Minutes of the Meetings

This is a new feature - just so those who couldn't make it have an idea of what happened and how we liked the book.

I'm going to put them in reverse order with the most recent meeting at top to make it easier keep track. 

I will do the first ones and will be glad to have anyone else do future ones. My main address to dlkauf@hotmail.com if you want to mail me directly. Just click on the address to mail me from this page.

 

Now we are 5 ?!?  We still are enjoying the books so we'll keep on going thru the motions - John, Robyn, Dean, Meg and Katherine (sp)  

Jun  28, 2004 Wild Ginger - Anchee Min - two new readers -  (we welcome you to lollypop land...) Everyone had read Wild GInger - surprise surprise - and all felt it worth the effort.  The out of control world of the Red Guard in the declining years of Mao - and the terrible difficulties of life for the protagonists were educational at the very least.  We are all looking forward to some new challenging books
May  24, 2004 Three Junes - Julia Glass - the three readers - Dean finished it, John is 2/3 done and Robyn 1/3 done - but all liking it.  Dean thought that the last section was the weakest - that the long and seemingly out of the blue introduction of a major character, Fern was not as well done as the rest.  What we all thought, however was that the author has made very believable people - not mere stereotypes and that their motivations, strengths and weaknesses were totally believable.  Her characters, gay, straight, male and female were equally believable and we all are looking forward from more from Julia Glass. 

  P.S. 06/04/04 - John and Robyn both finished the book and felt the last section the weakest also but still strongly recommended the book
April 27, 2004 Blue Shoe - Ann Lamont - A mixed reaction - Dean liked it the best, we were all amazed. Being a "Christian" writer she certainly surprised us with a totally different type of book than we might have expected.  Robyn thought that the Mattie made so many bad choices and this colored her enjoyment in the book.  Dean thought that a lot of the problems and situations, putting her mother in the home, finding about her father, the children's difficulties, obsessions, etc. were quite believable.  
March 29, 2004

Blessings - Anna Quindlen -  we all liked this a lot - a very moving book - we wanted to find what happened next - not a happy ending but one in which the people grew. Definitely want to look at her other fiction.  John and Robyn saw the made for TV movie - the book was much better.
Feb 2004 All is Vanity - Christina Schwarz
Jan. 2004 Crossing to Safety -Wallace Stegner
May 19, 2003 Embers - 
Apr 28, 2003 I, Roger William - Mary Settle,Just Robin and John - I was out of town.   I Dean only read 1/3 but want to finish - had no real previous knowledge of Williams and was fascinated with the history of England and America that is woven into the story. A little hard to read in terms of the style which seemed to be appropriate to the style of writing and conversation in Williams time.  The picture of Royal England - if at all accurate is a real eye opener.  John didn't like it and Robyn had a better opinion.  
Mar 23, 2003 Sputnik Sweetheart - Haruki Murikami  - Dean's choice - I've liked everything of his that has been translated. Hard to explain - but the feelings of unrequited love, triangles of relations, and conflicted emotions is so well protrayed.  Murakami admits that his stories get a little weird on him - and that too is a part of the mix. Can't always understand how the unexplained implausable features fit into a seemingly realistic mileu but I always enjoy the story even though I don't completely understand it.  John was not amused. - he likes some of what he has read by Murikami but not especially this. Not sure about Robyn - I'll ask again.    
Feb 24, 2003 Just John and I who both loved How to Be Good - by Nick Hornby - John is a big time fan - and I had to go out and read High Fidelity by the same author - I'll have to read his others some time and then there are the two movies...  Definitely recommended 
Jan 27, 2003 Master and Margarita - Bulgakov -  I was the biggest fan of this one, John, Evelyn and Robin had not finished it - I hope they do. We had one new visiter who came because of the book - she had mixed feelings - I got too busy and never could work out getting some Russians to the meeting for their perspective.  I recomend his shorter Heart of a Dog - and I have a DVD of a 3 part TV movie made of it ( in Russian with English subtitles) if anyone wants to borrow it. I did meet some Russian librarians in Jan - visiting Arlington library - who said that the book is still very big in Russia - even after all these years. - 
Nov 25, 2002 Most of us were unavailable - Dean showed up but no one else. I'd definitely like to publicize the January book in the Russian community since Master and Margarita is the favorite book of the last 5 Russians I have met.  I'm  going to add a page for suggested books for Feb and Mar 2003 - we ought to choose some before our January meeting.    
Oct 25, 2002 Things fall apart -Chinua Achebe  Robyn, John, Sue and Dean - We liked the book, felt it was well worth reading and a learning experience. We had noticed that it had been referenced in Poisonwood Bible - and our reading of that helped our understanding of this. The nature of the traditional society certainly had some very destructive features - abandonment of twins, killing of the boy from the enemy tribe, the strict adherence to the tradition with often tragic results.  However, while the coming of the whites and and their power may have ended some of these practices, it was clear that this was not the real interest of these outside interest.  The contrast of the two priests was interesting - the one who worked with the people, appreciated the admirable parts of the culture and tried to fit in in contrast to the one who followed who would saw the traditional culture as all bad.     
Sept 23, 2002 Five Quarters of the Orange by Joanne Harris  - John, Dean and Robyn - we all liked this one. Felt the story was compelling, much darker than Chocolat. All would recommend this one.  Evelyn couldn't make it but she read it too, didn't like the ending as much but still thought it was good.  Keith happened upon us by chance and was surprised to see we made a comeback. Sounds like he may join us again.  
  Aug 26, 

    2002

The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood   6 of us, 4 who had read the book and this was probably the most unanimous agreement on a book we have had in a long time - everyone liked it a lot. Really well written, complex, difficult to keep track of some of the characters and details at times but a very impressive introduction to Atwood for those of us who had never read her. I didn't get a chance to read it but am very motivated to get started so I know what everyone was talking about - Dean. - Footnote - I (Dean) finally finished this and was in total agreement with the others. A great book, worth the effort.
  July 22, 

    2002

 More than you Know - Beth Gutcheon There were 5 of us - I hadn't finished the book - basically liked it to varying degrees. Not sure if we would recomend it.  I've got to get back to this later.
June 24, 2002 Three of us--Sue, John & Robyn--discussed Ian McEwan's Enduring Love while sitting in the childrens' section (Janet Evanovich fans took over the rest of the store that evening)! Overall, we found the McEwan novel held our interest. We did wish the author had developed a few loose threads in the story line or characters, and some of us were somewhat disappointed by the ending.

McEwan has received glowing reviews for his latest novel, Atonement. He's described as "contemporary fiction's black magician" or, in some circles, as "Ian Macabre." And I can see why.

Enduring Love is a dark and edgy psychological thriller about madness and obsession, and how one tragic event (an exquisitely detailed balloon accident) influences all of the characters. A deranged man who also witnessed the accident soon begins to stalk the book's protagonist Joe Rose, a science writer. Suspense builds as the crazed man relentlessly shadows Joe until the obsession wrecks havoc on Joe's work, marriage, physical safety and mind. All this takes place against a narrator's backdrop that contrasts science with religion, among other themes. The writing was imaginative and lucid, with a lot of visual detail especially in the first, pivotal chapter.

Those who want a "light read" probably won't care for Enduring Love. The book compels the reader to explore complex emotions and themes, as well as different versions of events. Says McEwan in an interview with Bold Type, "I was intrigued to discover that some stalkers are convinced that the object of their obsession is in love with them. De Clerambault sufferers also believe their loved ones are sending them signals--via the television set or by, for example, the arrangement of the clouds. It's a peculiar mental prison."

We enjoyed a few items of interest about the author. According to interviews, McEwan likes to use moments of crisis or danger as a means of exploring characters. He loves science. He would prefer to be the lead guitarist in a rock band. He dislikes "creepy" web sites devoted to him. And apparently he enjoys pulling one over on the critics...

In the back of the book, he includes a detailed appendix reporting on a similar case of "de Clerambault's syndrome," reprinted from The British Review of Psychiatry and written by Drs. Robert Wenn and Antonio Camia. Well, the journal doesn't exist. And the last names of the doctors are an anagram for McEwan's name. Evidently this hoax tricked several reputable doctors as well as book critics from The New York Times, The Washington Post, The New York Review of Books, The L.A. Times, The Chicago Tribune and Salon! An interesting tour de force!

Robyn
May 27, 2002 Lost Legends of New Jersey -  Frederick Reiken -  There were just 5 of us, one being someone from New Jersey who was in the store and wasn't sure if the title meant that it was fiction or fact.  Sue, Dean, John and Robyn were there.  We liked it.  Thought it was well done and worth the read.  Liked the way the story was told from various time periods, saw progression in the characters and felt that the people and situations were believable.  We were surprised to note that the author thanked among other people,  Leslie Pietrzyk, the author of Pears on a Willow Tree, one of our earlier reads and a guest at our book group in Oct 1999.        
Apr 22, 2002  Shopgirl by Steve Martin -   John tells me that this was liked by everyone and that there was a good discussion - if anyone wants to add anything, pass it along and I will update this.  Although I couldn't make it there, I was able to read the book and I really enjoyed it too.  I was impressed by Martin's perceptive and sympathetic but realistic portrayal of the main characters. They seemed real - not just stereotypes - and they actually grew and developed - a rather hopeful situation. Evelyn called it a real page turner and it made you want to know what happened next.  Dean
Mar 25, 2002  Mr. Spaceman by Robert Olen Butler -   There were 6 of us, and we disagreed about as much as we possibly could have on this one.  Two of us really disliked the book a lot, didn't like the style - thought the book was not well written - that the abductees were just stereotypes, that their reaction to Desi as the Christ was too unbelievable and that it was hard to get through.  Two were in between and  two of us loved the book , thought the humor was right one, liked the characters a lot, felt the human emotions and yearnings were sympathetically portrayed and enjoyed the language skills of an alien who learned to speak not the Kings English, but rather Madison Avenue ad speak. Its hard to believe that we were reading the same book, but so it goes. . We didn't pick a new book yet but will bring suggestions next time.  Next month we meet in the coffee shop - there is an author at the store that night.   
Feb 25, 2002  Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier - Return of the book group -  thanks to Robyn and friends.  We all enjoyed this book. There was a lot to like about it - it stirred interest in what is really known about Vermeer - which we find is "not much" but the story was so well imagined we are ready to see that picture in a totally different light - trying to catch a glimpse of the supposed strand of hair peeking out from under the head covering.  Griet is very compelling - a servant girl in reality but not in attitude. Although in reality, the choices she had were very limited by circumstances she did make her choices and didn't just give in to whatever came along.

 We are going to try to have a presentation about the author again each month and we are looking forward to keeping this group going.  We hear there may be a downturn in the book group world and don't want to be a part of such a trend We had a lively vote for the next two books.  The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood was just nosed out for May - it may make it later.  If I get any more feed back from anyone for this month I'll be adding it here.  Dean

Jan 28, 2002 Books Eclectic participants met Monday, Jan. 28 to discuss the future of the group. We picked dates and books for the next two months, and we will see how many people show up. We'll continue the group if there is sufficient and sustained interest by enough people to hold good discussions.

Feb 25 @ 7 pm - Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier

March 25 @ 7 pm - Mr. Spaceman by Robert Olen Butler

We picked these selections because they are popular paperbacks with good discussion potential and manageable page lengths. We also considered variety of authors and subject matter. The paperback version of Girl with A Pearl Earring contains a reader's discussion guide. When we meet on Feb. 25, I'll bring some additional information about the author and reviews. Colleen suggested, and we agreed, that the discussions could benefit from more structure. I'll volunteer to "facilitate" for Feb, and others can volunteer to do so at future sessions.     -   Robyn Reed

Nov 26, 2001  John Adams - Sue, Sara and Dean made it -  Sara had finished the book, Dean a third of the way through.  Keith wanted to come but had a conference call.  We decided not to choose any more books - go inactive for now and if anyone wants to get it going again, contact me - dlkauf@hotmail.com

Back to the book - a really excellent book, worth all the critical praise - gives an amazing level of insight into John and Abigail Adams based on extensive use of their letters and journals.  You see the "founding fathers - and mothers" as real people in turbulent times doing their best to build a country and make a life - so much we take for granted was not available but some of the themes from then still play today - biological dangers, war and political intrigue.  Dean  

Oct 22, 2001 Hi Ho, nobody home.  I showed up and no one else made it there.  Unless I hear otherwise I assume this is running out of steam.  The book, Kavalier and Clay is good so far, I'm a little over halfway through the 650 pages and I am going to finish it.  Next month is a big one too, the Adams book although it could draw some history buffs.  If anyone wants to continue the group e-mail me - if you have any ideas, suggestions. dlkauf@hotmail.com

After the fact I found that Sue came buy around 7-7:15 and didn't see me and Keith also made it when no one was here - there was also a mix up with Borders in which book was for which month - they had them backwards.
Sept 23, 2001 Love in the time of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez

I was out of town - I hope someone can send me a little review - Dean

I visited with a friend from Pittsburgh where Chabon, the author of our next book went to school and my friend recommends The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay   very highly! 

Aug 27, 2001 Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera - Just 4 of us but a good book and really worth the read. All but I have seen the movie made of the book and I am planning on seeing it soon - although it is hard to see how well this book which is so much more than a straightforward novel could be made into a movie. Keith, Sara and Dean plus one new person were there.  Much food for thought, perceptive observations on people and dysfunctional relationships. I especially liked the section on misunderstood words - words that the two persons in the relationship understood in diametrically opposed ways - they seem to be speaking the same language but most definitely aren't.  Kundera is obviously shaped by his environment growing up in eastern Europe and so many of the protagonists have been damaged by this oppressive society - most relationships are destructive but there is keen observation of the human dilemma and even when you don't quite get what Kundera is driving at, his musings on kitsch for instance, it is still fascinating.       

We picked books for Oct and Nov as were asked by Borders.  Since we don't meet in December, we took the plunge and picked two long books. Novembers is the extremely well received best seller John Adams by McCullough, and October is the Pulitzer prize winning The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay by Chabon and Sept is Love in the time of Cholea by Marquiz

We hope we have just been going through the lean months and the group experiences a rebirth - three really good books are coming up!

July 23, 2001 The Red Tent by Anita Diamant  - We had a small turnout again - 4 who had read or were reading the book - and Keith who came even though he hadn't.  An interesting book that caused some of us to go to Genesis 34 and surrounding chapters to find what detail were directly from the bible and what was the authors invention.  The book has had an interesting groundswell of popularity among women especially from what we hear - coming out in 1997 and now on the paperback best seller lists.  
  June 25, 2001 Underground : The Tokyo Gas Attack and the Japanese Psyche by Haruki Murikami  - July 17 - I'm really behind on this one - There were just 4 of us, Sue and I had read the book - at least much of it, and two who hadn't. We felt it was very well done, very respectful of the persons who had suffered these random acts of violence and also critical of the view point that this was a complete aberration in Japanese society and that it holds no meaning for the society at large. Murikami is especially able to look at this with the perspective of a novelist but his real motivation is for his own understanding.  Although the stories become somewhat repetitive, the big picture is  very effectively portrayed - in the people's own words, and not being in a cut and paste manner to fit into a particular thesis.  The interviews with the members and former members of the cult add to our understanding and also mystify.  We didn't fick a September book, with just the two regulars. Don't know if we are just dieing out or everyone is just too busy.  Come with ideas for September - the July book, the Red Tent is a big best seller so we may get some more for this. Hope to see you.
May 28, 2001 Bluesman -Andre Dubus III -  I'm behind on this - we met - just Sue, Robyn, Keith and Dean. Not our favorite although there were parts that each of us liked.  Author tried to do too many things - we felt that the journal of the mother was a very good part - that music aspects of the book rang true. Dean and Robyn and John had seen Dubus and he had done a very good job talking about his books and writing in general.  We picked Unbearable Lightness of Being by Kundera for August - Dean has just finished The Joke by Kundera and he really liked it a lot, Sue has read several of them and recomends them highly - since this is also a Movie - it will be worth it to see the movie - we might want to sometime do a book and a movie of the book - to compare the two - preferably ones which are supposed to be a good representation

 

April 23, 2001 Daughter of Fortune - by Isabel Allende

  1. Just 5 of us, only 3 had read the book, Dean, Sue and Evelyn however we all agreed that it was a great book and definitely worth the read. Lots of horrible things happen to many people, takes place in Chile in 1840s and California during and after the gold rush but the good do survive.  The historical setting was really well done - very believable situations and people - wonderfully done portraits of the two main characters. 

2.We had a special guest, a photographer from the Journal newspapers who took a lot of pictures - one or more which may accompany an article on book groups coming very soon in the Sunday Journal.

3. As usual we had lots of trouble choosing a new book. We ended up choosing June and July's books. Look at the "next books" page for the choices.   

4. May 28 book Bluesman - John, Robyn and Dean went to hear Andre Dubus III read from this and answer questions on April 2 at Borders. It was very interesting - he teaches writing and his father was a writer - and he was very entertaining in his discussion of this book and his best seller, House of Fog and Sand including tidbits about his Ophra experience.  

March 26, 2001

Galileo's Daughter - By Dava Sobel   A small group but Keith and I liked this a lot - more a biography of Galileo than a story of his daughter however she does play a crucial role in helping us understand Galileo the living, breathing, suffering person. We learn so much about the hard life back then, illnesses with only the most minimal cures, the plague and how it devastated and terrorized the people, the tangled web of politics and religion which caught Galileo even as he tried to play by the rules, the limited life options for daughters (marriage or the convent). It is so much more than the typical history and we are left to marvel at the daughter and father who loved and cared for each other as each was able. I have found a web site with a translations of all of her 124 letters!  (alas, none of Galileo's to her have survived) but Sobel does an excellent job of piecing the story together.  I also found a 45 minute audio interview with Sobel recorded shortly after the book came out. Both are worth being checked out.  If you haven't read it, we urge you to do so. You'll be glad you did.    

 

 

 

February 26, 2001

Secrets of the Flesh: A Life of Colette   by Judith Thurman

Just a few quick notes before I rush off to work.  We had a crowd of 9 - a surprise to me as I was the only one there right at 7:00. Sara who choose this one had read it all but Evelyn and I were in the 200's (of 500) but most of the rest had read one of the novels so we had plenty to talk about.  The Parisian literary scene certainly sounded believable and "modern" in quite a number of features.  And, while there could be mixed feelings about Colette as a person, mother, spouse, etc. she certainly was a very talented multifacited person who "did it her way" One note, given our general understanding on the role of "young girls" in so much of Colette's life and stories, the fact that one of the hit songs from Gigi is "thank heaven for little girls" was seen in a completely different light. We're thinking we'll have to have a movie screening one of these times.  Of a related movie by an author we have read or something similar.  Actually it sound like a fun idea - we'll start taking suggestions for a book to read that is also a motion picture - preferably one that is recognized as a good adaption...

More later. Gotta run. 

 

January 22, 2001

 Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister.  We had a trickle in of 7.  I was in the decided minority who really liked this one - but it finished far ahead of our all time black list book, Cocaine Nights.

 John thought it suffered in comparison to Wicked by the same author - not "magical" enough and also suffered in comparison to the movie retelling - "Happily Ever After" with Drew Berrymore. 

 Evelyn had some comments about "Tulip Mania" discussed in the book, and brought along a book which contained a discussion of it  Extraordinary Popular Delusions And The Madness of Crowds by Charles MacKay, 1841 it is worth reading and amazingly click on Tulipmania to read that chapter - the whole book is on line.

 We had a really good discussion of books for April.  We finally decided on Galileo's Daughter but our "also ran" list included several that may get chosen later.  I'm going to put a page of descriptions of these books with some review information and some of our comments.   More later but I wanted to get this out now.  The site was down for a day but is back to normal except that the counter got set to 0. 

November 27, 2000 Reservation Blues by Sherman Alexie -  Evelyn, Sara, Keith, Sue, Dean and Joe - A quick read that left us all impressed.  Very lyric and poetic with much humor and tragic circumstances.  Dean had rented Smoke Signals - 1998 movie by Alexie that had some of the same characters and several of the songs and recommended it highly. We all felt that it was a learning experience beside all else - the reservation having such an important role in the lives both positive and negative. It was hard to tell what was reality and what was dream or fantasy at times but the effort was worth it.  
October, 2000 Rebel Angel by Robertson Davies - Just four of us. Sorry to get this out so late but I have been quite busy. An interesting book, with some rather "dark" humor and quite an insiders take on some of the "games" played on college and university campuses.  Glad that we were introduced to Davies who had a long distinguished career in the theatre, in universities and as a writer. Definitely worth reading but not for everyone, the fact that this is the first of a trilagy has some interest for us now and I for one will consider checking them out.  Our January book will be Gregory Maguire's "Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister" which I just finished. I recommend it - we read "Wicked" a few years ago and I think this is a worthy successor - it also works as a historical novel  - we decided not to choose two books for january with a Biography since we didn't have enough there to feel confident. Hope more can make it for Reservation Blues!    
Sept 25, 2000 Timequake by Kurt Vonnegut - We had about 8 - kicked out of our usual second floor location by an author of historical fiction and her readers.  We crowded into the cafe and had our discussion. At least 3 of our new members from last month along with 5 'old timers'.  Anyway, in a nutshell, basically everyone liked this one. Evelyn said that she had trouble following the story at times and it certainly did jump around a lot but I and others especially enjoyed the very personal and autobiographical nature of much of Vonnegut's musings.  And everyone seemed to have favorite phrases or scenes that had caused laughter or struck chords of appreciation or agreement.  His talk about his first wife and the loving way in which she was described was touching.  In an aside, before the meeting, a person sitting near us was telling of meeting Vonnegut's son Mark at least 20 years earlier when he was going through his bout with mental illness. He was pleasantly surprised to discover that Mark got beyond that and had become a doctor.  I was quite happy that the book was so well received. Many had read Vonnegut in the past and at least were not predisposed against him as sometime seemed the case when I had brought him up before. One last point, even though at times Vonnegut is very pessimistic in his view of humankind and the direction he perceives it to be plunging, we felt that this possibly final sharing with his readers had created an instance about which we could say in all truthfulness "Is this nice or what!"  In one last personal note, I was happy to learn that Evelyn who has missed the last two meetings did get to read Franklins Autobiography and that she enjoyed it immensely. 'Til next month. 
Aug 28, 2000 The Poisonwood Bible - Barbara Kingsolver - 3 regulars, Sara, Keith and Dean and 7 or 8 new people who had seen that we were reading this book and wanted to join us. This book was uniformly liked!  Three of our group had already been in a book discussion with this book but said the other participants in that group really hated it. They were hard pressed to say what exactly they had found so objectionable. I suggested that it may have been the poor light in which fundamentalist Christianity was portrayed. However some of the criticism had been of Orleanna, the wife, who took so long to leave Nathan even though he was abusive to her and the children. What ever the case, the group as a whole was very impressed with the quality of the writing and the masterful way Kingsolver portrayed people, politics and ideas.  Her research was first rate, and she gave a new  understanding of Africa and the way its environment and ecology affect the choices one must make and gave more than one of us a desire to read more about Africa - the bibliography was appreciated.  Adah as a character was especially appreciated and her loss of her "disability" by the end of the book was missed by her and the readers. The whole treatment of "disability" as a natural phenomenon, not worthy of repulsion was impressive.  One comment was that all the family - except the Nathan and of course Ruth May were survivors, each in their own way and none ever got "over" Africa. A very enjoyable discussion and we hope some of our new guests come back for Vonnegut's Timequake 
July 24, 2000 Benjamin Franklin's Autobiography - 7 of us - good to see more of the regulars although we missed Evelyn who was especially interested in reading this one . All had read it but Sara and I think we talked her into reading it. A fascinating man, whom we all would like to know more about - his more risque side was hinted at by a book Robyn brought to our attention which is a collection of Franklin excerpts called Fart Proudly. I really have to finish this later but we had a very good discussion, we chose books for October and November at the request of Borders and even discussed January as a 2 book month - I have added some info on the Next Books page about this. 
June 26, 2000 The Moor's Last Sigh - Salmon Rushdie -   Just 5 of us tonight, 4 who had read all or part of it. But it was definitely worth it. None of us had read any Rushdie before and his style and imagination was appreciated. A mixed review but unanimous agreement that he is a very good writer, with many levels, much humor, which was unexpected.  Sara loved the first half of the book a lot but got "tired" of the main characters as their darker sides were exposed as the book continued.  I felt the book was a righteously indignant reaction to the destructive religious and secular forces at play in India - a tour-de-force exposing the good, evil, hate and greed.  Evelyn agreed that it was an impressive work, worth reading but she felt that it hadn't necessarily increased her understanding of what India was all about.   The.multi religious ethnic cultural secular criminal  community seemed to be hopelessly in conflict, not giving one a feeling of hope for resolution.  Keith concurred in our evaluation of Rushdie and on the whole likes it - he is half way through but is going to finish - I don't think we ruined any "endings" for him. In this book, the "getting there" is just as valuable as any conclusion or resolution.    The wild art community and characters reminded me a lot of the Mexican art/ international art community of the 30's and 40's with such as Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo, Leon Trotsky, the Rockafeller Foundation, socialist, Marxists, etc.  So in a sense it wasn't fantastic at all but very true to life!
May 22, 2000 The Innocents Abroad - Mark Twain - Just a short line before I rush off to work. Only five of us but a good discussion because it was a really good book, worth reading just a chapter or two if that is all you have time for.   There were pluses and minuses of it but this was the best selling travel book of its time and there is a reason. Funny (no hilarious) but also insightful and occasionally mean spirited but more of that later. 
April 24, 2000 The Hours - Michael Cunningham - Just 6 of us but a very enjoyable evening. All felt it was worth it although I had a hard time getting into it at first. Several of us read Mrs. Dalloway (or part of it - and some found it to be even harder to get into but that is another story).  All felt it was an impressive book, and well worth the prize received.  Evelyn has a copy of a movie made of Mrs Dalloway (staring Vanessa Redgrave) which she will pass among members who are interested.  We also spent time discussing our reading interests and I will be updating this on our members pages.  I did not take notes so will appreciate e-mail from the various members in my update of this.  The strongest thread of the story was felt to be the "Mrs. Dalloway" part with the Virginia Woolf the weakest or maybe less engaging. I (Dean) was getting rather apprehensive with the hints of death in all three stories and was worried about a veritable boodbath. Luckily the promise was not completely fulfilled.   The way in which the stories were finally tied together was appreciated and admired although its subtleness caused it to be missed by at least one of us. As usual, if anyone has something to add, I'll be glad to include it. 
March 27, 2000 The Reader - Bernhard Schlink - As Robyn noted in an E-Mail, a little book sure sparked a long discussion.  It was liked to varying degrees by many but what was specifically liked and disliked varied greatly from person to person.  I think it would take an essay to hit all the points. I'm going to come back to this.  One item of contention was the nature of the 15 year old/36 year old affair and how this would have been viewed if the youth was a girl. Some thought this was responsible for Michael's inability to have solid relationships as an adult, that it is typical of the sexually molested while others felt that not to be a major theme.   Some of us picked up on Hanna's illiteracy early on while others were really blindsided on that one. Also noted was the inability of Michael to to tell the Judge that Hanna couldn't read during the trial and his unwillingness to write to her other than send the tapes. Some felt this was very telling about his character. Whether either was a "victim" of the other,  of circumstances beyond their control, etc. was focus for lively discussion A highlight for me  :-) was my total misreading of the clues (minimal as they were) as to when this took place (I thought it was before the war for the affair - not after the war as was demonstrated to me).   Even the fact of this being an Ophra Book was worthy of discussion - some admitting to having twinges of guilt reading a book with that on the cover.  In truth, their was much appreciation and amazement of Ophra's role and power in the book scene.  I will add more later, there really was a lot to digest...
February 28, 2000 Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone - by  J. K. Rowling   - Another well attended meeting, with at least 3 new attendees.  I'll get started now and add more later.  Basically every one but one liked the book to a greater or lesser degree (surprise!). Whether this is on the same level of other classics such as The Lion Witch and Wardrobe, or Hobbit, etc. is open for dispute but the authors inventiveness and ability to make likeable characters and situations which can be enjoyed by children and adults was appreciated. One reader felt that the characterization of Harry's human cousin as dumb was too harsh and the suggestion at the end of the book that Harry might use his magic in retribution during the summer against the family was seen as a sign of a less sympathetic Harry. There was a difference of opinion on both of these matters with some feeling that Harry was going to use the threat of magic to gain some respect and respite from the harsh treatment he was used to and that this in no way a sign that Harry was unkind.  The phenomena of Harry Potter, the media explosion and overkill was discussed. The reaction from the religious right to the "glorification" of wizards, witches and magic was mentioned and dismissed as probably an extreme minority view that was overblown by the media just for excitement purposes.  Some of us were ready to get the rest of the series having heard that they get even better, and darker in tone due to Harry aging and dealing with more adult problems while a few were glad to have read it but not motivated to continue. Some skepticism was voiced over the proposed movies that Warner Bros have proposed and their ability to stay true to the book and and the characters but that remains to be seen

  Note: We had an extreme wealth of choices in our voting for the books for April and May. Check them out in the Also Ran page.   Most likely we will revisit some of the "loosers" from those lists.

 

 
January 14, 2000 The Optimists Daughter by Eudora Welty - A well attended meeting - at least a dozen with a very good discussion.  There were mixed feelings about the book, a few definitely did not like it while more enjoyed it. I'm not going to assign names to the opinions since I am so bad with names. The lack of real "action" was a drawback to some, not enough was happening, however, Welty's ability to describe the people vividly and with sympathy was appreciated by many. One reader did not like the book originally but reread much of it (thankfully it was short) and had a much better appreciation of it. He thought the last chapters gave a better understanding to the earlier chapters and made them more understandable.   Few had ever read Welty and we appreciated the chance to sample yet another author of critical success.  One of our members had read  One Writers Beginnings - a transcript of the Massey Lectures delivered by Welty at Harvard in 1983, in which she describes her upbringing in Mississippi and the early years of her career as a writer. Our reader felt this was helpful in understanding the book,  that The Optimists Daughter is Weltys most autobiographical using incidents in her and her families life but she also felt  reading the The Optimists Daughter,  then made reading One Writers Beginnings more understandable too.  Welty as a "southern" author was discussed and her ability to portray the different classes in a fair and not unsympathetic manner was appreciated.  An excellent article in Vanity Fair  (early 1999) by fellow Mississippian and admirer, Willie Morris, was mentioned.  (f.y.i. Willie Morris - in 1967 Morris became the youngest ever editor-in-chief at Harper's, the nation's oldest magazine. During the three decades since the London Sunday Times praised his memoir North Toward Home as "the finest evocation of an American boyhood since Mark Twain," Willie Morris has written more than a dozen other books (including a second well-received autobiography) and has attained national prominence in his career as a journalist, nonfiction writer, novelist, editor, and essayist. He is particularly well known for the books and articles in which he compares his experiences and his long and complex southern heritage to America's own history. "I am an American writer who happens to have come from the South," he emphasized in the spring of 1997. "I've tried to put the South into the larger American perspective.") Maybe a source of future selection?   More could be added, but I really enjoyed the meeting, and felt we had an invigorating start to the new millennium.  And don't forget to bring some suggestions along next time for reading choices.