November Book Club: David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits and the Art of Battling Giants by Malcolm Gladwell

Thank you Sue for a great evening spent discussing a larger then life woman named Olive Kitteridge. She was quite the lady and had many layers to discover. If you looked you could see a compassionate person who deeply cared or an angry misunderstood women who would just as soon discard your friendship as talk to you. Either one you saw, Olive was one to remember. Thank you so much for sharing the amazing produce. I am still munching away on my delicious peppers.

Next month we will be meeting at Beth’s home on Wednesday November 4th at 7pm. We will be discussing her choice of:

 

Goodreads says:   In his #1 bestselling books The Tipping Point, Blink, and Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell has explored the ways we understand and change our world. Now he looks at the complex and surprising ways the weak can defeat the strong, the small can match up against the giant, and how our goals (often culturally determined) can make a huge difference in our ultimate sense of success. Drawing upon examples from the world of business, sports, culture, cutting-edge psychology, and an array of unforgettable characters around the world, David and Goliath is in many ways the most practical and provocative book Malcolm Gladwell has ever written.

We have read Malcolm Gladwell before and I really like the way we think and move in different directions as we discuss his thoughts. This sounds like a great one to get us all thinking again.

See you there.

October Book Club: Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout

We will be meeting at Sue’s home on October 7th to discuss her book choice of:

At times stern, at other times patient, at times perceptive, at other times in sad denial, Olive Kitteridge, a retired schoolteacher, deplores the changes in her little town of Crosby, Maine, and in the world at large, but she doesn’t always recognize the changes in those around her: a lounge musician haunted by a past romance; a former student who has lost the will to live; Olive’s own adult child, who feels tyrannized by her irrational sensitivities; and her husband, Henry, who finds his loyalty to his marriage both a blessing and a curse.
As the townspeople grapple with their problems, mild and dire, Olive is brought to a deeper understanding of herself and her life–sometimes painfully, but always with ruthless honesty. Olive Kitteridge offers profound insights into the human condition--its conflicts, its tragedies and joys, and the endurance it requires.

See you there.

September Book Club: Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy

We hope everyone is healthy and well again. Taking off August surprised us all. We are going to discuss Tanya’s book pick on Wednesday Sept 2nd at 7pm at Tanya’s home. Her choice is:

Independent and spirited Bathsheba Everdene has come to Weatherbury to take up her position as a farmer on the largest estate in the area. Her bold presence draws three very different suitors: the gentleman-farmer Boldwood, soldier-seducer Sergeant Troy and the devoted shepherd Gabriel Oak. Each, in contrasting ways, unsettles her decisions and complicates her life, and tragedy ensues, threatening the stability of the whole community. The first of his works set in Wessex, Hardy's novel of swift passion and slow courtship is imbued with his evocative descriptions of rural life and landscapes, and with unflinching honesty about sexual relationships.

See you there

July Book Club: When I Found You by Catherine Ryan Hyde

Last month's book, The Sweetness of Forgetting by Kristen Harmel was a really enjoyable book. The talk of pastries and baking alone was awesome. One must have great will power to own a bakery. We loved the characters and the hope of finding lasting love in our lives. The subject of the Holocaust was treated so well too. It was a great discussion. Thanks Luann.

Next month will be hosted by Diane at 7pm on Wednesday July 1st. We will be reading When I Found You by Catherine Ryan Hyde. This is a quick read and not very costly on a Kindle.

Goodreads says:

When Nathan McCann discovers a newborn baby boy half buried in the woods, he assumes he's found a tiny dead body. But then the baby moves and in one remarkable moment, Nathan's life is changed forever.

The baby is sent to grow up with his grandmother, but Nathan can't forget him and is compelled to pay her a visit. He asks for one simple promise - that one day she will introduce the boy to Nathan and tell him, 'This is the man who found you in the woods.'
Years pass and Nathan assumes that the old lady has not kept her promise, until one day an angry, troubled boy arrives on his doorstep with a suitcase . . .

Enjoy these lovely summer days and nights. Hope to see you in July.

June Book Club: The Sweetness of Forgetting by Kristin Harmel

Thanks to everyone who gathered for book club last night. We had a great discussion on a powerful book. It has opened our eyes to the struggles that many countries have faced to gain very basic elements of freedom. We have so much to be grateful for and an even greater responsibility to do what we can to bless the lives of others. Thank you Telarry. It was a great book to read and think about.

Our next discussion will be at  LuAnn’s house on Wednesday June 3rd at 7pm. Her book pick is:

                          

Goodreads says:

A baker in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, must travel to Paris to uncover a family secret for her dying grandmother—and what she learns may change everything. Hope’s beloved French-born grandmother Mamie, who wowed the Cape with her fabulous pastries for more than fifty years, is drifting away into a haze of Alzheimer’s. But in a rare moment of clarity, Mamie realizes that unless she tells Hope about the past, the secrets she has held on to for so many years will soon be lost forever. Tantalizingly, she reveals mysterious snippets of a tragic history in Paris. And then, arming her with a scrawled list of names, she sends Hope to France to uncover a seventy-year-old mystery.

A Goodreads reader says:

I really enjoyed this book. My mother suffers from dementia, so I could relate to the feelings of the main character when dealing with her grandmother's "good" and "bad" days. I've also spent many years on the Cape, so I enjoyed the setting. I thought the premise was great. Imagine discovering a completely different family history than the one you grew up believing? What feelings of loss would you feel? What would you feel you'd gained? I've read other books by this author and I'm glad she's been able to branch out into another genre. I think you'll like this book (and the food)!

Looking forward to this one!!

See you there,

Diane

May book club: In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez

The Boys in the Boat was a great book to read and feel proud to be an American and proud of our connections to the University of Washington. These boys were amazing in what they were able to accomplish and all the while each one of them felt that they were the weak link. Very humble men and such amazing character traits. Great writing too!! Thanks for the video clips and for a great read Margaret.

Our next book club will be hosted by Telarry on Wednesday May 6th at 7 pm. Her selection will be:

 

Goodreads says:

Set during the waning days of the Trujillo dictatorship in the Dominican Republic in 1960, this extraordinary novel tells the story the Mirabal sisters, three young wives and mothers who are assassinated after visiting their jailed husbands.
From the author of How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents comes this tale of courage and sisterhood set in the Dominican Republic during the rise of the Trujillo dictatorship. A skillful blend of fact and fiction, In the Time of the Butterflies is inspired by the true story of the three Mirabal sisters who, in 1960, were murdered for their part in an underground plot to overthrow the government. Alvarez breathes life into these historical figures--known as "las mariposas," or "the butterflies," in the underground--as she imagines their teenage years, their gradual involvement with the revolution, and their terror as their dissentience is uncovered.

A goodreads reader says:

"In the Time of the Butterflies" was beautiful and sad. I loved every one of the sisters. Their sacrifice, during the Trujillo regime, made me question what I would be willing to sacrifice for freedom and it made me think about my sister. The image that made me cry and made me angry was of the sisters standing in the garden one night looking back at the lit house as their mama bustles around getting their children ready for bed. Alvarez says they look at the house with longing as if they were already dead and wishing to watch their children grow up. That decision between political upheaval and being with and living for their children haunted me. How could they sacrifice a life with their children? I know they were fighting against an oppressive, tyrannical regime and that they believed their fight for freedom was to create a better world for their children. I guess it bothers me because I admired the sisters but I wouldn't have made the same choice.

Sounds like a book that will start a great discussion.

Hope to see you in May.

April book club: The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics by Daniel James Brown

Can I just say our discussion on The Demon in the Freezer opened our eyes a little WIDE about the possibilities of another small pox threat. Wow, to think this is still “hiding” in a freezer just waiting for our government to decide it is an acceptable risk to study it? On the other scientific hand, what a great bunch of people who worked so hard to eradicate this thing. Germs are everywhere and we can’t go crazy but we must use our heads as well. Great discussion, thanks Tansy!!

Our next book club will be hosted by Margaret on April 8th. Her selection will be:

 

Goodreads says:

Daniel James Brown’s robust book tells the story of the University of Washington’s 1936 eight-oar crew and their epic quest for an Olympic gold medal, a team that transformed the sport and grabbed the attention of millions of Americans. The sons of loggers, shipyard workers, and farmers, the boys defeated elite rivals first from eastern and British universities and finally the German crew rowing for Adolf Hitler in the Olympic games in Berlin, 1936.
The emotional heart of the story lies with one rower, Joe Rantz, a teenager without family or prospects, who rows not for glory, but to regain his shattered self-regard and to find a place he can call home. The crew is assembled  by an enigmatic coach and mentored by a visionary, eccentric British boat builder, but it is their trust in each other that makes them a victorious team. They remind the country of what can be done when everyone quite literally pulls together—a perfect melding of commitment, determination, and optimism.
Drawing on the boys’ own diaries and journals, their photos and memories of a once-in-a-lifetime shared dream, The Boys in the Boat is an irresistible story about beating the odds and finding hope in the most desperate of times—the improbable, intimate story of nine working-class boys from the American west who, in the depths of the Great Depression, showed the world what true grit really meant.

A goodreads reader says:

Quite an uplifting story of the young men from the University of Washington who took the gold medal for nine-men shell rowing at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. Like Hillenbrand’s wonderful book “Seabiscuit” this is a tale of underdogs overcoming personal adversities and capturing the attention of a nation laid low by the Great Depression.

Sounds like a great book, especially being from the Northwest.

See you in April