ANNOUNCING! Two New Novels

Carlos Zafon Ruis' latest book "The Angel's Game" will be released in June. You can follow the link at the right to Amazon to get a "pre-ordered" copy. We so enjoyed his "Shadow of the Wind". According to the web site he is writing 4 stand alone novels that will be set in Barcelona and will have overlapping characters and a common thread of the Cemetary of Forgotten Books. I can't wait!

AND TA DA... Pat Conroy's newest novel is due out in September. Follow the link to the right to check out "South of Broad." He is one of my favorite writer's! I am so excited about both of these new novels.

The Big Stromboli,

Or Mark and Phil's Big Book Club Adventure May's book, Twin Motives, was suggested by Arnora. She is best friends with author Mark's sister. Mark Robinson and Phil Kemp graciously agreed to join us for book club and discuss the book and their writing experience. We met at Janie's house on Easy Street (no kidding!) and she served a deliciouso Stromboli complimented by the most eye appealing salad I do believe I have seen. Lou and Laura co-created the salad. Diana brought assorted mouth watering cookies and Carla G. brought marinated olives and cheeses. Appletini's, wine and iced tea embellished the meal.

Twin Motives takes place in my home town of Norman, Oklahoma disguised as Hall Park. Reading a story set in your home town is at once comforting and surprising as you wind your through familiar settings. The story is a romance/murder mystery and it's genre Christian fiction. One of the things we discussed was how the authors struggled with sending a message that was important to them but weaving it in subtley. Mark and Phil talked about their experience of collaborating on the book, how they worked together on the story, the characters, and their experience with the high end self-publisher they decided on.

Writing a book is a complicated, complex and time consuming undertaking. Plot devises and timelines must be considered as well as character development. Another point we discussed was the lack of an obvious time line. The story is set some 10 years after the Vietnam war but the exact timing is purposely ambiguous. It was interesting to know the authors did not know how they were going to end the story until about half way through the process.

Everyone enjoyed the book and we so appreciate Mark and Phil taking time to come by. Having them discuss their experience writing the book has enriched our experience of reading the book. The authors are currently working on a sequel to Twin Motives. To your right I have added a link to the authors web site. Be sure to drop by and leave them a comment.

April Book Club

Seems that this year is already flying by. April book club, already? Really? Where is the time going? Seems like only yesterday I was a little girl growing up in "Moore", descendant from the Bohemian Gypsies, starting school, learning to ride my bike, playing with my granny's chickens (in her city backyard) and getting into all kinds of mischievous activities as I learned to negotiate my way through life. Oh no, wait, that wasn't me that was "A Girl Named Zippy" our April Book Club book. Well, it was sort of me. In fact, most of us found elements of Zippy's life that we related to. After the last couple of books we were all begging for something light and funny and I do believe that Zippy fit that bill perfectly. I found myself laughing out loud at her antics and her perspective. Zippy was smart, precocious and lived life with full on zest. Those of us that finished the book really enjoyed it and we had a lot of laughs reading out loud our favorite parts or quotes. The book rated a 3.5 to 5.

We missed Denise and Carla G., who were vacationing, and Lou who had other business to attend to.

April's book club was at Lis' home. She graciously switched with Janie who had a weekend warriors fiasco at her home and needed to reschedule for May. We had to switch our April book, Twin Motives, to May also because the local authors had a conflict and couldn't attend. We're looking forward to this event.

Lis' made a savory Schinkennudeln, which is egg noodles, ham and sharp white cheese. Barb brought a scrumptious salad, and there were brownies, cream puffs, toffee, wine and coffee and Lis' world famous Pfannkuchen mit Apfelmus or Applesauce Crepes. To top the evening off a gorgeous night sky, illuminated by the full moon and brilliant stars, greeted us for the ride home . I'm not sure why a big luminous rock in the sky is so romantic, but it gets to me every time!

March Book Club

March book club was held at Denise's. We missed Darby and Terry. As always the food was stupendous. I think we may be running out of words to describe all of our wonderful meals. The food is always as varied as the books we read. For appetizers we had a shrimp cocktail and Diana brought two cheeses, the Pecoroni Truffaleto and an aged Gouda with walnuts whose pungent flavors melded wonderly with her olives. For the main course, Denise made a tasty pasta and white bean dish drizzled with olive oil and rosemary. Garlic bread, two salads (one by Lis and one by me) rounded out the meal. Carla and Pam brought the chocolate mousse cake made famous by La Baguette, Janie brought gorgeous chocolate covered strawberries, there were also brownies and cookies. As always, Arnora brought the floral arrangment. The usual assorted wines and coffee topped it all off.

The book, Interpreter of Maladies received somewhat mixed reviews. This was a Pulitzer Prize winning book and is a collection of 9 short stories. The title put a few of us off initially after reading, or attempting to read The Hour I First Believed. And, with short stories you have to put on the brakes and adapt your reading style as well as your expectations. There isn't time for much character development and often the stories seemed to end abruptly. Some of the girls felt they wanted more closure. The stories were little snapshots of immigrants from India living in Amercia. Stories of how they were adapting, or not, to American life but they were also stories of people going through painful circumstances that anyone in any culture would be faced with. Lou pointed out that the stories were about how, in spite of cultural differences, we are more alike than different. Some thought the stories too sad and others were satisfied with how well written they were.

Our local authors have a conflict with our April meeting so Twin Motives has been moved to May and we opted for a book we hope will be humorous; A Girl Called Zippy.

February Book Club

We just finished our February Book Club and discussion of To Kill a Mockingbird. Uh-oh...I better go back and correct myself. Ever since we read the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society we've taken to referring to ourselves as a "Society". So, our "Society" met at Laura's. She made a wonderful gumbo and an even better bread pudding. That is saying a lot coming from me because I love me a good gumbo but am not so keen on bread pudding. They are different every where you try them and some I've tried have just been awful. Actually, that shouldn't be that surprising since they are technically made from stale bread. There is a nack to whipping up one that is the right consistency of "jiggly". Kudo's to the meal, which was rounded out nicely by Terry's salad, some french bread and a simple appetizer of Pecorino Trufalleto cheese and crackers brought by your's truly. Carla G. made a lovely Wine-arita and there was coffee to finish off the dessert.

The discussion of the book was lively and informative as always. Nine of the full "Society" were present and each and every one of us gave the book a 5 (out 5) rating (one might've abstained). I tried to give it a ten but apparently, we are rigid about the rating rules, ha-ha. (I've also tried to give a book a negative number but that didn't go over either, ha-ha). For me, I think Mockingbird is as close to perfect writing as you are ever going to come. Her prose is simple and concise. The story is tight, amounting to just a couple of hundred pages as it spans about 4 years. The story is told by Scout as an adult as she reminisces about a pivotal event in her life one summer. The story is graceful in its telling of the people and the history of a small town in Alabama in the 1930's just prior to WWII. It is a coming of age story of a brother and sister as they learn about life in all its humor and horror. It is the loss of childhood innocence as the kids become aware of very adult themes that include an inadequate education system, racism, prejudice, domestic violence, and isolation. The main theme of the book for me is the reverence that we should feel toward all human life.

The story is poignant and somewhat nostalgic. I realized while I was trying to describe my feelings about the book that it leaves me with the same feeling I get when I watch Charlie Brown's Christmas story. I think that is because both of these works touch the child within me. Lis also wrote a very timely short essay. Lis is from Germany and, though she's lived here for many years, has an outsiders view of the race issue. Lis was reading the book at the time of the election and made some very astute observations and comparisons of that time to this. It was agreed that, yes, we have come a long way but there is more work to be done. I will post a link to Lis' article (with her permission) as soon as I get a chance. (NOTE: someone just pointed out to me that February was also Black History Month.)

Then we also got into a bit of discussion about March's book. The long awaited (for me, anyway) novel by Wally Lamb, "The Hour I First Believed". I will start by saying that his novel, "I Know This Much is True" is one of my top 5 favorite books. I have read it twice and plan to read it again. However, that said, I was a bit disappointed to find that he had used the Columbine High School shootings as the jumping off point for this book. Not that it isn't a relevant issue but I feared the violence of that moment would be too much for me, particularly at this time of year. But we agreed to read it and I rushed out and picked up the CD's at the library. My first instinct was right. I finished it but really wish I hadn't started.

I couldn't help compare the writing of Mockingbird to "Believed". What Harper Lee did in 200 pages it took Lamb 900 (or 20 cd's). His "True" book was just as long but this new effort just didn't have the same impact. In the first book the use of the transcribed journal to tell the story of his grandfather's life was one of my favorite parts. But in this one, the letters he uses to give family history just droned on and on. Carla G. liked the letters, so obviously it's a matter of opinion but it was one of those stories where absolutely nothing good ever happens for the characters and the ending was not a hopeful one. So far, I think 3 of us have finished, about 3 have attempted it and the rest have thrown in the towel. We decided to read a slimmer volume of short stories to round out March.

As always it was a fabulous time that always leaves me wanting more!

To Kill a Mockingbird

I am listening to Sissy Spacek read To Kill a Mockingbird. I love this book and always have. I don't remember the first time I read it but it is one that I bring out every several of years and re-read. Often I think I run across the movie on TV that reminds me it's been a while and that it is time to revisit it. I just think the story is genius. Listening to Sissy Spacek read the story with her soft southern accent adds yet another dimenstion. Her voice, to me, is reminiscent of the girl, Mary Badham, who played Scout in the movie. In fact, as I am listening to the book I am seeing the scenes from the movie. Just prior to listening to Mockingbird, I finished Wally Lamb's new book. It's hard not to make comparisons though it is probably apples to oranges but I will address that after our discussion.

A New Year - A New List

As you can see, I got busy and wasn't so good about updating the book club blog. I will resolve to do better this year. I also resolve not to persecute myself if I don't. We read some great books in 2008. A couple not so good. April and December seemed to be very busy months for people and we tried to read a "classic" in April and no one was able to finish it. Perhaps because it was 19th century lit and was a difficult read or we were just too busy to get into it.

My personal favorite for the year was The Shadow of the Wind. Recommended to me by a fellow male co-worker he said, "You'll be captivated within the first two-three pages." I think it took me only the first couple of paragraphs. Written by a Spanish author, set in Barcelona just after WWII it is a book about a book and it's author. Told in first person, the narrator is 10 years old when the story opens and his father, a book seller, takes him to the Cemetary of Forgotten Books, a sort of archival store house. He tells the boy that he is to take his time but to pick a book the he will be the caretaker of and that he will be responsible for making sure that book is not forgotten. The boy is captivated by the book and when he tries to find out about the author he is taken on a mystery that spans the next 18 years. I thought the writing was eloquent and poetic and the story kept me turning the pages. The funny thing is, and maybe it was because I was savoring the language and the story, but I could not read this one quickly. Somehow I felt I was almost being forced to take my time with it. It is one I will read again and recommend it wholeheartedly to people when given the chance.

Another book that really inspired us was The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. Another story set just after WWII only this time in the Channel Islands of England. The story is told only through letters that the characters write to each other. We so enjoyed the vehicle of this book. In a day when most communication is in sound bytes, text, and email we had forgotten the excitment of receiving a letter and the pleasure of sitting and taking the time to compose one. So we drew names and our mission was to write "What I Did on My Christmas Vacation" and mail it to our person before the next book club. In January we shared portions of the letters. Some made us roar with laughter and others brought us to tears. It was a remarkable and unforgettable experience. Anyone among us who says we are not writers... is only kidding themselves. But of course, great readers are usually great writers. Or is it great writers are usually great readers?'

For February we have chosen To Kill a Mockingbird which will be a re-read for most of us. But it is the National Library Read. This is a favorite book of mine that I revisit every few years. I look forward to reading it again and to possibly reviewing the movie as well. This is one of those times when I thought the movie totally captured the spirit of the book.

We've picked Wally Lamb's "The Hour I First Believed" for March and "Twin Motives" for April. One of the girl's knows the local author of this book and he will be visiting us when we review his book. How scary for him....or, at least I would be. This will be the 3rd time we've had a local author visit our book club and it is always insightful and enjoyable.

Here's to a great 2009 Book Club!