Thanks to everyone who participated, we had a super fun (yes, fun) Zoom book club meeting last weekend. What a blast to see the great range of books we picked out for each other. Better yet is the intellectual curiosity of this smart group, who brought insight and context to these interesting titles. Thanks everyone!
Special thanks to Ashley, who was the top Elf, organizing the entire event including the Secret Santa drop-offs. What a great job! And our delivery elves Karin and Julie, who went way above and beyond, including multiple trips to retrieve wayward packages. Christmas doesn't work without the elves.
Our January book, culled from this admirable set of titles, is The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek, by Kim Michele Richardson. This novel is based on the true story of the Blue People of Kentucky and FDR's Pack Horse Library Project that brought literacy and hope to Appalachian children in the depression. I'm in! Unfortunately, so is the rest of Richmond, I am 48th of 48 on the library list.
Unless something changes, January will have to be a Zoom meeting as well. Would Tuesday, Jan. 19 at 6:30 suit? Can you believe we finally are getting to 2021?
February also got an assignment as we had so many choices. The book is The Irish RM by E. Somerville and Martin Ross. This may be familiar as a Masterpiece Theater program as well as for its fox-hunting. February's meeting will be Feb. 16, also at 6:30, which adheres to our practice of the third Tuesday of the month. There is nothing magic about that, we can always rearrange if it suits us all better.
And so, here is the list of books, including to and from whom they came:
The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek and A Woman of No Importance by Sonia Purnell. Purnell's book is about Virginia Hall, an American spy during WWII, non-fiction! To Ashley from Jean.
Green Lights by Matthew McConaughey, a memoir. To Jan from Maggie.
Before We Were Yours, by Lisa Wingate. A big bestseller about children taken from their parents and put into a Tennessee orphanage, and the aftermath. To Margo from Wendy.
The Irish RM, Irish country stories set in the the early 20th century. Fun! To Mary from Sally. This was from an earlier Christmas swap originally from Ashley.
The Overstory by Richard Powers. Ostensibly about trees and their canopy above us, it includes much more than that. To Sally from Margo
A Walk in the Woods, by Bill Bryson. Clearly widely read and a group favorite, Bill Bryson is hard to beat as a humorist and generally agreeable author. To Karin from Carol.
Circe, by Madeline Miller. A retelling of the Odyssey from Circe's point of view, making her journey to powerful protagonist the main draw. To Julie W. from Ashley, extra credit for recycled wrapping paper!
Pigs by Johanna Stoberock, a fiction/fantasy novel that asks hard questions. To Celia from Jen.
The Guest List, by Lucy Foley, a murder mystery with style, to Barbara from Karin.
Becoming Duchless Goldblatt, by anonymous. Someone decides to reinvent themselves as an elderly aristocrat on Twitter, and this is the outcome. Sounds fun! To Julie J. from Lynn. There is a line to borrow this one when Julie is done with it.
The Vanishing Half, by Brit Bennett. The story of twins, girls who chose different lives, one to pass as white, the other to remain in her black identity. A novel, it has gotten lots of accolades this past year. To Wendy from Rene.
The Marriage of Opposites, by Alice Hoffman and Victoria, by Daisy Goodwin, both novels based on historic figures. In the first, Alice Hoffman retells the story of Rachel, a strong-willed girl born in St. Thomas who later becomes the mother of Claude Pissaro. The second imagines again the life of Queen Victoria, in the days and years just after, at age 18, she finds herself as the Queen of England. They sound great. To Jean from Julie J.
Carrying Independence by Karen Chase, a local author, a novel about the Revolutionary War and the attempts to safeguard the Declaration of Independence from the British. To Lynn from Susan, this book was signed by the author, a lovely and thoughtful touch.
The Mystery of Henri Pick, by David Foenkinos. Described as a comic mystery enriched by a deep love of books, this one sounds like a romp. Interestingly the last book by this author was about Charlotte Salomon, a young jewish artist killed by the Nazis, who left behind a heart-breaking body of work, so this is quite a departure. To Rene from Mary.
The Complete Stories of Truman Capote. From this distance, it is easy to forget just how gifted Truman Capote actually was. Despite the caricature of his later life, Capote was a master of the short story. This anthology includes "A Christmas Memory", perhaps one of his most enduring works. To Carol from Barbara.
An Anthropologist on Mars, by Oliver Sachs. Collected stories of people with affliction, who overcome and thrive in the most improbable ways, written with empathy and understanding by one of our great story tellers. To Maggie from Celia.
Humankind by Rutger Bregman. Subtitled "A Hopeful History", this book finds the optimism ahead of us. To Fiona from Julie W. Fiona sadly couldn't join us, we missed you!
Please let me know if I missed anyone or anything or got the tos and froms wrong. Thank you all for Zooming in!
Happy New Year and see you in January!
