October Book Club 2016

We had a gorgeous fall evening for book club at a Arnora's home. Pam, Denise, Lou, Tammy, Terry, and Carla Gibbs could not be with us for our discussion of The Woman In Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware. Darby, sorry we didn't FaceTime call you, we were going to and then, well you know...we get distracted too easily, promise to next month.

Arnora provided sausage rolls and the perfect gin and tonic. Laura brought delicious cheeses and olives, Barb brought a mixed kale salad, Janie brought homemade baked bread and almond butter, Diana brought garlic roasted potatoes, Leslie brought pumpkin squares, Lis brought pumpkin ice cream and Carla a brought the flowers and lemon yogurt almonds. 

As always, Arnora brought out our 10 year "calendar girl "photo. I always look forward to seeing it. It brings up great memories of a fun night! And we want to arrange sometime in 2017, when we have one of those perfect meetings where we are all together, a 15 year anniversary photo of us! I do believe Janie's reserved a place on the back row of the photo, step stool required. :-)

We had a lively discussion of our book. We picked it because it seemed like a spooky mystery for the Halloween month. Everyone generally like the book most giving it a 3.

Let me help to me redefine 1-5 rating system. 

#1. equals I hate the book and I want throw the book out the window and run over it with my car.  
#2 is hating the book but I wouldn't hurt it and I wouldn't  recommended it. 

#3 Is I liked it. It was interesting but not necessarily an emotional or great read. 
#4 is nearly great, an interesting story with great writing. 
And #5 is so good you need a cigarette after. A story that takes me on an emotional journey and one that I can't put down.

Leslie said for her a #3 is one she liked and didn't feel compelled to roll her eyes at. A number two involves lots of I rolling.

The premise of our book is that our protagonist Laura "Lo" Blacklock's, London flat is burgled on the eve of her departure for the maiden voyage of a new Nordic cruise ship. Lo is already a troubled girl. A travel writer for 10 years she's on antidepressants and drinks way too much. She has a boyfriend she's pushing away and leaves for her trip disheveled, sleep deprived, mad at her boyfriend and suffering from PTSD from the burglary. Our mystery begins when Lo borrows a cheap Maybelline mascara from her neighbor in cabin 10. The same night the mysterious woman, in a Pink Floyd T-shirt, ends up missing and Lo spends the rest of the time trying to discover her whereabouts and subsequently trying to escape the killers. 

We agreed the story was interesting enough and kept us just curious about the outcome. We also agreed there was a recent trend in fiction to make the female lead dysfunctional, disheveled and an alcoholic. These characteristics put our heroine at an immediate disadvantage of being not only an unreliable narrator, but also an unreliable character. She questions herself and so has trouble convincing others of what she has seen.

Some of the writing got a little tedious and repetitive. A lot of the internal dialogue slowed the story down. However she did paint a vivid picture of the ship which was a small boutique cruise line and opulent in every way. I didn't have much trouble picturing it. Although a couple who had been on a cruise didn't think the cabin numbers were described accurately. The book reminded me of Agatha Christie's death on the Nile which is also a murder taking place on ship. This is a tool Christie used in most of her novels. She confines the set specs to a small setting where there was no means of escape such  as trains and cruise ships. Christie's stories were not stories of emotional journey but one of connecting the dots and figuring out the puzzle. Diana ended up caring a lot about Carrie, our antagonist, and hoped for her redemption and escape. Lo seems a bit of a static character right up until the end of the story but, the events on the ship caused her to reevaluate her life and make some major decisions.

It just dawned on me as I write this and think about the ending, what if Carrie was behind it all from the start, she could have convinced Bomar to kill his wife. She did end up with the money after all and perhaps the "gift" was hush money.

Our November 4th meeting is at Carla Gibbs home and our book is "Anna and the Swallow Man" by Gravel Savit.

September Book Club 2016

This months book club was held at Terry's house in Newcastle. We had a gorgeous night for having our dinner out on the patio. We missed Darby but, she called briefly to say hi and sent us a quote that related to the book we; also miss Janie, Denise, Barb and Carla A.

Dinner was delicious as usual. Terry provided an extra large, fabulous quiche and we had several salads, anti-pasta appetizers fruit and cake for dessert.

Our book this month was a memoir entitled When Women Were Birds by Terry Tempest Williams. 

She tells the story of losing her mother to cancer when she was 24 and her mother was 54. She has waited until she is the age that her mother was when she died to tell the story. The week before her mother passed, she tells Terry that she is leaving her her journals. When Terry finds the journals she discovers that they are all blank. The story she tells is her journey and trying to discover what the blank journals mean. 

The book rated a 3.9 with most having resonated with the story of the mother and daughter. Diana, Liz, Tammy and Arnora did not particularly relate to the story. We discovered that it was a very different experience having listened to the book,  rather than having read the hardcopy

I enjoyed the book a great deal. I thought she did a good job of weeding the story of her life through her struggles witj religion, nature and the environment tabs her own marriage. She fines 54 different meanings or, possible meanings for the point journals.

As I've been going through my mothers end of life transition, I have had a bit of a struggle about some things in her life and trying to make sense of them. My mother did not journal in notebooks but, grabbed random pieces of paper, packs of envelopes and check registers. She stuffed these notes in a variety of places around the house and we found them while looking for her important papers. We put them in a box and we don't know whether to keep or burn them. Her journal notes were we're not particularly poetic, they were written in fits of anger and frustration at both her husband and her daughters. What I found most compelling about the blank journal pages, is that you can never truly know anyones history or their internal make up. My mother had a life before I came along and she and my father had 40 years after I left home. My mother doesn't really know me. And likewise there are many things my son does not know about me. And as I mentioned, Carla has instructions to burn my journals if I go first.

I think the book resonated with me because of my current circumstances of course. I thought much of the prose was poetic and, I think that also did not translate into the audio version of the book.

Arnora has agreed to host next month, Carla G will host in November, and Laura will host December. Our October book will be The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware. 

August Book Club 2016

August 5th bookclub was at Denise's. I'm piecing together this blog from bits off our Facebook posts so it is a recounting of others comments and some from a book description.

Denise prepared Sante Fe black beans and roasted chicken. Lis brought bread and cheese, Carla Gibbs brought a salad, Laura brought fruit, Terry brought homemade cookies for dessert, and Barb brought Sangria; there was probably more that I might have missed as Sherrie and I arrived just in time for dinner.

~ from Elisabeth: Denise, thank you for having us for bookclub and sharing your beautiful home with the gorgeous view of the lake for the evening. It was a wonderful and relaxing time with good discussion and yummy summer food. What a nice surprise that Darby and Pam facetimed in, woohoo! Love my STNM ladies.

For a few of us"A Murder in Time" seemed a challenge reading or finishing because the library connected this book to a free limited time digital download that had a too soon expiration. You can buy it, and those that did and who finished it were Barb, Laura, Lis, Arnora, Sherrie, and Denise. Overall they liked the book rating it a 3.9.

Julie McElwain’s debut novel combines mystery and historical fiction (with a bit of time travel). The protagonist, FBI agent Kendra Donovan, suddenly finds herself 200 years earlier in time at a British castle, where she needs to solve multiple gruesome murders and catch a serial killer.

Our September 9th meeting is at Terry's and our read is "When Women Were Birds: Fifty-four Variations on Voice" by Terry Tempest William.
~ Happy reading, Diana
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July Book Club 2016

We had a nice evening and so pleased, and a bit surprised that we had such a nice turn out for a Wednesday night meeting. We missed Barb, Laura and Darby but we were 13 in all and it was nice to have Lou in town. As usual, there were so many conversations and stories (although I doubt any porch lies, ha!) that I had a hard time keeping up with all the goings on but I'll give myself a break this time since I was hosting. 

The food was superb with awesome salads, chicken, relish plates, and coconut cream pie for dessert, thanks everyone for contributing. Darby you were with us in spirit, literally, as I made pitchers of frozen watermelon daiquiris with your Osterizer blender. We emptied three bottles of wine and some hard lemonade, too!

Porch Lies was fairly well received, with Janie and I giving it the highest rating of 4, we really liked it, and lowest rating of 1.5 by Sherrie who didn't care for the story. Overall most others rated it a 3-3.5. The avg is 3.2 for 13 members. 

Our August 5th meeting is at Denise's new home. Our Our next big read is literally one of Pioneer Library ebooks Big Reads, "A Murder in Time" by Julie McElwain’s and is a debut novel. It is NOT available on Audible, but it is free on the PSL Digital Download. It is only an eBook BIG READ, and not in hard copy at the library. 

Until the same time next month...Diana

June Book Club 2016

We had our June meeting at Tammy's charming and home in Blanchard on Friday, June 10th, nearly 4 months ago. I for one truly appreciate all the years Sherrie has kindly posted a recap of our adventures; she has the gift of gab and love of writing, neither of which I claim as my attributes. Alas, here again is my attempt to delve back into my Pensive of memories and piece together what was a wonderful evening with by best friends!


Tammy prepared delicious fish and chicken tacos, and others brought the fixings and sides. We had Dark and Stormy cocktails, and cupcakes for dessert, YUM!

Lily made a really cool welcome to book club sign that greeted us upon arrival, thank you Lily for the warm welcome!

We enjoyed dining alfresco under the covered veranda and stayed late into the night chatting and discussing the book which was really well liked by most and rated from 3 to 5, averaging a 3.9, so let's call a 4.

This next bit is mostly copied from an online description of the novel. Our book for June, The Ocean at the End of the Lane, written and narrated by Neil Gaiman takes place in Sussex, England. A middle-aged man returns to his childhood home to attend a funeral. He is drawn to the farm at the end of the road, where, when he was seven, he encountered a most remarkable girl, Lettie Hempstock. He hasn't thought of her in decades, and yet sitting by the pond (a pond that she'd claimed was an ocean), the unremembered past comes flooding back. A stirring, terrifying, and elegiac fable as delicate as a butterfly's wing and as menacing as a knife in the dark.

I rated the book a 5 and it will be amongst my favorite stories. I've listened to it twice and confess, I am smitten with Neil Gaiman's voice, could listen to him for hours and I have been lucky (thanks to Darby) to hear him, in person talking about his writing and processes. I've read a number of Gaiman's novels and am naturally drawn to his tales. So if this was your first Neil Gaiman book and you liked it, try his others!

Darby if you read this, I finally read most American Gods and am border line on it. I like the old stories, I can see it's multilayered but there's a darkness to it that I was ready to leave.

Our book for July is Porch Lies: Tales of Slicksters, Trickters, and Other Wily Characters and is suggested by Elisabeth. Because of the July 4 holiday and because the following weekend the 8-9 is not a good time for several of us, we are doing a one-off and choosing to meet Wednesday evening, July 6th at my home, Beal Cottage.
Hope to see you then! Diana

May Book Club 2016

****Double header book club weekend****

"The Magicians" was mostly well liked and rated a 4. There were some who "just didn't get it" and others who "absolutely loved it" and who have already completed reading the trilogy.

We had a big turn out Friday evening at Laura's including three guests; Sherrie's sister, Brenda, Arnora's sister, Gail, and Darby's longtime friend, Leslie. 

Laura and Carla A. make a Cheese Souffle'

A few of us took Laura up on the sleepover invite and we enjoyed dinner and breakfast. Our meals were true creations, bringing back some of ours, and especially Darby's all time favorites. 

There was lots of great conversation both Friday and Saturday. We reminisced about 'Our Book Club Story' (there's a novel idea, pun intended!) and had ample time to catch up with each other. 

Saturday's smaller group at Barb's was intimate and the food and company was just as awesome! We enjoyed an in depth discussion while sitting outside under the stars in Barb's beautiful garden.

Friday night at Laura's

Saturday night at Barb's!

Diana's Paella

Our next book is 

"The Ocean at the End of the Lane" by Neil Gaiman. We meet at Tammy's in Blanchard.

Terry's Pear Salad

April Book Club 2016

Janie hosted the April Book Club on "Easy Street". Pam was in NYC, Carla A and Denise were sick, Terry was in Duncan and I was emotionally under the weather. I am putting the blog together from information on our Facebook group and guest blog contribution from Elisabeth. 

The book, The Story Hour, inspired an East Indian themed meal.  Janie provided Chicken Biryani, Carla G brought curried celery & wine, Darby brought Naan, Raita, and mint chutney, Lis brought curry and Chai Tea, Lou brought hummus, veggies, olives, and cheese, Diana brought spiced rice pudding & chocolate chip cookies, Tammy brought fruit and Arnora brought wine and flowers.

The Story Hour by Thrity Umrigar, is a compelling story of two women. Maggie, an experienced psychologist, carefully maintains her emotional distance from her patience. But, when she meets a young Indian women, Lakshmi, who has tried to kill herself the lines begin to blur. Lakshmi is a fish out  of water in her environment. She works in her husbands restaurant and grocery store. She speaks little English. Her one friend seems to be a young surfer type guy who eats in the restaurant each week. Lakshmi is in an unhappy relationship with her husband and is despondent when her young friend moves away.

Maggie is assigned to Lakshmi when she is brought into the hospital with an overdose. Maggie has compassion for her and agrees to treat her for free and, in her home office. Lakshmi is unfamiliar with the world of therapy. She is confused about the process and the time as a "story telling hour" and Maggie as a new friend she is making.  As the story unfolds in alternating first-person voices, we find that both Maggie and Lakshmi have secrets they are hiding. Eventually, the secrets collide and lives are changed.

I enjoyed how the author, at first, has us thinking certain things about the men in Maggie and Lakshmi's lives. I wasn't very sympathetic to Lakshmi's husband at first. But, then you find out that Lakshmi isn't as innocent as she appears and her husband has reason for his behavior. The same is true for most of the characters in the book. None of them are all good or all bad.  And their pasts are what have made them who they are and what brings them to this crossroads.  I felt both Maggie and Lakshmi dynamic rather than static characters. The pain they both experience moves them into new stages of their life. The book rated 3.7.

Elisabeth's summary:

The book generated a very lively discussion that started even around the dinner table, with the wonderful Indian food that Janie, our hostess, organized. We never even made it to the living room for the book review. The author managed to present the story in a way that allowed the reader to focus on different aspects of it, some seeing it as a shallow repeat of stories already told, others taking longer to appreciate the writing and structure. I believe that nobody was offended that the story hour didn’t wrap up every loose end nice and tidy but left it to the reader to decide how it might go on. It seemed an artistic touch to start and end the story with the same words signifying the story telling intent of it. In all, I believe that it was pretty well received.

Characters: Lakshmi (Indian immigrant in her 30s); Maggie (African-American psychologist in her 50s); Sudhir (engineering professor at university, from India, Maggie’s husband); Peter (humanities professor for 1 year, Maggie’s boyfriend); Mithai (elephant in India); Shilpa (Lakshmi’s younger sister); Rekha (younger Indian girl, helper in store); husband/Adit (older Indian store/restaurant owner, Lakshmi’s husband); Gloria (Maggie’s friend in San Diego).

I can see Lakshmi, a slight Indian woman that looks more like a girl with her small, shy presence and long, shiny black hair. I can see her shyly bobbing her head from side to side in the Indian way of approval or acknowledgement, where we would nod or shrug our shoulders.

I can picture Sudhir with confidence and assurance stand tall but quietly take his self-assigned position in society.

I can see Mithai through the stories about elephants that we read before, a loving creature that is not opposed to playing a little prank on his keepers.

I see pretty Shilpa as a young, immature girl with stars in her eyes, defiant and self-protective in a way that people are that have been allowed to get their way but don’t know it.

I don’t know why I have a difficult time picturing Maggie, if she is tall or short, pretty or average, with kinky or straightened hair; I was surprised to read that she is 56 years old. I might assume that her given name is actually “Maggie” or “Margarete”, but it could be something like “Mageesha” or “Mahogany”.

Peter was described pretty well, but I add to it that he might not have been overly handsome. Instead, he might have had plenty of charisma and presence, possibly a little over-bearing and self-absorbed.

The big secret that Lakshmi and Maggie share is that they have made mistakes that changed their lives. Lakshmi recognizes her actions and consequences and doesn’t feel the right to forgive herself. Maggie doesn’t understand the consequences of her mistake until it is too late but then still doesn’t seem t take full responsibility. When confronted by Sudhir, she doesn’t apologize and debase herself, like Lakshmi. In the beginning of the story, it appears that Lakshmi is the lost one that needs somebody else to help her move forward. As the story goes on, the need shifts to Maggie and Lakshmi becomes the strong one, the one with resolve. In therapy, Maggie didn’t realize that she unleashed the strong woman that Lakshmi was before her guilt about betraying Adit tied her down to become the shy, helpless immigrant.

Sudhir, like Adit, is driven by his hurt and pride for being wronged so badly. Sudhir cannot get past the hurt and sacrifices his happiness and his future to his pride. Adit was willing to sacrifice his future for being cheated until Lakshmi had the courage to tell him that he has a choice to accept and even appreciate what fate put in his way. 

While Maggie as psychologist was the one supposed to give healing, I felt that she was the weak one, the one with unresolved issues. Lakshmi knew the mistakes that she had made, understood why she was in this place of her life. Maggie could not see herself until she was forced to after she was discovered and had to deal with the consequences of her cheating. As a therapist, she crossed so many unprofessional lines and made so many professional mistakes that I would have considered her a bad therapist in the real world. Some of us felt that the author did not do Maggie’s character justice by spending too little time on the molestation issues and the struggles that Maggie must have carried away from it. An experience like that changed her and made her deal with life in ways that others might not understand. She couldn’t even tell Sudhir about it for many years. 

From the side of the author, I felt that the story took the turns that it should have. Maggie’s hurts from childhood needed to be dealt with and come into the open. She did not want to take the time to look at herself, naked like Lakshmi saw her in Peter’s arms, until she had to after Sudhir dismissed her. Even then she was more concerned for justifying herself than to take open responsibility for her in-appropriation. Peter’s hold on her was her responsibility; she could have ended the affair finally without going back again and again. Like Adit, she had choices about her relationship with her spouse – treasure what you have instead of longing for what is not. It is the age-old human tragedy of “the grass is greener on the other side.”