August 2017 Recap

Dear Bookclub,
Very pleased with ourselves, we relished Via Capri's coddling environment, with the privacy, good service, delicious pizzas and salads, and perfect acoustics. Discussion of "Florence Gordon" flowed, adding to the enjoyment of adoring the miserable main character. I am trying to analyze why it is we were so endeared to Florence Gordon as we were to Olive Kitteridge, rationally- irrational- happy to be not happy. I don't know! Hats off, Brian Morton.

Terry's selections for an upcoming read:

"The Rent Collector" Camron Wright *chosen
"All the Single Ladies: Unmarried Women and the Rise of an Independent Nation" Rebecca Traister
"we are all completely beside ourselves" Karen Joy Fowler

Up next: Emily Fridlund's "History of Wolves".

Happy reading,
LK

August 2017 Bookclub News

Florence Gordon by Jon Williams

Dear Bookclub,

July has slipped away and summer reads must be of upmost priority as August zooms in. Brian Morton's "Florence Gordon" is a good summer read. Chapters fly - they are about two paragraphs long- and who could be more fun to read about than an 'unlikeable' older woman? When Val suggested this book, I recognized that I had it stashed away in my 'to-read' bookshelf, ok, 'to-read' room, and I do remember why:

http://www.npr.org/2014/10/06/352763474/florence-gordon-isnt-friend-material-but-youll-appreciate-her

Maureen Corrigan's book reviews are so persuasive that I often have one of her featured books in my amazon cart before she finishes her piece.


Terry's suggestions for our January 2018 read:

"All the Single Ladies: Unmarried Women and the Rise of an Independent Nation" Rebecca Traister
"The Rent Collector" Camron Wright
"We are Completely Beside Ourselves" Karen Joy Fowler

Oh Terry, Terry, Terry.. this is so hard! A great list. Please do some research and come prepared this Wednesday to cast your vote.

Happy reading,
LK

July 2017 recap

Superwomen

Dear Bookclub,
The din at Cork & Craft, not originating from our table, was owned by the super power girls at the adjacent table. We were upstaged and even followed in their footsteps for a  photo-op on the stage they had also occupied. But any perceived envy stops now- would not trade our beloved group, graced by Ginger's presence, for any magical persona-babes. How nice to be together!

"Hillbilly Elegy", well-received by our group, endeared us to J.D.'s journey, especially Mamaw, a character deservedly immortalized.

Wanda's suggestions for an upcoming selection:
"Lab Girl" Hope Jahren
"The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu" Joshua Hammer
"Hero of the Empire" Candice Millard *chosen

 And here before you know it, our August read. "Florence Gordon" by Brian Morton.

Happy reading,
LK

July 2017 Bookclub News

The Hatfield Clan 1897

Dear Bookclub,

J.D. Vance has put the hillbilly culture onto our radars, compelling because of the timeliness in describing a culture that contributed to an understanding of November 8, 2016. In "Hillbilly Elegy", Vance cites:

'In a December 2000 paper, sociologists Carol A. Markstrom, Sheila K. Marshall, and Robin J. Tyron found that avoidance and wishful-thinking forms of coping "significantly predicted resiliency" among Appalachian teens. Their paper suggests that hillbillies learn from an early age to deal with uncomfortable truths by avoiding them, or by pretending better truths exist. This tendency might make for physchological resilience, but it also makes it hard for Appalachians to look at themselves honestly.'

There's a little leap here to our society's swing towards wishful-thinking. But that's another story. Vance's story became wildly popular with our last election's outcome given the spotlight he directed to the working-class whites. No easy answers but a personal breakout that is eye-opening for the revelation of addiction and stagnation, among other related obstacles.

J.D. and Mamaw

Vance's official website includes a photo section of family and one caption that characterizes a noted trait in this culture:  "(Mamaw would murder me if she knew I put this photo on the internet.)" - not to be taken lightly. And he wasn't referring to this picture.

 http://www.jdvance.com/family.html  


Thoughtful reading,
LK

June 2017 Recap

Robuchon dot creations

dot..dot..dot..

dot..dot...

dot...dot...dot..

!!!

Dear Bookclub,
Our culinary love, tantalized by Eric Ripart's "32 Yolks", was indulged at The French Market Grill with round table discussion centered on Ripart's development as a chef. No recipe shared in his memoir but a rendering of a colorful childhood tortured with a stint or two under the tutelage of an extreme chef and voilà: Master Èric Ripart! We felt another book must be in the works since so much is yet to be told. 

Hollandaise à la 32 yolks

 

Personally, the gastronomical mindset set off a smattering of bold ordering: calf's liver, wine, lemon tart, a latte and cappuccinos. We were all sure to clean our plates lest someone in the kitchen would suffer punishment. Le Bernardin is calling.

 Menu:
https://www.le-bernardin.com/menus/dining-room/dinner

Val's impressive suggestions for an upcoming read ignited the challenging choosing-debate-&-dance to decide on a worthy book for  stimulating discussion. Vows are always made to read them all anyway - haha:

"The Leavers" Lisa Ko
"Last Days of Night" Graham Moore *chosen
"Shelter" Jung Yun
"To the Bright Edge of the World" Eowyn Ivey

Up next: "Hillbilly Elegy"

Happy reading!
LK

May 2017 Recap

Bad Science

Dear Boocklub,
Discussion of Mukherjee's "The Gene" led to the topic of bad science/bad scientists. I could not grasp bad science, only bad scientists, as science feels firm as basic chemistry, mathematics, physics, etc.  Bad scientists are self-explanatory. Mulling over bad science, I began to imagine what TG was trying to represent. Doing (bad) research online, I did come across an entertaining TED talk by Ben Goldacre on "Battling Bad Science":

https://www.ted.com/talks/ben_goldacre_battling_bad_science


Selected for an upcoming selection:
"American Philosophy" John Kaag

 

Also considered: 

"Lincoln in the Bardo" George Saunders

"Exit West"  Mohsin Hamid

The Gallery:

 

 

  


 Up next: Eric Ripert's "32 Yolks"

Happy reading,
LK

May 2017 Booklub News

Triple Point

Dear Bookclub,
Have not watched or listened to news, NPR shows, read newspapers, barely walked the dog, sleeping more..... I'm binging on "The Gene" and loving it. Surfing on some new level of understanding of most interesting science and thought, an fMRI of my brain would show fireworks as I trip on Siddhartha Mukherjee's "intimate history" of the gene. Unfortunately, I have a mind like a Looney Tunes animal whose head has been riddled with bullet holes and the information keeps leaking out. I have read and reread, listened and re-listened to sections and chapters over and over again, trying to lock in the concepts. The stories of the scientists are fine enough but the biology, chemistry and engineering are super-cool. Who is Siddhartha Mukherjee besides the Pulitzer prize-winning author of  "The Emperor of All Maladies"? Merely a gene carrier(!) who, along with Sarah Sze (artist- see above) produced these two genetically blessed daughters:

Check out mom from this 2012 New Yorker article:

http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2012/05/14/a-million-little-pieces

Looking forward to getting together to discuss....
Mindful reading,
LK