April Meeting Update

Hi Book Club Friends,

Seven of us met this month to discuss The Lovely Bones, by Alice Sebold. We all agreed that the characters were likable and the prose so well-written that the book was one of the few we all enjoyed. Cora led us in a discussion that included the sensitive topics within the book as well as some biographical information on the book's author. Information on the author's newest novel is available on her web site: www.alicesebold.com

Two reading kits were available at the library and we decided to take advantage of their availability. Our reading schedule has changed to the following:

May: Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe,
June: A Thousand Splendid Suns, by Khaled Hosseini,
August: Pillars of the Earth, by Ken Follett

Because our August selection is an especially long read, we decided to allow two months to read it. We will plan to meet in July and can spend the time building a book list for the months ahead.

Titles Wanted!

Use this post to add your ideas. Please suggest any titles you would like to have our book club read and talk about.

February meeting update

Hi book club friends,

What a cozy meeting we had at Kelly's home! What a good time to sit around in soft chairs and sip tea, eat goodies and talk about a good book, WATER FOR ELEPHANTS. Freda led the discussion. If you didn't make it, you missed a great time. Thanks for your hospitality Kelly. We also were introduced to Freda's new beautiful baby boy who was born the morning after our last book club. Freda didn't miss a meeting!

We will meet again at the Park Grove Library
March 25 - THE RED TENT, Anita Diamont. Char will lead the discussion.
April 22 - LOVELY BONES, Alice Seebold. We still need a discussion leader.
May 27 - A THOUSAND SPLENDID SUNS, Khaled Hosseini. Did Kelly volunteer to lead???

See you in a few weeks,
Diane

Elephants in the News

Once more we have a selected a book of the month that has newsworthy interest. Currently there are two stories in our local newspapers that relate to this month's book:

First is an article about a possible ban on allowing circus performances in the City of Minneapolis. At issue was a controversy over the treatment of animals, particularly - - - the elephants! Follow this link to read the results of the City Council's vote.

Second is a report suggesting that baby boomers are the first generation to refuse to accept aging. Read more on that here. Is it true?

January Meeting Update

Despite the frigid cold of the evening, several members of our group (including one new reader) met on Tuesday night to discuss our opinions of the book, The Good Earth, by Pearl S. Buck. Our overall impression of this classic was favorable; many of the questions provided food for thought about cultural differences.

Next on our list is the New York Times Bestseller, Water for Elephants, by Sara Gruen, which we will read to discuss at our February meeting.

Local Author to Visit

Just a reminder that this Tuesday, December 11th, at 7:00 p.m., local author Kathleen Winters will be at Park Grove Library to read from and discuss her book, Anne Morrow Lindbergh: First Lady of the Air.

Read an excerpt from the book on Kathleen's web site, www.kathleenwinters.com, and you will soon find yourself passenger to Charles and Anne Lindbergh as they navigate a flight from the west coast of Africa to Brazil.

November Meeting News

At our regular monthly meeting for November we had the privilege of a personal appearance by local author William Kent Krueger.

The author discussed his award winning mystery series of novels, all of which utilize titles of two words, feature main character Cork O'Connor, and take place in our local surroundings of northern Minnesota and the upper peninsula of Michigan. He was available to sign purchased copies of his book, Thunder Bay, and included a reading from his newest project.

We were joined by other members of our community to hear Krueger speak, telling us about his writing habits, his current projects, and the work he plans for the future. More information about his is available at his web site: www.williamkentkrueger.com

All in all the evening was entertaining and enjoyable!