What We Are Reading

By Nancy K. Crevier

Readers love to share with others the books about which they feel passionate. This past summer, Newtown Bee employees shared with our readers what they were reading. Expanding on that, this winter local book clubs are sharing what they are reading, what they love or do not love, why certain books stand out for their clubs, and even how the clubs select books.

Each month, comments from various book clubs will appear in this column, along with a posting on The Newtown Bee Facebook page.

The Mayflower Book Club has a number of favorites that they have read since summer, said member Barbara Gorham.

“During the summer of 2010, we read the long book, The Hemingses of Monticello by Annette Gordon-Reed. Most of us felt it was too long, had too many details, and also a lot of repetition,” said Ms Gorham. The club felt that they learned a great deal, however, and the discussion was very good.

“Cutting For Stone by Agraham Verghese was a good read,” reported Ms Gorham, as was The Street by Ann Petry. “The Street is an older book, written in 1946. It takes place in Harlem and describes the plight of the people who live on the street,” she said.

In January, The Mayflower Book Club read The Art of Racing in the Rain, by Garth Stein.

“In our discussion, we talked about the parallels of racing to daily living. I thought it was  a great book,” Ms Gorham said.

The Newtown Newcomers & Neighbors’ morning book club read To Kill A Mockingbird in January. The club reads one classic book each year. The group enjoyed Harper Lee’s  novel from 1960, and would recommend it, said Betsy Godin, co-leader of the book club.

The club also read a collection of short essays entitled This I Believe, in December, a series that has also aired on National Public Radio (NPR) over the last 50 years.

“The club picked out essays that meant something special to them or focused on a topic to which they could relate,” said member Jaime Passarelli. One interesting aspect of that book was that it included instructions on how to write essays about one thing in which the individual believes.

This month the group, which meets one Tuesday morning per month, will read and discuss Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro, who also wrote The Remains of The Day. In March, their book selection will be The Wolves of Andover by Kathleen Kent, a prequel to The Heretic’s Daughter.

Newtown Newcomers & Neighbors also has an afternoon book club. That club read The Tower, The Zoo and the Tortoise by Julia Stuart in December, Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier last month, and will be reading Nick Tosches’ Where Dead Voices Gather this month. Membership for both clubs is open to all residents of Newtown. For more information visit www.NewtownNewcomers.com.

“When I heard Timothy Egan on NPR one day with his latest book, The Big Burn, I knew I had to get it to read,” said Lina Williams, a member of The Ladies’ Literary League. “I had read his previous book, The Worst Hard Times, about the Dust Bowl, and loved it.

The Big Burn is about the largest forest fire in US history, which occurred in August 1910, in Washington, Oregon, and Montana.

“The beginnings of the United States Forest Service are described in this book,” said Mrs Williams, who added that descriptions by the author describe “how woefully underfunded this new agency was.” Early rangers had to buy their own equipment, horses, and pay for assistance from over 10,000 men to contain this fire.

The book is also about Gifford Pinchot, who along with Teddy Roosevelt was an early conservationist, and whose mansion in Milford, Penn. is now a historic site.

“This book is a good insight into how our national lands are protected, even today,” Mrs Williams said.

“Will Darko Dawson, a detective in Accra, the capital of Ghana, be able to solve a mystery in the small town of Ketano?” asked Joyce Goldin in her review of The Mystery Group’s recent good read, Wife of the Gods by Kwei Quartey.

“Quartey’s fascinating insight into life in Ghana came alive with his well-developed characters,” said Ms Goldin. “Quartey juxtaposed the modern with the deeply traditional worlds in which so many of the continent’s people live. We see the young female medical student, and people using modern cell phones, alongside the poor locals who believe in witchcraft, faith healers, and appeasing the gods to change their bad luck.

“The book is rich with local color in the language, the setting, and the action,” she reported. “There are also some unique elements to the story, in particular, the portraits of crimes against women, as a result of being handed over by their families to become ‘wives of the gods.’”

The Help by Kathryn Stockett served as a springboard to discuss how the racial issues of the 1960s affected the members of one local book club, from the Midwest to the East Coast, reported Martha LaMarche.

“Bullying and the silent majority phenomenon was discussed and also the protagonist’s, perhaps, naïve, exploitation of the ladies she was interviewing to further her career and effect a move to New York,” Ms LaMarche said. The club also explored the depth of characters created by the author.

“The book provided a lively discussion and thorough examination over chocolate pie and tea, for a good two and a half hours,” said Ms LaMarche.

For February, this book club is reading the autobiographical novel Mao’s Last Dancer by Li Cunxin.

Visit the Newtown Bee Facebook page, and add your comments and suggestions to What We Are Reading.