A Woman of No Importance by Sonia Purnell

In December we met at Kathy’s house to discuss my book which was

“A Woman of No Importance” by Sonia Purnell who is a journalist and biogtapher. Purnell did a lot of research and spent 3 years writing the book as many records were destroyed.

The book is a biography of American socialite Virginia Hall who became one of the few

female spies who worked with the French resistance against the Nazi regime.

Virginia was in the diplomatic service in Turkey where she accidentally shot herself in the leg

resulting in her wearing a prosthetic leg and a visible limp.

She managed to get an assignment with the British secret service stationed in France. She had extremely

great organizational skills paired with her charm and good looks. She recruited many volunteers to the cause and was able to command rebel cells that waged war on the nazis. She was also able to send information about the positioning and activities of the Nazis which changed the course of the war. 

Later when the Americans entered the war she worked as a spy for them in the same capacity as she did for the British.  She was free spirited and longed for adventure. She had a sixth sense in knowing who to trust and sometimes she had conflicts with other male colleagues who resented a woman being their superior. She spoke six languages. Many of her covert tactics were used in ensuing wars by the U.S.

She did not work for awards or medals and shied away from fame. She ended her post war career working for the CIA and married a fellow OSS agent who was not her peer socially.

Madeleine chose Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver for our next read.

 

In October we met at Molly’s home for a fun evening to discuss Kristen Hannah’s book, “The Women”.

We had a bonfire discussion of this well liked novel about the women who served in the Vietnam War.

These women who personally endangered their lives and saved many other lives were never acknowledged for their service. It was an unpopular war and when these veterans returned home they were spat upon and never given proper treatment for their post traumatic disorders especially the women. We all had personal stories about the period in history. Some of us had spouses who were actually in Vietnam.

Some of us had friends who were there. Maybe we should have discussed the book more but it was such a tumultuous time for us we all felt compelled to share. We made it fun by wearing sixties clothing and displayed some protest signs.

Molly had appetizers, chili, salad and lots of good wine. We were all chatty and enjoyed the evening!

I chose the next book by Sonia Parnell about a lady spy called Virginia Hall. The title is, “A Woman of No Importance”.

 

 In September we met at Laura’s home to discuss her book, “Wrong Place Wrong Time” by Gillian McAllister. This was a book about a woman who discovers that her son has murdered someone and she starts going back in time in order to find out why her son committed such an act and hoping to change the turn of events. Laura apologized as she had not read the book before recommending it.

We thought that the book was a thriller but that it went back too far in time. It does develop with a major twist at the end and shows the extent of a mother’s love and the sacrifices she will make for her family.

Laura fed us well as usual and there was lots of good wine to facilitate discussion. We got to play with Penny.

Molly chose “The Women” by Kristen Hannah.

In July we met at Julie’s home to discuss her book, The Nutshell by British novelist Ian

McEwan. The story is told through the eyes and ears of a fetus. This is a very smart fetus who learns

about current affairs, politics and literature via podcasts that his mother listens to. He is also a wine aficionado and has a preference for really fine and expensive wine. At some point he learns that his mother and her liver plan to kill his father and that his own future is unsure. There were allusions to Shakespeare’s Hamlet. It was a funny and witty read.

We had pizza salad and wine on Julie’s deck.

Next read will be, “Wrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister.
 

The Roaring Days of Zora Lily by Noelle Salazar

In June we met at Marsha’s home to discuss her book choice which was

“the Roaring Days of Zora Lily” written by Noelle Salazar.

This book captures the hazy, liquor soaked age of the jazz age, prohibition and the

speakeasies.

Zora Lily is a poor girl with amazing talent and passion for fashion design.. She even

Makes it to Hollywood and designs for Greta Garbo but she was never credited for her 

work till her label is revealed on some gowns in 2023 by a Smithsonian historian.

It was based on true events. It is a sweeping saga of family, love, ambition and self discovery.

Marsha made some fine pasta salads and led a good discussion.
 

THE GIRL WITH SEVEN NAMES by Hyeonseo Lee

 In May Carol hosted at her home to discuss her book, “The Girl With Seven Names” by

Hyeonseo Lee. This is an autobiography about a North Korean defector. We had a guest

speaker Sou Yeoung who grew up in South Korea.  She was able to share her experiences contrasting 

the propaganda from the North Koreans and the actual reality.

This defector had to travel via China, Cambodia, and Thailand in order to arrive in South Korea.

Her childhood under the communist regime was a struggle and she was brainwashed like millions

of others.

She eventually helps her family to escape the repression of the dictatorship. She eventually marries

a man from Wisconsin and currently lives in the United States. She has been giving lectures and

Podcasts about her story which is very inspiring.

Carol had a great meal and we had a very good discussion.

Marsha chose a book called

The Reading List by Sara Nisha Adams

 In early March seven lucky members met at Betsy’s home to discuss her book

“The Reading List” by Sara Nisha Adams. This book is set in Wembley, England.

and is a heartwarming novel about a list of recommended novels mysteriously found in a

library book which is circulated among the diverse patrons of a small library.

The novel celebrates the old school joys of reading and getting emotionally involved

with fictitious characters and learning from them.

The novel develops a friendship between lonely Mukesh Patel and Aleisha a teen summer

worker at the library.  Sometimes you have to step out of your comfort zone in order to combat 

loneliness and depression. We discussed the role of a library and the importance of

keeping them open in this digital age.

It turns out that  Mukesh’s deceased wife, Naina, was the one who distributed the list around 

the neighborhood. She was able to share her love of reading not only with her family but

with the community at large. The author created a second reading list of novels and Kathy gave

us a printout of that list, We had a lively discussion not only about the book but about what being

a member of our reading group does for us on a personal level.

Now the reason I said we were a lucky group of seven was because of Betsy’s culinary delights.

We had a delicious Ina Garten inspired seafood chowder and a wonderful mixed salad followed by

Strawberry topped cheesecake. There were cocktails to start, wonderful dinner wine and a fine

Cognac finish. The bar was set very high by Betsy who used her fine chinaware and cutlery.

Carol sent in her choice, “ The Girl With The Seven Names” by Hyeonseo Lee.