Though it's a classic by a pulitzer prize winning author, "Of Mice and Men" comes off as a pretty rough and abrasive text to these modern gals. Why does Lenny take care of George? Why are women so misrepresented in the novella? What is wrong with Lenny?
It's a good story and provided us with a great conversation about Steinbeck, the Great Depression, and some other interesting works of literature.
Friday, May 27, 2011
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Book and Meeting Updates
Hey Girls -
We had a great going away party for Rika. We will all miss her while she and her family are adventuring in Darwin, Australia.
Our April meeting will be on April 21 at Erin's house.
The book is: "A vintage affair" by Isabel Wolff
A quick synopsis from Barnes and Noble:
Every dress has a history. And so does every woman.
In Isabel Wolff’s captivating A Vintage Affair, a treasured child’s coat becomes a thread of hope connecting two very different women.
Her friends are stunned when Phoebe Swift abruptly leaves a plum job at the prestigious Sotheby’s auction house to open her own vintage clothing shop in London—but to Phoebe, it’s the fulfillment of a dream. In the sunlight-flooded interior of Village Vintage, surrounded by Yves Saint Laurent silk scarves, Vivienne Westwood bustle skirts, cupcake dresses, and satin gowns, Phoebe hopes to make her store the hot new place to shop, even as she deals with two ardent suitors, her increasingly difficult mother, and a secret from her past that casts a shadow over her new venture.
For Phoebe, each vintage garment carries its own precious history. Digging for finds in attics and wardrobes, Phoebe is rewarded whenever she finds something truly unique, for she knows that when you buy a piece of vintage clothing, you’re not just buying fabric and thread—you’re buying a piece of someone’s past. But one particular article of clothing will soon unexpectedly change her life.
Thérèse Bell, an elderly Frenchwoman, has an impressive clothing collection. But among the array of smart suits and couture gowns, Phoebe finds a child’s sky-blue coat—an item with which Bell is stubbornly reluctant to part. As the two women become friends, Phoebe will learn the tale of that little blue coat. And she will discover an astonishing connection between herself and Thérèse Bell—one that will help her heal the pain of her own past and allow her to love again.
In May, we'll be meeting at Annie's house on May 26.
Our May book is, "Of Mice and Men" by John Steinbeck.
Yeah!
We had a great going away party for Rika. We will all miss her while she and her family are adventuring in Darwin, Australia.
Our April meeting will be on April 21 at Erin's house.
The book is: "A vintage affair" by Isabel Wolff
A quick synopsis from Barnes and Noble:
Every dress has a history. And so does every woman.
In Isabel Wolff’s captivating A Vintage Affair, a treasured child’s coat becomes a thread of hope connecting two very different women.
Her friends are stunned when Phoebe Swift abruptly leaves a plum job at the prestigious Sotheby’s auction house to open her own vintage clothing shop in London—but to Phoebe, it’s the fulfillment of a dream. In the sunlight-flooded interior of Village Vintage, surrounded by Yves Saint Laurent silk scarves, Vivienne Westwood bustle skirts, cupcake dresses, and satin gowns, Phoebe hopes to make her store the hot new place to shop, even as she deals with two ardent suitors, her increasingly difficult mother, and a secret from her past that casts a shadow over her new venture.
For Phoebe, each vintage garment carries its own precious history. Digging for finds in attics and wardrobes, Phoebe is rewarded whenever she finds something truly unique, for she knows that when you buy a piece of vintage clothing, you’re not just buying fabric and thread—you’re buying a piece of someone’s past. But one particular article of clothing will soon unexpectedly change her life.
Thérèse Bell, an elderly Frenchwoman, has an impressive clothing collection. But among the array of smart suits and couture gowns, Phoebe finds a child’s sky-blue coat—an item with which Bell is stubbornly reluctant to part. As the two women become friends, Phoebe will learn the tale of that little blue coat. And she will discover an astonishing connection between herself and Thérèse Bell—one that will help her heal the pain of her own past and allow her to love again.
In May, we'll be meeting at Annie's house on May 26.
Our May book is, "Of Mice and Men" by John Steinbeck.
Yeah!
Monday, February 21, 2011
February book club this week
Thursday (the 24th) 7:00 pm, Annie's house. Annie lives on harvest crest way- if you need the house number, you can text Melinda at 801.971.5781, and I'll let you know.
The book was "Cutting for Stone" by Abraham Verghese. I found the discussion guide online, and so here's some of the questions - I tried to edit for brevity, but they were all so interesting, sorry! This is just going to be a long post!
(SPOILER ALERT)
3. Marion observes that in Ethiopia, patients assume that all illnesses are fatal and that death is expected, but in America, news of having a fatal illness “always seemed to come as a surprise, as if we took it for granted that we were immortal” (p. 396). What other important differences does Cutting for Stone reveal about the way illness is viewed and treated in Ethiopia and in the United States? To what extent are these differences reflected in the split between poor hospitals, like the one in the Bronx where Marion works, and rich hospitals like the one in Boston where his father works?
4. In the novel, Thomas Stone asks, “What treatment in an emergency is administered by ear?” The correct answer is “Words of comfort.” How does this moment encapsulate the book's surprising take on medicine? Have your experiences with doctors and hospitals held this to be true? Why or why not? What does Cutting for Stone tell us about the roles of compassion, faith, and hope in medicine?
5. There are a number of dramatic scenes on operating tables in Cutting for Stone: the twins' births, Thomas Stone amputating his own finger, Ghosh untwisting Colonel Mebratu's volvulus, the liver transplant, etc. How does Verghese use medical detail to create tension and surprise? What do his depictions of dramatic surgeries share with film and television hospital dramas-and yet how are they different?
6. Marion suffers a series of painful betrayals-by his father, by Shiva, and by Genet. To what degree is he able, by the end of the novel, to forgive them?
7. To what extent does the story of Thomas Stone's childhood soften Marion's judgment of him? How does Thomas's suffering as a child, the illness of his parents, and his own illness help to explain why he abandons Shiva and Marion at their birth? How should Thomas finally be judged?
8. In what important ways does Marion come to resemble his father, although he grows up without him? How does Marion grow and change over the course of the novel?
9. A passionate, unique love affair sets Cutting for Stone in motion, and yet this romance remains a mystery-even to the key players-until the very conclusion of the novel. How does the relationship between Sister Mary Joseph Praise and Thomas Stone affect the lives of Shiva and Marion, Hema and Ghosh, Matron and everyone else at Missing? What do you think Verghese is trying to say about the nature of love and loss?
10. What do Hema, Matron, Rosina, Sister Mary Joseph Praise, Genet, and Tsige-as well as the many women who come to Missing seeking medical treatment-reveal about what life is like for women in Ethiopia?
11. Addis Ababa is at once a cosmopolitan city thrumming with life and the center of a dictatorship rife with conflict. How do the influences of Ethiopia's various rulers-England, Italy, Emperor Selassie-reveal themselves in day-to-day life? How does growing up there affect Marion's and Shiva's worldviews?
12. As Ghosh nears death, Marion comments that the man who raised him had no worries or regrets, that “there was no restitution he needed to make, no moment he failed to seize” (p. 346). What is the key to Ghosh's contentment? What makes him such a good father, doctor, and teacher? What wisdom does he impart to Marion?
13. Although it's also a play on the surname of the characters, the title Cutting for Stone comes from a line in the Hippocratic Oath: “I will not cut for stone, even for patients in whom the disease is manifest; I will leave this operation to be performed by practitioners, specialists in this art.” Verghese has said that this line comes from ancient times, when bladder stones were epidemic and painful: “There were itinerant stone cutters-lithologists-who could cut into either the bladder or the perineum and get the stone out, but because they cleaned the knife by wiping their blood-stiffened surgical aprons, patients usually died of infection the next day.” How does this line resonate for the doctors in the novel?
(Questions issued by publisher.)
See you Thursday, Happy Presidents day!
Melinda
The book was "Cutting for Stone" by Abraham Verghese. I found the discussion guide online, and so here's some of the questions - I tried to edit for brevity, but they were all so interesting, sorry! This is just going to be a long post!
(SPOILER ALERT)
3. Marion observes that in Ethiopia, patients assume that all illnesses are fatal and that death is expected, but in America, news of having a fatal illness “always seemed to come as a surprise, as if we took it for granted that we were immortal” (p. 396). What other important differences does Cutting for Stone reveal about the way illness is viewed and treated in Ethiopia and in the United States? To what extent are these differences reflected in the split between poor hospitals, like the one in the Bronx where Marion works, and rich hospitals like the one in Boston where his father works?
4. In the novel, Thomas Stone asks, “What treatment in an emergency is administered by ear?” The correct answer is “Words of comfort.” How does this moment encapsulate the book's surprising take on medicine? Have your experiences with doctors and hospitals held this to be true? Why or why not? What does Cutting for Stone tell us about the roles of compassion, faith, and hope in medicine?
5. There are a number of dramatic scenes on operating tables in Cutting for Stone: the twins' births, Thomas Stone amputating his own finger, Ghosh untwisting Colonel Mebratu's volvulus, the liver transplant, etc. How does Verghese use medical detail to create tension and surprise? What do his depictions of dramatic surgeries share with film and television hospital dramas-and yet how are they different?
6. Marion suffers a series of painful betrayals-by his father, by Shiva, and by Genet. To what degree is he able, by the end of the novel, to forgive them?
7. To what extent does the story of Thomas Stone's childhood soften Marion's judgment of him? How does Thomas's suffering as a child, the illness of his parents, and his own illness help to explain why he abandons Shiva and Marion at their birth? How should Thomas finally be judged?
8. In what important ways does Marion come to resemble his father, although he grows up without him? How does Marion grow and change over the course of the novel?
9. A passionate, unique love affair sets Cutting for Stone in motion, and yet this romance remains a mystery-even to the key players-until the very conclusion of the novel. How does the relationship between Sister Mary Joseph Praise and Thomas Stone affect the lives of Shiva and Marion, Hema and Ghosh, Matron and everyone else at Missing? What do you think Verghese is trying to say about the nature of love and loss?
10. What do Hema, Matron, Rosina, Sister Mary Joseph Praise, Genet, and Tsige-as well as the many women who come to Missing seeking medical treatment-reveal about what life is like for women in Ethiopia?
11. Addis Ababa is at once a cosmopolitan city thrumming with life and the center of a dictatorship rife with conflict. How do the influences of Ethiopia's various rulers-England, Italy, Emperor Selassie-reveal themselves in day-to-day life? How does growing up there affect Marion's and Shiva's worldviews?
12. As Ghosh nears death, Marion comments that the man who raised him had no worries or regrets, that “there was no restitution he needed to make, no moment he failed to seize” (p. 346). What is the key to Ghosh's contentment? What makes him such a good father, doctor, and teacher? What wisdom does he impart to Marion?
13. Although it's also a play on the surname of the characters, the title Cutting for Stone comes from a line in the Hippocratic Oath: “I will not cut for stone, even for patients in whom the disease is manifest; I will leave this operation to be performed by practitioners, specialists in this art.” Verghese has said that this line comes from ancient times, when bladder stones were epidemic and painful: “There were itinerant stone cutters-lithologists-who could cut into either the bladder or the perineum and get the stone out, but because they cleaned the knife by wiping their blood-stiffened surgical aprons, patients usually died of infection the next day.” How does this line resonate for the doctors in the novel?
(Questions issued by publisher.)
See you Thursday, Happy Presidents day!
Melinda
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Back in Action..
Yes, the book club blog has been stagnant since September. I apologize. The lives of mothers who read, and work, and blog, and quit jobs, and have their grandmothers suddenly pass away are pretty busy. That being said however, here's to getting things back on track.
Our January meeting was at Melinda's house. Thanks Melinda for hosting. The book for January was, Traveling with Pomegranates by Sue Monk Kidd and Ann Kidd Taylor.
I thought the book was great. It was an interesting juxtaposition of a very deep thinking, soul searching mother and her young quick witted, trying to figure life out daughter.
For our meeting on Thursday, February, 24, 2011, we'll be at Michelle's house and reading, Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese. It's a little bit on the long side so start reading now.
And, for our meeting on Thursday, March 24, 2011, we'll be at Rika's house and reading Hurry Down Sunshine by Michael Greenberg.
A review posted on Amazon.com:
Michael Greenberg's spare, unflinching memoir begins with a bang: "On July 5, 1996, my daughter was struck mad." Hurry Down Sunshine chronicles the summer when fifteen-year-old Sally experienced her first full-blown manic episode—an event that in a "single stroke" changed her identity and, by extension, that of her entire family. Simply told and beautifully written, Greenberg's memoir shines a stark light on mental illness, painting a vivid picture of a brain and body under siege—mania as a separate living thing squatting within the patient. As a writer who lives "so much in his head," Greenberg is particularly anguished by his daughter's fractured psyche, and his honesty about being both sickened and fascinated by his daughter's condition is breathtaking: "During the worst moments, I think of her as my disease—the disease I must bear...I am intoxicated with Sally's madness in both senses of the word: inebriated and poisoned." So desperate is he to understand her, that he relentlessly researches mental illness (the book is peppered with fascinating insights into drug therapy and anecdotes about writers who struggled with madness), and even goes so far as to sample a full dose of his daughter's medication. Startling, heart-wrenching, and yet unwaveringly unsentimental, Hurry Down Sunshine is an unforgettable story of a young girl's descent into madness, told through the eyes of a harried and helpless father trying desperately to bring her back. --Daphne Durham
Our January meeting was at Melinda's house. Thanks Melinda for hosting. The book for January was, Traveling with Pomegranates by Sue Monk Kidd and Ann Kidd Taylor.
I thought the book was great. It was an interesting juxtaposition of a very deep thinking, soul searching mother and her young quick witted, trying to figure life out daughter.
For our meeting on Thursday, February, 24, 2011, we'll be at Michelle's house and reading, Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese. It's a little bit on the long side so start reading now.
And, for our meeting on Thursday, March 24, 2011, we'll be at Rika's house and reading Hurry Down Sunshine by Michael Greenberg.
A review posted on Amazon.com:
Michael Greenberg's spare, unflinching memoir begins with a bang: "On July 5, 1996, my daughter was struck mad." Hurry Down Sunshine chronicles the summer when fifteen-year-old Sally experienced her first full-blown manic episode—an event that in a "single stroke" changed her identity and, by extension, that of her entire family. Simply told and beautifully written, Greenberg's memoir shines a stark light on mental illness, painting a vivid picture of a brain and body under siege—mania as a separate living thing squatting within the patient. As a writer who lives "so much in his head," Greenberg is particularly anguished by his daughter's fractured psyche, and his honesty about being both sickened and fascinated by his daughter's condition is breathtaking: "During the worst moments, I think of her as my disease—the disease I must bear...I am intoxicated with Sally's madness in both senses of the word: inebriated and poisoned." So desperate is he to understand her, that he relentlessly researches mental illness (the book is peppered with fascinating insights into drug therapy and anecdotes about writers who struggled with madness), and even goes so far as to sample a full dose of his daughter's medication. Startling, heart-wrenching, and yet unwaveringly unsentimental, Hurry Down Sunshine is an unforgettable story of a young girl's descent into madness, told through the eyes of a harried and helpless father trying desperately to bring her back. --Daphne Durham
Friday, September 3, 2010
Getting close to wrapping up the year
Yes, it's only September, but that is bringing us very close to the end of the year.
Here's the rundown for those of you playing at home.
September book:
Thursday, September 23 at 7:00 pm
Here's the rundown for those of you playing at home.
September book:
Thursday, September 23 at 7:00 pm
A Girl named Zippy by Haven Kimmel
Robyn's house
October book:
Thursday, October 28 at 7:00 pm
The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Erin's House
Spooky Halloween Party
November book:
Thursday, November 18 at 7:00 pm
No one has claimed November. Get it while the gettin' is good.
December book:
Thursday, December 16 at 7:00 pm
Book and cookie exchange.
Come prepared to talk about your favorite non-book club book you read during the year.
Annie's House
Pope Joan
Our August book was Pope Joan. It was a great book based on the "unknown" of whether or not a woman was really elected Pope in the 9th Century (the 800's)
As a group, we discussed the fact that the historic evidence leads to the fact that Joan probably really existed, but that the Catholic church truly did erase her from history. It's an awesome thought, for a book club of women, that one singular, strong and educated woman could rise to such a position of power. It sucks that she had to pretend to be a dude to do it, but still.
The general consensus was that we liked the book, and that living in this time period - of crazy beliefs in God(s), poor health and super unsanitary conditions - we're happy to be where we are now as women and members of society.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Summer Fun
We talked and talked and talked. The group consensus after reading, "lost on planet china" was that though the people of China may be good, the machine of China is not. And, who wants to live in a place where you truly cannot breath the air, drink most of the water, and might get bird flu. SARS!
That aside, the smores were yummy using the worlds biggest marshmallows, thanks to the local grocery store and going to bed smelling like smoke is awesome. A sure sign that summer is here.
For July, we'll be reading, "Where the Heart Is" by Billie Letts. It's also a movie. You can read the book and watch the movie and I bet you can get both at Wal-Mart. Wouldn't that be a nice homage?
For July, I think we'll be at Rika's house but I'm not sure. Or maybe it was Melinda's? Either way, we'll work it out and look forward to seeing everyone at the end of July.
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Lost on Planet China
Lost on Planet China is the hilarious and eye opening tale of traveler Maarten Troost and his journey through the land of China.
This is our book for the month of June. It may change the way you think, shop, and breath.
Seriously.
Watch this video of the "Number One Toilet in Heaven and Earth"
Watch this video of Maarten Troost giving a talk at Google about his book.
This is our book for the month of June. It may change the way you think, shop, and breath.
Seriously.
Watch this video of the "Number One Toilet in Heaven and Earth"
Watch this video of Maarten Troost giving a talk at Google about his book.
Good Treats, good conversation
Tonight we talked about AJ Jacobs, "The Year of Living Biblicaly". We liked the book. We liked Mr. Jacobs initiative and dedication to his cause - living the rules of the Bible for a year - something that none of us felt we could truly to - commit to such a radical life change for an entire year. I mean, it's hard enough to make sure we shower every day, let alone find someone to stone for violating Mosaic law.
I do wear skirts most days and don't shave my legs but once a week....maybe I'm closer than I thought.
As with most of our book club meetings, if Robyn doesn't bring a set of discussion questions, our conversation wanders. Lately, it seems to wander ahead a month to our next book. June is about China and we are all a little bit excited about that.
I do wear skirts most days and don't shave my legs but once a week....maybe I'm closer than I thought.
As with most of our book club meetings, if Robyn doesn't bring a set of discussion questions, our conversation wanders. Lately, it seems to wander ahead a month to our next book. June is about China and we are all a little bit excited about that.
Friday, April 23, 2010
Updates for the next little while
Oh, I love book club. I really, really do. I was just telling my husband when I got home last night that I feel very lucky that we've all found each other over the last five years. What a great group of brilliant, funny, witty, beautiful and talented women I get the chance to talk with.
And eat great treats with.
Group hug!
Here are the details for the next little while:
May 27
Makayla's House (or Heather's if they decide to switch)
"A Year of Living Biblically"
June 24
Annie's House
"Lost on Planet China"
July 22
Melinda's House (Melinda, are you okay with that?)
book TBD
And eat great treats with.
Group hug!
Here are the details for the next little while:
May 27
Makayla's House (or Heather's if they decide to switch)
"A Year of Living Biblically"
June 24
Annie's House
"Lost on Planet China"
July 22
Melinda's House (Melinda, are you okay with that?)
book TBD
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