Five of us met to discuss Look Me in the Eye by John Elder Robison. This is a very interesting book about Robison’s experience as an Aspergian (as he puts it.) Asperger’s is becoming more of a common diagnosis in our society and almost everyone in the group knows someone on the autism spectrum, so it helped inform the discussion. Robison is Augusten Burroughs’ brother and we talked about hisRead More →
Seven people were at the Book Club meeting to discuss Beautiful Boy by David Sheff. This turned out to be one of the best book conversations that we have had. It is the memoir of Sheff’s family as they deal with their son, Nic, a methamphetamine addict. While everyone agreed that it was a hard read, they also agreed that it was worthwhile to read. One member stated that itRead More →
Six of us had a nice discussion of The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly. This book is about David who loses his mother and then his father remarries and the boy feels displaced. They move to an estate outside of London to avoid the air raids of WWII and David falls into a magical alternative world where fairy tales are real. Some of the stories and scenes areRead More →
In September, six of us met to discuss Await Your Reply by Dan Chaon. This was a novel about changing/shifting/appropriating identities and whether or not identity is truly fluid or if it is a mistake to think that you can alter yours. Other books that people remarked on: She’s Come Undone by Wally Lamb Susan McBride’s new book, Little Black Dress. As Husbands Go by Susan Isaacs Tea Time forRead More →
August was a good month to read about volcanoes. Five people met to discuss Krakatoa: the Day the World Exploded by Simon Winchester. And though this might not be the heartiest of recommendations, folks said that they would never have picked up the book if it hadn’t been on our rotation. Pick it up and decide for yourself. Winchester has a reputation of making history read like a novel. ButRead More →
Six of us met to discuss A Country Year by Sue Hubbell. It was a great conversation about being self-reliant and about what kind of person could live that kind of life. Sue Hubbell raises bees in the Ozarks in Missouri. (At least she did in the 1980s.) She lives by herself on a farm and manages over 300 hives. She fixes her own pick-up when she can and alsoRead More →
Five of us met to discuss The Housekeeper and the Professor by Yoko Ogawa. A housekeeper is hired to work for a former professor of mathematics. She is the 10th housekeeper to work for the professor. He suffers from short term memory loss, to be specific, his brain forgets everything after 80 minutes. Despite this hurdle, the housekeeper and her young son befriend the professor and create a bond withRead More →
Eight people gathered at our April meeting to discuss Strength in What Remains by Tracy Kidder. This was the story of Deogratias, a refugee from Burundi who manages to escape the genocide and the civil war in his country to live in New York City and eventually to continue his medical studies in order to realize his dream of opening a clinic in his home country. We watched two shortRead More →
For our March visit, four of us met to discuss Bone by Bone by Carol O’Connell. It is a mystery set in a small town in California. As one book club attendee said, she had never read a mystery where every single character felt like a suspect. One day 20 years ago, two brothers went into the woods and only one returned. The book begins with the return of theRead More →
Five of us braved the freezing cold weather to meet at the Library and discuss Zeitoun by Dave Eggers. Everyone agreed that it was an amazing story and a compelling read. If you haven’t read it yet, it is about Abdulrahman Zeitoun, a Syrian born immigrant living in New Orleans. During Hurricane Katrina, Zeitoun decides to ride out the storm and keep an eye on his family business and property. You witness firsthand theRead More →
