Boy, did I take a break! We've continued to meet and read but this blog is dreadfully behind in chronicling that. Our latest read was The Girlfriend by Michelle Frances. It was a bold and dramatic choice and elicited an extremely long discussion. Many of us found it extremely disturbing and had a hard time digesting it. But read it we did and an extremely interesting conservation came from it.
Our next book is First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston.
There's no picture this month but that doesn't mean we had a short meeting. With several of us missing, we still managed to spend hours discussing everything from our book, our families and their news, and politics.
Our book for this coming month is The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz. Something tells me next month we might be reading the sequel which Cathy tells us is an even more exciting book. I'm game!
It was still rather chili outside so once again we gathered inside to hear and share our many adventures of the last month and talk about our book, The Searcher. It took several hours but we caught up with everyone's latest and all enjoyed Tana French's delve into the "quiet Irish countryside" and its hidden crime element.
Our next meeting won't be until May due to a couple of us venturing off to Portugal and more adventures closer to home. Our book selection for May is Tracking Kindness by Myrtle Heery.
Unfortunately myself and several others were not able to join in our traditional Christmas luncheon, but those that were had a wonderful time.
Our book to read for our January meeting is The Grey Wolf by Louise Penny.
Happy Holidays, everyone!
On a sunny but chilly November morning we gathered at the Market to discuss our 2 assigned books and "chat." And that we did - with gusto!It's so frustrating to have such a wonderful gathering and, again, forget to mark it with a photograph! That's the 2nd month in a row that has been the case.
Our meeting was at the beginning of a long hot spell (for our area of Northern California, at least.) We shared our adventures and happenings, then got down to expressing our enjoyment in our latest read, James by Percival Everett, though we collectively wondered about a choice the author made as the book came to its climax. Several of us even found time to refresh our memories by reading Huckleberry Finn.
Of course, politics were a lively topic of discussion and frustration therefore we mutually decided to delay our next meeting until after the election. Because of our extended time frame, we chose not one but 2 books to read for our next meeting, The Art of Power by Nancy Pelosi and A Calamity of Souls by David Baldacci.
A new venue and the smiles continue!
A lovely sunny day couldn't beat the happiness of our rare late summer gathering. We lunched and shared our travels, triumphs and travails. When we got around to discussing our assigned book, Did I Ever Tell You by Genevieve Kingston, as a whole we were filled with empathy for the writer's account of the heartbreaking loss of her mother and the affect it had on her life. It deeply touched all our hearts and was even more impacting with the recollections of Trey with personal connections to this remarkable family, sharing their deep despair.
We assigned Cassandra in Reverse by Holly Smale as our book for next month and if we finish that with time to spare, we can reread Huckleberry Finn to ready us for our next assigned read, James by Percival Everett.
You would think when our gathering lasted over 3 hours that somewhere in that time a picture of us would have been taken, but it wasn't. It's amazing how much we have to share, how dependent we are on our meetings to catch up on what had happened to us in the past month. It takes time!
It's a rare happening when we read a book where one of us is personally acquainted with the author, but this coming month celebrates that. One of our members has a deep and personal relationship with Genevieve Kingston, the author of our next read, Did I Ever Tell You? We are all excited to read a book by this exceptional young woman.
Our May gathering happily found us all together again. It was a very special gathering with each of us sharing our triumphs and struggles, our upcoming events and plans. As Chris wrote after our meeting, "Let me count the ways I love all of you.. you are: supportive, understanding, gentle and kind, non-judgemental and more."
Is it any wonder this amazing gathering of women is so precious, so vitally important to each of us? Reading books together has been a catalyst for deep connection and support.
Our book from last month, A Confederacy of Dunces, was barely discussed, I'm afraid. And it wasn't chosen as a favorite. Our book for next month is Loitering With Intent by Muriel Spark. It is described as light hearted and that's something most of us will enjoy right now.
Darn it all! Yet another month when we forgot to take a picture. Though 3 of us were missing, we remaining 7 were cozy from the cold drizzle on the large dining area table just inside the front doors of Penngrove Market. We snacked on their delicious and freshly baked scones - our monthly treat - and shared all that had happened in our lives in the last month. As usual, a lot had happened, both good and not so good. We also talked some time about our last read, Mother Land by Leah Franqui, pondering her transplant to India and the difficulties/delights of the extreme societal difference.
We chose The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride for next month's discussion. Maybe next month I'll remember that picture!
