Thursday
Wanted: Hostesses
We need to schedule hostesses. I'm thinking that whoever hosts can also present the book for the month. That way you only have to worry about one month out of the year. What do you think? We've also talked about just having the hostess provide the food--so you don't have to bring something every month. Trying to keep things simple. Anyway, just post a comment letting me know which month will work for you and then I'll put together a list and get it to all of you. Thanks!
2010 Book Choices
Read over these suggestions, and if you'd like to add one to the list, you can post it in the comments, or just send me an email and I'll add it to the list. Please do this ASAP, so we can get a finalized list together. Thanks!
At Home in Mitford by Jan Karon
Father Tim, a cherished small-town rector, is the steadfast soldier in this beloved slice of life story set in an American village where the grass is still green, the pickets are still white, and the air still smells sweet. The rector's forthright secretary, Emma Garret, worries about her employer, as she sees past his Christian cheerfulness into his aching loneliness. Slowly but surely, the empty places in Father Tim's heart do get filled. First with a gangly stray dog, later with a seemingly stray boy, and finally with the realization that he is stumbling into love with his independent and Christian-wise next-door neighbor. Much more than a gentle love story, this is a homespun tale about a town of endearing characters-- including a mysterious jewel thief--who are as quirky and popular as those of Mayberry, R.F.D. (comes very highly recommended by my mom as a delightful, easy read).
The Education of Little Tree by Forrest Carter
The Education of Little Tree tells of a boy orphaned very young, who is adopted by his Cherokee grandmother and half-Cherokee grandfather in the Appalachian mountains of Tennessee during the Great Depression.
“Little Tree” as his grandparents call him is shown how to hunt and survive in the mountains, to respect nature in the Cherokee Way, taking only what is needed, leaving the rest for nature to run its course.
Little Tree also learns the often callous ways of white businessmen and tax collectors, and how Granpa, in hilarious vignettes, scares them away from his illegal attempts to enter the cash economy. Granma teaches Little Tree the joys of reading and education. But when Little Tree is taken away by whites for schooling, we learn of the cruelty meted out to Indian children in an attempt to assimilate them and of Little Tree’s perception of the Anglo world and how it differs from the Cherokee Way.(Maren read this and loved it)
Down the Long Hills by Louis L'amour
After the massacre Hardy and Betty Sue were left with only a horse and a knife with which to face the long battle against the wilderness. A seven-year-old boy and a three-year-old girl, stranded on the limitless prairie. They were up against starvation, marauding Indians, savage outlaws, and wild animals. They were mighty stubborn, but the odds were against them--and their luck was about to run out. (Recommended by Claryce—a western is always fun.)
Follow the River by James Alexander Thorn
Mary Ingles was twenty-three, married, and pregnant, when Shawnee Indians invaded her peaceful Virginia settlement, killed the men and women, then took her captive. For months, she lived with them, unbroken, until she escaped, and followed a thousand mile trail to freedom--an extraordinary story of a pioneer woman who risked her life to return to her people. Based on a true story. (My mom recommended this to me and it is such an incredible story—I couldn’t put it down).
Shape Shifters by Tony Hillerman
A picture cut from a glossy magazine, Luxury Living, draws retired Navajo tribal policeman Lt. Joe Leaphorn into a hunt for a soulless killer in bestseller Hillerman's enthralling 18th Leaphorn/Chee whodunit (after 2004's Skeleton Man). The picture's sender, Mel Bork, another cop retiree, wonders if the distinctive Navajo rug shown in the picture is the same one Leaphorn described to him long ago, a rug supposedly destroyed in a fire the two officers investigated that took the life of a person identified as among the FBI's most wanted. Bork's subsequent disappearance and murder herald the dangers awaiting Leaphorn from a most formidable enemy. As Leaphorn searches for evidence to confirm his suspicions, he enlists the aid of Sgt. Jim Chee and his bride, Bernadette Manuelito, just back from their honeymoon. Only Hillerman could so masterfully connect such disparate elements as an ancient cursed weaving, two stolen buckets of piñon sap and the Vietnam War. The conclusion is sure to startle longtime fans of this acclaimed mystery series. (Claryce suggested that a suspense/mystery type novel would be fun. She liked this one.)
Hubener vs. Hitler
In Nazi Germany one of the most amazing stories of World War II took place when a group of teenage German Latter-day Saints waged their own war against Adolf Hitler! Master biographer Richard Lloyd Dewey recounts the compelling true story of Helmuth Hubener – the young Latter-day Saint who formed the youngest resistance group against the Nazis. Learn how he recruited others, how they eluded the SS, and how they out-smarted the Gestapo. This book is the most complete story of all four teenagers in the gutsiest group of World War II. (amazing and inspiring true story, another Maren pick)
Laddie by Gene Stratton Porter
This charming story is told by "Little Sister" a young girl who loves to learn, but has no patience with schools. Her ideal classroom is nature itself. Join her as she learns about the world and her place in it. (This is Mendie’s pick—I read Girl of Limberlost by this author when I was a kid and loved it.)
Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
Gilbert (The Last American Man) grafts the structure of romantic fiction upon the inquiries of reporting in this sprawling yet methodical travelogue of soul-searching and self-discovery. Plagued with despair after a nasty divorce, the author, in her early 30s, divides a year equally among three dissimilar countries, exploring her competing urges for earthly delights and divine transcendence. First, pleasure: savoring Italy's buffet of delights--the world's best pizza, free-flowing wine and dashing conversation partners--Gilbert consumes la dolce vita as spiritual succor. "I came to Italy pinched and thin," she writes, but soon fills out in waist and soul. Then, prayer and ascetic rigor: seeking communion with the divine at a sacred ashram in India, Gilbert emulates the ways of yogis in grueling hours of meditation, struggling to still her churning mind. Finally, a balancing act in Bali, where Gilbert tries for equipoise "betwixt and between" realms, studies with a merry medicine man and plunges into a charged love affair. Sustaining a chatty, conspiratorial tone, Gilbert fully engages readers in the year's cultural and emotional tapestry--conveying rapture with infectious brio, recalling anguish with touching candor--as she details her exotic tableau with history, anecdote and impression. (suggested by Maren)
Gurnsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Ann Barrows
Traditional without seeming stale, and romantic without being naïve” (San Francisco Chronicle), this epistolary novel, based on Mary Ann Shaffer’s painstaking, lifelong research, is a homage to booklovers and a nostalgic portrayal of an era. As her quirky, loveable characters cite the works of Shakespeare, Austen, and the Brontës, Shaffer subtly weaves those writers’ themes into her own narrative. However, it is the tragic stories of life under Nazi occupation that animate the novel and give it its urgency; furthermore, the novel explores the darker side of human nature without becoming maudlin. The Rocky Mountain News criticized the novel’s lighthearted tone and characterizations, but most critics agreed that, with its humor and optimism, Guernsey “affirms the power of books to nourish people during hard times.” (I heard good reviews of this book from another book club and thought it looked really fun)
Joseph Smith: A Rough Stone Rolling by Richard Lyman Bushman
How should a historian depict a man's life when that man, and his religion, remain a mystery to so many 200 years after his birth? Bushman, an emeritus professor at Columbia University and author of Joseph Smith and the Beginnings of Mormonism, greatly expands on that previous work, filling in many details of the founding prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and carrying the story through to the end of Smith's life. Many continue to view Smith as an enigmatic and controversial figure. Bushman locates him in his historical and cultural context, fleshing out the many nuances of 19th-century American life that produced such a fertile ground for emerging religions. The author, a practicing Mormon, is aware that his book stands in the intersection of faith and scholarship, but does not avoid the problematic aspects of Smith's life and work, such as his practice of polygamy, his early attempts at treasure-seeking and his later political aspirations. In the end, Smith emerges as a genuine American phenomenon, a man driven by inspiration but not unaffected by his cultural context. This is a remarkable book, wonderfully readable and supported by exhaustive research. For anyone interested in the Mormon experience, it will be required reading for years to come.
Adam Bede by George Eliot
(I thought Amazon’s review gave away too much of the plot, so I will just give my ownJ This is one of my top three favorite books of all time. It is a classic, George Eliot’s best, in my opinion, and tells the story of two brothers, Adam and Seth Bede. It is written in Derbyshire dialect and so it is a little hard to get into at first, but if you can stick it out, it is a rewarding, moving, and inspiring read.)
Short Stories of Flannery O’Connor
“What we lost when she died is bitter. What we have is astonishing: the stories burn brighter than ever, and strike deeper.” I studied Flannery O'Connor in college and wrote a thesis on her works. Her stories were mesmerizing and riveting, and I have re-read them many times since. She was firmly rooted in the Southern grotesque, but she was able to transcend the stark terrain of the South and present remarkable studies of human foibles and the self searching for meaning and redemption. O'Connor had the uncanny gift to describe people, surroundings and life with astonishingly spare prose. Her genius was that she could reveal the mystery and manners in us all. Of particular note are "Revelation" and "A Good Man is Hard to Find." You must read this collection, and I promise that her stories will speak to you for years to come. (I LOVE her stories—we could pick 2-3. Something a little differentJ)
Turn of the Screw by Henry James
The story starts conventionally enough with friends sharing ghost stories 'round the fire on Christmas Eve. One of the guests tells about a governess at a country house plagued by supernatural visitors. But in the hands of Henry James, the master of nuance, this little tale of terror is an exquisite gem of sexual and psychological ambiguity. Only the young governess can see the ghosts; only she suspects that the previous governess and her lover are controlling the two orphaned children (a girl and a boy) for some evil purpose. The household staff don't know what she's talking about, the children are evasive when questioned, and the master of the house (the children's uncle) is absent. Why does the young girl claim not to see a perfectly visible woman standing on the far side of the lake? Are the children being deceptive, or is the governess being paranoid? By leaving the questions unanswered, The Turn of Screw generates spine-tingling anxiety in its mesmerized readers. (One of Claryce’s suggestions.)
At Home in Mitford by Jan Karon
Father Tim, a cherished small-town rector, is the steadfast soldier in this beloved slice of life story set in an American village where the grass is still green, the pickets are still white, and the air still smells sweet. The rector's forthright secretary, Emma Garret, worries about her employer, as she sees past his Christian cheerfulness into his aching loneliness. Slowly but surely, the empty places in Father Tim's heart do get filled. First with a gangly stray dog, later with a seemingly stray boy, and finally with the realization that he is stumbling into love with his independent and Christian-wise next-door neighbor. Much more than a gentle love story, this is a homespun tale about a town of endearing characters-- including a mysterious jewel thief--who are as quirky and popular as those of Mayberry, R.F.D. (comes very highly recommended by my mom as a delightful, easy read).
The Education of Little Tree by Forrest Carter
The Education of Little Tree tells of a boy orphaned very young, who is adopted by his Cherokee grandmother and half-Cherokee grandfather in the Appalachian mountains of Tennessee during the Great Depression.
“Little Tree” as his grandparents call him is shown how to hunt and survive in the mountains, to respect nature in the Cherokee Way, taking only what is needed, leaving the rest for nature to run its course.
Little Tree also learns the often callous ways of white businessmen and tax collectors, and how Granpa, in hilarious vignettes, scares them away from his illegal attempts to enter the cash economy. Granma teaches Little Tree the joys of reading and education. But when Little Tree is taken away by whites for schooling, we learn of the cruelty meted out to Indian children in an attempt to assimilate them and of Little Tree’s perception of the Anglo world and how it differs from the Cherokee Way.(Maren read this and loved it)
Down the Long Hills by Louis L'amour
After the massacre Hardy and Betty Sue were left with only a horse and a knife with which to face the long battle against the wilderness. A seven-year-old boy and a three-year-old girl, stranded on the limitless prairie. They were up against starvation, marauding Indians, savage outlaws, and wild animals. They were mighty stubborn, but the odds were against them--and their luck was about to run out. (Recommended by Claryce—a western is always fun.)
Follow the River by James Alexander Thorn
Mary Ingles was twenty-three, married, and pregnant, when Shawnee Indians invaded her peaceful Virginia settlement, killed the men and women, then took her captive. For months, she lived with them, unbroken, until she escaped, and followed a thousand mile trail to freedom--an extraordinary story of a pioneer woman who risked her life to return to her people. Based on a true story. (My mom recommended this to me and it is such an incredible story—I couldn’t put it down).
Shape Shifters by Tony Hillerman
A picture cut from a glossy magazine, Luxury Living, draws retired Navajo tribal policeman Lt. Joe Leaphorn into a hunt for a soulless killer in bestseller Hillerman's enthralling 18th Leaphorn/Chee whodunit (after 2004's Skeleton Man). The picture's sender, Mel Bork, another cop retiree, wonders if the distinctive Navajo rug shown in the picture is the same one Leaphorn described to him long ago, a rug supposedly destroyed in a fire the two officers investigated that took the life of a person identified as among the FBI's most wanted. Bork's subsequent disappearance and murder herald the dangers awaiting Leaphorn from a most formidable enemy. As Leaphorn searches for evidence to confirm his suspicions, he enlists the aid of Sgt. Jim Chee and his bride, Bernadette Manuelito, just back from their honeymoon. Only Hillerman could so masterfully connect such disparate elements as an ancient cursed weaving, two stolen buckets of piñon sap and the Vietnam War. The conclusion is sure to startle longtime fans of this acclaimed mystery series. (Claryce suggested that a suspense/mystery type novel would be fun. She liked this one.)
Hubener vs. Hitler
In Nazi Germany one of the most amazing stories of World War II took place when a group of teenage German Latter-day Saints waged their own war against Adolf Hitler! Master biographer Richard Lloyd Dewey recounts the compelling true story of Helmuth Hubener – the young Latter-day Saint who formed the youngest resistance group against the Nazis. Learn how he recruited others, how they eluded the SS, and how they out-smarted the Gestapo. This book is the most complete story of all four teenagers in the gutsiest group of World War II. (amazing and inspiring true story, another Maren pick)
Laddie by Gene Stratton Porter
This charming story is told by "Little Sister" a young girl who loves to learn, but has no patience with schools. Her ideal classroom is nature itself. Join her as she learns about the world and her place in it. (This is Mendie’s pick—I read Girl of Limberlost by this author when I was a kid and loved it.)
Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
Gilbert (The Last American Man) grafts the structure of romantic fiction upon the inquiries of reporting in this sprawling yet methodical travelogue of soul-searching and self-discovery. Plagued with despair after a nasty divorce, the author, in her early 30s, divides a year equally among three dissimilar countries, exploring her competing urges for earthly delights and divine transcendence. First, pleasure: savoring Italy's buffet of delights--the world's best pizza, free-flowing wine and dashing conversation partners--Gilbert consumes la dolce vita as spiritual succor. "I came to Italy pinched and thin," she writes, but soon fills out in waist and soul. Then, prayer and ascetic rigor: seeking communion with the divine at a sacred ashram in India, Gilbert emulates the ways of yogis in grueling hours of meditation, struggling to still her churning mind. Finally, a balancing act in Bali, where Gilbert tries for equipoise "betwixt and between" realms, studies with a merry medicine man and plunges into a charged love affair. Sustaining a chatty, conspiratorial tone, Gilbert fully engages readers in the year's cultural and emotional tapestry--conveying rapture with infectious brio, recalling anguish with touching candor--as she details her exotic tableau with history, anecdote and impression. (suggested by Maren)
Gurnsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Ann Barrows
Traditional without seeming stale, and romantic without being naïve” (San Francisco Chronicle), this epistolary novel, based on Mary Ann Shaffer’s painstaking, lifelong research, is a homage to booklovers and a nostalgic portrayal of an era. As her quirky, loveable characters cite the works of Shakespeare, Austen, and the Brontës, Shaffer subtly weaves those writers’ themes into her own narrative. However, it is the tragic stories of life under Nazi occupation that animate the novel and give it its urgency; furthermore, the novel explores the darker side of human nature without becoming maudlin. The Rocky Mountain News criticized the novel’s lighthearted tone and characterizations, but most critics agreed that, with its humor and optimism, Guernsey “affirms the power of books to nourish people during hard times.” (I heard good reviews of this book from another book club and thought it looked really fun)
Joseph Smith: A Rough Stone Rolling by Richard Lyman Bushman
How should a historian depict a man's life when that man, and his religion, remain a mystery to so many 200 years after his birth? Bushman, an emeritus professor at Columbia University and author of Joseph Smith and the Beginnings of Mormonism, greatly expands on that previous work, filling in many details of the founding prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and carrying the story through to the end of Smith's life. Many continue to view Smith as an enigmatic and controversial figure. Bushman locates him in his historical and cultural context, fleshing out the many nuances of 19th-century American life that produced such a fertile ground for emerging religions. The author, a practicing Mormon, is aware that his book stands in the intersection of faith and scholarship, but does not avoid the problematic aspects of Smith's life and work, such as his practice of polygamy, his early attempts at treasure-seeking and his later political aspirations. In the end, Smith emerges as a genuine American phenomenon, a man driven by inspiration but not unaffected by his cultural context. This is a remarkable book, wonderfully readable and supported by exhaustive research. For anyone interested in the Mormon experience, it will be required reading for years to come.
Adam Bede by George Eliot
(I thought Amazon’s review gave away too much of the plot, so I will just give my ownJ This is one of my top three favorite books of all time. It is a classic, George Eliot’s best, in my opinion, and tells the story of two brothers, Adam and Seth Bede. It is written in Derbyshire dialect and so it is a little hard to get into at first, but if you can stick it out, it is a rewarding, moving, and inspiring read.)
Short Stories of Flannery O’Connor
“What we lost when she died is bitter. What we have is astonishing: the stories burn brighter than ever, and strike deeper.” I studied Flannery O'Connor in college and wrote a thesis on her works. Her stories were mesmerizing and riveting, and I have re-read them many times since. She was firmly rooted in the Southern grotesque, but she was able to transcend the stark terrain of the South and present remarkable studies of human foibles and the self searching for meaning and redemption. O'Connor had the uncanny gift to describe people, surroundings and life with astonishingly spare prose. Her genius was that she could reveal the mystery and manners in us all. Of particular note are "Revelation" and "A Good Man is Hard to Find." You must read this collection, and I promise that her stories will speak to you for years to come. (I LOVE her stories—we could pick 2-3. Something a little differentJ)
Turn of the Screw by Henry James
The story starts conventionally enough with friends sharing ghost stories 'round the fire on Christmas Eve. One of the guests tells about a governess at a country house plagued by supernatural visitors. But in the hands of Henry James, the master of nuance, this little tale of terror is an exquisite gem of sexual and psychological ambiguity. Only the young governess can see the ghosts; only she suspects that the previous governess and her lover are controlling the two orphaned children (a girl and a boy) for some evil purpose. The household staff don't know what she's talking about, the children are evasive when questioned, and the master of the house (the children's uncle) is absent. Why does the young girl claim not to see a perfectly visible woman standing on the far side of the lake? Are the children being deceptive, or is the governess being paranoid? By leaving the questions unanswered, The Turn of Screw generates spine-tingling anxiety in its mesmerized readers. (One of Claryce’s suggestions.)
"Thier Eyes Were Watching God"
What Book is Next?
K, so although I was there, I really didn't hear what book we are doing next. So anyone who wants to let me know, I'll post it with a picture and who's hosting.
"A Long Fatal Love Chase"
This is the book for August. Soup will be the recipe of the month and we will try and stick to the first Thursday of the month to hold book club. That means September 4th. I checked the book out from the public library, and loaned it to Kristen. I'm sure she won't take too long, so you can probably get it at the library when she's done.
Monday
"The # 1 Ladies Detective Agency"
Ok, so we skipped over Benjamin Franklin and did the "Thirteenth Tale" so up next is "The #1 Ladie's Detective Agency."Haven't started yet, but I hear it's great from those who have and that it is a quick read. We talked about having book club the 2nd or 3rd week of July and not sure where just yet. I will update as I hear more. Also, many know, some may not, we are now making book club into a cooking book club. Each month will have a theme and everyone is to make one dish to share and bring recipes for everyone. July's theme is desserts. I will get on posting each months dishes asap so we have an over view of what's to come. Can't wait to see what everyone comes up with!!
Tuesday
The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin
The upcoming book is The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. No news on when or where just yet, so for those of us who haven't read it, we may just have the time to read it.
Thursday
"The Message" for March
THIS MONTH'S BOOK CLUB WILL BE MARCH 6TH AT 7:00 AT MONICA PATTERSON'S HOME.
As long as things go as planned, "The Message" by Lance Richardson is our next book. Monica will be hosting and Julie will be presenting. I hope you all enjoy the book. It definately spoke to my heart and lifted my spirits.
Looking for some ideas!
OK everyone! I am the new blog master! Hahah, I love changing and prettying blogs.. but sometimes I fail at coming up with slogans and or names. Call me crazy, but I am not in love with the name "SJ Book Club." So, one and all, please leave comments or posts as to what you think would be a good name/slogan and what you would like to see on our blog so that it is more used and loved! Thanks for all your help!
Julie
Julie
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