The Orchardist – April CC Book Club Selection

Parent Cafe
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<p>Well, this is a particularly amusing selection process.</p>

<p>** Mary ** feeling guilty that we haven’t read any African American Authors, I’m feeling guilty that I mentioned Middlemarch, and somehow, this 900 page 19th century classic is now on the list. </p>

<p>May, is coming and seems like we should embark on something in tune with the season.
Wait, you say, it’s record snow in the west right now, and record heat in the East.</p>

<p>ok, so that was a bad idea.</p>

<p>I like the idea that we should read a selection that is meaty enough for discussion. It’s impossible to know unless someone has personal testimony, either they have read it or it comes recommended by someone they trust.</p>

<p>So as a criteria I propose the book should have at least one “sponsor”. </p>

<p>Now carry on little kittens…this is most enjoyable!</p>

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<p>And now I’m feeling guilty about Angelmaker because I vetoed it and at least two other people are gung ho about it. :(</p>

<p>Actually, if everyone else (or a majority) loves the idea of that book, y’all should just go ahead and read it and I wouldn’t mind sitting things out for one cycle of the book club discussion.</p>

<p>I like SJCM’s idea of “sponsorship.” But I think that would cause a bunch of books to drop off the current list very quickly? Middlemarch has sponsors but it is too long. Does The Heart is a Lonely Hunter have a sponsor?</p>

<p>Some of the books on the list by AA authors are unfamiliar to me and I haven’t had time to really research them yet.</p>

<p>As things stand now, I am most interested in the following, in no particular order:</p>

<p>Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
Intruder in the Dust by William Faulkner
The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers
Life After Life by Kate Atkinson</p>

<p>I would have included Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, but a couple of people have made cautionary statements about it, so I don’t know.</p>

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<p>My first choice would be Things Fall Apart, because I think we all read far too little non-Western literature. And it’s a reasonable length and should be easy to get out of the library, unlike *Life after Life *which after all the good reviews will surely be unavailable for months. BTW did you know there are two books called *Life after Life *? Our local paper reviewed them both this weekend.</p>

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<p>I haven’t read and would like to read Things Fall Apart. Same with The Heart is a Lonely Hunter. I’ve read some of the more difficult as well as the easier Faulkner works, but not Intruder in the Dust. The stream of consciousness style of writing can be a challenge, but a rewarding one at that. If his books are up for consideration, perhaps it’s is best to dive right in with one of the big four. I’d love to read Light in August which is one of Faulkner’s major, but also most accessible works. No Toni Morrison? I went on a Morrison binge some years ago. Anything but Beloved! Oh, I would also not mind rereading Their Eyes Were Watching God–her town of residence is nearby, and each year she is remembered in a festival. This book is a very popular choice for high school and college English classes here.</p>

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<p>Actually, I do know. :slight_smile: I listed the author’s name when I suggested the book for that reason. Some of the more successful discussions have been with books that I had to bite the bullet and buy due to a wait list at the library - like The Help or State of Wonder.</p>

<p>I’ve read A Lesson Before Dying and can recommend it. I believe Mary has read it also.</p>

<p>I don’t know whether to jump in with favorites or wait till Mary revises the list. Seems we have additional suggestions and may have lost Middlemarch. Guess I’ll wait, though preferences have started to solidify here. That being said, I have yet to factor in additions by sylvan or PlantMom. Has it ever been this undecided before this?</p>

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<p>PlantMom, when I went on a Faulkner binge a few years ago, I read Light in August. To me, it was a disturbing book. It left sort of a bad taste in my mouth. I definitely found it more disturbing than As I Lay Dying, which in my opinion has a gritty, perverse charm.</p>

<p>I think Intruder in the Dust is more accessible than Light in August, partly because it is more pleasant and upbeat.</p>

<p>What are the Faulkner big four? </p>

<p>I read one or two early Toni Morrison books years ago. Or maybe it was just The Bluest Eye. I liked it and always meant to read more by her but never did.</p>

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<p>Since A Lesson Before Dying now has a sponsor, I’m adding it to my list of the books that interest me.</p>

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<p>NJTM, the Faulkner big four, at least according to a good friend who helped me pick, are * As I Lay Dying, The Sound and the Fury, Light in August, and Absalom!, Absalom!*. I’ve read Sound and Fury and Absalom. The latter is probably one of the more rewarding and perhaps darkest books I’ve ever read. It was not pleasant and upbeat, at all! Did you read these two? Even the “lighter” book I read more recently, The Wild Palms, was dark…gritty and dark. Yet, I would read more–especially with a group. But this is not spring reading, in my opinion, but best for the oppressive heat of our southern summers.</p>

<p>I think I read A Lesson Before Dying when it was first published. I do not remember it, though:( Oh the hazards of reading too much! Was this not made into a movie?</p>

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<p>I am a bit overwhelmed with all the choices. I think I’ll sit back a little longer and wait for a shorter list.</p>

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<p>^ I was going to just sit back and wait for everybody’s back-and-forth to gradually maneuver us into a single, unanimous selection. It could happen! </p>

<p>This is one of those months where selecting the next book is actually more entertaining than the book discussion that preceded it. I’m at work at the moment, but will be back later with some strategies for paring down our list. I see a couple of trends developing–we’re closer than you might think. Carry on!</p>

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<p>PlantMom, I “discovered” (actually rediscovered) Faulkner by reading As I Lay Dying when my son had it on a reading list. I felt that it was the most fantastically amazing book.</p>

<p>I had read Absalom, Absalom in college and didn’t get much out of it for some reason. I should definitely revisit it some day.</p>

<p>Yes, Wild Palms is dark. So is Sanctuary. Still, I am very glad I read them. There is just something about Faulkner! I liked Sartoris and Intruder in the Dust and The Unvanquished. I very much want to read the Snopes trilogy.</p>

<p>I have poked my nose into The Sound and the Fury several times but have been scared off each time! Probably silly…it’s hard to imagine that I couldn’t read it if I really tried.</p>

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<p>^I had a thread awhile back about how I consolidated all 4 of my disparate reading lists into one spreadsheet and found there was only book that appeared on all 4 - Faulkner’s The Sound and the Fury. So of course, then I had to read it. The book is kind of sad, but the writing is astounding.</p>

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<p>I am happy to read anything. I did just recently read The Heart is A Lonely Hunter for my local libary bookgroup. We watched the movie along with it. The book was really wonderful.
I would love to read Things Fall Apart or the Stolkholm Octavio as my favortie choices. Or Faulkner or Flanery O’Connor would be nice.</p>

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<p>Well … if we are already at the point where we make preferences known:</p>

<p>No veto being used. Preferences in no particular order:</p>

<p>The Stockholm Octavo I realize that this goes against the trend but I like it for that reason and also because it’s a newer release and because it had the last review I listed in post #170. (And I just saw that PATM listed it too. :))</p>

<p>A Lesson Before Dying - I can “sponsor” it, if you like. Definitely falls under the category of African-American literature and also classic.</p>

<p>Intruder in the Dust - Classic literature though there seems to be some discussion happening re Faulkner. Still, I liked the review.</p>

<p>Devil in a Blue Dress - African-American; classic; and something we haven’t tackled - the hard-boiled detective.</p>

<p>from Wikipedia

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<p>The Heart is a Lonely Hunter works for me as does Things Fall Apart. I think we can safely file these under bleak, melancholy literature. But hey, it’s me … I might not even notice.</p>

<p>And I’m still interested in Life After Life though approaching with a bit of trepidation. Still, no one has read it yet and that’s a big plus as a draw to others. (Unless it’s impossible to discuss and then we have a problem. Still, odds are against that happening.)</p>

<p>*See, I managed to squeeze four books out of the running or five if we considered The Glass Castle though I think Mary was just hassling me about my ineptitude with titles.</p>

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<p>Yeah, I tried that once myself. It doesn’t work that way. Mary operates under the military motto of “Leave No Man Behind.” Angelmaker now goes on personal reading lists.</p>

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<p>Has anyone gotten around to reading *Shine, Shine, Shine? *It lost out to *The Glass Room * in December…just wondering if I should add it to the ongoing personal list.</p>

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<p>** Ignatius ** funny post - ------</p>

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<p>Flannery O’Connor’s A Good Man Is Hard To Find, and Other Stories is excellent! I still remember the details of some of the stories in this book. Very unusual :slight_smile: I’ve been in a small book group for years. We started out reading works of Catholic authors and this was one of our early books. I remember the themes we discussed for this one quite clearly. Memorable!</p>

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<p>Okay, I had to get out my slide rule for this, but here goes:</p>

<p>I am removing Middlemarch. Everyone seems to agree that it is a wonderful book with a lot of discussion potential, but that 900 pages would be a challenge requiring mental fortitude and lots of free time. So we’ll table that for now—off it goes into the “Spirit is Willing but the Flesh is Weak” category. </p>

<p>I am removing Their Eyes were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston due to comments by sylvan8798, ignatius, and ignatius’ daughter (with us in spirit). </p>

<p>I am removing Silver Sparrow because although it was nominated, it was not “seconded” – not enough enthusiasm to merit keeping it on the list for this round.</p>

<p>Flannery O’Connor was batted about, but I don’t think there was a specific request to add her to the list, so I didn’t. I also didn’t add The Glass Castle because the ongoing conversation tells me that there is greater interest in several of the other selections.</p>

<p>That leaves us with:</p>

<p>The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers
The Stockholm Octavo by Karen Engelmann
Life After Life by Kate Atkinson
A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest Gaines
Devil in a Blue Dress by Walter Mosley
Intruder in the Dust by William Faulkner
Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
The Farming of Bones by Edwidge Danticat
Breath, Eyes, Memory by Edwidge Danticat</p>

<p>Re A Lesson Before Dying, yes I’ve read it and would happily read it again. (It’s a quick read for those counting pages.) PlantMom, the movie stars Don Cheadle and is excellent. </p>

<p>Remember: Everyone has the right to exercise veto power. So if there is a book on that list that would make you turn tail and run, name it and I’ll take it off. </p>

<p>Now we have nine books from which to choose. If everyone ranks their top four, I bet we’ll get somewhere pretty quickly. ignatius and NJTheatreMOM have already listed their favorites (but if those change upon reflection, feel free to revise).</p>

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<p>My top four:</p>

<p>Things Fall Apart
The Heart is a Lonely Hunter
Intruder in the Dust
A Lesson Before Dying</p>

<p>I took Life After Life off my list because Ignatius has reservations about it and it is a new book that might be expensive or difficult for people to get their hands on. I do want to read it. I put in a request at my library. It is currently checked out, but there are no holds other than mine!</p>

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<p>I’m still having difficulty choosing, but here goes…</p>

<p>Life After Life
The Stockholm Octavo
The Heart is a Lonely Hunter
Intruder in the Dust</p>