September 2013 Book Club

Illustration by Anthony Russo (Sunday Book Review)

Welcome to September's Book Club - hosted by Terry. What a night! Terry's backyard was so welcoming. We could smell the charcoal from the street and the Chimenae was glowing.  From our emails I had thought we were having a simple dinner. Terry's best loved Pear Salad, some bread, some dessert. But, knowing these women as I do, I should have known better! Carla A brought so many things I know I won't get them all. She brought roasted chicken in a light cream sauce with potatoes and carrots. The chicken just melted in your mouth. And she and Lou both brought asparagus, which figured promptly in the meals in our story. Terry grilled vegetables, fruit and shrimp for us. There was crab dip and chips and Janie brought two kinds of bread. Carla G topped off the meal with a dessert everyone has a different name for; chocolate and vanilla pudding with flour/butter/nut crust and topped with cool whip! Tea, 7 Deadly Zins and Two Buck Chuck Wines rounded out the evening. Last night were were missing Pam and Laura.

Our book was Rules of Civility, a first novel for Amor Towles. It is the story of a year in the life of Katey Kontent as she attempts to rise in the ranks of 1938's New York City and the accidental love triangle that changes her trajectory. We all agreed it was great writing; atmospheric and poetic. Laura (by email) said It was both character and geography driven and that it was "a slice of life in a city she loves." Every time I picked it up I felt I was transported into Katey's skin. His attention to detail added to the atmosphere of the story without being tiresome.

The epilogue comes first in this story. Katey has married and is in her late 50's when she and her husband stumble across a photographic exhibit of subway photos taken by Walker Evans and she sees two photographs of Tinker Grey. And then the story goes back in time and begins on the last day of 1937 as Katy and her friend Eve Ross meet handsome and well-to-do Tinker Grey at a not so fashionable NYC night spot.  Katey is a typist in NY law firm, Eve his her roommate. The two girls "subtly" vie for Tinker's attention and he seems happy to play along - until another "accident" changes everyones course.  In 1938 the "Roaring Twenties" have given way to The Great Depression.  America is in recovery and nearing the end of the Depression as we teeter on the edge of WWII. And this is where we find our cast of characters. 

A central theme in the book is that a chance encounter or cursory decision in one's twenties can shape one's course for decades to come. Do you think this is true to life? Were there casual encounters or decisions that you made, which in retrospect were watershed events? We had a really in depth discussion about this. As we talked we realized that you do have a certain amount of control over life in the decisions you make. Those decisions move your life in one direction. However, there are things that happen to us all the time; a stranger you meet and marry, an accident that maybe leaves you with injuries you didn't count on, a company closes, a relationship ends, etc. And there is a difference from events that influence your life as opposed to events that impact them. Those are two different words. Influence seems a softer word. A great teacher that influences your choice of career is different from a car accident that "impacts" you and forces a change upon you. And, I think both are true. 

It was a great discussion and we got deep! But that is the  beauty of our group. It's not a therapy session.  But great fiction always reflects back to us our emotions and often helps us work through some struggle we are having. And we do that in a safe and loving, non-judgmental environment. 

The book referenced several other authors. Darby and Terry recognized a portion as being based on a T. S. Eliot Poem - The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock. Agatha Christie's mysteries are mentioned and Amor Towles' writing is likened to Fitzgerald and Capote. The book rated a 4.53

Next month is hosted by Carla Gibbs and we chose to tag off this months book and picked an Agatha Christie; Murder on the Orient Express.  

In November we'll be reading a book recommended by Pam; One Amazing Thing by Chitra Divakaruni.  A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki, recommended by Laura will be our December book. 
Book club dates will change to Saturdays for the next three months.

Below are two links: one to Walker Evans photos and the other is a history and photos of the 21 Club with the Lawn Jockeys.



https://www.google.com/search?q=walker+evans+subway+photos&rlz=1C1TSNP_enUS497US497&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=6AU2UomxMKmT2gXMjYDoAw&ved=0CC4QsAQ&biw=1366&bih=667&dpr=1


http://www.21club.com/web/onyc/history.jsp

August 2013 Book Club

August Book Club at Lis' house. This August hasn't been as hot as some but we still opted for lighter fare. Macaroni, cornbread, and Quinoa salads were delicious. Lis made a squash casserole and sausages and stuff bread sandwiches. Carla A brought chocolates, spicy mango pieces and ice cream for dessert. We topped the night off with coffee and Baileys.

We had a few absentees: Carla G, Pam, Barb, Lou, and Denise. Darby and Terry left after dinner. They hadn't finished the book and didn't want the ending spoiled for them. That left, Lis, Diana, Carla A, Arnora, Janie and Laura to discuss The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry.

Our discussion here will be strictly "a no spoiler alert".  The basic premise of the story revolves around a married, retired couple: Harold and Maureen (not Harold and Maude as Carla quipped). Living in the south of England, they have fallen into a deep rut of boredom and barely tolerating each other. They have a son that is estranged from the family and they blame each other. One day a letter shows up for Harold. A former female co-worker from 20 years in the past, Queenie, alerts Harold that she is dying in a hospice. Harold, not knowing really how to respond to this pronouncement Harold set off on a journey to save "Queenie". He believes if he delivers his letter in person he can save Queenie's life.  So, Harold sets off on a 600 mile journey in his yachting shoes with nothing but his debit card. The ensuing, unexpected and unlikely pilgrimage has unexpected results.

Laura said that is was difficult to keep in mind that Harold was not the narrator. It felt like a first person story. There were some tears in the room as we discussed Harold's journey, the people he met along the way, the memories that surfaced for him and his transformation. Maureen is at home going through her shock at Harold's decision. At first, she tries to hide the fact that Harold is gone to his friend and neighbor. Maureen begins to recognize her dependence on Harold as she realizes she tries to figure out things like how to pay the bills. This pilgrimage takes Maureen and Harold on parallel journeys of healing and self-discovery.

I had the unusual experience of reading Harold's story as my own sister was taking a pilgrimage on the El Camino de Santiago. I felt I was following a parallel path walking with both my sister and Harold. My sister  and her friend took 5 weeks to walk 500 miles from France through Spain. Some of her experiences were similar to Harold's. They met interesting and strange people, they used a lot of tape on their toes and they even met a gentleman named Harold from Germany who was in his 70's. He had blisters on his feet and his shoes were falling apart. She said it was truly a life changing experience.

Both my sister and Harold had the experience of lots of silence on the walk. Like a walking meditation.When the mind is quiet and there is nothing left for it to think about or figure out except putting one foot in front of the other - the most amazing memories and emotions surface. Laura was sad that she felt Harold was so broken at one point.  She was trying to figure out why he had to be so emotional broken. Several of us agreed that is where the healing starts. And coming out on the other side of that "dark night of the soul" is really where life begins.

Words that were used to describe this story: beautiful, original, poignant, poetic and moving. The book rated a 4.6 with a "it made my heart full" from Carla A. I think this is a book where words fail to convey the depth of feeling it evoked.

July Book Club 2013

Life After Life by Kate Atkinson 

We loveys of STNM took the time again in July to savor and chat about the month’s pick, Life After Life by Kate Atkinson. Janie welcomed us in her comfy home and booted husband and dogs out just to accommodate us, although we enjoyed rubbing on the dogs once they were “unbanned.” Sherrie was off glamorizing with business in Dallas, so I (Elisabeth) volunteered to guest-write again. I almost feel like J. K. Rowling – oh wait, she was a “ghost writer.” My bad. We missed her and all who couldn’t make it.

Anyway, the book got a thumbs up with a 4.15 rating, and it generated some interesting discussion about what life is and could be, how things might be different by the choices we make in life. What may cause a déjà vous, possibly a subliminal idea of previous lives? That is what happened to our heroin, Ursula Todd. In the story, she lives out several variations of her life, all of them ending in death and starting over at some earlier point when she makes a different decision. The book takes us through WW I, the roaring 20s, and the horrors of WW II.

Denise described the feeling the book gave her: disturbing. We wondered if living life over is better or just more of the same, is reincarnation a welcome opportunity of setting things right or a burden of choices and consequences. Horrible things might still happen but just in a different way. Laura was moved by the way the book talked about events that we know about but with detail and in-depth observations normally not captured; it inspired her to do more research on the material than any other book she has read.  The characters of Sylvie and Hugh, Ursula’s parents, changed very little throughout the different scenarios of Ursula’s choices, where Hugh was well liked and Sylvie disappointing as the years rolled by.  Looking at the way her life had gone, Sylvie may have been dispirited by life to change from a gentle-hearted young woman to a boxed-in member of ‘society as she understood it.’

The portrayal of Ursula’s experiences had Diana comment that they inspired the reader to think about his/her own mortality. Janie reflected on her heart attack and that one might live life differently if reminded of how fragile and easily lost it is. We agreed that the story and concept will stay with us for a long time. It is not the kind of book that is easily forgotten.

Planning ahead, Janie gave us some more updates on the possible road-trip book club get-away to Austin in the fall, to be hosted and guided by Rusty, Janie’s beautiful daughter, and may include a stay at the lovely vacation home of Janie’s friend – yes, she has connections in good places. Diana is finalizing travel plans to Ireland with Rex and Sherrie in September and received excited encouragement and shared experiences for the trip. 

Like always, the food was a delight and well picked for the hot summer evening. The table was laden with an array of salads, dips, breads, and chips. The evening was crowned with a make-your-own Ice Cream Sunday. Sadly, there was one casualty that resulted through the desperate trials of de-corking a promising bottle of Merlot: Janie’s second-string cork-screw was torn to pieces. To protect the parties involved, I shan’t name any names (Elisabeth) but will gladly add that the victim was replaced within days so Janie can be back in the business of enjoying her wine. And I, for one, discovered another advantage to screw-top wine bottles.

June 2013 Book Club Part II

IWe arrived at Denise's in stages throughout the late afternoon and early evening. She had offered her pool for those who desired. Some of us dipped our toes in the hot tub, a few fully submerged.  This was the first time we'd seen each other since the May book club and the May tornadoes. I can say the evening was highly emotionally charged. We were catching up on the events of the storms and where everyone was in the process of recovery. When telling the story of hearing Barb's voice on the phone after I had seen the damage done to the hospital I cried for the first time. I didn't even realize I had been holding that back.  There were lots of stories and lots of hugs. Barb got her car and computer replaced but it's going to be a while before Arnora is back in her home. And I think it's going to be some time before our nerves and equilibrium are restored.

The conversation about the storms started to wind down as we moved toward dinner. Denise brought in a very tasty veggie Pappa Murphy's pizza which was complemented by Lou and Pam's salads and topped by a brownie sundae. We also had "Ruby Red Spread" by Denise, fruit by Carla G and hummus & pita by Diana. It was also Janie's birthday. She got to wear the crown and had a candle on her brownie. She broke into more tears as the brownie was presented and we all sang Happy Birthday.

The emotions continued to run high throughout dinner as we went from tears to laughter (my favorite emotion). Pam to Carla, "What was it I told you that I forgot?" Carla to Pam, "Why are you asking me? I forgot!" I blurted out that I had "wroted" the June Blog Part 1. Pam announced she was on a rowing team but couldn't figure out if she was sitting port or starboard, which was probably funnier if you heard the whole thing.

And then we moved into the living room for our discussion and promptly about half the people in the room started to fall asleep! I think that was also a part of the healing taking place. We had reconnected, processed our fears and sadness, moved to food and laughter and then took a little nap before we started the discussion. Carla A said it felt like we had walked through the poppy fields in The Wizard of Oz (coincidentally, the poppy field came AFTER the tornado!)

However, we did manage to revive and discuss our book Old School by Tobias Wolfe. We picked this book because it was the Pioneer Libraries Big Read. I'll start off right by saying that the book was fairly well received and rated a 3.6. The consensus was that the book was not an epic tale but more a "slice of life" depicting our protagonists time at an all boy's Ivy League prep school. Every semester a different famous poet or author is invited to come and speak at the school. There is a contest among the students to submit a poem or story in the style of the visiting author. The winner of the contest is awarded a private audience with the published author. Robert Frost, Ayn Rand and Ernest Hemingway are the featured writers. Our protagonist submits work for all three but is not chosen until near the end of the book by Ernest Hemingway. Unfortunately, through a series of events, he has found another student's story from several years back that he resonates with. He rewrites the story changing only parts of the name and minor details. He is found out and expelled. Years later he reunites with his professor and is made privy to some important details about the day he was expelled.

Lou liked the book but wasn't thrilled with the ending. She thought he rushed the ending and she felt cheated of some important details and depth. There was a lot of discussion about whether or not he had a real grasp of the plagiarism he had committed. I pointed out that in high school, when students were writing their first papers, the majority of us went straight to the encyclopedia and copied portions verbatim. Of course, the papers were returned and we were instructed in how to use the research without copying it. It could be he knew what he was doing. It could be he didn't fully understand the implications.

Other issues this book touched on; racism, sexism and rich versus poor. The main character and his roommate were Jews but they hid that fact for fear of becoming social outcasts. It was an all boy's school. One of the professor's was more appalled that he had plagiarized a "girls" story. Our protagonist was not of the wealthy elite. He was at the school on scholarship which added to his desire to fit in.

And the root issue of the story is truth versus lies. Ernest Hemingway was always admonishing everyone to "write the truest sentence." But truth is subjective and malleable. Truth often changes with our perspective, as we see at the end of the story when the fuller story is revealed. Most of our story is told from the perspective of a student and it's years later as an adult that truth takes on a different meaning and depth.

Pam thought the main character seemed flat emotionally, disconnected.  Several of us agreed. Perhaps it because he was telling the story from the perspective of someone who was on the outside looking in.

Next month's book is "Life after Life" and will be at Janie's house. I will be looking for a guest blogger as I will be out of town on a work project.

June 2013 Book Club Part I

I’m starting the blog a little early this month. First, it is June and we are at the halfway point of the year. My apologies, as I was unable to slow time down. My super powers have been on the blink recently!

I’d been thinking about doing a little 6 month review to kick off June’s blog and then the tornadoes hit. The month of May was truly just a weather nightmare. After almost two years of drought conditions in Oklahoma, the skies opened up and assaulted us with winds, rain and hail. For more than two weeks we’ve been on weather alert and weather fatigue.  I know that I don’t have to regale the group with tales of May 19, 20 or 31. Gratefully, while some of us were too close for comfort to the damage, no one sustained injury or loss of life. There was loss of property and some very close calls, but we’re all still here.  I feel it is only right that we start this month’s report off by acknowledging these frightful events and giving thanks for our well-being.  As we know, some were not as fortunate and our thoughts and prayers go out to those families as well.

As always, with our group, much goes on in a month. Summer is upon us and travel plans have begun. Diana went to Wales without me this spring. My travel plans had to be put on hold until after July because of my new job. But, we’re planning another little jaunt in October. For now, I’ve had to live vicariously through our books. I realized, as I looked over the list that I had spent time in the Tennessee portion of the Appalachian Mountains learning about climate change and then flew off to the Dominican Republic during a time of a revolution. The next two months was time spent in London; once with Caitlin Moran learning things I’d missed on How to Be a Woman and then again as I spent time with a woman who was trying to find her memory after suffering from  amnesia. Not too bad for a gal who has been rather landlocked all year.If I can’t get my suitcase out just yet, I can still be thankful that my imagination can take me places and that there are those who have written the adventure that I can tag along on.

May 2013 Book Club

 Happy May Birthday to Darby. For the first time, in a long time, we had the birthday Tiara. And, Darby took full advantage of the Red Chaise Lounge as her "throne." We have Laura to thank for the beautiful Jane Austen cake in Darby's honor & Janie provided several bottles of wine. One of the bottles was "Seven Sisters" and the quote on the bottle was quite appropriate for our group. "A unique blend of seven carefully chosen grapes crafted into a smooth and intriguing wine. Like you and your friends getting together. All different and yet so perfect together.

We also want to congratulate Lou on her anniversary of being cancer free!

 Barb was our host and suggested a Vegan meal. It was all great, but one night without meat and we were all waxing nostalgic about it as if we'd never have it again. Besides the chocolate we also had key lime pie, enchiladas, wraps, salad, chips and dip.

While everyone was getting the food together and getting their drinks, I swore I heard Barb say that her panties were about to burst open. I quickly realized she was talking about the Peonies in her garden! However, the conversation veered completely off the rails after that. Seems last month's book, "How to be a Woman" was still with us. Let's just say that way too much information was shared and if I tried to write about it here - I'd  have to give everyone a code word clearance!

This month's book was a psychological thriller called "Before I got to Sleep" a debut novel by British author S. J. Watson. A woman wakes up one morning with no memory of her past. She is sleeping next to a man she doesn't recognize. Nor, does she recognize her own face in the mirror. The man, it turns out is her husband. He has placed pictures around the bathroom of them together. Everyday for years, it seems, that he has had to help her reconstruct her memory after an accident has left her with a kind of amnesia. During the day she puts the pieces together and every night when she goes to sleep she forgets it all. As the story progresses it is revealed that a doctor is working with her. Everyday he calls her and tells her to look in her closet for the journal she is keeping. Reading the journal brings her up to speed with life events. She has regular appointments with him and he takes her to previous places in her life to help her anchor her memories. He has some small successes with this treatment. It is certainly a frustrating life but the plot thickens when one day she reads in the diary, "Don't trust Ben", the husband. And then the race is on. Why should she not trust this man who says he is her husband? Why is he withholding important information? And will she find out in time?

As the book is told from the first person, who has had a brain injury and amnesia, we are looking at an unreliable narrator or poor historian. The author has a problem with trust in the people around her but can we, the audience, trust our narrator?

I'm going to leave it there for now as several of the girls did not finish and I don't want to spoil the ending. We had a great discussion. Everyone liked the story and it rated a 3.69 with two "I really, really liked it". The story is loosely based on an actual amnesiacs case. There will also be a movie coming out soon with Nicole Kidman and Colin Firth in the title roles.

Arnora will host in June. Any retreat is going to be put off until the fall and the next book will be the Pioneer Library's Big Read "Old School" by Tobias Wolfe.

April Book Club 2012

April's meeting was held at Denise's house where I was thrilled to see Lauren still has her peregrine, Elaine. Before I moved house I was host to Lauren's birds and it was like seeing an old friend. Denise also regaled us with a funny story of how Lauren, a doctoral student working on her dissertation had to jump through some pretty serious hoops to get a job at the local Family Video store. Lauren will be at home for a while working on her paper while Cassie is studying in Heidelberg, Germany. Pam just got back from visiting Sam in LA and Nathan and Nassim are investigating possible transfer to Dubai. Diana's daughter and family are about to finish their new/old home renovation and that's just the stuff we heard about.

Congratulations to Barb who just passed her test in her health and wellness program and I recently took a job with a non-profit organization that works to economically empower women in Rwanda and Afghanistan. We missed Lou, Darby, Janie, Lis, and Carla G.  That brings us up-to-date and to the food that you can see, from the photos, was delicious as always!

This month's book was British author, Caitlin Moran's "How to be a Woman." or more emphatically put, "HOW to be a WO MUN!!" The review said it was a "profane, witty and wonky" memoir. I believe we better described it as a "caustic, strident and mildly humorous, and yes, profane"series of essays describing her precarious journey walking the tightrope between being feminine and feminist.

I found the first half of the book difficult to listen to and almost quit on it. In the end, I am glad I did not. Her topics are by no means new but they are still very relevant. And very much worth revisiting in a time when so many of women's hard won freedoms are being challenged in the political arena.

Caitlin's voice, both literally and in her writing, is loud, brassy and like clanging symbols and banging drums. It sounded discordant, atonal to my ear like a piece of modern classical music.

However, as I neared the end of the book I realized that it is exactly these same kinds of voices that have given rise to the feminist movement over the years and effected change.  Nice and quiet do not a revolution, or history, make.

Whatever you may think of feminism, and many women are against it, what it boils down to is "freedom to choose." Before the various waves of feminism effected change, women were considered property of their fathers and husbands.  At the Council of Nicea, men who were deciding on the books of the Bible debated whether women even had souls. We could not access our own money, own or inherit property, and we had no choice over our reproductive systems.

Feminists, as a group, are often depicted negatively as "angry, man-hating, lesbians". Nothing could be further from the truth. But without their caustic, strident voices, we would not enjoy the freedoms we do. It has become painfully aware to me that our freedoms are precarious.  Some states, as I write this, are passing laws that prohibit women from making choices about their own bodies and health, which in  turn effects them not just emotionally but economically.

Someone asked the question if this "rant" was a gauntlet and a call to action. "If so, what does she want us to do?"

I believe her intent was to stir us up, piss us off, awaken us to the dangers that are possible for us and our future daughters if we are complacent.

Join NOW or at least get on the newsletter or Facebook page. Read Ms. Magazine, watch the legislation that is going before the courts now and make your own voice heard.

Where would you and I be without the likes of Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucy Paul, Gloria Steinham and others who fought for the freedoms we enjoy today? And what legacy do we wish to leave future generations of women?

I'm glad I pushed through to the end and the book rated a 3.79.

Next months book is Before I go to Sleep by S. J. Watson at Barb's house.