Thanks everybody! We didn’t get everyone’s vote (we rarely do), but @mathmomth, @buenavista, @Caraid, et al., are generally open to any selection, so I hope they’ll approve.
I don’t think we’ve delved into the art world in any other selections, so this should be fun. I’ll start a new thread.
Reminder to newcomers: Our next discussion will begin October 1st. We read every other month. That gives everyone time to read selections of their own choosing during the off month. So our next tradition (begun by @ignatius, I think) is to answer the question, “What are you reading in the interim?”
Black Rabbit Hall by Eve Chase - sounds like a fun summer read - is there enough to talk about?
Old Filth by Jane Gardam
The Last Painting of Sara de Vos by Dominic Smith.
Duo: The Stranger by Albert Camus and The Meursault Investigation by Kamel Daoud - I do want to read this, but maybe not as summer reading?
4a. The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead
4b. Underground Airlines by Ben Winters - I like the idea of doing this as a duo
When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi - would it be too sad?
Just saw Mary13 already posted, but as you can see, I’m okay with the choice.
I’d love to hear about nerdmom’s YA recommendations - I used to read a ton of it, but not so much lately.
BTW - I know we tend to avoid fantasy, but for those who enjoy the genre - I really liked *Uprooted *by Naomi Novik. She’s know for her Napoleonic War with dragons books (I read a couple and didn’t bother to continue), but this is quite different. It’s setting is vaguely Polish/Russian and features a strong woman whose magic is based more on intuition than formulas much to her mentor’s dismay.
I’m reading Becoming Nicole. Next up, maybe, is Good Night, Mr. Wodehouse by Faith Sullivan or Listening to a Continent Sing: Birdsong by bicycle from the Atlantic to the Pacific by Donald Kroodsma. I’m just finishing up listening to Shoe Dog by Phil Knight (CD Book), and I have been playing The Comedians by Graham Greene on Hoopla while I’m out walking.
Thanks so much, Mary, for leading another great discussion.
And kudos to nottelling for suggesting The Last Painting of Sara de Vos! It’s not at all easy to come up with a quality title that generates unanimous enthusiasm in this group. I’m really looking forward to reading the book.
As Mary mentioned, an informal tradition has started of members listing books, at this point in the thread, that they’ve been reading lately, I see that PlantMom got us started (“Birdsong by Bicycle”! I love it!) and bearpanther has chimed in too.
I’ve been reading some nonfiction lately:
Dead Wake by Erik Larsen, about the sinking of the Lusitania.
Greetings from Utopia Park by Claire Hoffman, a fascinating memoir by a woman who grew up in the town that has been the center of the Transcendental Meditation movement in the US.
Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity by Katherine Boo.
It’s a do-able duo (say that three times fast ) for the future, when we’re ready for another long set. Sounds really interesting. December is usually a shorter pick, but maybe something to consider for February?
Happy to get a shout out this morning! I’ve been reading the discussion but not posting bc I was out of town. I agree with most of the commentary re The Fireman-- I thought it was fun, inventive (though not as much as NOS4AT2), creepy (but not as much as NOS4AT2) and had a compelling story (though not as…). I like the idea of examining life in a closed community; how it morphs into cult sometimes. I didn’t think the characters were all compelling, though the twists got me. I agree that it was bloated. It could have ended about three different times (like many movies these days, and I agree that it was written with a cinematic eye). I do think Hill has some chops.
The Last Painting of Sarah deVos is great-- a very interesting look at the Dutch painters’ guild, life in the Netherlands, women in art, art restoration (science-y! Yay!!) etc etc.
I liked Underground Airlines a LOT. He also wrote the Last Policeman novels, which were well done. UA seems uncomfortable timely these days wrt racial tensions. I just started Underground Railroad and I do get that feeling where I’m instantly sure that the author knows what the heck they’re doing.
I may be the only human who didn’t think When Breath Becomes Air was the most amazing thing ever. It’s very sad, but uplifting, but there were some things that didn’t touch me like I thought they would. Maybe it’s my feeling about why he became a neurosurgeon (full disclosure-- I’m a pediatrician. Like the far other end of the spectrum of physicians lol!).
I’m reading The Thrilling Adventures of Lovelace and Babbage: The (Mostly) True Story of the First Computer - Sydney Padua. I don’t quite know what to say about it other than I’m awed by the creativity and research involved and by how the author so adroitly combined said research/creativity with humor.
I’m also reading The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu: And Their Race to Save the World’s Most Precious Manuscripts - Joshua Hammer. Nonfiction
For those curious about how I came across Black Rabbit Hall, I saw it on LibraryReads.org - The top ten books published this month that librarians across the country love. I look at this site each month - September 2016 just came out today.
(You know how SJCM mentioned Girl Waits with Gun. I found that book on this site also.)
Anyone reading C S Harris’s Sebastian St. Cyr Mysteries? She has a new one out, and I am so so tempted to put down A Suitable Boy to read it! They aren’t great literature, but unlike many series, the characters have grown and developed so that I actually like the later books much more than the early ones. They are Regency mysteries with more than a touch of Regency Romance. Much, much grittier than your average Georgette Heyer however!
mathmom: I’ve wanted to start the C.S. Harris books for a couple years but something else always gets in the way. I need to just grab the first one and set it on my bedside table as a constant nag to get to it.
For my Books on the Beach Club (meets only during the summer) we have/will read: “God Help the Child” by Toni Morrison, “Everything I Never Told You” by Celeste Ng, “Our Souls at Night” by Kent Haruf, and “My Brilliant Friend” by Elena Ferrante.
First up for the upcoming season of my Cambridge Book Club is “A Little Life” by Hanya Yanagihara. (I just bought this last one on Kindle – 700+ pages. I need to get reading!)
In between I read various mystery series and books I get for free from Book Bub.
Thank you to Mary for leading us once again. Though The Fireman didn’t make our high-water mark as book choice, I thoroughly enjoyed our discussion. In truth, the discussion itself ranks pretty high overall. It never flagged - turns out we had a lot to say about it all.
Thanks also to everyone who participated in the discussion. I enjoyed the book but I got more out of it because of you guys. You all constitute my by-far-favorite book club.
Thanks, Mary. I’m in. My son has been home and I was distracted. Sorry I didn’t put in a choice, but you are right, I’m usually good for anything. I would like to put in a vote to keep East of Eden on a future list. I love Steinbeck and would love to read East of Eden again. It has probably been 30 years since I first read it.
Same here! I’m all for keeping it in contention. We’ll get to it yet.
@mathmom, although there are depressing elements, it’s more of a family saga than a tragedy–loss and heartbreak, but also love and abiding friendship, followed through the years. It’s my favorite Steinbeck. Or at least it was–like @Caraid, I haven’t read it for decades. I’m sure reading it today would be a different experience, now that I have so many more years behind me.
) for the future, when we’re ready for another long set. Sounds really interesting. December is usually a shorter pick, but maybe something to consider for February?
