November book club: The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd

Thanks Beth for a great evening together. Our discussion was so interesting when we got into “what is faith” vs “belief”. Good questions and answers. Although not his best book it was definitely a good one to read and share thoughts about.

Our next meeting will be at LuAnn’s home on Tuesday November 4th at 7pm. Her book pick is:

                            

Goodreads review says: Hetty "Handful” Grimke, an urban slave in early nineteenth century Charleston, yearns for life beyond the suffocating walls that enclose her within the wealthy Grimke household. The Grimke’s daughter, Sarah, has known from an early age she is meant to do something large in the world, but she is hemmed in by the limits imposed on women.
Kidd’s sweeping novel is set in motion on Sarah’s eleventh birthday, when she is given ownership of ten year old Handful, who is to be her handmaid. We follow their remarkable journeys over the next thirty-five years, as both strive for a life of their own, dramatically shaping each other’s destinies and forming a complex relationship marked by guilt, defiance, estrangement and the uneasy ways of love.
As the stories build to a riveting climax, Handful will endure loss and sorrow, finding courage and a sense of self in the process. Sarah will experience crushed hopes, betrayal, unrequited love, and ostracism before leaving Charleston to find her place alongside her fearless younger sister, Angelina, as one of the early pioneers in the abolition and women’s rights movements.
Inspired by the historical figure of Sarah Grimke, Kidd goes beyond the record to flesh out the rich interior lives of all of her characters, both real and invented, including Handful’s cunning mother, Charlotte, who courts danger in her search for something better.
This exquisitely written novel is a triumph of storytelling that looks with unswerving eyes at a devastating wound in American history, through women whose struggles for liberation, empowerment, and expression will leave no reader unmoved.

A Goodreads reader says: 

We think that we know something about the atrocities of slavery because we learned about it in American history class, or we saw glimpses of it in a movie or a book. But it isn't until we confront a depiction of it that seems so real and horrible, that we realize how very little we really know of the injustice of slavery. Sue Monk Kidd has provided that depiction in this amazing novel.
In blending fact and fiction, she tells the story of Sarah and Angelina Grimke, two sisters from Charleston, S.C. who devote their lives to the abolition of slavery and to the women's rights movement in the 1800's. It is also the courageous story of Handful (Hetty),her mother Charlotte, and sister Sky, slaves to the Grimke family. While, Kidd in her notes gives details of her research and clarifies what was fact and what was fiction in the novel, I loved that one of my favorite parts of the book was true - Sarah teaches Handful to read.
The journey of these courageous children who become courageous women against the odds is a story that will stay with me.

See you at book club. I’m looking forward to reading this one.

The First Phone Call from Heaven by Mitch Albom

We had a great time dissecting the murder mystery presented by Mary Higgins Clark, I’ve Got You Under My Skin. Wow, at 86 she is still writing. Thanks Telarry for a wonderful evening together.

Our next book club will be hosted by Beth Nelson. We are going to change our day for meeting from Wednesday to Tuesday starting with October. We will still be the first week of the month but now we will meet the first Tuesday of the month. Beth has chosen to read:  The First Phone Call From Heaven by Mitch Albom.

                                 

Goodreads review says:   The First Phone Call from Heaven tells the story of a small town on Lake Michigan that gets worldwide attention when its citizens start receiving phone calls from the afterlife. Is it the greatest miracle ever or a massive hoax? Sully Harding, a grief-stricken single father, is determined to find out. An allegory about the power of belief--and a page-turner that will touch your soul--Albom's masterful storytelling has never been so moving and unexpected.
Readers of The Five People You Meet in Heaven will recognize the warmth and emotion so redolent of Albom's writing, and those who haven't yet enjoyed the power of his storytelling, will thrill at the discovery of one of the best-loved writers of our time.

A Goodreads reader says:

This book has a wonderful premise- several people from one small town are getting phone calls from deceased loved ones. Many people believe it's a miracle while some feel it's a hoax. One man sets out to find the answer.
I'm a huge fan of Mitch Albom-his books always give me comfort and hope. However, this book was rather frustrating most of the time and featured some annoying characters that got on my nerves. I gave this book three stars only because i liked the beginning (i couldn't stop crying) and the end. However, the middle of the book (basically the majority of the story) was difficult to get through. Albom is still one of my favorite authors but his other books are much better than this one.

I’ve Got You Under My Skin by Mary Higgins Clark

                                   

Goodreads review says:    When Laurie Moran's husband was brutally murdered, only three-year-old Timmy saw the face of his father's killer. Five years later his piercing blue eyes still haunt Timmy's dreams. Laurie is haunted by more: the killer's threat to her son as he fled the scene: Tell your mother she's next, then it's your turn . . .
Now Laurie is dealing with murder again, this time as the producer of a true-crime, cold-case television show. The series will launch with the twenty-year-old unsolved murder of Betsy Powell. Betsy, a socialite, was found suffocated in her bed after a gala celebrating the graduation of her daughter and three friends. The sensational murder was news nationwide. Reopening the case in its lavish setting and with the cooperation of the surviving guests that night, Laurie is sure to have a hit on her hands. But when the estranged friends begin filming, it becomes clear each is hiding secrets . . . small and large.
And a pair of blue eyes is watching events unfold, too . . .

A Goodreads reader says: 

I know exactly to what expect from this author. A good mystery, filled with many characters and many red herrings.
She has a very unique style of writing which is pretty easy to read.
As usual, this story is filled with mystery, characters with loads of secrets which are revealed throughout the story, different POV’s which get you into the characters head.
This book had a good plot – a reality show based on reenacting unsolved murders with the actual persons involved in the case.
I found it a bit hard to engage with most of the characters – perhaps too many and a few things that just did not fit in for me.
I have been reading this author’s books through the years and I will probably read any others that she will still published. I can’t believe that she’s actually in her 80….hell, she has a damn good memory if she can still write like this.

August Book Club – I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai

Thanks Luanne for a great gathering to discuss a book about book clubs! We all share a love of books so talking about this book was amazing. A mother and son sharing important thoughts about life and choices and everything in-between. A great book.

Our next meeting will be at Margaret’s home on Wednesday July 30th at 7 pm. Her book pick is:

Goodreads review:  I come from a country that was created at midnight. When I almost died it was just after midday.
When the Taliban took control of the Swat Valley in Pakistan, one girl spoke out. Malala Yousafzai refused to be silenced and fought for her right to an education.
On Tuesday, October 9, 2012, when she was fifteen, she almost paid the ultimate price. She was shot in the head at point-blank range while riding the bus home from school, and few expected her to survive.
Instead, Malala's miraculous recovery has taken her on an extraordinary journey from a remote valley in northern Pakistan to the halls of the United Nations in New York. At sixteen, she has become a global symbol of peaceful protest and the youngest nominee ever for the Nobel Peace Prize.
I Am Malala is the remarkable tale of a family uprooted by global terrorism, of the fight for girls' education, of a father who, himself a school owner, championed and encouraged his daughter to write and attend school, and of brave parents who have a fierce love for their daughter in a society that prizes sons.
I Am Malala will make you believe in the power of one person's voice to inspire change in the world.

See you there!

July Book Club: End of your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe

Thanks to everyone who came and enjoyed our book club discussion. What a great evening of sharing our love of books and other topics of interest we love to talk about. This is a great group of friends and we miss those who could not be there. Thanks Tanya for your Edenbrooke and for taking us back to a more royal and elegant time and place. I hope we have all found our “Philip”.

Next month LuAnn will be hosting on Wednesday July 2 at 7pm. Her book pick is:

                                     

Goodreads review says:   That’s the question Will Schwalbe asks his mother, Mary Anne, as they sit in the waiting room of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. In 2007, Mary Anne returned from a humanitarian trip to Pakistan and Afghanistan suffering from what her doctors believed was a rare type of hepatitis. Months later she was diagnosed with a form of advanced pancreatic cancer, which is almost always fatal, often in six months or less.
This is the inspiring true story of a son and his mother, who start a “book club” that brings them together as her life comes to a close. Over the next two years, Will and Mary Anne carry on conversations that are both wide-ranging and deeply personal, prompted by an eclectic array of books and a shared passion for reading.

A Goodreads reader review:  An absolutely wonderfully written book that is not just the personal experience of Will Schwalbe. This book explores the power of books, reading them, discussing them and intagrating them into our lives and the lives of others. I think we all have an understanding of how important our friends and family are, but this book brings home the importance of letting those people know not just how much you love them, but how proud you are of them or how much you respect them and what they have done or the decisions they have made. Everyone should read this book, no matter what they are going through, and even if they aren't going through anything at all but just living their life.

Here are a few suggestions from Debbie that you might want to check out. Life in a Jar by Jack Mayer and Quiet by Susan Cane

Happy Reading!!

June Book Club: Edenbrooke by Julianne Donaldson

Thanks for a great evening together. The view was amazing and the conversation so much fun. It’s like free therapy when we get together. We laugh and talk and express what ever we need to. I love you gals!! Thanks for a great discussion on what makes us valuable. Is it our appearance or what's in our heart? Reading about Nie Nie makes us all feel like there is hope in facing our challenges. We also saw a really cool segment from NatGeo about a new burn treatment. You spray on your own stem cells with a special gun and it adheres and heals in days not months. Very amazing. Thanks Syd.

Next month Tanya will be hosting our meeting on Wednesday June 4th at 7pm.  Her book pic is:

                                   

Goodreads review says:  Marianne Daventry will do anything to escape the boredom of Bath and the amorous attentions of an unwanted suitor. So when an invitation arrives from her twin sister, Cecily, to join her at a sprawling country estate, she jumps at the chance. Thinking she'll be able to relax and enjoy her beloved English countryside while her sister snags the handsome heir of Edenbrooke, Marianne finds that even the best laid plans can go awry. From a terrifying run-in with a highwayman to a seemingly harmless flirtation, Marianne finds herself embroiled in an unexpected adventure filled with enough romance and intrigue to keep her mind racing. Will Marianne be able to rein in her traitorous heart, or will a mysterious stranger sweep her off her feet? Fate had something other than a relaxing summer in mind when it sent Marianne to Edenbrooke.

A Goodreads reader says:  Edenbrooke is absolutely delightful. I wish more publishers out there would pick up romance stories like this, without the prerequisite sex scenes. There is none of that here, and instead we are treated to a romance that focuses much more on the emotions of the characters and how they fall in love. So it's a love story, not just a romance. In my experience, those are quite hard to find.

See you next month!!

April Book Club: Sarah’s Key by Tatiana de Rosnay

Thanks for a great get together again. We had the best time discussing ideas and laughing and remembering our high school days. Star Girl was a great book to read because we all can’t be popular but we all can be ourselves and stay true to our values. Thanks Tansy and congratulations!!!!!!

Our next book club meeting will be hosted by Beth Adkins on Wednesday April 2 at 7pm. Her book pick is:

                         

A review on Goodreads says:   Paris, July 1942: Sarah, a ten year-old girl, is brutally arrested with her family by the French police in the Vel' d'Hiv' roundup, but not before she locks her younger brother in a cupboard in the family's apartment, thinking that she will be back within a few hours.
Paris, May 2002: On Vel' d'Hiv's 60th anniversary, journalist Julia Jarmond is asked to write an article about this black day in France's past. Through her contemporary investigation, she stumbles onto a trail of long-hidden family secrets that connect her to Sarah. Julia finds herself compelled to retrace the girl's ordeal, from that terrible term in the Vel d'Hiv', to the camps, and beyond. As she probes into Sarah's past, she begins to question her own place in France, and to reevaluate her marriage and her life.

A Goodreads reader says:     I finished "Sarah's Key" this morning and I have so many thoughts going through my head about it. I loved the pacing of the story, how it switched between Sarah's story and Julia's story up until the point where the two merged. I loved how the style of Sarah's story was completely different than the style of Julia's story. I loved how both stories made me cry, even though I knew what was coming. I loved how realistically the characters were portrayed. Nobody was all good or all bad, just human with human frailties. I loved the depictions of the small acts of conscience and kindness. I had no idea about the roundups of Jews in France. I did know that the Nazis tended to just send children who were too young to work straight to the gas chambers. I think the author did a good job of illustrating why the French people seemed to forget what had happened and how the Holocaust indirectly affected them. I hope writers continue writing stories like "Sarah's Key" that bring the atrocities of the Holocaust to light so we can learn and not repeat those mistakes.

In May we will be reading Heaven is Here: An Incredible Story of Hope, Triumph and Everyday Joy by Stephanie Nielson

Just a reminder about the blog that Debbie recommended. Its called The Moments We Stand and can be found at themomentswestand.blogspot.com

Happy reading and see you next month!