October Book Club

Lovely afternoon at Kelly's home. Fantastic food as usual.  

This is how we feel because Kelly and Lisa were absent!

Orphan Train was our book of discussion.  We all enjoyed the read tremendously! Although it was a novel, the research was spot on. It was an amazing and shocking period in American history.

We all liked the author's ability to draw us into the characters. However, most felt it was an abrupt ending.

Next book selection:

Kathy selected a favorite author - Harlan Cobin  -  Missing You - Nov. 23

"From #1 New York Times bestselling author Harlan Coben, a heart-pounding thriller about the ties we have to our past...and the lies that bind us together."

"It's a profile, like all the others on the online dating site. But as NYPD Detective Kat Donovan focuses on the accompanying picture, she feels her whole world explode, as emotions she’s ignored for decades come crashing down on her. Staring back at her is her ex-fiancé Jeff, the man who shattered her heart—and who she hasn’t seen in 18 years."

  Date - Nov

Here on Earth Wrap-Up

Lovely afternoon at Lisa's home. Lots of great food: Roz brought our favorite dip, Kathy brought our fav -  JoJo's pizza . In addition we had quiche, pears with Parmesan cheese, roasted Brussels's sprouts, healthy peanut/chocolate cookies and skinny ice cream sandwiches. Oh and wine!

The book was read by most and liked by most. The author carried us along even if we could not get a handle on the heroine's (March)  motives to stay with such an awful guy (Hollis).  There were some beautiful descriptions of the horse and the woods. Still, it was an uncomfortable bunch of characters. So nicely written but depressing. Worth noting  - this was once an Oprah book selection.

BTW Lisa noticed these fun suggestions:

14 Ways Not to Kill Your Book Club

No chance of that we like each other too much!

And after the discussion here's what we did for entertainment:

.....go figure!

Here is a fun link: 

14 Books Your Book Club Needs To Read Now

Next selection by Kelly P - Orphan Train: A Novel

 

 New Trailer for Gone Girl (click it) which opens October 1st.

Ya'll remember we read this!

We gotta go see it!

The latest trailer  for Gone Girl dives deeper into the mystery surrounding Amy Dunne's disappearance and the dark cloud of suspicion hovering over her husband Nick. 

The new video, released Monday morning, shows similar scenes to the film's first look as Nick (Ben Affleck) joins the national search for his wife – now interposed with eerie voiceovers from Amy's infamous diary. 

"I will practice believing my husband loves me," she whispers. "But I could be wrong." 

The trailer also gives a glimpse of the supporting stars Neil Patrick Harris and Tyler Perry. 

Next Up -- Lisa on Sept 21

Alice Hoffman

(click for her website with full book list)

Click here for info on the miniseries.

COMING SOON

The Dovekeepers, the miniseries

Roma Downey and Mark Burnett will produce the four-hour CBS miniseries. The project will star actress Cote de Pablo. The miniseries adaptation of The Dovekeepers is slated to air in 2015.

What Sylvia is Reading Now

 

As they say in New Jersey......"fergetaboutit"

Thank the powers of the book angel my choice is off the read list.

If you didn't start the book - be grateful.

Back on track with Lisa's choice in September.

Walter Benjamin at the Dairy Queen

My book selection was based on knowing a little about Larry McMurtry.  Not that I am a western fiction fan but he seems to have a wide range. (So my apologies  - it is a challenging read.) Although much of his prose and perspective on storytelling is beautiful - it is a bit of a peculiar book.

This sounded like a fun read: 

"Do you really want to listen to a cranky old man ramble on about his childhood, his heart surgery, his hobbies, his son, and the way things, in general, aren't what they used to be? It turns out you do. InWalter Benjamin at the Dairy Queen, Larry McMurtry comes the old pardner, and the result is a powerful elegy for the lost spaces in American life. He takes as his starting point an afternoon he spent at the Dairy Queen in Archer City, Texas."

Larry Jeff McMurtry (born June 3, 1936)   American novelist, essayist, bookseller and screenwriter whose work is predominantly set in either the old West or in contemporary Texas.^[1] He is known for his 1975 novel Terms of Endearment, his 1985 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel Lonesome Dove, a historical saga that follows ex-Texas Rangers as they drive their cattle from the Rio Grande to a new home in the frontier of Montana, and for co-writing the adapted screenplay for Brokeback Mountain. Lonesome Dove was adapted into a television miniseries and both the films of Terms of Endearment and Brokeback Mountain won Academy Awards.

McMurtry's award-winning novel The Last Picture Show was a widely acclaimed  movie.  He adapted Hud for the screen.

Literary Chicks in July

Just another swell afternoon book club!

A jug of wine, some cream cheese dip and voila'...

instant fun.

Turns out to be a pretty philosophical day,  what with Thoreau being so important in our selection - Being Henry David.   (A compelling story about a teenage boy grappling with his identity in the wake of a disaster.)  

It was a  YA book but we enjoyed the change up.  As usual Noreen is pretty much the hostess-with-the-most-est, as evidenced by this photo!

Drink of the day! Wow!

Professor of the day!

                           This pretty much says it all.

(Just sayin' - we stayed all day!)

Next up: Lisa selected Here on Earth for our August 10th meeting.

                               

Summer Reading is Upon Us

Noreen made the next selection: 

Being Henry David 

by Carl Amistead.

Seventeen-year-old “Hank” has found himself at Penn Station in New York City with no memory of anything—who he is, where he came from, why he’s running away. His only possession is a worn copy of Walden, by Henry David Thoreau. And so he becomes Henry David—or “Hank”—and takes first to the streets, and then to the only destination he can think of—Walden Pond in Concord, Massachusetts.

Cal Armistead’s remarkable debut novel is about a teen in search of himself. Hank begins to piece together recollections from his past. The only way Hank can discover his present is to face up to the realities of his grievous memories. He must come to terms with the tragedy of his past to stop running and to find his way home.


June Meeting - We discussed The Lost Wife with our hostess Roz.  Lovely lunch!   Great to be together! 

A rapturous novel of first love in a time of war-from the celebrated author of The Rhythm of Memory and The Last Van Gogh. 



In pre-war Prague, the dreams of two young lovers are shattered when they are separated by the Nazi invasion. Then, decades later, thousands of miles away in New York, there's an inescapable glance of recognition between two strangers...

Sample Comments:

This is a very well written, but sad story. 

“

Very well written and the characters were brought to life by the author's description. 

It's the first book I've ever read that has the ending on page one.

Agreed we need a break from WWII/ 

Boots and Bling

Click picture to look closer!

Jo Jo's Donation to Silent Auction.

Oh my gosh.....
who are these
jail birds?

Mom and Daughter - awwww

OMG 

Kick it babe'

Yoga teacher swings? 

Trendy Readers!

Thank you Kelly Pile for selecting the novel Gone Girl last year. Now soon-to-be released movie with  Ben Afflick! Wow! Reese Witherspoon produced the film. Rumors are on the net of an altered ending!

Click to see an interview with Gillian Flynn:

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/gillian-flynn-interview-2014-girl-author-reveals-secrets-23496083:

June Book

Roz has selected the next  novel.
  June 1 is the date.  






A rapturous novel of first love in a time of war-from the celebrated author of The Rhythm of Memory and The Last Van Gogh. 

In pre-war Prague, the dreams of two young lovers are shattered when they are separated by the Nazi invasion. Then, decades later, thousands of miles away in New York, there's an inescapable glance of recognition between two strangers...

Providence is giving Lenka and Josef one more chance. From the glamorous ease of life in Prague before the Occupation, to the horrors of Nazi Europe, The Lost Wife explores the power of first love, the resilience of the human spirit- and the strength of memory.

More about Alyson Richman  at this link

Yikes!

Recommended Reading

Recommended by members and friends. Click on author's name to link to Amazon for more information.



A Time to Kill and Sycamore Row*- John Grisham
(*this list was started prior to the April selection - Kathy has ESP)


Glory in Death - JD Robb



 The Clifton Chronicles* - Jeffery Archer

 
#1 Only Time Will Tell
#2 The Sins of the Father  
#3  Best Kept Secret  


The Mountains Echoed  - Khaled Hosseini
(The Kite Runner)


David Baldacci - Camel Club series is excellent
King and Maxwell - good reads
(all his books are great)


Lee Child - Jack Reacher books
Hailed by Stephen King in Entertainment Weekly as “the coolest continuing series character now on offer,”




Book club members and friends will be adding to this list.

Enlightening, Engaging, Excellent

This month our group discussion is rated Excellent - 

in fact three E's as you see in the title.

An easy read as our hostess, Kelly said. But it was amazing what interesting discussion her questions brought forth.

Lovely food and drink as well.

Thanks Kelly!

Next month Kathy's selection is by another best selling author:

Sycamore Row

by John Grisham

John Grisham takes you back to where it all began . . .

John Grisham's A Time to Kill is one of the most popular novels of our time. Now we return to that famous courthouse in Clanton as Jake Brigance once again finds himself embroiled in a fiercely controversial trial-a trial that will expose old racial tensions and force Ford County to confront its tortured history.

Selection for March

Catherine Ryan Hyde is the author of 24 published and forthcoming books, including WHERE WE BELONG, WHEN I FOUND YOU, WALK ME HOME, SECOND HAND HEART, DON'T LET ME GO, and WHEN YOU WERE OLDER.    

Her best-known novel, PAY IT FORWARD, was adapted into a major motion picture, chosen by the American Library Association for its Best Books for Young Adults list, and translated into more than 23 languages.

January Review-Meeting

 We met at  the Breast Care Center of the Southwest.  A lovely office with comfortable chairs. The tour was fun! Thanks - Dr. Vic Zannis.

 To Kill a Mocking Bird was a wonderful read. We could have discussed it for many more hours. A beautiful read with lasting moralities.

First Review on our Book Selection