November Book Club 2021

 

Blog # 177 Book #239

November's Book Club was hosted by Lis. We missed Barb, Laura, Denise, Tammy, Leslie and Pam.

The rest of us enjoyed Lis' Sweet Potato Chili and Mayan Hot Chocolate. Carla Anderson brought Chicken Tortilla Soup. Carl Gibbs brought bread, cheese and wine. Janie brought Peach Cobbler and Ice Cream. 

Our book was recommend by Barb who counts it among one of her favorites. West with the Night is the memoir of Beryl Markham. Born in England in 1902 she was raised by her father in Africa where she became a pilot and horse trainer. 

 she was the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean from east to West. Her contemporary, Amelia Earhart, and American born 5 years earlier. was the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic from West to East in 1932. Beryl was also a contemporary of Isak Dinesen, Dynis Finch Hatton and Ernest Hemingway. 

Upon reading Beryl's manuscript he remarked, "She has written so well, and marvelously well, that I was completely ashamed of myself as a writer. She can write rings around all of us who consider ourselves as writers. It is really a bloody wonderful book." 

I wouldn't say that our book club rating of a 3.4 reflects Hemingway's praise. However, I think that reading the book 80's after its publication may account for the difference in our appraisal. Some liked it better than others. I really enjoyed her descriptive writing. I thought it beautiful prose and she led a remarkable life. However, it being written in 1942, I thought she did a good job of being discreet about the more sensational parts of her love life. That said, the story was told with a lack of emotion that I think colored the story. She married three times and had one son. However, she had affairs, among others, two sons of King George V, Princes Harry and Edward. Edward later abdicated the throne. She also acquainted and friends with the author Isak Dinesen of Out of Africa fame. Isak had been having an affair with Denys Finch Hatton while he was also seeing Beryl. Of her relationships Beryl mentions only Finch Hatton (that I recall) but does not give details and never mentions Dineson. 

Beryl was born in England but was taken to Kenya at age 4. She grew up there with her father. Her mother and a brother stayed behind in England. Beryl grew up with a Zebra as a pet and was around horses all of her life as well all the wild life in Africa. She learned to fly at a young age and initially earned money by scouting elephants for hunters.  In 1920, at age 18, she became the first woman in Kenya to be given a horse trainers license. 

I won't give the full bio here but among her many accomplishments, she did become the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean from east to West in 1936. Her contemporary, Amelia Earhart, an American born 5 years earlier, was the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic from West to East in 1932. 

I was happy to have read the book and to have learned more about this woman. 

October Book Club 2021

 

Thanks to Arnora for hosting and for making her Easy Chicken Pot Pie. The pot pie paired beautifully with fresh veggies, pizza and brownies for dessert! We missed Barb and Tammy. 

October's book was described as "The thriller novel you've been waiting for. No one can be trusted, emotions run high and the story unravels slowly but wonderfully."

The discovery of a girl abandoned in a field of dandelions by the side of the road in a small Texas town threatens to unearth the long buried secrets of a legendary cold case. The description of the town lends itself to the Southern Gothic style of mystery. Told from three points-of-view over a near 15 year time period. The book opens ten years after the original girl's disappearance and ends when the abandoned girl is 18. It's a small town where everyone knows everyone. But, there is deceit and betrayal buried under the small town conventions and proprieties. 

The book was well received and rated a 3.7. 

September Book Club 2021

Many thanks to Laura who volunteered her patio for this month's book club. It was a beautiful evening to sit outside for our discussion.  

September's book was A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles. We had loved his book, "Rules of Civility," several years ago. 

A "Gentleman in Moscow" is about an aristocratic Russian, Alexander Rostov, who is arrested in 1922 at the end of the Russian Revolution. He is convicted, of being an aristocrat. But, rather than being executed by the Bolesheviks, he is put under house arrest in a luxury hotel, The Metropol, in Moscow. There he lives out the next 30 years of his life. 

(What follows is paraphrased from Amor Towles website)

A novel set in Soviet Russia in an era of austerity in which the hero spends three decades of his life in the confines of a single building might seem dull. But, it's the perfect opportunity for the author to investigate the depths of the Russian soul. 

As the author draws you deep into Alexander's existential malaise, a willowy actress enters the scene. In the kitchen three collaborators convene, connive and, cook. Knives are juggled, passports stolen and disguises adopted. Alexander adopts a daughter. There are many story lines connecting the people who work, as well as live, at the hotel. And, we follow it all with interest until one day in 1954 a well orchestrated escape is executed.

Amor Towles, admits to his own personal love affair with the Russian authors and way of life. He weaves into his story history, food, wine and the culture of a people who endure the long, hard Russian winters. 

I felt from the start that his book was an homage to Dostoevsky as the writing style reminded me very much of Anna Karenina. 

The book rated 4.5

August Book Club 2021

Thanks to Denise for hosting our August Book Club. It was a beautiful day!

Last year, Diana had arranged for her friend and poet, Vivian Nida to recite from her book of poems, "From Circus Town, USA." Diana met Vivian when she was a student in one of her high school classes. They had been in intermittent contact over the years. Vivian grew up in Hugo, Oklahoma and her book of poems is inspired by the circuses that wintered there over the years. Of course, we have a connection to the Endangered Ark Foundation that grew out of those circuses. Vivian's initial visit to book club was postponed due to Covid last year. Our patience was certainly rewarded! Vivian read to us from her book and shared photos of her family, the town and, the circus. She regaled us with charming anecdotes and even brought us Animal Cracker cookies.                                      

Our book for August was "The Lost Apothecary," a debut novel by Sarah Penn.This story is told from the perspective of two time periods. In current day London, aspiring historian, Caroline Parcewell, is spending her 19th wedding anniversary alone. On the eve of this long awaited trip, Caroline finds out about her husband's infidelity. She decides to make the trip alone to give herself time to process her situation. On a field trip she discovers an old apothecary bottle that becomes a clue to the unsolved apothecary murders that happened in London 200 years earlier.

In 18th century London, a female apothecary is carrying on the business of her deceased mother. She has a predominantly female clientele and an underground reputation for selling well disguised poisons that enable some of these women to do away with abusive and oppressive husbands. The book was fairly well received and rated a 3.4.

The book was fairly well received and rated a 3.4.

July Book Club 2021

 

The weather mild weather continues to hold as we move into summer. In May, it rained 27 out of 31 days. We continued to have rain, though not as much, and milder than normal temps in June. And, it was still lovely enough for us to dine on Diana's patio this month, though we moved our discussion inside. 

We had a double miracle this month as EVERY in state member was present and 100% of members read the book. This month, Carla's granddaughter, Bailee, also joined us. I don't think we bored her too much!

We had a lovely, light dinner that included chicken salad sandwiches as well as other cold sandwiches, and a cobbler with ice cream for dessert! Perfect for a summer's night. 

Our book for July was the Rose Code by Kate Quinn. She is another recurring author for the group as we recently enjoyed her book, "The Alice Network." 

The Rose Code is another story set in WWII England. The story is about three female code breakers; Osla, Mab and Beth at Bletchley Park during the war. The women form a friendship and a book club over the years, but a betrayal and traitor among their colleagues lands one of them in a locked up asylum in the years after the war. But, through a letter carefully smuggled out, she's able to issue a cry for help from her confinement.

I thought the author did a particularly good job with her descriptions putting me, in my imagination, right in the thick of the action sequences.

The book rated a 4.5. 

June Book Club 2021

 

Blog Post # 172  Book #234

Barb hosted us on her lovely patio for June and her friend Debra joined us. We had a wonderful meal that included smoked salmon. The weather was perfect and we were joined by a very interested Firefly that made her presence known. This Firefly flew into the middle of our circle and then proceeded to come face to face with each one of us hovering in front of our eyes for several seconds each. And, she did it twice. Unanimously, we agreed that Terry was making her presence known! And, what a perfect book to coincide with this synchronicity as Barbara Kingsolver writes so poetically about nature. 

Ms. Kingsolver has been a favorite author of this group almost since its inception. And, Prodigal Summer has rated the favorite of all books among several of our members. It was decided to revisit this book at the beginning of summer as a refreshing for some and a new read for others. 

This story is told of a small Appalachian town during a single, humid summer when three interweaving stories of love, loss and family unfold against a backdrop of the lush wildness of the Virginia mountains. The story follows Deanna, a solitary woman working as a park ranger, Lusa, a recently widowed entomologist at odds with her late farmer husband's tight-knit family, and Garnett, an old man who dreams of restoring the lineage of the extinct American Chestnut Tree.

Kingsolver's extensive education in biology is on display in this book. Her writing also exhibits her knowledge of rural Virginia, where she grew up. 

The rating for this book was off our usual chart of 1-5 as some gave it a 5.5 and even a 6. 

May Book Club 2021

 

Blog Post #171  Book #233

Pam hosted May's book club on her patio. This found us meeting for dinner on a beautiful Friday night. Tammy and Lily were able to join us this month and we were excited to see them! 

This month we were missing Janie, Carla G, Leslie. We always miss Lou and Darby who live away and Terry will be forever missed.

Our book for May was The Midnight Library by Matt Haig. The story is about Nora, a 30-something woman who is regretful about her life and feels alienated and unneeded in this world. In the depths of her wallowing, she comes across the Midnight Library. In it, each book represents a portal into another variation of what her life could have been. As she reads each volume, they allow her access to different versions of her life; relationships she could have stayed with, careers she could have pursued and so on.

As she jumps in and out of these alternate realities, Nora's journey of self-discovery results in a life-affirming and reflective story about the choices we make, the paths we've chosen and each our places in the world. 

The book was well received and rated a 3.95.