deter you, this is beach reading season and this one goes faster than Anna Karinina, our beach read of a few years ago. 

Just a shout-out to Fiona, who is such a gracious and generous hostess, the food was fantastic. Fiona made a salmon/mango/potato chip entree that was to die for, Lynn brought Elderberry eau d'vie that was great with the prosecco, Jean brought cupcakes that were huge and delicious and there was lots else that disappeared because it was all so good! Thanks everyone for all you do to make this group so much fun and so interesting. 

Our April Meeting

We could not have had a more glorious picnic for our book group, overlooking the beautiful fields of the Deep Run Hunt Club. The weather was perfect, the sun going down through the trees just idyllic and the food excellent. Thanks to all who brought yummy stuff, it was a great meal in a fabulous setting. At least two of us (me and Kathy) would like to use this as our permanent location, it was so lovely. Certainly we will do it again, hopefully back on our usual schedule.

The conversation was also great, we had a long, wide-ranging discussion about the book and the movie, since most of us had seen it. There was certainly a lot to talk about, starting with the point of the book - the incredibly difficult to imagine  Hunger Games. We had a good bit of chat about why this particular book is so popular with both teens and adults when the topic is so dark. Some postulated that teens were drawn to the story that gave the characters control over their lives, and adults were drawn to the philosophical questions posed by the book about control of society and the role of government.

Beryl brought up an excellent point about the number of times and in what detail food was described in the book - both in the starving regions and in the overfed capital. That led to some discussion about how people  who have at some point been food deprived remain focused on food for the remainder of their lives, it is so traumatic an experience. The dramatic contrast between the pampered, shallow and silly people in the capital and the gritty, practical populations elsewhere was also a point of discussion. Why keep the capital in such luxury? Why starve the rest? What motivated those careers? Very interesting. 

Interestingly, the only characters that generated much discussion were Peeta (a sad name choice for a baker's son Sara noted) and Rue, both of whom were favorites. Katniss was a little too superhero like and capable but still worked well enough. That led to a lot of discussion about motivation, the will to survive, the differences in strategies across the tributes, and why people who are doomed to kill each other make alliances. And why did Peeta join in the alliance? One thought was that individuals make choices as they go along, trying to best they can. There is no doubt the will to survive is a very big part of human nature (remember Lou Zamparini?). Yet Peeta was adamant that he would not allow the situation to turn him into someone he did not want to be. This moved on to discussions about people who strive for success by following the conventional path, like the careers versus those who create a new way to succeed, like Katniss. 

Another point of discussion was the extrapolations the movie included that expanded the role played by the President and the Gamekeeper in the actions within the Arena and created the control room that manipulated the weather and the events. While it was clear this was going on in some way, the subplot of the Gamekeeper being held accountable for Katniss's outsmarting the Games was all new. Sara and others felt this was the way the movie was able to fill in Katniss's thinking which is a big part of how the book moves the plot along. 

Thanks as usual to Val for coming prepared with questions - evidently this book is already being taught in school and she had a teacher's guide! 

The conclusion was that we all liked it. Yeah! Now on to the next book, May 7 at Fiona's. The book is Rings of Saturn by W.G. Sebald. This is a new author for me and now that I have read a little about him I can't wait to read this book. I will forward on the NYT review and the obit Fiona sent me. Sadly, the author was killed in a car accident in 2001, at the age of 57.  He wrote in German and his books were only available in English a decade after they were written. His work sounds amazing, so thanks to Fiona for the idea. 

We also agreed to take on the summer project of reading Don Quixote. Our goal is to read the book for our September meeting. Since it is 1,000 pages, we wanted some time to finish it. However, we will still read other books and meet through the summer, hopefully with fast reads to make time for the big project. The recommended translation of Don Quixote is by Edith Grossman, who is the translator for Gabriel Garcia Marquez among other notables. From what I read, it is hard to go wrong with most of the translations, and Amazon has some good information contrasting the translations in the reviews of the Grossman book for those who want more info on that. 

For our June meeting, we agreed on Home by Marilynne Robinson. This is a lovely and sad book, beautifully written. I am now reading another of her books that cover the same families in the same small Iowa town called Gilead, I recommend that too. We are hoping for an inspiration from the Book and Author dinner on May 1 for the July book. November will be the new JK Rowling novel for adults called The Casual Vacancy. It comes out on Sept. 27 so that seems a bit tight for the October meeting but we could try for then if we want. 

Other books mentioned during the eventing include Austerlitz by WG Sebald, Cloudstreet and Breath by Tim Winton and a book of short stories that Fiona brought and I can't remember the name! Sorry! Also, for our group's old timers, our friend AJ Jacobs has a new book on getting fit, sure to be a funny read. 

See some of you on May 1 at the Book and Author dinner! I will also post this on our blog. 

Valerie's Table

Val, hope you enjoyed YOUR table! :))

Cutting for Stone - a Favorite!

Well, going to Kathy Baker's house for dinner is definitely the thing to do. Thank you Kathy for setting such a beautiful table and for having party favors! That is above and beyond and I know everyone enjoyed it so much, I certainly did. I lucked out with a book journal, a notepad and yummy smelling soap; there is no doubt I will say yes if Kathy invites me again. Val got some pictures, can you post them?

Welcome to Susan Valerie who joined us for the first and hopefully not the last time.

Even better, most people really liked the book. We had a compelling and interesting discussion, with lots of talk about the insider/outsider elements of the story. Each of the main characters had his or her own issues with belonging or not, being at home or not, issues that in the end seemed to drive the course of their lives. There were so many good characters, and interesting ones.

Another point of interest was the history and background of Ethiopia, in particular its long christian history and the attitude of the American benefactor towards that history. The rooms filled with bibles rather than needed medicines and supplies really made an impact as well.

Thanks to Val for again bringing real live book club questions that sparked discussion, and to everyone for really digging in to a great, lively talk about a great book.

Our next book is The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. We did not set a date and place, anyone want to volunteer? Our next date should be April 9, I will be traveling that day and the 16th, but might be able to get back in time for either of those days. What works for everyone? Let me know.

Meeting Feb. 6, 2012, Next meeting March 12, 2012

Hi, what a good time we had! Wendy had a lovely table set for us and the food was wonderful. Wendy's husband Ron caught beautiful Rockfish that very day and we were the lucky recipients. Thanks so much Wendy and Ron! The rest of the meal wasn't so bad either, the noodle kugel, Fi's fantastic bread, great cheeses and Maggie made her killer shortbreads with strawberries. Yum. I had to take some home the are so awesome, ostensibly for Rick. Ha!

As far as the book goes, we had a very lively and long discussion about State of Wonder by Ann Patchett. While almost everyone liked the book and enjoyed reading it, there were certainly some aspects that were less than ideal. I thought the story was totally unbelievable and so were the characters, not much else left except the writing, which I liked quite a bit. Everyone else like the book a lot but also agreed that the story and characters were over the top.

Val brought along some real live book club questions on the book which actually very useful in getting us to think about the book in new ways. Beryl was a superstar, pointing out the symbolism of the names. Milton, guiding people along their journeys, and Easter, rising from his deafness and reappearing to his tribe, are two very good examples. She also raised the question of whether Marina was pregnant at the end, a bit of an open question once she laid out her evidence. (She clearly paid more attention than I did!)

There was some discussion also about the contrast between Minnesota (Val being the resident expert) and the jungle and the clear distinction between the descriptions and impact on Marina of the two landscapes. While the jungle was dark, menacing and required constant vigilance, Minnesota's air was clear, the atmosphere light and the open plains pretty liberating after the tangle of the jungle.

There was consensus that the book built quite a story, then rushed through the resolution entirely too quickly and neatly, with really major things happening with little comment or input. Finding Anders, giving back Easter, the quick end of Dr. Swenson's pregnancy (and with a rare birth defect, mentioned years earlier in a lecture she gave and dismissed as highly unlikely), all seemed like tossing everything together in a few pages at the end. Too bad, as the buildup was pretty entertaining.

Our next book is Cutting for Stone. Right now we are planning to meet at Kathy Baker's, she is out of town right now so it is tentative for now. Please CALL Kathy to let her know what you want to bring along as her email access is not consistent.

We also lined up the book after that - who remembers what it was? Not me! See you all soon.