<p>March is The Elegance of the Hedgehog, Muriel Barbery. </p>
<p>wow…my Book Club did this one last month. …eery. There are a lot of books out there after all and we are doing the Help Wednesday at my house.</p>
<p>Faline, I hope you come back and tell us about your book discussion …</p>
<p>^SJChessMom, do you have any preferences/suggestions for our April selection? You have been here for at least five of the six previous books, so your vote would be given the appropriate weight. ;)</p>
<p>Okay eliminate The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo on the grounds:</p>
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<p>I do know that my other fiction suggestion keeps the content clean enough.</p>
<p>Amazon reviews for The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie:[Amazon.com:</a> The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie: A Flavia de Luce Mystery (9780385343497): Alan Bradley: Books](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/product-description/0385343493/ref=dp_proddesc_0?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books]Amazon.com:”>http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/product-description/0385343493/ref=dp_proddesc_0?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books) </p>
<p>However, first person pov again 
for both The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie and Mary13’s suggestion Shadow of the Wind. I’m actually fine with first person pov again, but find it amusing how we seem to gravitate toward it. The Elegance of the Hedgehog keeps cropping up - and I believe it also is a first person rendering of two characters.</p>
<p>Perhaps nonfiction could solve the pov dilemma, assuming we want a change. </p>
<p>Amazon reviews for The River of Doubt:
[Amazon.com:</a> The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey (9780767913737): Candice Millard: Books](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/product-description/0767913736/ref=dp_proddesc_0?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books]Amazon.com:”>http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/product-description/0767913736/ref=dp_proddesc_0?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books)</p>
<p>I think Mary13 should pick the cc book, as the start of the book club originated with her - and the choices so far have led to much interest and discussion. Mary13 has also carefully sifted through the suggestions of others before choosing. Definitely she should pick a book she hasn’t read and has an interest in. (BTW - I checked prices on Amazon when I looked at reviews and all titles listed seem quite reasonable.)</p>
<p>Personally, I’m not particularly squeamish when reading. I hesitate though when faced with subject matter such as I think I might find in Sarah’s Key; I think I might find it haunting - in a way that I don’t care to be haunted. I’ll have to look at the discussion before I make the decision whether or not to read it.</p>
<p>^ Thanks for the vote of confidence. On the whole, I am not bothered by a book’s content—sex isn’t a problem (hey, if I can get through visions of George and Laura Bush, I can get through anything :)) and language doesn’t bother me a bit. But I do have trouble with an elevated level of (graphic) violence. </p>
<p>If we pick The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, we can just re-name ourselves the CC 1st Person POV Book Club :). One thing that is interesting about Sweetness is, once again, the idea of “voice.” The author, Alan Bradley, is a 70 year old man. His 1st person protagonist is an 11 year old girl. </p>
<p>Earlier in this thread I quoted William Faulkner’s description of his writing: “It begins with a character, usually, and once he stands up on his feet and begins to move, all I can do is trot along behind him with a paper and pencil trying to keep up long enough to put down what he says and does.” Compare that to the interview with Alan Bradley on Amazon:</p>
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<p>As for The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey, I’d be happy to tackle that one, and as ignatius pointed out, it would be a change in genre for us, but are there enough others who are interested? I haven’t read either book, but I imagine River of Doubt would be heavier fare than The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie. I’m ready if you are! I’d be happy, however, with either choice. Which way do you CC readers lean?</p>
<p>I’ve been lurking so far because I had previously read the selections, didn’t feel like re-reading, and wasn’t sure my recollections would be sharp enough to contribute much of value. I’ve read neither of the above, so would love to join in with whichever is chosen!</p>
<p>How is that for a wishy-washy vote?</p>
<p>~mafool</p>
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<p>I’ll be even wishy-washier by adding that I haven’t read The Shadow of the Wind or The Elegance of the Hedgehog either. </p>
<p>So far the most unique is The River of Doubt - nonfiction.</p>
<p>I peeked at some reading discussion guides and again all look interesting. So with mafool, I’ll read the chosen book happily.</p>
<p>I read River of Doubt and really enjoyed it. You will be glad you never traveled with Theodore Roosevelt! I also really liked Shadows of the Wind too. My book club is reading Half Broke Horses right now and I will let you know how that one is. I love seeing all the titles people throw out and I put them on my list to read. I had never heard of Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie before and I have been tempted to read Special Topics in Calamity Physics and now may do so. This is a great thread. Thanks, Mary!</p>
<p>Mary wrote :" SJChessMom, do you have any preferences/suggestions for our April selection? You have been here for at least five of the six previous books, so your vote would be given the appropriate weight. "</p>
<p>Too kind. Such responsibility isn’t it!</p>
<p>I like a " collective CC decision", where four or five books are selected, and then participants, (and this includes the MANY lurkers out there in internet land, who are following along) vote for their choice.</p>
<p>This worked well, many months ago when you, Mary, did a wonderful job of deciding who made the final cut.</p>
<p>Some books are great reads, but are they good discussion books?
This is the BIG question, and probably best answered if someone has "actually’ read the suggested book and can testify to it lending itself to “discussion”. Let’s try to keep the momentum we’ve established with “The Help” going with the next selection.</p>
<p>Here is an awesome site, I just found while looking for suggestions.</p>
<p>Check it out.</p>
<p>[Book</a> Movement](<a href=“http://www.bookmovement.com/app/readingguide/bcbestsellers.php]Book”>http://www.bookmovement.com/app/readingguide/bcbestsellers.php)</p>
<p>(ALL THE BOOKS THE CC CLUB HAS READ ARE REVIEWED-guess what the first three are!)
The Elegance of the Hedgehog is also reviewed and listed as #8 on the reading list. </p>
<p>From this list, this one caught my eye- The Glass Castle.
Why? the ratings by book club groups,
and the number of amazon readers who rated it four or five stars.
Has anyone read this one? </p>
<p>The Glass Castle It’s number 38 on the list because it’s been around for awhile. Jeannette Walls has a new book, Half Broke Horses, which is listed as #5 on the book club list, and is currently being read by many clubs.</p>
<p>Does anyone have an opinion about this one?
"Jeannette Walls’s The Glass Castle was “nothing short of spectacular” (Entertainment Weekly). "
[Amazon.com:</a> The Glass Castle: A Memoir (Alex Awards (Awards)) (9780743247535): Jeannette Walls: Books](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Glass-Castle-Memoir-Alex-Awards/dp/0743247531]Amazon.com:”>http://www.amazon.com/Glass-Castle-Memoir-Alex-Awards/dp/0743247531)</p>
<p>Here is a list of the top 10. (Keep in mind this is the list of current reads- not necessarily highest rated book club reads)</p>
<p>1) The Help
2) Sarahs Key
3)Guernsey Literary PP Society
4)The Art of Racing in the Rain
5)Half Broke Horses (by Jeannette Walls author of The Glass Castle)
6)Wednesday Sisters
7)Same Kind of Different
8)Elegance of the Hedgehog (any CCer’s actually read this and think it would be good discussion book?)
9)Time Travelers Wife (highly recommended)
10) Wench - A Novel</p>
<p>I have read the Glass Castle. Very interesting. Very compelling.</p>
<p>It is a memoir. It is a memoir of a most unusual family, and the narrator has certainly managed to “make it” in conventional society. The author recognizes that her upbringing was certainly outside the conventional notions of a “good family,” yet there is never a sense of self pity. We see it through the eyes of an intelligent person who, at the time, had never lived any other way, so there is an acceptance at the same time there is an awareness of difference. To say more would spoil the book.</p>
<p>I am probably not doing the book justice; it has been quite a while since I read it. But if you have not read this book, I think you will, when it is done, be glad that you did.</p>
<p>Very very selfishly, I will note that the books in the list that I have not read are numbers 2, 5, 6, 8, and 10. So they appeal to this single poster.</p>
<p>I listened to The Art of Racing in the Rain while on a long drive. I enjoyed it. I do not know that it lends itself to great discussion. </p>
<p>I may be wrong, but I am guessing that many of us have read The Time Traveler’s Wife. Please say so if if this is a bad assumption.</p>
<p>^^^^“Very very selfishly, I will note that the books in the list that I have not read are numbers 2, 5, 6, 8, and 10. So they appeal to this single poster.”</p>
<p>You may have hit on a very important point, because many people probably share this view. Most people want to read something new to them. A good point.</p>
<p>Do you think the “memoir”- A Glass Castle would be good for discussion ?</p>
<p>Re the Help…I was thinking about attending the funeral of the woman who worked for our grandparents for fifty years…way up into her 80s she did light work…she didn’t drive or have a car…but neither did my grandparents who took the streetcar and the bus to their pink collar jobs as clerks and secretaries …bought a car in their late 40s or early 50s. Even people as middle class as my relatives had hired help in the 30s-60s and on in the south. She worked for 2 days a week for them and another part of the week for a much wealthier family…she was just a lovely and gracious person…I used to feel however very strange about the whole thing when I visited this small town from the vantage of my military base life where everyone was economically equal and racial equality inroads came earlier than in civilian sectors. No one in the military had hired help in my world. Not only that, our homes were inspected before we could move out.</p>
<p>I had the experience of attending this woman’s funeral a couple of years ago and my mother was one of the speakers. I always felt my mother was rather soft in the head and clueless about the life of the housekeeper she had known since she was seven years old so it was a real opportunity for me to see reality and to meet the family of my grandmother’s housekeeper. Her daughter was the leader and in fact was a minister of a large church and ran the service herself. My mother had been visiting her housekeeper in a nursing home for years and had come to know her children…but even so, I found my mother’s attempt to speak to be well intentioned but lacking…in insight. Maybe it was me lacking in insight…I certainly do not really understand the inner workings of how things used to be in towns like the town my grandparents lived in forever.</p>
<p>Yes, I do think that The Class Castle has many aspects that invite discussion. The fact that I have already read it is immaterial. I will enjoy reading the commentary if this book is chosen. There are so many of us that finding currently available, interesting books that none of us has read seems like quite a reach.</p>
<p>I just finished reading The Help–it was my book group’s selection for February (we’re meeting on Tuesday). I enjoyed the book and found the discussion here interesting. Seems like the discussion has waned, but I wanted to make a few comments/observations.</p>
<p>1) I agree with folks who aren’t bothered by "the voice"issue. </p>
<p>2) I was really taken by the relationship between all of the women (Skeeter, Hilly, Elizabeth) and their mothers. None seemed to have “good” relationships. It made me wonder if the fact that their mothers (I’m making a bit of an assumption here) weren’t hands-on in terms of child rearing was what made these relationships rocky. Admittedly we don’t know too much about Elizabeth’s relationship with her mother. She visits a few times and IIRC she bullies Elizabeth into taking her out to lunch and complains that Elizabeth isn’t making sure that her daughter (Mae Moberly) is learning to respond politely (like saying Yes, Ma’am immediately). Hilly seems to think her mother is an old fool and Skeeter lies to her mother all the time just to keep her mother from hounding her constantly. </p>
<p>3) I grew up in a working class city in the Midwest in the 60s (I was 11 when JFK was killed) and thought the term hippie really didn’t become common until the late 60s. In some ways this book seemed more like the 50s to me. Overall, I thought the few inaccuracies didn’t take away from the book all that much.</p>
<p>4) I didn’t know anyone who had a cleaning lady or housekeeper or maid. I don’t think anyone in my neighborhood (working class suburb) could afford help. Which makes me wonder about the South–were you White Trash if you couldn’t afford help? Were class distinctions that strong in the South? Was Johnny’s wife rejected because of her background (even before she wore the revealing dress) or because Hilly decided to isolate her.</p>
<p>5) The book made me wonder if I would have stood up to the Hillys of the world or if I would have turned out to be spineless like Elizabeth? I like to think I would have stood up for what I believed, but being the lone voice of opposition when everyone around you believes something is not easy. I really admire the white people from the South who were supportive of blacks during the Civil Rights movement.</p>
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<p>Even though your mother’s remarks may have come up short, it’s still pretty amazing to think how far she came over the years—to the point that she was visiting the housekeeper in the nursing home, had made friends with the adult children, and was asked to speak at the funeral. With their disparate backgrounds and experiences, the families may not have completely understood each other, but in the end, lines were being crossed that wouldn’t have been crossed 50 years ago, so that’s progress.</p>
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<p>I agree. Troubled mother-daughter relationships seem to be an underlying theme of The Help. And the consequences of no “hands-on” child rearing worked both ways: Spending time raising other people’s children meant that the black help were not able to be present for their own–Constantine and Lulubelle being the obvious example.</p>
<p>SJChessMom, thanks for the link to the book site. So many good suggestions!</p>
<p>On the top 10 list you posted, I have read *Time Traveler’s Wife<a href=“plus%20the%20first%20three%20books,%20of%20course”>/i</a>.</p>
<p>And even though mafool graciously said she didn’t care, since she has lurked through six books that she’s already read (such fortitude!), I would like to choose one that’s new to her, so that would rule out The Glass Castle and the *Art of Racing in the Rain<a href=“at%20least%20for%20this%20go-round”>/i</a>.</p>
<p>I’ll wait for Onward to tell us what she thinks of Half Broke Horses—maybe a selection for a future month? Same Kind of Different sounds intriguing, but various reviews note that it is “from a Christian perspective,” “a fundamentalist screed,” “a faith lesson,” and “God is talked about throughout the story.” I had a flashback to The Shack which I read recently and which wasn’t my cup of tea; I think I prefer my reading to be secular.</p>
<p>The Wench and *The Postmistress<a href=“from%20ignatius’%20list”>/i</a> are still in hardcover, so we could hold off on those. </p>
<p>I know I’m being ridiculously picky, but how else to reduce the list to a final few?</p>
<p>Of those remaining, The Wednesday Sisters looks like fun in a Jane Austen Book Club kind of way (in fact, Karen Joy Fowler writes the blurb on the front cover). And then there’s The Elegance of the Hedgehog, which has already been mentioned.</p>
<p>So that leaves us with:</p>
<p>The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley
River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey by Candice Millard
The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery
The Wednesday Sisters by Meg Waite Clayton
The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zaf</p>
<p>Catching up on this thread after several days. I’m open to reading almost anything. I’ve read “The Shadow of the Wind” – it’s excellent. I’ve also read the “prequel” to it that came out last year, “The Angel’s Game.” </p>
<p>
Agree 100%! Really didn’t like that book at all.</p>
<p>Mary excellent list, and I agree with all your criteria.
So after looking at the reading clubs ratings,
my vote
- Shadow of the Wind - looks meatier than Wednesday Sisters.
2)Elegance of the Hedgehog</p>
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<p>Della cared for me when I was little. I later attended a Catholic high school that paid no attention to race of student - public schools in East Texas still did at that time - and graduated in the same class with Della’s daughter. :)</p>
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<p>Good observation.</p>
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<p>Agree! ^^ Wow! Was there one “good” mother in the story?</p>
<p>Mary 13 wrote:
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<p>^^I worried about this all weekend. With apologies to Ms. Stockett, my sequel for Celia: She gets the local decorator, who travels to NYC several times a year and has media connections/friends, to do over her big old house. She designs and updates “the grounds.” House and gardens are featured in Southern Living magazine. Minnie helps her plan and execute a hugely successful garden party which becomes <em>the</em> annual social event. Take that Hilly! Minnie starts a catering company which eventually leads to a chain of local restaurants. Celia and Johnny finally decide to adopt when she is in her mid to late 30’s… then low and behold she gives birth to two singletons and a set of twins (that really happened to one of my mother’s friends LOL)</p>
<p>I am hanging around waiting for the remaining real-life book club reports.</p>
<p>And whatever you all decide to read next, I am in!</p>