Well that was fun!

Our last meeting seems a very long time ago by now, and it was. Thanks to Ashley for hosting what was one of the funniest nights we have spent together, albeit at the expense of long book related discussion.

The departure point for the laugh-fest was the reaction we had to Less by Andrew Sean Greer. Some of us thought it was hilarious and the detached, ironic narrative (and surprise ending) was clearly tongue in cheek. 

Others, like me, found the character pathetic and the humor flat. That kicked off a whole discussion about what one's sense of humor actually is and egged on by the questions Val sent, we had quite a ranging laugh-in. 

So, on the book, it was a mixed review but those who liked it really did. On to the next one, which is Happiness: A novel, by Aminatta Forna. Interestingly, this is a novel about foxes in London and maybe other things as well. I can't wait. 

We will be at Lynn's, June 18 at 6:30.  For those planning ahead, our July meeting will be at Margo's on July 16. We are scheduled to read Babette's Feast, by Isak Dinesen, the first time we have ever repeated a book, or in this case, a short story. There was a reason, but I don't remember what it was, something about food and wine? Wine sounds good, turtle soup, which I remember features in the story, not so much. 

See you all then! 

                                         

Destiny of the Republic - a great conversation starter

What a fantastic conversation we had that kicked off with Destiny of the Republic, a story of President Garfield's assassination in 1881. We started there, went on to the stubbornness and arrogance of some of the men in the book and others we could think of, and on and on. What a great time!

As for the book, those of us who read it liked it. The consensus was that the topic was fairly thin - it was hard to really fill a book as poor Garfield was inaugurated in March, shot in July and after months of sickness and agonizing treatment, died in September.

The story really was of medicine at the time, and the slow, difficult way of progress. The eminent doctors of the time, even if self-proclaimed, were resistant to the idea of germs and wholly indifferent to cleanliness. At the time, only the indigent and doomed went to a hospital. Those who were cared for at home, like Garfield, suffered from ignorance, arrogance and pain from those who claimed to cure them. And that is excluding the madman who shot him.

One of the most interesting aspects of the story was Alexander Graham Bell and his role in developing technology (which Dr. Bliss, the lead doctor refused to use to its fullest) to find the bullet left in Garfield's side. Bell's dedication to saving Garfield was only one of the many tributes to a well-loved and admired man, shot by someone who sought to gain his attention and favor.

The shooter, a deranged man named Charles Guiteau, somehow thought that by shooting Garfield, he could claim his rightful place as Ambassador to France, denied him by Garfield's Secretary of State, at least in his own mind.

It was clear that the author truly loved and admired Garfield, perhaps a bit too much for a really balanced presentation. At the same time, she also obviously adored Theodore Roosevelt in River of Doubt, and we were all perfectly fine with that, as we all loved him too. While the story was one of a painful loss for the country and his family, it was a great insight into a little known period of our history and I was glad to read this well-researched, well-written history.

And on we go to next month, May 21 at Ashley's. The book is Less, by Andrew Sean Greer. See you all there!

"A Well-Behaved Woman" - highs and lows but overall quite good

Fiona Ross from her current exhibition at Page Bond Gallery

What a great conversation about this interesting and informative fictional account of Alva Vanderbilt, her storied relatives and the mores her time. While there is no doubt we all live within the conventions of our times and our societies, by today's standards poor Alva had a very hard row to hoe. She was pretty but not enough to attract marriage with established money, she was impoverished though gentile so marriage to money was essential.  Unfortunately she was clever and capable which did not earn her many girlfriends that might help.

There was one girlfriend though, a friend for life or at least Alva thought so. In the end, this was a book on two levels and both worked - one, the story of a determined, intelligent and hardworking person who raised the social status (all that counted if you had money) of her clan. The other was of a lonely, ambitious person whose loyalties were betrayed with relationships that were ultimately of competition and expedience. That she landed these same characteristics on her daughter showed only the implacable acceptance of what was admired and appreciated once one was wealthy. Happiness was not necessarily on the docket, at least not at first.

As a story, there were two standout sections - the first was the unfolding of Alva working her way into a society closed to her and the Vanderbilts and positioning herself as one of its luminaries. It is hard to remember how rigid the wealthy society was, to exclude such great wealth as not good enough, but maybe judgement is the same now, just on different criteria. Another nugget was that Alva used a consultant, Ward McAllister to help her devise strategy and wangle invitations. Who knew that is what it took!

The second standout section as a story was Alva's brilliant extraction from her marriage after finding out her best friend had a long running affair with her husband William. To find out decades later that your best friend engineered your marriage with her paramour because he wasn't good enough for her but she wanted him around? Not good.  Alva shows her character again though and finds a way forward that gives her some happiness for a short time.

Lost perhaps is her daughter, forced into a marriage of title but not love and certainly not responsible behavior. Looking at the characterizations at the time, and even all these years later (mind you, it is only Wikipedia), poor Alva is a strict tyrant, protecting the family name to the detriment of all around her. As with so many women before and after her, her ability and willingness to get the outcome she wanted for herself and her family drew criticism, complaint and condemnation. It may not be so different today.

I found the delineation of the Vanderbilt family tree very interesting though, and the side story of the Biltmore was a bit of a highlight.

And so, on we go. It is impossible, it seems, to leave the late 1800's. Our next book is Destiny of the Republic by Candice Millard. She wrote the amazing book River of Doubt about Theodore Roosevelt. This one is on the Garfield assassination. Don't despair, she is an amazing storyteller. We are scheduled to meet on April 17 (note, this is a Wednesday) at Wendy's. We need to swap for another venue though as Wendy's is now not available. Any volunteers? Let me know if so.

May is the 21st at Ashley's and the book is Less by Andrew Greer. June is the 18th at Lynn's but no book yet. Put on your thinking cap, see you on April 17!

War and Peace, still good after all these years

It had been decades since I last read War and Peace and thankfully I upgraded from my old version to a new translation that seemed much easier to read. Maybe it is the passage of time that makes the story resonate a bit more than the first time through and now I find it hard to shake the more memorable characters.

I had forgotten that Pierre was fat. I had forgotten that Nickolai Rostov was a spendthrift. (Did you notice how many horses he bought? And the gambling debts!) Sonia somehow drifted away from my memory of the story, as did the wicked French ladies companion that dogged poor Marya's life. And I forgot this was about Napoleon invading Russia, at least when it wasn't about people trying to find their way in a time of war, social change and spiritual confusion, an irreparable shift in their lives.

All of us commented on the riveting writing. Tolstoy projects his scenes in a way that surrounds and subsumes the reader. The ball seems to be going on around you, the snow crunching underfoot audibly, the hounds chasing the wolves just out of your sight, but you can hear them. The characters, at least when you figure out who is who, are fascinating, their perspectives seamlessly introduced.  It is a wonderful romantic novel, with lots of twists and turns, lots of heartbreak and joy, lots and lots of human nature.

It is also an amazing historical novel, and the history is described beautifully. The battle scenes are carefully wrought. Evidently, Tolstoy went to the battle sites and studied war documents, which led him to much of the commentary he adds to this part of the novel. Once he starts on the philosophical discussions of the war, the book changes its tone much more to a treatise on the futility of war and of the role the leaders play in the outcome of conflicts, which is not much at all.

Tolstoy was only 36 when he started on War and Peace but it oddly foreshadows the course his own life took. He became the most famous Russian in the world because of his role in changing education and then much later creating a religious sect that included travelers like those described in the book. The description of Natasha in her married life was much like his own wife Sonya, and he himself was reflected in Nickolai Rostov.

We did have quibbles about the story, particularly how Tolstoy dispensed with those who no longer served his purpose. Pierre's wife Helena conveniently died right at the time Pierre wanted a different life. Sonia, once Rostov's fiancee, just one day isn't so he can marry Marya and save the family from poverty. (And he has the nerve to say "Sonia was sulking behind the samovar.",  as Ashley pointed out, who wouldn't?") The French companion just disappeared from the story, as did a few others who had done their service to the story.

But who cares? It was a wonderful beautiful read. I for one could skip the 100 pages of description of the Free Masons and the 300 or so pages of war philosophy but that would hollow out what is much more than just a novel.

And so on we go. Feb. 6 is our trip to the Congo Mask exhibit at the VMFA with a reception to follow. Thank you Maggie!!

Our next meeting is March 19 at 6:30 at Julie Weissend's. The book is A Well-Behaved Woman by Theresa Fowler. See you all there!

Merry Christmas to all, we have a lot to read!

Thanks to everyone who came to my house for our annual Christmas fun book swap. What a great time! I have to say, we were pretty restrained when it came to stealing books from others, unless it was A Well-Behaved Woman by Therese Anne Fowler which moved around a number of times, leaving some sad people behind. So that is our March book!

March you say? Yes, January is War and Peace, thank goodness I am taking some time off. So much for tourism, I'll be reading. February we have been invited by Maggie to a private tour of "Congo Masks" at the VMFA on Feb. 6 which is a Wednesday. I think the time is 5pm but Maggie will let us know, thank you so much for your kind generosity! The tour will be followed by a private reception, it doesn't get much better than that!

If you are Congo-minded, I did some research on books on the Congo or by Congolese. The first of course is The Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad. It is a great read if you haven't had the chance yet. Another is The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver. A modern Congolese author, Ronan Bennett has gotten great reviews of The Catastrophist, another option.

So March.

As for our books under the tree, wow! What fun we had and the food was both copious and delicious, no big surprise by now. I feel so lucky to be a part of such a smart, well-read, intellectually curious and sophisticated group of people who bring such great ideas.

So here are the books under the tree:

We Are the Lucky Ones - Georgia Hunter
Becoming - Michelle Obama (this one showed up twice under the tree and got traded as well)
Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruis Zafon (another that more than one person wanted)
Summer of Hate - Hawes Spencer. This is about the Charlottesville "events" by a local author
Those We Love Most - Lee Woodruff, daughter-in-law of Judy and Bob. Also popular with the group.
A Time to Be Born - Dawn Powell.  I didn't bring this book, but I spent a goodly amount of time trying to decide among two other Dawn Powell novels and one I eventually brought, she is someone to read if you haven't already.
A Well-Behaved Woman - Enough said, people were dying for this book. I can't wait!
The Riders - our old friend Tim Winton.  Another must read for me, but not before I finish his most recent, The Shepherd's Hut. 
Kingdom of the Blind - Louise Penny. I got my hands on this one and wouldn't let it go.
Unsheltered - speaking of Barbara Kingsolver, her latest.
Empire of the Summer Moon - S.C. Gwynne. Remember when we read this? A great read and a tragic history. One of our newer members brought this, so good to know we are reading things that resonate.
The Makioka Sisters - Junichiro Tanizaki.
The Irish RM - E. Somerville and Martin Ross. I have read this, it is great, first of a couple on this topic.
Before We Were Yours - Lisa Wingate

While I know who brought a few of these, for the most part, it is still a mystery, so fess up if you want.

Any one of these is a great place to start for 2019. We are meeting at Fiona's next time, which is January 22 at Fiona's at 6:30. See you then! Thanks.

P.G. Wodehouse Never Disappoints

The language might be stuffy and the scenarios from a distant era of a place far away, but the human interactions of Jeeves and his charge Bertie Wooster are endlessly entertaining and on point. The endless cast of overbearing aunts and romantic intrigues made for a great comic novel.

Maybe it is hard to separate one Wodehouse novel from another, as they all seem to include a large cast of exaggerated characters loosely based on Wodehouse's own expansive and odd family tree. Bertie bumbles into an adventure, requiring Jeeves, his clever and calm valet, to find a way to extricate him and make all right with the world.

Still, the writing is very clever. As an example, from the Mating Season comes the line "As far as the eye could see, I found myself gain on a surging sea of aunts." Wodehouse often references literary sources including Shakespeare and Tennyson, even A.A. Milne with comic changes. He also uses variations on familiar word formations to create a comic effect, like "de-dogging the premises". His use of puns, his over-the -top characterizations and the underlying truth of the human condition, rendered with affection made Wodehouse a pretty reliable read.

Thanks to Lynn for hosting in her beautiful house, always a treat and thanks to everyone who brought great things to eat and drink! And many thanks to Maggie who has invited the book club for a private tour and reception of the VMFA Congo Masks exhibit in January. Date TBD, but thank you Maggie for this very kind invitation!

Our next meeting is the annual Holiday Book Swap at my house. There has been a change of date - we will now meet on December 17, which is a Monday at 6:30. Let me know what you would like to bring, I am hoping to get an apple cake on the table.

If you are new, here is a quick rundown. This is a Yankee Swap format. Each person brings a book that you think others should read - no need to buy one if you don't want, just pull your favorite off the shelf, wrap it and write a note about why this book appeals to you. DON'T SIGN THE NOTE!! We want this to be anonymous.

Each of us will pull a number, then select a book. If you want someone else's book, you can steal it when it is your turn. The book that gets traded around the most will be our next read, this year in February. Fun!!

See you all in December, so hard to imagine that it is that time again!

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes was an unexpected hit

Wow, was this an enthusiastic discussion about the unexpected fun of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes by Anita Loos.  Thank you Ashley for hosting this lively discussion. Who knew this was such a phenomenon in its time, turned into a movie in 1928.



It was also a Broadway play starring Carole Channing in 1949, which included the song "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend" and a 1953 movie launching Marilyn Monroe. "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend" provided the scenario for the music video of Madonna's "Material Girl". And we haven't yet mentioned the Blonde inspired wallpaper and fabric, among other things. Who knew?


We thought this would be a quick and fun read and it was - James Joyce read this book when the strains of writing Finnegan's Wake got overwhelming. (Too bad the book wasn't longer, maybe it could have distracted poor Joyce from a few hundred pages.) Edith Wharton called it "the great American novel."

There is no doubt it was a romp, and it inspired a comic strip that ran in 1926. Evidently, this type of story was not so often told at the time, as it made a huge hit. 

The story of the "professional lady" may seem all too familiar, but in this case, the general consensus was that Lorelei Lee controlled her fate and used what she could to get what she wanted, unabashedly. Lorelei was perhaps named for the German mythical siren of the Rhine and the convoluted plot would support that theory. 

Lorelei and her "chaperone" Dorothy go through a convoluted series of adventures that result in one man after another buying them jewels, clothes, fancy dinners and more across two continents.   In the end, Lorelei gets what she wants, and we were rooting for her. 

Supposedly inspired by Loos seeing a young blonde exert control over an older H.L. Mencken, then a highly prominent journalist, this story was told in stylized way that some found hard to read. 

This novel was taken up by the women's lib movement, and the author was quoted as saying  “They keep getting up on soapboxes and proclaiming that women are brighter than men, That’s true, but it should be kept very quiet or it ruins the whole racket.” 

This book was published in the same year as The Great Gatsby and was if anything even more well received. Perhaps it is the odd grammar and spelling of the narrator but this story lives on as film much more so than as a novel, unlike Gatsby. 

And so on to November which will be at Lynn's. Good news for us all, we have decided to move War and Peace to January as we are all struggling with the small type. I keep getting distracted by the French, so I am crawling through it, although I am quite happily immersed. 

Our November book will be The Mating Season by P.G. Wodehouse, which was one of our Christmas swap books, brought by Gordon. While it may be in the same vein as Blondes, we wanted something light and fun to give us time for Tolstoy. Also, if you have read Wodehouse, or are attracted to a different one of his books, no problem, read what you want of his and we can have a more general author discussion. I have a stack of Wodehouse and feel Jeeves and I are old friends already. 

It is a pleasure to read something, like Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, that I would have never, ever picked up on my own that was a cultural phenomenon in its time. It is one of the things I treasure about this group! Thanks everyone!

Tim Winton's Breath, oh so good

Wow, was that a fun night and a great read. Thank you Julie for hosting us in your beautiful home, next time I hope an art tour is in order. This time, we were just too enthralled with this wonderful novel to tear ourselves away, except perhaps for a nibble or two.

The consensus was that this was an amazing novel, beautifully written with an interesting and unusual central thought  - that breathing is both an imperative and a choice.  The emotional fallout of that choice had, in this case, recriminations that affected the trajectory of the lives of each character. While our attention is on the main character, Bruce Pike, each person in this narrative was damaged as illustrated by their breath, in some cases by their compulsion to stop breathing. Brilliant. And very intense.

If this were any less well written, more tautly constructed, this story would not work anywhere near as well. The descriptions, particularly of surfing were mesmerizing and wholly believable. The characters, perhaps were not as well wrought. Particularly the older (but far from old!) Eva and Sando, who were the center of the storm for these two young boys were a bit flat.

I wondered a bit whether what happened to these two boys, only 11 years old at the start of the story, was enough to set their courses so permanently. If it had been two young girls though, I likely would have considered the adult behavior predatory and dangerous. Even as presented, with a bit of the Aussie swagger, there are some experiences that you can't get over, no matter what you try. For Looney, it meant a life of thrill-seeking of greater proportions until the inevitable end. For Pikelet, it was a life apart. Maybe they would have ended up in those spots anyway, but it sure didn't seem so.

And so, on to October which is right around the corner. We are meeting on Oct. 16, place TBD as there is a last minute change. Anyone want to volunteer? And a change in the book - we were schedule to discuss War and Peace but decided we needed more time. The October book is now Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, which we think will be an easy read, allowing more time for you know what.

See you all soon!

The Alice Network - interesting historic fiction

Thank you to the wonderful Fiona Ross for hosting! We are so lucky to have such smart and fun people to read books with, and it was a great (and dark and stormy) night.

After many many war novels covering the Second World War, and a few focused on the First, it is difficult to find a new angle that illuminates those horrible events, but Kate Quinn has found one in this interesting juxtaposition of the two women who feature in this historic novel.

Based on the true story of Louise de Bettignies, The Alice Network links two women, each carrying the weight of war, one from her actions as a spy in WWI, the other from personal loss from WWII. Fate brings them together, along with the obligatory love interest for the younger Charlotte, and intertwines their healing from horrific guilt and loss.

The interesting angle, and highlight for many of us, was the WWI spy network of women, led by the indomitable  Louise de Bettignies, whose pseudonym was Alice DuBois. She led a spy ring of women centered around Lille, France whose actions saved hundreds, maybe thousands. Her personal courage was an inspiration to all those around her. She is widely recognized and honored in France, but I admit I had never heard of this gallant effort before this book.

Eve, a fictional character, worked with Alice and another spy in Lille, and this is easily the strongest part of the book. While the character of Rene Bordelon, the vengeful French profiteer was at best a charicature, then tension of that relationship was gripping, especially given the backdrop of the true story.

Charlotte's portion of the story, and the way the two come together is not as compelling but did help Eve resolve the guilt she had carried for thirty years, and start to move past it. This is the most recent book we have read with the bifurcated storyline, linked through the main characters. Cooking With Picasso also shared two intertwined stories, and for that matter, both of Kate Atkinson's recent books were the similar if more artful.

All in all, a good read, with some great insight into an historic period. For those of you who wanted to read more on the actual Alice Network, Queen of Spies by Thomas Coulson is a biography of Louise (make sure you are getting the right book, there is another by the same title). Women Heros of World War I by Kate Atwood has 16 stories of brave and largely unsung women and for our french readers, La Guerre des Femmes byAntoine Redier is key source material for this book as is Edith Cavell by Diane Souhami.

Fiona mentioned the Zone Rouge, sections of France that are still too contaminated by munitions to allow human habitation. Here is the link she sent on - hard to believe that the destruction of 100 years ago is still with us. And, does anyone else want to move to Grasse? I'm in!

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zone_Rouge

Our next book is Breath by Tim Winton, an Australian writer of great renown there but not as well known here. We will meet on September 18 at Julie W.'s, (I need to confirm that!) at 6:30. Get ready, our book for October (at Lynn's) is War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. Look for the most recent translation by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky if you can find it and if not, stay away from the Constance Garnett version. 

See you all there! 

A Charles Frazier potluck

This month we mixed it up with the Charles Frazier book of your choice, but focused on either Cold Mountain or Varina. I opted to read Nightwoods as it was what the library had available and I had already read Cold Mountain and didn't like it.

And that was the conclusion for the crowd that read it - no one liked Cold Mountain and I don't like Nighwoods, all for the same reason. The stories are beautifully written with a great sense of place and time that connect seamlessly and effectively with the emotional lives of the characters. But those settings are dismal, with brutal scenes and a hopeless future. Not so fun to spend precious reading time on that type of book when you could be reading War and Peace. More on that later.

On the other hand, the people who read Varina loved it. The historic novel with much of the action in Richmond was by contrast uplifting, interesting, and overlapped with historic figures that loom large in the Richmond landscape. Frazier's gift of language and pacing worked well in this book, and his characters were those one would want to know.

It was interesting to discuss the difficult scenes in Cold Mountain, a Civil War book, versus older, equally bruising authors like Isaac Babel. His Red Calvary stories of the Crimean war are every bit as dark as Frazier. Yet the distance of time and place make it easier to read. Set in the early 1900's in far-off Odessa, we can presume that we have progressed, that the behavior in the Crimea is an historic artifact.  Nightwoods, a contemporary story, has no such relief.

So read at your peril, or at least select carefully when picking up Charles Frazier. I for one am done with him, but he likely won't care much.

And on we go to our August book, a historic novel about girl power by the highly readable Kate Quinn. The book is The Alice Network. Jean recommended it so we know it will be good! To accommodate my schedule and to be able to have Jean join in again, we have moved the date to August 30 at Fiona's.

In a burst of organizational fervor, we picked a book for September, Breath by Tim Winton. Winton is one of Australia's most beloved and decorated authors, rightfully so. You may have run across his biggest book. Cloudstreet. Barbara (one of our new, fab additions!) had him on her reading list and in my opinion Breath is a much better book than Cloudstreet, so there you are.

Also on Barbara's reading list is the aforementioned War and Peace. It has been years since I last read it and as novels go, it is pretty amazing. Since we haven't tackled a classic in a while, is anyone up for that as our October book? Or January, giving you lots of time. Let me know!

Finally, thank you to our fantastic hostess Rene Massey. Watermelon margaritas are not usually on my Tuesday menu but they were at Rene's! As well as other lovely treats from Rene and everyone else. Thank you all! And welcome, welcome to Margo Hardy and Barbara Scott who added so much to our discussion and our level of fun. Thanks for joining.

See you all on August 30 at Fiona's at 6:30. I will send out an email about a week in advance with more details, so no need to stress about them now. Looking forward to our next meeting and book.