HER EVERY FEAR by Peter Swanson

We enjoyed a beautiful day out on the Pinery patio discussing “Her Every Fear” by Peter Swanson.  The character development in the book was good although we would have liked to have known more about Corbin and Henry growing up.  We all agreed that Kate was a weak character with all of her anxiety issues.  One of the biggest surprises in the book was that Kate got together with Alan at the end of the book so that was a bit of a shocker.

There were some subtle clues in the book, such as Kate’s drawings being changed, Sanders mysteriously gaining entrance into Corbin’s apartment, and Audrey’s key in Corbin’s apartment disappearing which all came together at the end of the book when we discovered that Henry had been secretly hiding in Corbin’s apartment while Kate was there.  The book had a few twists and turns throughout but we questioned the plausibility of specific events that occurred during the book so the plot was not as well composed as “The Kind Worth Killing”.  

Five of us rated the book and the average rating was 3.15.  Most of us agreed we would not recommend this book to a friend to read. 

We will be meeting on Friday, Sept 15^th and will be reading “Euphoria” by Lily King. 

Glory Over Everything by Kathleen Grissom

Our annual evening party was held and we had a short discussion on July’s book, Glory Over Everything by Kathleen Grissom who also wrote The Kitchen House which all of us had read and loved a few years ago.  Glory Over Everything is the sequel to The Kitchen House.  The average rating was 3.75 so a fairly good rating but the book was not as well written as her previous book in our opinion. 

All of us found the book to be engaging and enjoyed the Underground Railroad journey that Jamie takes to rescue Pan.  The main criticism was that no one really liked the main character, Jamie Pyke.  Jamie was a weak and flawed person that made several poor decisions during the book so it was difficult to embrace him as a lead character.  We did like the love story between Jamie and Caroline as well as most of the outlying characters such as Pan, Robert and Sukey.  Some of us questioned the ending of the book and how plausible it was that Jamie could live with his a white baby, Pan and Robert without drawing attention to themselves so the author could have done more to tighten up the book’s finish.  

We will be reading Her Every Fear by Peter Swanson for August.

Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson

June's book was JUST MERCY by Bryan Stevenson. We all gave it a score of either a 3.75 or a 4 so, that averaged out to a 3.85.

When starting the book we all knew that our prison system certainly wasn't perfect but, I think we were hoping that cases like Walter McMillians' were exceptional. However, the fact Bryan has made this his mission/career for more than thirty years, proves otherwise. This book was incredibly thought provoking and brought all of us to tears, on more than one occasion, and ultimately changed Pam's mind towards that death penalty. 

Bryan Stevenson’s Just Mercy was compelling. His assertion that “we are more than the worst thing that we have done” was provocative.  Stevenson’s Methodist (AME) faith informs his profound belief in the possibilities of redemption, and I found his perspective moving.  He presents a series of vignettes that highlight the injustices in the criminal justice system in the Deep South that persisted into the 1980s and beyond. His narrative was particularly moving when he documented the cases of innocent people who were falsely indicted for murder and were incarcerated for crimes that they did not commit.  Stevenson successfully revealed the humanity of people like Walter McMillian and the terrible personal consequences of his time in prison.  It was painful to read about McMillian’s inability to reconstruct his pre-prison family life and business successes after he was released.  His freedom from prison was simultaneously heartwarming and tragic. 

However, Stevenson fails to show the many cases where the sentences were just and the criminals were unrepentant, which might cause the reader to assume that all life sentences are unjust. Nonetheless, Stevenson’s nonprofit organization, Equal Justice Initiative, provides support and hope for people who are improperly sentenced.

Hillbilly Elegy - Review by Kellie

Our book for January was, as you know, HILLBILLY ELEGY.  Unfortunately, only three of us were in attendance for our meeting last Friday, so we bugged out of the Pinery Club and went to breakfast for discussion.  We all enjoyed the story very much and for the most part, thought it was well written.  However, both Bonnie Jean and Lindsay agreed with Susan that his views on Appalachian culture seemed rather exclusive. As a matter of fact, Susan, your review was SO well written I would like to add it to this email, for those who might have missed it.

From Susan: I really enjoyed reading Hillbilly Elegy.  Great suggestion, Kellie!  J.D. Vance provided a fascinating perspective on a timely topic.  I’m really sorry to miss Book Club, and instead I wrote LONG comments!

On the positive side, I found Vance to be an entertaining storyteller who detailed his family story and its relationship to what he calls the “greater Appalachian culture.”  I had never connected Ohio with this culture, especially since my late Czech-American dad was from Cleveland and grew up in a very different ethnic subculture.  I was fascinated by his explanation of the Appalachian diaspora, including migration to western Ohio.  Vance’s story was strongest when he regaled his readers with his colorful family members, particularly his redoubtable gun-totin’ and cussin’ Mamaw and his Papaw.  I appreciated that he wrote the book to pay homage to the critical role that they played in his life.  His narrative certainly underscores the serious issue of widespread unemployment, hopelessness, and drug addiction in many Rust Belt communities. 

On the downside:  

I found that Vance’s tendency to use his own family and community experiences to make broad inferences regarding “Hillbilly culture” and "the white working class" problematic.  Sam and I worked in a family practice clinic in a medically underserved area in western North Carolina for seven years.  We lived there in the 80s and 90s, which was a very different time, but we’ve stayed in touch with our friends. (They preferred to be called Western North Carolinians or Highlanders rather than “hillbillies.”) We found that our friends, patients, and neighbors in a small town south of Asheville tended to be community-oriented, church going, and family oriented people.  There were certainly those with substance abuse problems and families with abuse issues.  While Vance mentions that these less dysfunctional people exist, he leaves the reader with a sense that his family experiences represent “Hillbilly” culture.  In my experience, there were considerable community variations.  There was a nearby county called “Bloody Madison” county because of frequent “feuds” and violence. Patients with gunshot wounds often rolled into the Asheville Emergency Room. It sounded more like Vance's description of his Kentucky hometown. However, it seemed to be an outlier.  I feel that Vance’s over-generalizations are a disservice to people who share a unique Appalachian subculture characterized by close ties of family and community with the usual mix of functional and dysfunctional relationships.  (Or am I just being defensive?  I’m Scots-Irish on my mom’s side.  Scots always get stereotyped as drinkin’ and theivin’ and fightin’!)  This area of western NC has experienced the closing of factories and businesses in the wake of NAFTA.  One problem that they face is the out-migration of young people in search of jobs and an aging population. 

I also think that Vance’s book would have been stronger if he had simply told the strong narrative of his life, family, and community and left the sociological/psychological analysis to the introduction and the conclusion.  His social commentary seemed patchy and at times disrupted the flow of his narrative. 

Nonetheless, Hillbilly Elegy was a good read and it provides one perspective on the problems facing many white working class communities in the Appalachian and Rust Belt areas. The book has certainly sparked conversations about this topic!  I’m sorry to miss our discussion!!

Thanks for making my job easy this month, Susan!  I would say we rated the book a 3.75.- 4.  Also, I will say that this book inspired me so much so, that I am now reading WHITE TRASH by Nancy Isenberg. This book has been difficult to get through but I am determined to finish it. Not written in story form, this book is just facts and figures, very academic and verbose.  I liken it to reading a text book.  Welcome back to school, Kellie :)  That being said I am learning a LOT.

Our book for next month is WILD SWANS: THREE DAUGHTERS OF CHINA by Jung Chang, and our meeting is scheduled for the February 10th.

Circling the Sun - Review by Kellie

Finally finding the time to sit and write the review from last months book, CIRCLING THE SUN by Paula McClain. I chose this book, specifically, because it was written by McClain.  For those of you who did not read this book you may remember reading THE PARIS WIFE.  We rated that book so high, I was excited to read another one of hers.

McClain's writing did not disappoint.  Beautifully descriptive and "lyrical in style" which is how Sue, our newest member, described it.

The main character, Beryl Markham, was a force to reckoned with.  She grew up in Kenya Africa and was raised by her father after her mother left when she was just five years old.  She learned the art of horse training from her father, which would become her main source of income as an adult.  As a matter of fact, she was the very first female trainer for hire in Africa and, did so, at the age of only 19. She would also, eventually, learn to fly and was the first woman to fly solo east to west across the Atlantic. Overall, most of us loved the book and were in awe of Beryl and all that she did over the course of her lifetime.  Keep in mind she lived in the roaring 20's when most everything she accomplished should have been completely out of reach to a woman.  Beryl was strong, resilient, independent and resourceful. However, for one of us, Beryls sexual exploits, deeply tarnished her character. Over the course of the book, she had two husbands, lovers, liaisons and sadly, an abortion, as well.  However, the only man she truly loved was Denys Finch Hatton. To most of us he was in many ways, the male counterpart to Beryl and, for me they were truly soul mates.  However, he was also the lover of Beryl's friend Karen Blixen, which was for our one reader who questioned her sexual behavior in the first place, unforgivable.  This was a much discussed topic during the course of our meeting, as I'm sure you can imagine.

Beryl went on to write her own account of her life, WEST WITH THE NIGHT, which is very highly recommended and Karen Blixen's story is, of course, OUT OF AFRICA.  One of my favorite movies of all time!

Our overall rating for the book was a 3.9, ratings ranged between a 3 - 4.5.

Plainsong - Review by Patty S.

Plainsong definition: A simple and unadorned melody; Gregorian chant.

“From simple elements, Haruf achieves a novel of wisdom and grace – a narrative that builds in strength and feeling until, as in a choral chant, the voices in the book surround, transport, and lift the reader off the ground.” National Book Award Citation 1999

Kent Haruf’s novel Plainsong takes place in small town America, in Holt, Colorado, in a time described by one reviewer as “between then and now”. The story chronicles the life of 8 characters and how their lives intersect over the course of a year, creating community and family, and filling the void in their life brought on by death, abandonment, emotional withdrawal and absence.

The main character, Victoria, is a 17 year old girl that finds herself pregnant after a summer of fun with a young man from another community. When she tells her Mom of her predicament, her mother kicks her out of the house and tells her not to come back. Victoria turns to Maggie, a teacher at her school that she knows she can trust to help her through this situation. While Maggie initially takes her in, she soon finds another home for Victoria with the McPheron brothers, two aging brothers that have lived an isolated life for decades on their ranch 17 miles outside of town. Maggie convinces the brothers to take Victoria in, to find a purpose in life beyond their own needs. “You’re going to die some day without ever having had enough trouble in your life. Not the right kind anyway. This is your chance”.

And so the story begins, the building of trust and eventually family, between the McPherons and Victoria, as well as a surrounding cast of characters that all intersect to create a community that takes care of one another. There is a beautiful rhythm to the story, a simple cadence that evokes a simpler time of life, yet also full of the sorrow and anguish that permeate all human relationships.

The group on a whole loved the book due to its simplicity and the memories it evoked. Plainsong takes you back to a simpler time of life, although no less complicated, and holds you there so as to fully be a part of the story.

Ratings: 4.5 – 3; “Loved the community and the sweetness of the book”. “Took me back to my younger days in a small town”.

4.25 – 1,

4.75 – 1,

3.0 – 1 “I kept expecting tragedy to happen”.

Red Notice-Review by Bonnie Jean

First of all a great big thank you to Valerie (and Mark – although his picture taking abilities are somewhat limited😊,) for having us to their lovely home – which is now even lovelier with their new kitchen island and chandeliers!  We had a great evening, enjoying food, fellowship, and a lively book discussion.  Deb and Pam H. – we missed you!  Ratings for Red Notice were varied.  There were a couple of 3’s.  All the rest were in the 4’s – ranging from 4.0 to 4.75.  Most of us like the fast pace of the book, the intrigue of the real life story and the author’s life switch from making money to helping people in need from other countries.  We all felt like we learned from the book and that we are more aware of Russian and Putin’s governement in particular.  Those who rated the book lower, got a bit bogged down in the financial matters in the middle of the book.  And some were about 2/3 through with the book. 

People of the Book - Review by Bonnie Jean

Well, Kellie, Lindsay and I were surprised to find ourselves the only 3 at book club this Friday.  But, we enjoyed the small group and had a long and lively discussion.  We all loved the book.  Kellie and Lindsay rated it a 5.  I rated it a 4.5 …I’m never that generous with my ratings😊  Since those of you who didn’t come didn’t write in with any comments or ratings on the book, I’m not sure who read it.  It is a story about a woman who is an expert at preserving books and researching/dating/exploring the various things that are found in old books (blood drops, wine stains, etc.)  The book she is asked to preserve is a particular Haggadah (a Jewish book that tells about the Passover).  This Haggadah dates back to the 1400’s and is an actual book housed in Sarajevo today.  It is a curiosity because it has illustrations.  However, in the 1400’s the Jews considered illustrations in a sacred text to break the 2^nd Commandment of not having any idols.   The storyalternates between Hannah – the book preserver in modern time, and older times.  Each chapter set at an earlier date describes a particular time period and the lives of the people who owned/created the book.  The dates range from the 1400’s up through WW2 and give a mini history of the book during that time.  I am not by any means doing the book justice but it is hard to describe.  Most of the stories about the “people of the book” are tragic, but really interesting.  It was a very unique way to tell a story, and we appreciated the author’s writing, her creativity, the contents of the stories, and just about everything about the book!

The Nightingale - Review by Pat

For our May meeting, we met and reviewed The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah.  With five of us at the meeting, we all were of the consensus that it was an easy read and everyone thoroughly enjoyed the book.  The overall ratings ranged from 4 to 4.5 with an average of 4.35.  All of us in attendance agreed that when we compared this book with the other World War II books we have read recently at book club (The Book Thief and All The Light We Cannot See), we felt that Hannah’s writing style was not as eloquently written but the overall plot and character development was intriguing and well executed.  

The Nightingale is the story of two sisters, Vianne and Isabelle, each with their own unique personalities that come into play with how they deal with surviving World War II.  The story begins with the narrator, Vianne, recanting her life story of the war beginning in France, 1939 and the reader doesn’t know until the end of the story which sister is the narrator.   This is one of the many twists and turns that the reader encounters throughout the book.  

The sisters have opposite personalities as well as a significant age difference between the two of them. Isabelle is eighteen, rebellious and reckless, and she joins the Resistance to save numerous lives in her quest to fight the Nazi’s.  Vianne, is older with a passive personality, however, as the story progresses, she becomes braver and assumes an active role in saving her best friends son as well as saving the lives of Jewish children.  Our book club decided each sister was equally heroic based on the circumstances and the decisions each of them had to deal with during the war.  Vianne had her children, Sophie and Ari, to protect and we all agreed that she had to assume a more cautious role in order for her family to survive.  

Each of the sisters had their own love stories and the book follows their strength, endurance and courage during this dark period of their lives.  The book had some brutal scenes with starvation, rape, torture, and prison camps – just what you expect when reading about World War II.  The story does a good job of portraying the strength both of these women exhibited and what they had to sacrifice in order to survive. 

The biggest disappointment we had about the book was the ending where Isabelle died in Gaetan’s arms which we felt was a little contrived and unrealistic.  We did like the reunion scene at the end of the book where Vianne reconnects with Gaetan and Ari.  In summary, this book gets a solid “thumbs up” as a really great read.

Angle of Repose - Review by Lindsay

Wallace Stegner’s Angle of Repose was the winner of the 1972 Pulitzer Prize for fiction.  The book is set in Grass Valley, California, during the spring and summer months of 1970. Lyman Ward is the novel's protagonist.  He is a physically disabled professor of history and has retired from teaching and is living in his grandparents' old home.  He undertakes to write a biographical novel focusing on his grandparents' lives, Susan Burling Ward and Oliver Ward, from the late 1800’s.

Susan Burling, Lyman's grandmother, was a prolific letter writer, artist, and cultured young woman from New York. Her husband and Lyman's grandfather, Oliver Ward, was a talented mining engineer whose career took his family to California, Colorado, Mexico, Idaho, and back to California.

Lyman feels the world around him is sliding downhill, both morally and intellectually.  It was written during a time of great political and social upheaval in the United States.  In that vein, he juxtaposes the life of his grandparents as a time of more commitment to family, relationships, work, and dreams.  While their lives were in no way trouble free, their commitment to the life they had chosen was steadfast.   There are also many similarities between the time periods.   At one point in the novel, Lyman refers to the resulting "rictus" or grimace of the historian when he or she sees how the present is tied to historical precedents.  He leaves the reader contemplating which generation has the better life. 

This novel is very slow paced, particularly in the beginning.  It weaves the story between the past and present, initially confusing and difficult to follow but settles into a rhythm that makes sense towards the middle and end. 

Many of us found Susan Burling Ward a totally unlikable and snobbish character.  Perhaps the intent was to see the west, through the eyes of an easterner.  This theme is pervasive throughout the novel, the stark contrast between East and West.  She was initially horrified at the lack of culture, the dust, dirt, and extreme climate. Susan eventually finds herself able to appreciate the raw beauty of her new surroundings, and is successful in building comfortable homes for her family. Yet throughout her married life she defines herself through her east coast roots, questions Oliver’s worthiness as a husband and provider, and pines over what she has given up in exchange for her life in the west. 

Briefly, we touched on references throughout the book to the Doppler Effect.  You hear a frequency much louder as it approaches than as it recedes.  Meaning, that while time doesn’t completely heal all wounds, the pain lessens over time.  We talked about the role of the Western terrain as a “character” itself in the novel.  We discussed the definition of “angel of repose” and how is applies to the story.  Also discussed was the power of nature, human frailty, and the healing power of forgiveness.  That is a lot to cover in 2 hours!  

While this book had much more content that could be discussed and studied, there is no way I can do it justice in this short review.  The ratings ranged from a high of 4.5 to a low of 2.0.  Many of us liked it so much more after our discussion, as is often the case with our group.  The common complaint was that is was boring, slow paced, difficulty getting into the book and the unlikeable characters.  Others felt that the book was an intellectual stretch, a novel of great historical significance, a literary work of art, and a beautifully written piece of literature.

Until next time…

Lindsay

The Whip-Review by Kellie

Last month we gathered to talk about our book The Whip by Karen Kondazian.  The book is inspired by the true story of a woman, Charlotte "Charley" Parkhurst (1812-1879) who lived most of her extraordinary life as a man in the old west.  As a young woman in Rhode Island, she fell in love with a runway slave and had his child.  The destruction of her family drove her west to California, dressed as a man, to track the killer.

Charley became a renowned stagecoach driver for Wells Fargo.  She killed a famous outlaw, had a secret love affair, and lived with a housekeeper who, unaware of her true sex, fell in love with her.  Charley was the first known woman to vote in America in 1868 (as a man).  Her grave lies in Watsonville, CA.

The above two paragraphs are exactly as the synopsis is written.  However, the reality is, very little is known about Charlotte, the woman, before she became Charley Parkhurst; man and stage coach driver.  What is known, is that as a child she was raised in an Orphanage.  According to Fern J. Hill (Author/Editing and Formatting services) In 1812 Charlotte Darkey Parkhurst was born in Lebanon, NH (though her middle name may have been Durkey). (Documented).  In 1824 Charley runs away from an orphanage. She reaches Worcester, MA and gets a job with Ebenezer Baich.  This is the man Charley supposedly learned her horse skills from. Mid-Late 1840's, Charley leaves Providence, RI for Georgia with one other (stage coach) driver.  Her exact whereabouts during that time are unclear. In 1849, upon her return to RI, from Georgia, Charley worked for William Hayden and Charles H. Child.  Charley meets Jim Birch and Frank Stevens who leave Providence to start the California Stage Company. In 1851 Charley leaves Boston aboard the R.B. Forbes for Panama on her way to California. Once Charley arrived in California, he became a Stage Coach driver for Jim Birch.  

Other known facts, while during Charley's driver career are as follows: She rolled an empty coach once and "busted in" his sides (probably broke a few ribs), but never saw a doctor about it.  She drove her passengers over the rain-swollen Tuolumne River reaching solid ground just before the bridge collapsed. An incident with hogs scaring the horses so they "jumped grade" happened on the Santa Cruz Stage.  Five deaths occurred. In 1856 while on a run from San Francisco to San Jose, Charley was kicked in the eye (and lost the eye)  by an unhappy horse, and became known as "Cockeyed Charley." In 1858 Sugarfoot held up Charley's coach for the first time in June.   When  Sugarfoot held Charley up a second time six months later, she shot and killed him.  Most of these facts are in the book and when you think about it, are pretty amazing.

The problem a couple of us had were the fictional parts of the story about Charlotte/Charley.  Firstly, her childhood companion (Lee Colton) from the Orphanage becomes an obsessed stalker/raper of Charlotte.  Then  Charlotte marries a black man, has his child, but both are murdered by a mob, thanks to Lee.  Once Charlotte becomes Charley and is a Whip in California, she has an affair with a man (who upon meeting her suspects she is female) who in the end, is the infamous Stage Coach robber known as Sugarfoot. Remember, Sugarfoot the robber is fact but, them having an affair is pure fiction. These parts seemed to us, not only fictional but, also very unrealistic.

All of that being said, the book was actually well liked and was given a total rating of 3.96.  Most everyone enjoyed that it was very easy to read and found it very enjoyable.   We loved reading about the old west, which was portrayed very well, and gave us a bit of a refresher course on western history. What was absolutely the most striking of all, of course, was that Charley actually existed!   What an incredibly tough, brave, strong, resourceful woman.  We imagined and wondered so many things about her.  What drove her to become a man in the first place?  How did she keep that fact SO well hidden for more than 30 years?  Even though she clearly had friendships, some more than 20 years long. Was she lonely and did she lack intimacy in her life?

In the end when Charley died, she was a home and land owner, had owned several other successful businesses after retiring as a Whip, AND had voted (as a man).  All of these things were virtually unheard of, not to mention unattainable for an unmarried woman to accomplish at this time in our history.

Upon his death in 1879 from cancer of the mouth, it was, of course, discovered that Charley was a woman.  On the day of her death those with her also found a baby dress in an old trunk.....Charley had been a mother at some point in her life.  That made us very sad and was also a long point of discussion. What could the facts possibly be surrounding that child?

Charley's grave stands in the Pioneer Odd Fellows Cemetery in Watsonville, CA.  It reads...

CHARLEY DARKEY PARKHURST

                  1812-1879

NOTED WHIP OF THE GOLD RUSH DAYS

DROVE STAGE OVER MT. MADONNA IN 

EARLY DAYS OF VALLEY. LAST RUN

SAN JUAN TO SANTA CRUZ. DEATH IN

CABIN NEAR THE 7 MILE HOUSE,

REVEALED "ONE EYED CHARLIE"

A WOMAN. THE FIRST WOMAN TO VOTE 

IN THE U.S. NOV. 3, 1868

The Name of the Wind-Review by Lisa

Well we were only a group of 4 but we managed to discuss our book, Name the Wind, go to lunch, and still have plenty to talk about!! We missed those that couldn't join us. 

Name the Wind, was written by Patrick Rothfuss who was born in Madison, Wisconsin to parents who encouraged him to read and create through reading to him.During his formative years, he read extensively and wrote terrible short stories and poetry to teach himself what not to do.Patrick attended the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, initially studying chemical engineering.He then spent the next nine years jumping from major to major.All this time Patrick was working on “The Book,” as he and his friends lovingly titled it.He eventually graduated with an English major, and began teaching half-time while trying to sell The Book to publishers.  In the process, he disguised a chapter of The Book as a short story and won the Writers of the Future competition in 2002.  This put him into contact with all the right people, and after deciding to split The Book into three installments, DAW agreed to publish it.  In March 2007, The Name of the Wind was published to great acclaim, winning the Quill Award and making the New York Times Bestseller list.

The book, Name the Wind, is a tale about the legendary underdog, Kvothe, as he grows up in a traveling troupe, an orphan in a crime-riddled city, a student at dangerous school of magic and as a result becomes a notorious magician, thief, master musician and an infamous assassin.The story as it unfolds reveals the truth behind his legend for it is told by Kvothe to the Chronicler.(someone like our modern day newspaper writer.. I think..).As with all fantasy tales it is the battle between good and evil or light and dark and set during medieval times...or at least we think it is medieval..

For the most part, many of us enjoyed the book. It earned an overall score of 3.5. With 5 being the highest score and 1.5 the lowest.The book has a "dark" feeling but not in "a real life" disturbing way.. it is fantasy.

A few of us had no difficulty visualizing the characters, understanding the magic terms and thought the author did a great job"world building." Finishing the book led them on to read the second and third book. The rest of us felt the many names for the same characters and words about magic were vague and confusing. The length of the book too long. It was compelling until he went to school and then his circumstances became harder to understand and we were tired about hearing how "poor" he was....he made some bad choices with his money. We all have and thought enough of beating a dead horse. For the majority, we were interested/engaged enough to finish the lengthy book.

Where'd You Go Bernadette-Review by Lindsay

Where’d You Go Bernadette is a funny, poignant story told in letters, faxes, emails, reports and bills.  It is about 15 year old Bee Branch and her brilliant but eccentric parents Bernadette Fox and Elgin Branch.  They promise her anything if she gets a perfect report card.  Bee chooses a cruise to, of all places, Antartica.  

What follows is a hilarious series of events that pokes fun at parenting, progressive schools, Seattle, Microsoft, Canadians, the life of the privileged, and much more.  It caused us to laugh out loud frequently but also managed to make us empathize with the emotional pain that the characters go through.  Since the book is narrated through several points of view, we were all reminded of the advice to not judge unless “you’ve walked in their shoes”.  Where Bernadette has “gone” refers to both the physical and mental absence. 

The book’s format is unlike anything we have read, and was a refreshing change from our list of past reads.  The characters were interesting and likeable.  Many of us could identify with Bernadette’s feelings of lost identity and feelings of not fitting in when the family relocated to Seattle.  She doesn’t particularly identify with the other mothers from Bee’s school and she nicknames them The Gnats. 

Overall, the feedback on the book was consistent and ranged from 3.5 to 4.0 with an average of 3.79.  New member Patty rated our group a perfect 5.0, so pat yourselves on the back ladies  

I have updated the Timbers Book Club blog with all the upcoming books.  If it doesn’t look correct please let me know.  We have books through July of next year!

All The Light We Cannot See-Review by Kellie

Our book this month was All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr.

Not only was it a hit but, for most of us that read it and were at the meeting, it was our favorite book we read this year.  For me, personally, it will be in my top five books of all time. It is a historical fiction, which is usually one of our favorites genres and it did not disappoint. 

 The story is set during WWII and is about a blind french girl and a german boy, who has been chosen as one of Hitlers' Youth. These two characters will eventually meet one day near the very end of the war. As of our meeting neither Lindsay nor Pat had finished the book, so I'm not going to go into further detail about the story line. 

Lisa, who sent us her review before leaving for her trip, found the sequence in which it was written  confusing, as it is not written in chronological order.  We all agreed that, yes, at first we were also confused.  I had to look at the index to figure out exactly what the author was doing, by going back and forth in time.  For instance, the first eight chapters (all the chapters are very short) are about just one day, Aug. 7, 1944.  Then chapters 9-31 are about the two main characters and their lives as young children starting in 1934.  Next thing you know, with chapter 32, you are back to Aug. 1944, but the day is now the 8th, and so on and so forth.  So, through almost the entire length of the book just a few days in Aug. 1944 are woven, a few chapters at a time, amongst the rest of the book that tells the story of both main characters childhoods and then their teen years during the war, the roles they played in the war and, what eventually brings them together for just a few hours on that one day in August.  The chapters about those days in August were written like a thriller and as the time progressed from Aug. 7 to the 9th, it got more and more nerve wracking and we all admitted to being literally riveted by those chapters. Another minor weakness of the book was the end.  For Lisa, as she said, it felt "rushed".  I can't say that it felt rushed, as a matter of fact, at the meeting, I couldn't really put my finger on why the end was ever so slightly disappointing. So, today, I just spent two hours rereading the end just to see if I felt the same about it!  It sat much better with me this time and I think I was just so disappointed that (someones whose name I'll not mention) died.

Collectively as a group, we thought Doerr's writing was just beautiful and wonderfully descriptive without being overly done.  We loved all of the characters, not just the main characters, but the supporting cast as well and, we were all very attached to them.  One of my complaints with our book from Aug., The Secret Keeper was that the author wrote way to much detail about people that were not strong characters in the book, making parts of it boring.  Not the case with this book.  We discussed how neither the story of the stone nor the connection between Werner and Marie-Laure (which was the radio shows made by Marie's grandfather) felt contrived, which had it not been written so well, could have.  It was a really good meeting with so many talking points that we ended up discussing just the mystery of the house/stone/key for more than an hour!  

It took Doerr ten years to write this novel and it won the Pulitzer for fiction in 2014.  Admittedly, one of the ONLY Pulitzer winners our club has EVER really enjoyed!   

Eight of us read and rated the book.  The lowest rating was a 3.5 the highest a 5, given by four of us. So, it receives an overall rating of 4.65. 

Next months book is Where'd You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple.  Our meetings are now going back to the SECOND Friday of the month, which in November is Friday, the 13th.  Lindsay will be our discussion leader.

Hope to see you all there!

Kellie

The Invention of Wings-Review by Bonnie Jean

For this month, the book was generally liked by all.  The ratings ranged from 4 to 5.  A couple people felt like it was slow at some points when discussing Sarah and her speech impediment, but no one disliked the book.  That's good for us!  The discussion ranged from women's issues in the 1800 to current day, slavery issues that have lingering effects in present day, and family relationships.  We liked the strong women in the book, and thought it was a shame that our history books don't include the stories of these two sisters and other strong American women.  I'm probably missing a few things, but it was a good discussion.

The Secret Keeper-Review by Pat

With a smaller group than normal, five of us were at the meeting to discuss “The Secret Keeper”, by Kate Morton.  The ratings ranged from 3.5 to 4.0 with an average of 3.70.  Despite the higher ratings, part of the group mentioned they would not read the other books the author has written.  Some of us found the writing style to be a little drawn out and too descriptive in areas while others liked the more intricate detailed information. 

The book’s main characters are Vivien, Dolly and Jimmy (of course, Jimmy is the love interest between the two women).  The book starts with Laurel at the family’s England farm for her mother’s 90^th birthday.  Laurel searches into her mother’s past for answers to a murder she witnessed by her mother back in 1961, over 50 years ago.  The story goes between the pre WWII blitz in England to the 1960’s to 2011 and we liked the writing style moving between the past and the present.  Laurel’s two sisters in the story added no value to the story line but everyone enjoyed the relationship that Laurel and Gerald shared.  Our group appreciated the book’s multiple sub-plots, twists and turns that were presented along with the big surprise ending.  None of us guessed the ending where Vivien switched her identity for Dolly’s when Dolly died.   

During our discussion, many of us had different interpretations and inferences drawn about events that occurred in the book (i.e. the arrival of Henry at the end of the book and if he knew that it was Vivien he was going to see or Dolly).  Readers often assumed something about a character only to find out later that the character is not as they appeared.  “The Secret Keeper” offers tragedy, deception, jealousy and romance blended with a mystery plot throughout the book. Some in our group didn’t feel like the book was realistic while others thought the events could occur as written.  

About the Author:  Born 1976 – 39 years old.  We all thought Kate Morton would be from England but she was from Berri, South Australia, however, she had spent some time in London in the summers.  She holds a B.A. in English literature, a Master’s degree in Victorian literature from the University of Queensland and is currently working on a PhD program researching contemporary novels that incorporate aspects of gothic and mystery fiction.  Kate Morton is married to Davin, a jazz musician/composer and they have two sons.

Call The Midwife-Review by Pam B.

In addition to eating, drinking and salacious talk (thanks Jimmy Fallon) we discussed "Call the Midwife."  Now, I have to admit that after a couple of drinks and without taking notes (my excuse...it was dark) I may not remember every detail. I do remember that most everyone loved it and thought it was a "delightful" book. It was easy to read and was perfect for our summertime meeting.

At the age of twenty-two, Jennifer Worth leaves her comfortable home to move into a convent and become a midwife in London's East End slums. You are told astounding stories about the author's years working at the Nonnatus House Convent in the Docklands during the 1950s.  

It was well written and full of insight into human nature.  Most of us had little knowledge about this time and place in history and loved that the book taught us so much about it. This book was touching, funny and fascinating. It was an unforgettable story of the joy of motherhood, even in the worst of circumstances.

I recommended this book because I love the PBS tv series and wanted to see if  the book was just as good. I was not disappointed! At least a couple more of us had seen the tv series and thought that it followed the book very well. If you are interested, the tv series is available on dvd at the library and also on Netflix.

Most of us agreed that it was one of the best books we have read and the average rating was a 4.3

Pam

All Our Names-Review by Valerie

In June we discussed All Our Names by Dinaw Mengestu. Six of us were at the meeting and ratings for the book ranged from 2.0 to 3.25 with an average of 2.5. In reading the reviews and great commentary of the book we expected it to be much better than it was. 

"All Our Names narrates the story of a young black man who comes of age in post-colonial Africa and the young white woman who meets and falls in love with him in a small Midwest town." Isaac and Helen alternate narrating the chapters and Isaac's story begins when he leaves his home in Ethiopia to attend college in Uganda in the early 1970's. He talks about having 13 names, one from each generation, and was the first from his village to reach that milestone. Helen is a social worker assigned to Isaac's case when he arrives as a foreign exchange student. Isaac's story focuses on the relationship he has with his friend "the real Isaac" in Uganda, while Helen's story is supposed to be about their sweeping love story. As a group, we felt more connected to Isaac's story of the Uganda conflict than to Helen's tale of their love story. None of us felt the love story and thought it was mostly just about sex.

The very end of the book tells of them going on a road trip to Chicago which is really the first time any of us felt emotion/love between the 2 of them. We wished there would have been more of that.

Some of our comments about the book were: it was vague, too many unanswered questions, wanted a better relationship between the characters, characters could have been better developed, reading the book felt like a dream and it was hard to recall details, felt disconnected, it was a quick read and didn't love or hate it, low level of engagement. Based on what we read about the author's goals for this novel we felt he did not accomplish what he set out to do.

Ok... on to our happy hour!

We are set for next Thursday the 16th at 5:00 at my house. Please let everyone know what you will be bringing. I will have drinks! Also we will be discussing Call the Midwife.

The Shoemaker's Wife-Review by Lindsay

We had a fairly good turnout for the meeting, despite the quality of the book we read.  Ratings ranged from 2.0 to 3.5, average of 2.7.

The story began in the Italian Alps, in the Lake Garda region.  It is the story of two young brothers, Ciro and Eduardo, left by their mother to be raised in a convent.  Their story merges with the story of a girl, Enza, raised in the same geographical area of Italy.  Enza and Ciro meet at, of all places, her sister’s graveside and it is love at first sight.  So much so that they find themselves in a lip lock right after the funeral. (insert rolling eyes here)  The two can’t quite get their act together in Italy and they both emigrate separately to the United States for different reasons.  And wow!  They “happen” to run in to each other in New York City.  Don’t be fooled, this is not some sweeping, epic novel of the American dream and the hard working immigrant such as Angela’s Ashes or Tortilla Curtain or My Antonia.  It is basically a cheesy love story of the two main characters, Enza and Ciro. 

This book started with so much promise, with some beautiful descriptions of the Italian countryside, food and customs.  The relationship between the boys and the nuns was very touching.   We liked the friendship between Laura and Enza, the description of the famous opera singer Enrico Caruso, and were curious about the story behind Ciro’s mother.  And then it all went south.  Several of these characters had so much potential for an interesting story and yet were not developed. It became a series of coincidences and overly dramatic relationships. I enjoy a little romance in a book but it got a bit Harlequin Romancy.  This book read more like a romance novel that good literature.

The book was an easy read, bring to the beach kind of book.  It was not a 5 star rating recipient, which kind of left us scratching our heads on what kind of reader likes this stuff.  A few of us felt is was a waste of their time, but is it really a waste of time when we all get together?!

Next month’s book is All Our Names by Dinaw Mengestu.

Also, I have updated our blog with the latest reading list and the reviews that I had.  If I missed any please send.  It has been over a year since I updated it.  We also added three new books to our list.  We decided that adding a few books every so often is an easier way to choose books rather than a massive decision at our annual summer drinking, I mean social hour, get together.  Here is the link-

http://timbersbookclub.blogspot.com/

Lindsay

Left to Tell-Review by Lisa

Hi everyone sorry this so late. We had 4  at our last meeting and even though we were a small group we still managed to have a wonderful discussion led by Pam.

"Left to Tell" is a book that is written by Immaculee Ilibagiza who survived the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. For a few of us, we were not aware of the genocide that killed about 1 million people within a 3 month time span. Therefor the book was such a shock and learning experience. 

The Tutsis and Hutus of the African country of Rwanda have had a bloody past and in essence this genocide was "pay back" to the Tutsis from the Hutus. Through propaganda radio, military force, hate and fear they brutally attacked and killed as many Tutsis as they could seek in attempt to eliminate them from Rwanda. Family, friends, neighbors, and the educated  turned against each other. Immaculee was "spared" with 8? other Tutsis women by Pastor Murinzi who put them up in his bathroom! For three months they were not allowed out, were fed minimum amounts, did not bathe, were covered with lice among other critters, and needed to flush the only toilet around the other toilet use of the rest of the home. Their news was limited to what they could hear from their small bathroom window and what the pastor would dare to share. For the most part they heard discussions of betrayal and brutality. Time stretched on and on for them with nothing to keep them occupied. Talking was prohibited. They couldn't move around and took turns to stretch out. Many times they feared discovery. Immaculee spent her time praying.Praying for survival, lost lives, release from the brutality,strength to carry on, and ultimately forgiveness to those that murdered her family and friends. 

She was raised Catholic and had been surrounded by prayer her entire life. BUT this praying was different for it was a cry out while desperately afraid and angry. She spent hours a day and night lost in her world of prayer. It was described as "feverish".She would lose consciousness. As a result, her faith led to hope which gave her the power of courage to survive and ultimately to FORGIVE those that butchered her family,friends and way of life.  In turn, she promised God that she would always have her faith with him and would share it with the world. She believed that she was the living proof of prayer and positive thinking which "really are almost the same thing." She felt she was"spared" not saved so she could serve the purpose of spreading her story throughout the world. She was pious not self righteous, for she was, is, aware of her gift of life and didn't feel it was"owed "to her and not others due to her prayers. All the survivors shared in the misery of the war, but she  felt others lost so much more than her...for they lost their faith and in "doing so, they'd also lost hope". She lives today with her family on the East coast and speaks around the world to share her story. She doesn't take her life for granted.

Part of our discussion were the parallels of this story and the story written by Viktor Frankl, "Man's Search for Ultimate Meaning". Both are stories of inspiration and how having hope gives you a sense of purpose, courage to continue on even when the odds are against you. We gave the book a 4 not because it was brilliantly written but for the history lesson, message of courage and inspiration AND easy reading!