August book club was held at Lou's. We had planned to do it poolside at the house in Blanchard but there was a change in plans. Lou and Gene have purchased the Holmberg House B & B on the OU campus. Gene and Lou worked quickly to freshen up the place and make it their own while working around their guests. The good news is that the transition has been seemless and they are consistently booked! Congratulations you two! And they managed to host book club at the new house.
This has been a big year of change for a lot of us in book club I thought this might be a good time to recap our year. In addition to the Christian's buying the B & B ....
Pam has recovered from surgery and is back at work and school. She traveled to Scotland, Malta and Chicago. In fact, she can't be with us tonight as they don't return until Sunday.
Diana and I went to the UK (including Edinburgh) and Paris and I just returned from Chicago and Lake Geneva. Next week, Carla A and I are off to Taos and Santa Fe. Janie and Terry also visited the UK (including Edinburgh), what's up with Scotland? That seemed to be the destination this year. Denise left her job at the end of June. She plans to do some volunteer work but is going to also puruse other passsions. Laura is sending her daughter to her freshman year at OU and her son enters high school. I know Arnora has also been traveling. And, if I have missed anyone or anything just let me know and I will update the blog.
It has been quite a year of big changes and transformations.
This months book is called The Revenant. Another Yound Adult novel set at a Cherokee seminary in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. A young woman faced with having to leave school to go home and help her pregnant mother causes her to act in desperation and take on the identity of one of her friend's. This girl was supposed to take a teaching job at the seminary but at the last minute decides to marry. She leaves it up to our herione to send the message. Instead, she shows up at the school under the assumed identity. The school is haunted by a young girl who has tragically died the year before in a mysterious drowning accident and the mystery is solved over the course of the story. The story intrigued us because it is set in an Oklahoma town that is familiar to us all and because of the Native American element. And who doesn't love a good ghost story?
However, we did a "speed" version the discussion of this book as we decided upon arriving that the majority of us wanted to see the movie The Help on its opening night. The discussion of the Revenant sounded a bit like trying to listen to a 45 record at 77 speed! I think we can suffice it to say that everyone liked this book "ok". It was an interesting enough story but it wasn't riveting or life changing. We picked "Burning Bright" by Tracy Chevalier for September and are planning to review it at a retreat location.
Dinner tonight was "make your own gourmet pizza". Lou provided the crusts and everyone brought a variety of toppings and Janie made a fruit tart for dessert. Thankfully, we did not speed through dinner! The pizza's were awesome. And those that made it to the movie thorougly enjoyed it. The casting was dead on and they were really true to the book. There were a few things they left out but in a movie they usually have to edit for time.
Thursday, August 11, 2011
July Book Club 2011
July's book club was poolside at Denise's. Our book this month was Clara and Mr. Tiffany recommended by Carla A. This book is a light historical fiction about Clara Driscoll who worked for Tiffany and Company in the early 1900's. Clara headed up the women's department overseeing the stained glass division and it is Clara that is responsible for many of the designs that Louis Comfort Tiffany is credited for including the Tiffany Lamps.
This was a very interesting story handled with a light hand but deals with deep and important issues. Mr. Tiffany would only hire women to work with certain aspects of the stained glass because he felt they had a better sensibility for color and their hands were smaller and more adept at working with the smaller pieces. However, he would not hire married women and as soon as a woman married she had to quit. There was another department of men that also worked on the stained glass and they became jealous and threatened by the women and tried to take over their jobs by force and strike. The woman banded together and crossed the picket line and managed to save their jobs. Clara and Mr. Tiffany did not have a romantic love but they liked and respected each other. They worked on stained glass windows for the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago (this is where this book crosses paths with Devil in the White City).
Clara lived in a boarding house with all kinds of interesting characters, some of whom were gay. One of the men dies (most likely of AIDS before they knew what it was) and Clara discovers one of the men she works for is part of this circle. Clara seems to have been very open minded and non-judgmental and counted people of both genders, sexual preferences, intellectual and economic status among her friends.
She came to Tiffany after she was briefly married and widowed. After several years she met another man she intended to marry and quit Tiffany again. But, when this man abandoned her, Tiffany took her back.
We liked this book and it affected Carla deeply. She really wanted this woman's story to be told so that her contributions would not be forgotten.
Denise provided Teriyaki chicken for the main course and it was delicious!
This was a very interesting story handled with a light hand but deals with deep and important issues. Mr. Tiffany would only hire women to work with certain aspects of the stained glass because he felt they had a better sensibility for color and their hands were smaller and more adept at working with the smaller pieces. However, he would not hire married women and as soon as a woman married she had to quit. There was another department of men that also worked on the stained glass and they became jealous and threatened by the women and tried to take over their jobs by force and strike. The woman banded together and crossed the picket line and managed to save their jobs. Clara and Mr. Tiffany did not have a romantic love but they liked and respected each other. They worked on stained glass windows for the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago (this is where this book crosses paths with Devil in the White City).
Clara lived in a boarding house with all kinds of interesting characters, some of whom were gay. One of the men dies (most likely of AIDS before they knew what it was) and Clara discovers one of the men she works for is part of this circle. Clara seems to have been very open minded and non-judgmental and counted people of both genders, sexual preferences, intellectual and economic status among her friends.
She came to Tiffany after she was briefly married and widowed. After several years she met another man she intended to marry and quit Tiffany again. But, when this man abandoned her, Tiffany took her back.
We liked this book and it affected Carla deeply. She really wanted this woman's story to be told so that her contributions would not be forgotten.
Denise provided Teriyaki chicken for the main course and it was delicious!
June Book Club 2011
This book club blog is being written sometime after the fact. Since I left my job at the end of April I have been as busy or busier and my good intentions have simply been that - intentions. But today it is raining (hallelujah!) and I have decided to stay in and catch up on some clerical duties.
June's book club was held in Pam's garden and we read "The 100 Ft. Journey" by Richard Morais. The story begins in Mumbai with Hassan Haji and his family and their family owned restaurant. Hassan's grandfather immigrates to Mumbai and starts out as a "dabba-wallah" - delivering tin lunch boxes but eventually built up his own business and then restaurant where Hassan learns to cook and discovers that he has the equivalent of "perfect pitch" in the kitchen. At 14 his grandfather dies and "so too the last respect we had in the shantytown." They are run out of town when their restaurant is set on fire and Hassan's beloved mother is killed. The family eventually starts over in a suburb of Paris but ends up in a feud with Madame Gertrude Mallory who owns a restaurant across the street.
Ironically, during this feud, Madame Mallory causes a fire that burns Hassan. After his stay and recovery in the hospital, Madame Mallory feels remorse for her actions and invites Hassan to train with her in her restaurant kitchen. It is this 100 ft. journey across the street that changes the course of Hassan's life.
Hassan eventually becomes a famed Parisian chef but all through his life he sees the hand of Madame Mallory guiding him.
Everyone liked this book for the most part. Carla A did feel that the ending of the book fizzled somewhat and did not live up to the richness of the earlier parts. Darby felt that the emphasis on the first parts of the book, on his mother and Madame Mallory were the important foundations of his life and what the author wanted to explore. I didn't feel the ending fizzled but it wasn't told with as much depth of feeling purposely because the author wanted the emphasis on the earlier influences in his life.
June's book club was held in Pam's garden and we read "The 100 Ft. Journey" by Richard Morais. The story begins in Mumbai with Hassan Haji and his family and their family owned restaurant. Hassan's grandfather immigrates to Mumbai and starts out as a "dabba-wallah" - delivering tin lunch boxes but eventually built up his own business and then restaurant where Hassan learns to cook and discovers that he has the equivalent of "perfect pitch" in the kitchen. At 14 his grandfather dies and "so too the last respect we had in the shantytown." They are run out of town when their restaurant is set on fire and Hassan's beloved mother is killed. The family eventually starts over in a suburb of Paris but ends up in a feud with Madame Gertrude Mallory who owns a restaurant across the street.
Ironically, during this feud, Madame Mallory causes a fire that burns Hassan. After his stay and recovery in the hospital, Madame Mallory feels remorse for her actions and invites Hassan to train with her in her restaurant kitchen. It is this 100 ft. journey across the street that changes the course of Hassan's life.
Hassan eventually becomes a famed Parisian chef but all through his life he sees the hand of Madame Mallory guiding him.
Everyone liked this book for the most part. Carla A did feel that the ending of the book fizzled somewhat and did not live up to the richness of the earlier parts. Darby felt that the emphasis on the first parts of the book, on his mother and Madame Mallory were the important foundations of his life and what the author wanted to explore. I didn't feel the ending fizzled but it wasn't told with as much depth of feeling purposely because the author wanted the emphasis on the earlier influences in his life.
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