The Great Alone by Kristen Hannah

In  October we met at Kathy's home to discuss her book

"The Great Alone" by Kristen Hannah who also wrote

another book we had read entitled, "The Nightingale",

The book is about a family who move to Alaska on the Kenai Peninsula

to seek a new beginning, They are totally unprepared for the

unpredictable environment of this remote area, The Dad is 

suffering from post traumatic stress from Vietnam and the

mother and teenager Leni are subjected to his abusive behavior.

They are fortunate to enlist the help of the fiercely independent men

and women of the community.

Some people liked the beautiful descriptions of the natural beauty

of Alaska. The story is told mostly through the eyes of the 16

year old Leni who grows up to be a strong woman, There were

some similarities between Kya in the Crawdad book and Leni in

this book.

Donna chose "Ordinary Grace"  by William Kent Kreuger 

to be our next book.     

Where The Crawdad Sings by Delia Owens

In August we met to discuss 
Madeleine's choice which was

"Where the Crawdads Sing" by Delia Owens. This was a

very popular book and everyone loved it. It was set in the

coastal marshes of North Carolina where a 5 year old is

virtually abandoned by her family and is left to her own

wits to survive. Except for the intermittent presence of a drunk

abusive father she rarely has contacts with outsiders.

Kya has to learn to trust human connections. It is a 

coming of age story as well as an engrossing whodunit with

a major surprise ending.

This was Owen's debut  fiction novel and she delivers in gorgeous 

lyrical prose. 

Owens was a wildlife scientist in Africa and wrote three non

fiction books about her life in Africa.

Kathy chose "The Great Alone" by Kristen Hannah.

 

The Fishermen by Chigozie Obioma

On July 9th we met at my house to discuss The Fisherman which

was a debut novel by a young Nigerian author Chigozie Obioma.

We had our usual salad and Kathy picked up Puccini's

pizza as they no longer deliver. Kathy also contributed some

cheesecake (not her home made) but quite yummy.

I think this was a very sad book and I got the impression that

was why it was not that well received. It is a story about a

Nigerian family of 5 brothers and one baby sister. The story

really focuses on the four eldest boys who are left by their

father in the care of the mother because he has to relocate for

work. The boys become disobedient and decide to go fishing and

begin to skip school. They encounter a mad man who predicts that

the second son will  kill the eldest. This almost becomes a self fulfilling prediction.

The 2nd son kills himself after he murders his oldest brother and the other two brothers avenge their deaths

by killing the mad man in a very savage manner.

The narrator goes to prison for 7 years and their dreams of migrating

to Canada are dashed. The mother goes crazy and is institutionalized.

A sad tale indeed still there is a glimmer of hope at he end.

Still people liked his writing and his unique way of mixing the Igbo 

language with English. They also liked how the chapter began with

names like Eagle, Falcon, Python, Fungus  and others to classify a person and

their characteristics.          

Madeleine chose the popular "Where The Crawdads Sing" by Delia Owens.

August 21 was targeted for the next meeting.

South of Broad by Pat Conroy

In June Madeleine hosted us at her lovely new home where we

were fed snacks, cocktails and many healthy salads ending with

Limoncello and ice cream.

We discussed Doug's book choice which was written by popular and

prolific author Pat Conroy. The book is set in Charleston, S.C.

The book had a host of characters some of which are sinners

and others saints. Leopold Bloom is the narrator and he has a

loving father and unique ex nun mother. The family struggles

with the suicide of Steve, the eldest child. Leo searches for something to sustain him

and does so when he becomes involved with a group of

high school seniors.

These characters were diverse including socialites, blacks, broken

mountain siblings, glamorous Sheba and her gay brother.

We follow the group through their lives and share in their

successes and breakdowns in Charleston's dark legacy of

racism and class divisions. The book is  typically  Conroy at his

finest whose passion for life and language has no bounds.

I chose a book entitled " The Fishermen"by Chigozie Obioma

and settled on a July 10th date.

Beartown by Fredrik Backman

In early May we met at my house to discuss Carol Hawkin's choice

which was Bear Town by Swedish author Fredrik Backman.

We had as I recalled,  some pot pies which I had never made before

but I think they were well accepted by our group. Kathy brought her chop

salads and I finished with a mango mousse also something I had never made.

I hope I can remember who attended but I think it was Kathy, Betsy, Madeleine,

Sarah, Doug, Carol, Marsha and Carol who left for her choir practice.

Julie had planned on attending but had a burn issue and could not.

We had all read the book and loved it. 

Bear Town is a hockey town in Sweden but some of us thought it could

have been the Midwest like Minnesota or Wisconsin.  Bear Town is a small

town located deep in the forest and it is facing financial ruin due to

industries closing. But the small town is competing in a National Hockey semi

final and actually have a shot at it. All the hopes and dreams of the town 

rests n the hands a few teenaged boys. This is a heavy burden  for these

boys and the semi final match is the catalyst for a violent act

committed by the star player. This rape leaves one girl traumatized and

leaves the town divided in their loyalty. Finally two of the boys come forward and

 do the right thing giving us hope in humanity and redemption.

The characters are well drawn. They are both flawed and heroic.

Bear Town is about hockey but it is so much more than just hockey. 

It is about Love, sacrifice, friendship, family, and hope to name a few. There is

a sequel that just came out called "Us Against You".

We decided to go with a Pat Conroy book entitled, "South Of Broad".

May 29 was chosen for the next meeting.  

"The Girl Who Wrote in Silk" by Kelli Estes

On February 26th, 2019 we met at Julie's home to discuss her choice

"The Girl Who Wrote in Silk" which is a debut novel for

author Kelli Estes. The attendees were Doug, Donna, Sarah, Kathy,

Marsha, Betsy, Nettie, and Carol Branson.

Julie prepared a lovely chicken casserole and her world

famous Jello salad. 

We had all read the book and liked it because it was an easy

read with an interesting storyline.

  With all historical fiction novels, we get an opportunity to learn

something we may have not known about, 

Some were not aware of the Chinese

exclusion act of 1882 which forbade Chinese from becoming

American citizens as well as forcing them to return to China.

Immigration was closed to Chinese for about 20 years,

 The Chinese had come over to build

the railroad and many stayed on to make a better life for themselves.

It was the first act in America against any ethnic group and

it lasted for about 20 years.

 The book pointed out the prejudice of that time

towards the Chinese and the consequent ill treatment they received which

was another  shameful period in American history.

In this story they were cruelly rounded up and sent back to China in shipa

where  they were murdered , thrown overboard 

and never repatriated to their homeland.

Our heroine, Meilin,

 survives one of these ill fated voyages and settles on one of

the islands across from Seattle in the 1800's. 

Meilin is a strong young sad Chinese woman  who

has lost her entire family and she  embroiders a 

beautiful robe for her son which tells

her family's story and the wrongs they encountered at the hands of

Duncan Campbell.. Meilin hides a sleeve of the robe under a step in her home 

and it is discovered a century later by Inara,  the young descendant of Duncan

Campbell when she inherits the house

The story switches back and forth from the 1990's to present day.

Inara finds a handsome  Chinese professor, Daniel Wong, who is

 an expert nd Chinese studies. Daniel does research on the sleeve and

unearths the shameful secret that Inara's grandfather was the captain

of the ill fated ship. Daniel also  discovers he is a descendant of Meilin's.

Some critics said the book was like a romance novel because 

of how the author conveniently tied  the two stories together

and especially as Daniel and Inara fell in love and lived happily

thereafter.

Nevertheless we enjoyed the author's cute story and her description of 

the water and the beautiful San Juan islands.

Of course our discussion centered on Immigration and the problems

we are encountering today in that arena and the fact that

there are no good solutions.

Carol Hawkins  chose "Bear Town" by Fredrik Backman  and a tentative 

date was set for April 17th,

        

"The Things They carried" by Tim O'Brien

On January 16, 2019 we kicked off the new year with our meeting hosted by Carol 

to discuss her book choice "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien.

We welcomed back Marsha Callahan who had not attended in a long

while. We also welcomed first time attendee Carol Hawkins.  Kathy, Madeleine,

Sarah, Betsy and I also attended.

Most people had read the book which led to a very lively discussion of

a Vietnam war book based on several linked short stories remembered by the author who

served on the ground in the 23rd division.

The author starts by listing the physical items a soldier carried as well as their 

weight. He then expands into the mental baggage that a soldier carries around

with him while participating in a war which he does not understand.

The author writes very well and is able to create the physical horror of war,

dismembered bodies, gruesome depictions of explosions, and the general

destruction of war. He also grapples with the emotional aspects of cowardice,

mortality, honor, trauma and the loss of humanity that soldiers experience

during war. He is able to depict the bond that is created amongst the platoon

members and how they coped  with humor and lots of drugs.

He uses a technique of telling the same story through different eyes which

is quite an effective one.

The author deals with the returning Vietnam veteran and the alienation 

that they feel when the return from a surreal and ambiguous war.

Carol served a great supper after with enchiladas and a chicken bacon salad 

finished off with peppermint ice cream topped with chocolate sauce.

We chose February 27th to be the next meeting to discuss Julie's book

entitled, "The Girl Who Wrote In Silk" by Kelli Estes. Julie has agreed

to host the next meeting and I will send out a reminder with details.