November 2021 Susan, Linda, Nina & Cokie: The Extraordinary Story of the Founding Monthers of NPR by Lisa Napoli Average rating: 6.75 (9, 8, 8, 8, 7, 7, 6, 1) Most of us enjoyed learning more about the history of NPR and the story of these ground-breaking women journalists. The writing was not very engaging however, and left a few of us very disappointed.
Suggested by: Pat Meeting location: Anne's
October 2021 We Ride Upon Sticks: A Novel by Quan Barry Average rating: 4.4 (8, 7, 4.5, 4, 4, 4, 3, 1) Thanks to Mary for a lovely and very appropriate bonfire book club meeting which was completely in keeping with this month's book. Perhaps Cheryl was the only one who "got" this book. She felt it was meant to be read as a spoof or a satire of 80s clichés and thought it was delightful. The rest of us were less than thrilled with the overuse of 80s clichés, the interminable length of chapters, the use of the term "states" and not being able to care about any of the characters due to surface level descriptions. We wished the parallels to the Salem witch trials would have been more prominent. We felt the overall idea for the book was promising, but did not deliver.
Suggested by: Ellen Meeting location: Mary's
September 2021 The Midnight Library by Matt Haig Average rating: 5.7 (7, 7, 6, 6, 6, 6, 5, 4, 4) We all had much higher expectations for this much-hyped book. The premise seemed promising, but the execution left much to be desired. The narrative never went beyond the shallow and clichéd. It was a quick enjoyable-enough read but most of us wouldn't recommend it to a friend.
Suggested by: Anne Meeting location: Barb's
August 2021 Why Fish Don't Exist by Lulu Miller Average rating: 6.9 (9, 9, 8, 8, 7, 6, 6, 5, 4) This book is hard to describe: part memoir part history and many parts of random bits of information. All in all the book needed to drive its unified theme home in a stronger more consistent way. The group was divided on what we thought of it. Some of us wanted to hear more of the author's personal story and some less, etc. Most of us had an issue with at least one part of the book which will now be known as 'the Mexican pot roast'; i.e. what did not ring true at all.
July 2021 American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins Average rating: 7.5 (8, 8, 8, 8, 8, 7.5, 7, 7, 6) We all generally found the book entertaining, engaging and page turning. We had a good discussion on the author's not so subtle intention to write for and educate an American white middle class female book club audience. The unlikely heroine and the stereotypical types of people she encountered on her journey sometimes felt inauthentic and contrived. We are glad we read it.
Suggested by: Anne Meeting location: Ellen's
May 2021 When All Is Said by Anne Griffin Average rating: 8.8 (7.5, 8.5, 8.5, 8.5, 9, 9.5, 10) We all enjoyed this author's writing style and unique storytelling technique using one person's perspective to learn about many other interesting characters. Even though the stories were sad, they were well told and felt authentic. The overall story was layered and unfolded in a satisfying way as the many pieces continued to come together. We had different levels of sympathy with the main character. Suggested by: Margarita Meeting location: Zoom
April 2021 Afterlife by Julia Alvarez Average rating: 7.2 (6, 7, 7, 7, 7, 7, 7.5, 8, 8) A good discussion regarding why the author chose to write as she did. So many great nuggets of writing but overall the book left us wanting more. Serious topics of mental health, grief and immigration were dealt with on a surface level--perhaps intentionally. Interesting to see the main character try to navigate the mess of daily life while dealing with personal grief. We wish the story or the character would have been more settled, resolved or changed by the end of the story.
Suggested by: Margarita Meeting location: Zoom
March 2021 Call Your Daughter Home by Deborah Spera Average rating: 7.8 (7, 7.5, 7.5, 8, 8, 8, 8, 8) We had mixed feelings about this book which seemed to have all the right elements: memorable strong female characters, engaging plot, interesting storytelling, easy to read; yet it didn't ring true for some of us. Was the depiction of this Southern community accurate or too stereotypical? Would we recommend this book to a friend? It was an entertaining enough read. A palette cleanser after last month's dry Eleanor Roosevelt autobiography!
Suggested by: Anne Meeting location: Zoom
February 2021 The Autobiography of Eleanor Roosevelt by Eleanor Roosevelt Average rating: 6.4 (6, 6, 6, 6, 7, 7, 7) Boring yet fascinating was Joanne's apt evaluation of this book. We all agreed that we would have learned much more about Eleanor from an autobiography or even Wikipedia. The book neither gives great insight to her personal life nor paints a vivid picture of the events in her lifetime. We guessed this was due to her reluctance to give private details or offend people and to uphold Franklin's legacy. It was also probably written for her contemporaries who knew details of recent history. She also needed a better editor.
Suggested by: Barb Meeting location: Zoom
January 2021 Red at the Bone by Jaqueline Woodson Average rating: 9.7 (9, 9, 9, 10, 10, 10, 10, 10, 10) Another volume of very impressive writing by this author. (see Brown Girl Dreaming) This novel challenged stereotypes of class, race, gender and sexuality--heavy topics told with a light hand while maintaining the richness of the characters. Historical events touched on throughout felt purposeful. We wanted more time with these characters.
Suggested by: Barb & Ellen Meeting location: Zoom
November 2020 The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin Average rating: 9.5 (9, 9, 9, 9, 10, 10, 10, 10) We all felt this was a very important book and were impressed with the depth and insightfulness of the writing. Many passages struck a chord with us. The ideas are very timely and appropriate for today. We all want to read more by this author. Books by other authors mentioned include: "Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents" (Wilkerson) and "Warriors Don't Cry: A Searing Memoir of the Battle to Integrate Little Rock's Central High" (Beals). Also the podcast: "Girl Trek's Black History Boot Camp."
Suggested by: Margarita & Mary Meeting location: Zoom
October 2020 Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue Average rating: 7.9 (7, 7, 7, 8, 8, 8, 9, 9) This was one of those reads where the discussion was perhaps more interesting than the book. We felt it was good, not great. The author did a good job of showing many complex aspects of the immigrant family's experience. Through the discussion we came to realize that the rich American family was perhaps more desperate than the immigrant family.
Suggested by: Anne Meeting location: Zoom
September 2020 A Long Petal of the Sea by Isabel Allende Average rating: 8.4 (7, 8, 8, 9, 9, 9,9) We enjoyed many things about this book and were mixed on others. The layered, nuanced relationships between characters felt very genuine. The writing seemed to flow easily. A couple of us felt let down by the final third of the book not being as engaging as the first parts. We were happy to learn more about the Spanish Civil War and about Chile.
Suggested by: Cheryl Meeting location: Zoom
August 2020 How to Be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi Average rating: 8.5 (8, 8, 8, 9, 9, 9) We had a very good discussion on the many racist issues addressed in this book; especially education, policy, gender and sexuality. We enjoyed his personal story. The author came across as humble and not overly preachy. The ideas presented were very accessible and thought-provoking.
Suggested by: Mary Meeting location: Zoom
July 2020 Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid Average rating: 7.0 (4, 7, 7, 7, 7, 7, 8, 8) Most of us thought this was an entertaining-enough read and a welcome break from the heaviness of world events. We felt the writing was good and appreciated the unique style of a documentary interview. The plot seemed true to life and the breadth of characters and dialogue were realistic.
Suggested by: Barb Meeting location: Barb & Zoom
May 2020 Trust Exercise by Susan Choi Average rating: 2.6 (1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 4, 4, 4) This is our lowest rated book EVER. We uniformly disliked this book. We didn't care about any of the characters and there wasn't enough of a plot to keep us interested. We found it confusing and unsatisfying. If the author's idea was to illustrate the mutability of memory and how we tell a story, then it wasn't done in an interesting way. Pat had the best analogy: It's like modern art--without any context, it is hard to like it.
Suggested by: Cheryl Meeting location: Zoom
April 2020 Born a Crime by Trevor Noah Average rating: 8.25 (6, 7, 8, 9, 9, 9, 9, 9) Entertaining look at serious apartheid cultural issues. Humor made serious issues more memorable and more palatable. People enjoyed the audio version.
Suggested by: Anne Meeting location: Zoom
March 2020 Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier Average rating: 6.25 (6, 6, 6, 7) As a group, we agreed that this book didn't grab us like we thought it should. The content was exciting and true life--women discovering fossils of new creatures--yet the telling of the story did not inspire or excite us. Cheryl mentioned that "The Fossil Hunter" by Shelley Emling was a better telling of Mary Anning's life. We also felt the argument between Mary and Elizabeth about Lieutenant Colonel Birch felt forced and inserted to create drama in the story.
Suggested by: Ellen Meeting location: Margarita
February 2020 The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie Average rating: 8.4 (8, 8, 8, 8, 8.5, 9, 9) This was a fun entertaining read. The story was clever and engaging. The unreliable narrator was a surprise. We had fun discussing this genre.
Suggested by: Mary Meeting location: Pat
January 2020 Where the Crawdads Sing by Deliah Owens Average rating: 9.0 (8, 9, 9, 9, 9, 9, 9, 9, 10) We all enjoyed the beautiful writing in this novel which incorporated nature in a unique way. The main character's ability to survive trauma and impressively educate herself reminded us of Educated. The southern small town trial also was shades of To Kill a Mockingbird. There were enough surprises to keep us entertained.
November 2019 Educated by Tara Westover Average rating: 9.3 (9, 9, 9, 9, 9, 10, 10) A fascinating and well-told story of a unique family dealing with mental illness and abuse and how education was finally Tara's way out. Her late formal education allowed her to have a perspective of who she was outside of her family. We really liked how she conveyed the elasticity of memory and how hard it is to remember or tell exactly what happened, especially regarding traumatic events. This book makes it to the Top 20 highest rated books list for this group.
Suggested by: Pat & Anne Meeting location: Anne
October 2019 The Lost Girls of Paris by Pam Jenoff Average rating: 5.8 (6.5, 6, 6, 6, 6, 5, 5) A potentially very interesting story based on true events failed to deliver. Events could have been portrayed in a more believable way, characters could have been much better. We would have liked to go deeper into the women's stories but this felt very surface level. Overall a good-enough airplane read.
Suggested by: Pat Meeting location: Margarita
September 2019 A Place for Us by Fatima Farheen Mirza Average rating: 8.14 (9, 8, 8, 8, 8, 8, 8, 8, 8) Very poignant and believable story of an immigrant family whose dysfunction translates universally. We were not a fan of the way the story jumped around with no indication of time. Ultimately the ending left you to imagine a possible good future for the family members. Suggested by: Barb Meeting location: Mary
August 2019 1984 by George Orwell Average rating: 9.14 (10, 10, 10, 10, 8, 8, 8) Our modern world makes re-reading this disturbing classic even more thought-provoking. Orwell creates such a frightening yet realistic world that uses propaganda, surveillance and manipulation of its people's minds as a means to retain power. Suggested by: JoAnne Meeting location: Pat
July 2019 The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander Average rating: 9.25 (10, 10, 9, 8) The small group unanimously found the book eye-opening in its description of the issues related to incarceration and race. While we wished the author had included more narrative stories and edited for redundancies, the important message carried the book and our rich discussion. Suggested by: Mary Meeting location: Ellen
May 2019 My Antonia by Willa Cather Average rating: 6.9 (6, 6, 7, 7, 7, 7, 8) We appreciated the beautiful writing of this story but were not particularly engaged with a plot or characters. Interesting portrayal of immigrant life vignettes and gender roles from the unique perspective of the author telling the story of her life through a male character. Glad to have read it.
Suggested by: Cheryl Meeting location: Mary
April 2019 The Curious Charms of Arthur Pepper by Phaedra Patrick Average rating: 6.7 (6, 6, 7, 7, 7, 7) This story was easy to read and basically pleasant but seemed contrived and improbable. A good-enough airplane read.
Suggested by: Anne Meeting location: Margarita
March 2019 Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger Average rating: 8.8 (8, 9, 9, 9, 9, 9)
We all loved this coming of age story set in Minnesota in the 1960's. The writing was simple yet conveyed the complexity of life and relationships. The story was very believable even with a lot of dramatic elements. A story of imperfect people trying to do the right thing. Suggested by: Barb Meeting location: JoAnne
February 2019 The Power by Naomi Alderman Average rating: 4.7 (3, 4, 4, 5, 5, 6, 6)
An interesting premise fell short of an interesting execution for all of us. We were disappointed in every character's eventual corruption by the power. Wouldn't the story be more interesting if some women had chosen the higher ground? Overall a disturbing and provocative story that left us cold and disappointed. Suggested by: JoAnne Meeting location: Our first virtual meeting!
January 2019 My Name is Lucy Barton by Elizabeth Strout Average rating: 5.7 (5, 5, 5, 6, 6, 8) Most of our group felt the book was not memorable. Not enough detail to become engaged with the story or attached to the characters. Cheryl shared the very interesting fact that the stage version of this is a one-woman play and essentially the mother character is only in Lucy's head. Barb loved the writing and thought it rang true to how Lucy was trying to process the memories of her life and the love for her mother. Suggested by: Barb & JoAnne Meeting location: Cheryl
November 2018 The Yiddish Policemen's Union by Michael Chabon Average rating: 3.8 (2, 3, 4, 4, 5, 5) We all had high expectations as we enjoyed The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay so much. Overwhelming number of Yiddish words and names, alternate reality facts and a wholly unsatisfying mystery caused none of us to like this book and some of us to not even finish it. We are baffled at how this book made the New York Times best seller list. The idea and themes in the story had potential but were very inaccessible and weighed down. Suggested by Ellen Meeting location: Joanne
October 2018 Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman Average rating: 8.7 (8, 8, 8, 8, 9, 10, 10) We all enjoyed this multi-layered unique coming of age story full of nuance and insight into someone healing from childhood trauma with multiple psychological and emotional issues. Suggested by Ellen Meeting location: Mary
September 2018 The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen Average rating: 5.5 Suggested by Anne Meeting location: Rebecca
August 2018 Sting-ray Afternoons by Steve Rushin Average rating: 6.7 An overall enjoyable memoir from a time most of us could relate to. Sometimes seemed like a lot of references after a while and much of it was gender specific. Author's writing is much more about things than people. Sparked a lot of conversations about each of our remembered experiences and how it's different for kids today. Gave a clearer picture of his father than his mother even though father was away a lot. Suggested by: Mary Meeting location: Mary's
July 2018 A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens Average rating: 8.8 Many of our smaller group listened to this as an audiobook which was easier to enjoy due to the period language. We agreed that Dickens is an amazing storyteller who excels at creating unique and memorable characters. The theme of duality was masterfully realized throughout the book which did a wonderful job of showing the universality of human nature. Suggested by: Cheryl Meeting location: Anne's
May 2018 Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng Average rating: 7.6 The book touched on issues that made good fodder for bookclub discussion: adoption, class and racial prejudices, etc. We did not like it as much as the author's first book: Everything I Never Told You which pulled us in much more. The characters were multi-dimensional but maybe not believable and there was too much going on. Too many contrived connections between the characters. Suggested by: JoAnne Meeting location: Margarita's
April 2018 The Sweeter the Juice by Shirlee Taylor Haizlip Average rating: 6.6 We had a good discussion about race, not necessarily stemming from the stories in this book. Although she had a very interesting and unique life, we thought the book lacked focus and a good editor. We wanted to be more engaged and affected by the book which might be slightly old fashioned. Suggested by: JoAnne Meeting location: Anne's
March 2018 A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman Average rating: 8.0 Most of us enjoyed this humorous and heartwarming slice of life story about such a strong identifiable character. We saw our own loved ones in Ove's character and thought his voice rang true. Suggested by: Ellen Meeting location: Mary's
February 2018 Lab Girl by Hope Jahren Average rating: 7.9 Our group was split on this book with three scores of 10 and 4 scores of 6-7. Overall we enjoyed learning about plants and the struggles of scientists. Some of us were charmed by her writing and storytelling devices and some were put off by it. Her all-consuming passion for what she does is inspiring. Suggested by: Barb Meeting location: Cheryl's
January 2018 Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi Average rating: 9.1 We all loved this complex thought-provoking story / novel / history exploring eight generations of Africans over 200 years. Multiple aspects of different generational and historical experiences were touched illustrated through the characters. The first-time author did an amazing job and we look forward to reading her next work. Meeting location: JoAnne's
November 2017 Kindred: A Graphic Novel Adaptation by Damian Duffy
October 2017 The Prisoner of Heaven by Carlos Ruiz Zafón Average rating: 8.0 A tiny group of three met to discuss this sequel to The Shadow of the Wind which the group read in March 2013. We all agreed it was a good book on its own even if you had never read the first book. However, some details, names and places would have been clearer if we'd read it closer in time to the first book. We are interested in reading the fourth book in the series: The Labyrinth of the Spirits which will be translated to English in 2018. Meeting location: Anne's
September 2017 Dispatches from Pluto by Richard Grant Average rating: 7.9 Interesting and educational look into an unfamiliar area of the country. As an outsider and Englishman, the author was an excellent nonjudgmental observer and reporter. Shows us the race relations of the Mississippi Delta full of contradictions & complexities. Easy to read.
August 2017 The Rosie Project by Graeme Samson Average rating: 9.2 If you love Sheldon Cooper, you'll love Don Tillman! This well-written book had laugh out loud funny moments but was more than just a fun read. We loved the situations where Asperger-affected Don excels and fits in socially. The characters had consistent voices and were very likable. We look forward to reading the sequel and seeing the movie. Meeting location: Ellen's
July 2017 Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson Average rating: 10.0 Overwhelmingly loved by all of us! We loved the story of the author's childhood and how she came to know she wanted to be a writer. Told from a child's perspective without any judgment gave an interesting perspective of an interesting time in history. The use of free verse poetry was supremely done with sparse yet evocative language that made us savor every story. We were all in awe of the author's skill and want to read more by her. Meeting location: Cheryl's
May 2017 Passion by Jude Morgan Average rating: 3.0 (2, 2, 3, 4, 4) This book was well researched and densely written: filled with carefully selected words and phrases from the time period and the works of the poets portrayed. What was missing was a coherent STORY. Instead, what we have are several random sketches and scenes cobbled together. Many characters and scenes are wholly unnecessary, as they have no bearing on any plot point down the line. Not surprisingly, the book tied for the lowest rated book EVER...On to the next read! Suggested by: Pat Meeting location: Ellen's
April 2017 Waking Up White and Finding Myself in the Story of Race by Debby Irving Average rating: 7.4 (6, 6, 7, 8, 8, 8, 9) This book sparked lots of good conversation. We were all glad to have read it. Although the author's story starts out as almost unbelievably naive and somewhat whiney, eventually some good information was conveyed. We all liked her metaphors of headwinds and tailwinds; equity and equality, among others. Suggested by: Ellen Meeting location: JoAnne's
March 2017 Circling the Sun by Paula McLain Average rating: 7.6 A small group convened on Pi Day to eat pie and discuss this (aptly named) book. It was hard for any of us to judge how much reality and how much fiction was put into this story based on actual people. The British colonials of this time period must have had extraordinary experiences and perhaps fact was stranger than fiction. We discussed how the independent nature of Beryl would be judged during different decades. We thought her cavalier behavior seemed more masculine than feminine even according to today's standards. Overall the variety of interesting characters, situations and locations made the book enjoyable enough to read. Suggested by: Margarita Meeting location: Margarita's
February 2017 They May Not Mean To, But They Do by Cathleen Schine Average rating: 7.0 (6, 6, 6.5, 7.5, 8, 8) Realistic story of the dynamics in a family with aging parents. Many of us could relate very strongly to the negative aspects of the story. However, we wished for more depth of substance and character development. Suggested by: JoAnne Meeting location: Mary's
January 2017 The Plague of Doves by Louise Erdich Average rating: 7.6 Overall we appreciated the quality of writing in this book but many thought it was too disjointed. By telling the various stories from individual viewpoints, a very realistic, organic feeling is conveyed that can be somewhat chaotic. Fascinating weaving of the stories of rural mixed race community told with rich themes. Suggested by: Cheryl Meeting location: Cheryl's
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