Every year when we gather for our book swap, I feel so blessed to spend time with such interesting, energetic, intelligent people. Our book choices reflect our similarities and differences and are so additive to the fun atmosphere and great conversation that we have at every meeting. Welcome to Rene Massey, who braved the book swap as her first meeting, so glad to have you. Thank you all and Happy New Year!
Lucky me, I got the number 1 spot and so grabbed the Hamilton musical cast recording and companion book. If you haven't seen the show or heard the music, I really recommend it and it is getting me going for reading our next book which is Hamilton by Ron Chernow. Our next meeting is Jan. 16 at Kathy Baker's (thank you Kathy!) at 6:30.
So, as usual, we had a great array of interesting books to choose from and also some great cards to go with them. Here is the list, including who brought the book - I did not capture who ended up with them, but feel free to ask around and make private deals if you want!
So here it is:
Victoria by Daisy Goodwin - Fiona
Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates - Val
Salmon Fishing in the Yemen by Paul Torday - Rene
Mother Tongue and The Road to Little Dribbling by Bill Bryson - Maggie
Freddy and Frederica by Mark Helprin - Liz
The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy - Gordon
A Man Called Ov by Fredrik Backman - Lynn
I'll Take You There by Wally Lamb
The Red Tent by Anita Diamond - Mary
The Innovators by Walter Isaacson - Jean
Haroun and the Sea of Stories by Salmon Rushdie - Celia
Elephant Company by Vicki Croke - Julie
Hamilton, the Revolution and Hamilton Cast Recording by Lin-Manuel Miranda - Kathy
Howard's End by E.M. Forster - Ashley
There is a reading list for 2017, a super place to start! Thanks to everyone for bringing in such good ideas to share. We had a relatively tame number of swaps, as everyone really seemed to like what they chose. A Man Called Ov changed hands at least once, as did the Hamilton set. Between the World and Me went around a couple of times and so is our February book! Yeah! Val told me about it a while ago and it has been on my list since then. I am looking forward to reading it.
Here are some additional titles that were mentioned as great reads:
Hillbilly Elegy by J.D. Vance
Dreamland - not sure if it is the one by Robert L. Anderson (fiction) or Sam Quinones (nonfiction)
Winston Churchill Autobiography, the first 30 years
For what it is worth, I am haunting the library these days, thanks to Lynn and Julie. Here is my recent list, at least as much as I can remember:
The Hanging Garden by Patrick White (Nobel prize winner)
Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear (a series, I have three of them so far)
Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel (another Val recommendation)
Thus Bad Begins by Javier Marias, considered Spain's most important contemporary author, as well, two of his earlier books
The Bright Edge of the World and The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey. Alaskan lit, who knew? Go for the first one if you are interested.
Rules of Civility by Amor Towles. I may read his next one, Gentleman in Moscow, it has good reviews. I am iffy on the other.
The Dispossessed by Szilard Burbly. Hungarian, sad, literary and central European. What's not to like.
News of the World by Paulette Jiles (winner of the National Book Award for fiction)
News from Spain by Joan Wickersham - really good short stories
Dreams of My Russian Summer by Andre Mankind. This book won both major French literary awards in the same year, unprecedented. He has a long list I want to read.
We have our Feb. date set for the 20th at Fiona's. See you all in January, feel free to add in your ideas on great books to read! Happy Holidays!
