Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group

The Worst Hard Time

2011-12-07T21:09:00.000-08:00

The Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group will meet this Thursday, December 8th at 7 p.m. in the meeting room of the Fairfax Library to discuss our December book: The Worst Hard Time by Tim Egan.

Here are some links for additional background and information:

The Plow that Broke the Plains 1936 documentary

short video of Dust Bowl memories from Pikes Peak Library

Woody Guthrie singing Dust Bowl Blues and Dust Cain’t Kill Me

Newspaper articles and photos of Dust Bowl (scroll to bottom for pictures of rabbit roundups)

History Channel short video of Dust Bowl with Tim Egan and video of Hugh Hammond Bennett (with some pre and post video political comments…)

Life on the Great Plains today

Discussion Question are Below.

Coming up, we have the following titles to look forward to reading:

Thursday, January 12th – The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester

Thursday, February 9th – Freedom by Jonathan Franzen

Thursday, March 8^th – Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner

Thursday, April 12^th – The Oracle of Stamboul by Michael David Lukas

Thanks for reading with us. I look forward to seeing you at the Fairfax Library.

Beth Bailey-Gates

Friends of the Fairfax Library

bethmbg@gmail.com

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. What does Egan present as the reasons for the dust bowl tragedy? Was it a confluence of unforeseen events that produced the perfect storm? Or was it a man-made disaster that might have been avoided, or at least mitigated?

2. Should everyone have known better—was there enough known at the time about the impact of farming techniques on erosion?

3. Who tried to warn about the dangers of farming in the grasslands and what were the gist of their warnings? Why were they ignored? Is it simply human nature to take heed in hindsight rather than in real time?

4. Which of the families' stories do you find particularly poignant? Which characters do you find most admirable?

5. What descriptions of the dust storms did you find most shocking or most tragic—Black Sunday, static electrcity, dust pneumonia, just to name a few?

6. During the disaster, 250 million people left their homes—a disapora about which Steinbeck's Grapes of Wrath is written. But most residents stayed. What made them stay? Would it have been better to have left? Which choice would you have made?

7. What was the political fallout of the dust bowl? How did Washington eventually respond? What have been the lasting effects?

8. What lessons, if any, have we learned from the dust bowl castastrophe—about how human actions, well-intentioned or not, can lead to environmental damage? Is there anything comparable on the horizon today?

9. Are there any comparisons to be made between the Federal Farm Loan Act of 1916 which freed up money to loan to farmers for tractors and land to the current mortgage crisis?

10. How does this nonfiction account of the dust bowl compare to Steinbeck's Grapes of Wrath in their descriptions of the human tragedies—and bravery—in both accounts.

11. What examples does Egan give of community support during hard times and how did the disaster affect families and family values?

12. How did the Dust Bowl and the Depression affect Midwestern farm families?

13. What was life like for farm families who migrated to California?

14. How did the U.S. government try to help victims of the Dust Bowl and the Depression?

15. How does this book depict life in the 1930s and 1940s?

16. Are there parallels to the environmental impact of the Dust Bowl in relation to environmental concerns such as Global Warming.

17. How is this book relevant to read today?

18. How do you feel about Timothy Egan’s writing style?

19. What do you think the author Timothy Egan meant by calling the Dust Bowl “the great untold story of the Greatest Generation”?

20. The people who lived during the Dust Bowl era were from an agrarian culture and had the background knowledge to live off the land, to survive the extreme conditions. We don’t have that ability today. Are we more vulnerable?

The Optimist's Daughter by Eudora Welty

2011-11-07T17:55:00.000-08:00

The Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group will meet this Thursday, November 10th at 7 p.m. in the meeting room of the Fairfax Library to discuss our November book: The Optimist’s Daughter by Eudora Welty.

Here are some links for additional background and information:

Mississippi State University site with Eudora Welty info and links

Video interview with Eudora Welty

Eudora Welty, photographer

More photographs

Southern Funeral Food

Attached are several analyses of Eudora Welty and The Optimist’s Daughter, along with Discussion Questions, Book Review and an Author Interview.

Coming up, we have the following titles to look forward to reading:

Thursday, December 8th – The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan

Thursday, January 12th – The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester

Thursday, February 9th – Freedom by Jonathan Franzen

Thursday, March 8^th – Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner

Thursday, April 12^th – One Book/One Marin selection (to be announced)

Thanks for reading with us. I look forward to seeing you at the Fairfax Library.

Beth Bailey-Gates

Friends of the Fairfax Library

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
The Optimist’s Daughter by Eudora Welty

1. What was your impression of Fay? Did she have any redeeming features? Did you feel sorry for her?

2. What sort of person was Laurel? Did your feelings about her change throughout the novel?

3. Were there any similarities between Fay and Laurel?

4. Welty reports that her father was an “optimist,” but that her mother was the more daring individual of the two. The critic Jay Tolson calls Welty a “necessary optimist,” one who has a tough-minded view of experience, but who also has a “credible optimism.” Does this biographical information shed any light on the novel? What does the term “optimist” mean in the novel? Does the novel ultimately have an “optimistic” vision or is the term ironic? What is Laurel’s vision of experience as the novel ends?

5. In Part 2 of One Writer’s Beginnings, Welty describes summer trips to West Virginia and discusses her mother’s youthful years there. To what extent does this autobiographical information inform The Optimist’s Daughter?

6. Discuss the characterization of Fay, Judge McKelva’s new wife? What values does she represent? Why might the Judge have married her? What did he see in here that others did not? Do her differences from Becky point to a key reason?

7. Why has Fay married the Judge? Is she merely a gold digger? How does Laurel respond to Fay? How do other characters in the novel respond to her? Why?

8. What is the cause of the Judge’s death? Is Laurel right to hold Fay responsible? If so, why does she take so long to speak to Fay about the death?

9. The novel’s opening section is set during Mardi Gras in New Orleans. How important is this setting? How do Laurel and Fay respond to Mardi Gras and to the revelers costumed as Death and the Medusa?

10. The bridesmaids from Laurel’s wedding greet her at the Mt. Salus train station and still call themselves the bridesmaids. What does this title tell us about Mt. Salus and Laurel’s friends? How does Laurel seem to be different from her old friends?

11. Has Laurel throughout most of the novel kept the past in a silver frame, a set piece which does not threaten her? Does her night alone in her parents’ house bring her a more complex vision of the past? Does she learn that the past is subject to our changing, evolving understanding of it?

12. Discuss Laurel’s memories of her husband Philip, of their wedding journey, of the breadboard he made for her mother. What is the significance of the confluence of rivers, birds, lives that she and Philip see from the train bound to Mt. Salus? Why is the breadboard important to Laurel, and why does she leave Mt. Salus without it? How do these memories fit into the thematic structure of the novel?

13. The episode with the bird in the house receives a great deal of emphasis in the novel. The bird drives Laurel into the room where her mother’s letters are stored; the bird remains in the house the next morning when Mr. Cheek arrives, and Missouri comments on the bird when Laurel finally manages to set it free outside. What seems to be the thematic import of this episode?

14. In what other ways do references to birds underscore the book’s themes?

15. Chestina Welty was an ardent gardener and dearly loved her rose garden. The character Becky McKelva is like Chestina in this regard. And in the novel Laurel discusses a rose known as Becky’s Climber. Does that rose seem symbolic in any ways?

16. Discuss Welty’s portrait of Mt. Salus, Mississippi, of its class structure, its changes over time, and its racial dynamic. Who are the members of its white upper class? Of the white lower classes? What sort of relationship do they have with Missouri, the McKelva’s African American maid? How has Mt. Salus changed from the time of Laurel’s marriage to the time of her father’s death?

17. How does The Optimist's Daughter reflect the social issues of the late 60s?

The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien

2011-10-11T17:46:00.000-07:00

The Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group will meet this Thursday, October 13th at 7 p.m. in the meeting room of the Fairfax Library to discuss our October book: The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien.

Here are some links for additional background and information:
Video of TV reporting of the Vietnam war Check out some of the other video links

Analysis of The Things They Carried

A discussion of meta-fiction in the book

Interesting paper about Urban Legends and Folklore in The Things They Carried

Video interview with Tim O’Brien: 20 Years Later

Good website with lots of links for more information about the history of the Vietnam war

Coming up, we have the following titles to look forward to reading:

Thursday, November 10th – The Optimist’s Daughter by Eudora Welty

Thursday, December 8th – The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan

Thursday, January 12th – The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester

Thursday, February 9th – Freedom by Jonathan Franzen

Thursday, March 8th – Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner

Thanks for reading with us. I look forward to seeing you at the Fairfax Library.

Beth Bailey-Gates
Friends of the Fairfax Library

Emily, Alone by Stewart O'Nan

2011-09-07T17:44:00.000-07:00

The Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group will meet this Thursday, September 8th at 7 p.m. in the meeting room of the Fairfax Library to discuss our September book: Emily, Alone by Stewart O’Nan.

Here are some links for additional background and information:

Fresh Air interview with Stewart O'Nan

Buck Institute for Research on Aging

100 ways to age with grace, elegance and joie de vivre

Coming up, we have the following titles to look forward to reading:

Thursday, October 13th – The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien

Thursday, November 10th – The Optimist’s Daughter by Eudora Welty

Thursday, December 8th – The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan

Thursday, January 12th – The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester

Thursday, February 9th – Freedom by Jonathan Franzen

Thanks for reading with us. I look forward to seeing you at the Fairfax Library.

Beth Bailey-Gates
Friends of the Fairfax Library

The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachmann

2011-08-11T20:39:00.000-07:00

It’s time to talk books with the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group!

When? Thursday, August 11th at 7 p.m.
What Book? The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachmann

Check out these links for additional information:

Diane Rehm show transcript discussion of The Imperfectionists
The Death of the Reader
Please stop whining about the death of journalist (Huffington Post)

Upcoming Book Choices:

Thursday, September 8th: Emily Alone by Stewart O'Nan
O'Nan checks back in with the Maxwell family from Wish You Were Here in this bracingly unsentimental, ruefully humorous, and unsparingly candid novel about the emotional and physical travails of old age.

Thursday, October 13th: The Things They Carried
by Tim O'Brien
Weapons and good-luck charms carried by U.S. soldiers in Vietnam here represent survival, lost innocence and the war's interminable legacy. "O'Brien's meditations--on war and memory, on darkness and light--suffuse the entire work with a kind of poetic form, making for a highly original, fully realized novel (Publishers Weekly)

Thursday, November 10th: The Optimist's Daughter by Eudora Welty
Pulitzer Prize-winning short novel by Eudora Welty, published in 1972. This partially autobiographical story explores the subtle bonds between parent and child and the complexities of love and grief.

Thursday, December 8th: The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan
The dust storms that terrorized the High Plains in the darkest years of the Depression were like nothing ever seen before or since.
Timothy Egan’s critically acclaimed account rescues this iconic chapter of American history from the shadows in a tour de force of historical reportage. Following a dozen families and their communities through the rise and fall of the region, Egan tells of their desperate attempts to carry on through blinding black dust blizzards, crop failure, and the death of loved ones.

I look forward to seeing you at the Fairfax Library.

Thanks for reading with us!

Beth Bailey-Gates
Friends of the Fairfax Library

Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen

2011-07-20T20:29:00.000-07:00

It’s time to talk books with the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group!

When? Wednesday, July 20th at 7 p.m.
What Book? Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen

Check out these links for additional information:
Sarah Addison Allen’s website
What is Southern Literature?
Genres of Southern Literature

Upcoming Book Choices:
Thursday, Aug 11th The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman
In his zinger of a debut, Rachman deftly applies his experience as foreign correspondent and editor to chart the goings-on at a scrappy English-language newspaper in Rome. Chapters read like exquisite short stories, turning out the intersecting lives of the men and women who produce the paper-and one woman who reads it religiously, if belatedly.

Thursday, Sept. 8th Emily Alone by Stewart O’Nan
O'Nan checks back in with the Maxwell family from Wish You Were Here in this bracingly unsentimental, ruefully humorous, and unsparingly candid novel about the emotional and physical travails of old age.

I look forward to seeing you at the Fairfax Library.

Thanks for reading with us!

Beth Bailey-Gates
Friends of the Fairfax Library

July 8th discussion - Olive Kitteridge

2010-07-06T20:54:00.000-07:00

It’s time to talk books with the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group!

When? Thursday, July 8th at 7 p.m.

Where? Fairfax Library meeting room

What Book? Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout

Check out these links for more background info:

Hear an NPR interview with Elizabeth Strout from May, 2009

A long interview with Elizabeth Strout with some audio snippets

List of characters and their connections

Our Next Books:

On Thursday, August 12th, we’ll read Paris Trout by Pete Dexter

“A respected white citizen of Cotton Point, Georgia, Paris Trout is a shopkeeper, a money-lender, and a murderer of blacks. And his friends, family and foes do not realize the danger they face in a man who simply will not see his own guilt”.

On Thursday, September 9th, we’ll read The Help by Kathryn Stockett

“What perfect timing for this optimistic, uplifting debut novel set during the nascent civil rights movement in Jackson, Miss., where black women were trusted to raise white children but not to polish the household silver. Eugenia "Skeeter" Phelan is just home from college in 1962, and, anxious to become a writer, is advised to hone her chops by writing "about what disturbs you." The budding social activist begins to collect the stories of the black women on whom the country club sets relies--and mistrusts--enlisting the help of Aibileen, a maid who's raised 17 children, and Aibileen's best friend Minny…” Publisher’s Weekly

I look forward to seeing you at the Fairfax Library.
Thanks for reading with us!
Beth Bailey-Gates
Friends of the Fairfax Library

June 8th discussion - A Sense of the World

2010-06-08T21:37:00.000-07:00

It’s time to talk books with the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group!

When? Thursday, June 10th at 7 p.m.

What Book? A Sense of the World: How a Blind Man Became History’s Greatest Traveler by Jason Roberts

Discussion Questions are below.

Check out some of these links for additional fun information:

Read Holman’s own written story of travel

The Grand Tour tradition and history

History of education for the blind across the ages

Portrait of James Holman 1849

Voyage Around the World, Vol. I by James Holman (on Google Books)

Interesting article about human echolocation (be sure to check out some of the links.)

Minutes of the second reading of the Naval Knights of Windsor Bill June 16, 1892 (dissolving the Naval Knights of Windsor)

Minutes of a discussion regarding Greenwich Hospital and Travers Foundation on Oct. 31, 1944 (which reveals the interim history and current status of the Travers Foundation.

History of roads and travel in 1700’s and description of “Blind Jack of Knaresborough”

Brief biography of Blind Jack

Brief History of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh

The Worshipful Society of Apothecaries of London

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
A Sense of the World by Jason Roberts

1. Jason Roberts makes the case that James Holman was the greatest traveler not just of his time, in the 1800s, but of all time before then. On his own funds and initiative, and despite being blind and intermittently crippled, Holman covered at least 250,000 miles. Do you agree with the author that Holman was the greatest traveler of all time?

2. Holman once said, "I see things better with my feet." Do you think he got a full sense of the world by traveling but not seeing the world?

3. Does the story of James Holman have you re-thinking the limits of what can be achieved in your own life? What limitations are holding you back?

4. The author states (on page 67) that “Contrary to popular conception, the remaining senses of a blinded person do not become more acute. They become more eloquent.” Is it possible to make your own senses more eloquent – without suffering the loss of one of them such as blindness or deafness?

5. Some critics have said they believe Holman was faking his blindness and couldn’t possibly have traveled the world without eyesight. Do you think James Holman was genuinely blind?

6. What qualities did James Holman possess that helped him transcend his circumstances and succeed in his quest to circumnavigate the globe while blind?

7. Why do you think Holman did not pursue a degree at Edinburgh College of Medicine?

8. Why did Holman’s writings fall out of favor and his reputation diminish at the end of his life?

9. We learn that Holman suffered crippling pain ("flying gout")and was blind and that the only thing that seemed to cure him (temporarily) was travel - something that was difficult and literally painful for many of his contemporaries. Why did Holman find that difficult circumstances and new ports of call eased his pain?

The Elegance of the Hedgehog May 13th

2010-05-11T23:10:00.000-07:00

It’s time to talk books with the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group!

When? Thursday, May 13th at 7 p.m.
Where? Fairfax Library meeting room
What Book? The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery

Check out these links for more background info:

Learn the real rules of the game of Go
Who was William of Ockham?
The life and death of Roland Barthes
Book Review site

Thursday, June 10th – we’ll discuss A Sense of the World: How a Blind Man Became History’s Greatest Traveler by Jason Roberts
"He was known simply as the Blind Traveler -- a solitary, sightless adventurer who, astonishingly, fought the slave trade in Africa, survived a frozen captivity in Siberia, hunted rogue elephants in Ceylon, and helped chart the Australian outback. James Holman (1786-1857) became "one of the greatest wonders of the world he so sagaciously explored," triumphing not only over blindness but crippling pain, poverty, and the interference of well-meaning authorities (his greatest feat, a circumnavigation of the globe, had to be launched in secret). Once a celebrity, a bestselling author, and an inspiration to Charles Darwin and Sir Richard Francis Burton, the charismatic, witty Holman outlived his fame, dying in an obscurity that has endured -- until now. A Sense of the World is a spellbinding and moving rediscovery of one of history's most epic lives.. "

I look forward to seeing you at the library.
Beth Bailey-Gates
Friends of the Fairfax Library

Discussion Questions
The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery

1. True life is elsewhere…
One French critic called The Elegance of the Hedgehog “the ultimate celebration of every person’s invisible part.” How common is the feeling that a part of oneself is invisible to or ignored by others? How much does this “message” contribute to the book’s popularity? Why is it sometimes difficult to show people what we really are and to have them appreciate us for it?

2. This book will save your life…
The Elegance of the Hedgehog has been described as “a toolbox one can look into to resolve life’s problems,” a “life-transforming read,” and a “life-affirming book.” Do you feel this is an accurate characterization of the novel? If so, what makes it thus: the story told, the characters and their ruminations, something else? Can things like style, handsome prose, well-turned phrases, etc. add up to a life-affirming book independently of the story told? To put it another way—Renée Michel’s way—can an encounter with pure beauty change our lives?

3. —a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet. Both Renée and Paloma use stereotypes to their benefit, hiding behind the perceptions others have of their roles. Our understanding and appreciation of people is often limited to a superficial acknowledgement of their assigned roles, their social monikers—single mother, used car salesman, jock, investment banker, senior citizen, cashier… While we are accustomed to thinking of people as victims of stereotypes, is it possible that sometimes stereotypes can be useful? When, under what circumstances, and why, might we welcome an interpretation based on stereotypes of our actions or of who we are? Have you ever created a mise en place that conforms to some stereotype in order to hide a part of yourself?

4. “One of the strengths I derive from my class background is that I am accustomed to contempt.” (Dorothy Allison)
Some critics call this novel a book about class. Barbery herself called Renée Michel, among other things, a vehicle for social criticism. Yet for many other readers and reviewers this aspect is marginal. In your reading, how integral is social critique to the novel? What kind of critique is made? Many pundits were doubtful about the book’s prospects in the US for this very reason: a critique of French class-based society, however charming it may be, cannot succeed in a classless society. Is the US really a classless society? Are class prejudices and class boundaries less pronounced in the US than in other countries? Are the social critique elements in the book relevant to American society?

5. Hope I die before I get old…
Paloma, the book’s young protagonist, tells us that she plans to commit suicide on the day of her thirteenth birthday. She cannot tolerate the idea of becoming an adult, when, she feels, one inevitably renounces ideals and subjugates passions and principles to pragmatism. Must we make compromises, renounce our ideals, and betray our youthful principles when we become adults? If so, why? Do these compromises and apostasies necessarily make us hypocrites? At the end of the book, has Paloma re-evaluated her opinion of the adult world or confirmed it?

6. Kigo: the 500 season words…
Famously, the Japanese language counts twelve distinct seasons during the year, and in traditional Japanese poetry there are five hundred words to characterize different stages and attributes assigned to the seasons. As evidenced in its literature, art, and film, Japanese culture gives great attention to detail, subtle changes, and nuances. How essential is Kakuro’s being Japanese to his role as the character that reveals others’ hidden affinities? Or is it simply his fact of being an outsider that matters? Could he hail from Tasmania and have the same impact on the story?

7. Circumstances maketh the woman…
Adolescent children and the poor are perhaps those social groups most prone to feel themselves trapped in situations that they cannot get out of, that they did not choose, and that condition their entire outlook. Some readers have baulked at the inverse snobbery with which the main characters in The Elegance of the Hedgehog initially seem to view the world around them and the people who inhabit it. Is this disdain genuine or a well-honed defence mechanism provoked by their circumstances? If the later, can it therefore be justified? Do Renée’s and Paloma’s views of the world and the people who surround them change throughout the book? Would Paloma and Renée be more prone to fraternal feelings if their circumstances were different?

8. “Unprovided with original learning, unformed in the habits of thinking, unskilled in the arts of composition, I resolved to write a book.” (Edward Gibbon)
In one of the book’s early chapters, Renée describes what it is like to be an autodidact. “There are days when I feel I have been able to grasp all there is to know in one single gaze, as if invisible branches suddenly spring out of nowhere, weaving together all the disparate strands of my reading—and then suddenly the meaning escapes, the essence evaporates, and no matter how often I reread the same lines, they seem to flee ever further with each subsequent reading, and I see myself as some mad old fool who thinks her stomach is full because she’s been attentively reading the menu. Apparently this combination of ability and blindness is a symptom exclusive to the autodidact.” How accurately does this describe sensations common to autodidacts? What are the advantages and disadvantages of being self-taught?

9. The Philosopher’s Stone…
Much has been made of the book’s philosophical bent. Some feel that the author’s taste for philosophy and her having woven philosophical musings into her characters’ ruminations, particularly those of Renée, hampers the plot; others seem to feel that it is one of the book’s most appealing attributes. What effect did the philosophical elements in this book have on you and your reading? Can you think of other novels that make such overt philosophical references? Which, and how does Hedgehog resemble or differ from them?

10. A Bridge across Generations…
Renée is fifty-four years old. Paloma, the book’s other main character, is twelve. Yet much of the book deals with these two ostensibly different people discovering their elective affinities. How much is this book about the possibilities of communication across generations? And what significance might the fact that Renée is slightly too old to be Paloma’s mother, and slightly too young to be her grandmother have on this question of intergenerational communication?

11. Some stories are universal…
The Elegance of the Hedgehog has been published in thirty-five languages, in over twenty-five countries. It has been a bestseller in France, Spain, Germany, Italy, South Korea, and America. In many other countries, while it may not have made the bestseller lists, it nonetheless has enjoyed considerable success. In the majority of these cases, success has come despite modest marketing, despite the author’s reticence to appear too often in public, and her refusal to appear in television, and despite relatively limited critical response. The novel has reached millions of readers largely thanks to word-of-mouth. What, in your opinion, makes this book so appealing to people? And why, even when compared to other beloved and successful books, is this one a book that people so frequently talk about, recommend to their friends, and give as gifts? And what, if anything, does the book’s international success say about the universality of fictional stories today?

12. “…a text written above all to be read and to arouse emotions in the reader.”
In a related question, The Elegance of the Hedgehog has been described as a “book for readers” as opposed to a book for critics, reviewers, and professors. What do you think is meant by this? And, if the idea is that it is a book that pleases readers but not critics, do you think this could be true? If so, why?

April 8 choice - The Little Giant of Aberdeen County

2010-04-02T22:23:00.000-07:00

It’s time to talk books with the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group!

When? Thursday, April 8th at 7 p.m.
What Book? The Little Giant of Aberdeen County by Tiffany Baker

Send me an e-mail if you'd like to see Discussion Questions, Reviews and Author Interviews.

Upcoming Book Choices:

On Thursday, May 13th we’ll read The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery.

“Renee Michel, 54 and widowed, is the stolid concierge in an elegant Paris hotel particulier. Though "short, ugly, and plump," Meanwhile, "supersmart" 12-year-old Paloma Josse, who switches off narration with Renee, lives in the building with her wealthy, liberal family. Having grasped life's futility early on, Paloma plans to commit suicide on her 13th birthday. The arrival of a new tenant, Kakuro Ozu, who befriends both the young pessimist and the concierge alike, sets up their possible transformations. By turns very funny (particularly in Paloma's sections) and heartbreaking, Barbery never allows either of her dour narrators to get too cerebral or too sentimental. Her simple plot and sudden denouement add up to a great deal more than the sum of their parts in this dark but redemptive novel.” (Publishers Weekly)

(Please note you may have to place a request at the library for a copy of The Elegance of the Hedgehog.)

On Thursday, June 10th, we’ll read A Sense of the World: How a Blind Man Became History’s Greatest Traveler by Jason Roberts. (The book can be found in Biography under Holman)

“Roberts offers a biography of a British wanderer renowned in his day--James Holman (1786-1857), a Royal Navy lieutenant who went blind at age 25. Roberts seizes readers immediately with scenes of Holman daring the summit of an erupting Vesuvius in 1821. Such encounters with wild nature, so appealing to the period's Romantic sensibility, contribute to Roberts' account of Holman's popularity. Blindness itself was the vital condition in Holman's adventures and the public's eventual attention, which briefly included that of a young Queen Victoria. Combining reflections on blindness with the particulars of Holman's career and travels, Roberts reveals thorough research through a perceptive, expressive narrative. (Booklist)

I look forward to seeing you at the Fairfax Library.

Thanks for reading with us!

Beth Bailey-Gates
Friends of the Fairfax Library

Mister Pip - February 11 choice

2010-02-05T21:21:00.000-08:00

It's time to talk books with the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group

When: Thursday, February 11th at 7 p.m.
Where: Fairfax Library meeting room
What Book: Mister Pip by Lloyd Jones

IMPORTANT - A change of plans for March:

One Book One Marin has reserved the meeting room at the Fairfax Library at our usual time on March 11th for a presentation. They are reading The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay and invite you to join them that evening for:

The Supergirls: A Slide Show Presentation by Author Mike Madrid
The recently published book, The Supergirls: Fashion, Feminism, Fantasy, and the History of Comic Book Heroines, by Mike Madrid, is a cultural history of female superheroes in American comic books. This one-hour presentation traces the evolution of these fantasy characters from the 1930’s to the present day and discusses how their roles and personas often reflected the lives of American women in the “real world.” Touching on issues such as male/female relationships, empowerment and heroines’ costumes, Mr. Madrid combines history with a touch of humor. This program will appeal to all audiences with an interest in comic books and cultural history.

We'll pick up again in April:

Thursday, April 8th - The Little Giant of Aberdeen County by Tiffany Baker

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

2010-01-05T21:28:00.000-08:00

Please join us on January 14th as we discuss The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by Annie Barrows and Mary Ann Shaffer.

"Winding up her book tour promoting her collection of lighthearted wartime newspaper columns, Juliet Ashton casts about for a more serious project. Opportunity comes in the form of a letter she receives from Mr. Dawsey Adams, who happens to possess a book that Julia once owned. Adams is a member of the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society-no ordinary book club. Rather, it was formed as a ruse and became a way for people to get together without raising the suspicions of Guernsey's Nazi occupiers. Written in the form of letters (a lost art), this novel by an aunt-and-niece team has loads of charm."

The History of Love - December 10th choice

2009-12-05T21:32:00.000-08:00

It’s time to talk books with the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group!
When? Thursday, December 10th at 7 p.m.
Where? Fairfax Library meeting room
What Book? The History of Love by Nicole Krauss
Going Green: Instead of printing copies of background material for the meeting, it’s attached to this e-mail for you to read before or after our discussion or check out these links for more background info
Blog, blog, blog: Be sure to bookmark our book blog which has information about upcoming meeting dates and the books we've chosen: http://fairfaxbookgroup.blogspot.com/
Book Swap: If you’d like, please feel free to bring a wrapped book (it MUST be used) to exchange with others at our meeting.
Upcoming book selections:

Thursday, January 14th – we’ll discuss The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society By Annie Barrows and Mary Ann Shaffer
Winding up her book tour promoting her collection of lighthearted wartime newspaper columns, Juliet Ashton casts about for a more serious project. Opportunity comes in the form of a letter she receives from Mr. Dawsey Adams, who happens to possess a book that Julia once owned. Adams is a member of the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society-no ordinary book club. Rather, it was formed as a ruse and became a way for people to get together without raising the suspicions of Guernsey's Nazi occupiers. Written in the form of letters (a lost art), this novel by an aunt-and-niece team has loads of charm.

Thursday, February 11th – we’ll discuss Mister Pip by Lloyd Jones
When the conflict between the natives and the invading soldiers erupts on an unnamed tropical island in the early 1990s, 13-year-old Matilda and her mother, Dolores, are unified with the rest of their village in their efforts for survival. Amid the chaos, Mr. Watts, the only white local, offers to fill in as the children's schoolteacher and teaches from Dickens's Great Expectations. The precocious Matilda, who forms a strong attachment to the novel's hero, Pip, discovers independent thought. Jones's prose is faultless, and the story is innovative.

Thursday, March 11th – we’ll discuss The Little Giant of Aberdeen County by Tiffany Baker
Baker's brilliant debut is infused with vibrant language and quirky, original characters. Narrator Truly Plaice is unusually large and considered ugly. Growing up in rural Aberdeen in upstate New York in the 1950s, Truly finds shelter with the Dyersons, hard-luck people living on a farm at the outskirts of town. There, Truly and best friend Amelia Dyerson do their best to grow up. This book is both a work of literature and an easy read. Truly may struggle for love in the novel, but she will find no such trouble among readers; she is an unforgettable heroine with a story that begs to be read and read again.

I look forward to seeing you at the library.
Beth Bailey-Gates
Friends of the Fairfax Library

Into the Beautiful North Nov. 12th

2009-11-10T23:17:00.000-08:00

It’s time to talk books with the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group!

When? Thursday, November 12th at 7 p.m.

Where? Fairfax Library meeting room

What Book? Into the Beautiful North by Luis Alberto Urrea

Our December 10th book selection is The History of Love by Nicole Krauss

I look forward to seeing you at the library.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
INTO THE BEAUTIFUL NORTH by Luis Alberto Urrea

1. Into the Beautiful North tells the exceptional story of a small group’s successful mission to save their village in its bleakest hour. What are some of the other themes that Luis Alberto Urrea unpacks along the way?

2. Language and dialect play an integral role in the novel’s style. Spanish words and phonetic spellings are laced throughout, and Spanglish and slang are used on both sides of the border. What does Urrea achieve by mixing language in this way? What does it say about the ability of language to bridge --- or not to bridge --- cultural gaps?

3. Into the Beautiful North is divided into two parts—Sur and Norte. References to American pop culture abound in the first half as Nayeli and her friends speak of life across the border with unwavering certainty. Where do their ideas of America come from? How does the reality of their time in the U.S. compare to their initial ideas of it? Are they surprised or disappointed?

4. Nayeli tells García-García, “Perhaps it is time for a new kind of femininity?” What does she mean? Given the homage to The Magnificent Seven and Seven Samurai in the novel, how has Urrea played with gender stereotypes?

5. Into the Beautiful North examines physical and psychological borders. Urrea repeatedly shows that while the physical borders can be crossed, some that are culturally defined appear unbridgeable. What are those culturally defined differences, and do you think it’s possible to eradicate such invisible borders?

6. After traveling thousands of miles in search of her father, Nayeli is unable to confront him. In your opinion, does she make the right decision to heed his words at this time—“all things must pass”—or should she have approached him?

7. What do you make of the overwhelming turnout produced by Aunt Irma’s interviews? Why do so many men want to return to Mexico, and does this strike you as ironic?

8. Nayeli and her friends are inspired by the movie The Magnificent Seven, a remake of the Japanese film Seven Samurai. Both films climax with the showdown between good guys and bad guys, but Urrea ends his novel before such a clash. Why do you think he did so?

9. Were you surprised to find the Mexican characters so knowledgeable about American pop culture? If you were surprised, did it change how you think about Mexico?

10. The road travelled by immigrants intent on sneaking across the border is perilous. Were you surprised by how dangerous it was for immigrants in Mexico before they crossed the border?

11. Where did your family emigrate from? Did you recognize any parallels between your family stories and this one?

October 8th Meeting

2009-10-07T17:43:00.000-07:00

It’s time to talk books with the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group!

When? Thursday, October 8th at 7 p.m.
Where? Fairfax Library meeting room
What Book? The Song Is You by Arthur Phillips

check out these links for more background info

Do you have a soundtrack of your life? These folks do…
A playlist by Arthur Phillips
The soundtrack of my life
Favorite songs/personal soundtrack
make your own soundtrack

Do you have an iPod or mp3 player? I love my Zune and listen to it daily – podcasts more than music, though. Read how the iPod changed these lives:
How the ipod changed my life
iPod, Therefore I Am
iPod and the knowledge gap

Get even more info with BookMovement.com: Sign up with BookMovement.com for the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group and get book reviews and reminders.

Our November 12th book selection is Into the Beautiful North by Luis Alberto Urrea.

Our December 10th book selection is The History of Love by Nicole Krauss.

I look forward to seeing you at the library.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
The Song is You by Arthur Phillips

1. Julian is suffering something of a mid-life crisis. He looks back at the life he intended to live and sees the life he has created – even though he is seemingly successful in his field. Is such an experience inevitably disappointing? Have you experienced disappointment in your adult life?

2. Julian’s life is framed by the music he listens to on his iPod. What is the role of music in modern life? In your life?

3. Do you have a soundtrack of your life?

4. Is Julian an unlikeable protagonist? Is it possible to sympathize with an unlikeable protagonist? Can you give an example?

5. Is Julian’s behavior towards Cait explainable? Does he have Cait’s best interests at heart or is he not much more than a stalker?

6. Did you think the characters and their problems/decisions/relationships were believable or realistic? Was the author trying to make them realistic, and why did he fail or succeed? Were the characters drawn realistically? Which character could you relate to best and why? Talk about the secondary characters. Were they important to the story? Did any stand out for you?

7. A reviewer on SecondSupper.com described the book as a romantic anti-romance. Would you agree?

8. What is the central conflict of the plot? Is the conflict internal to the character (a psychological conflict)? Or is it external, having to do with character vs. character? Character vs. society? Character vs. nature?

9. What central ideas might the author be exploring in the novel's themes? Consider ideas about the nature of love, the requirements of goodness, the meaning of justice, the burden of the past...basic human issues that are at stake in the book.

10. Consider the ending. Did you expect it or were you surprised? Was it forced? Was it neatly wrapped up? Or was it unresolved, ending on an ambiguous note?

11. Overall—how did you experience the book while reading it? Were you immediately drawn into the story—or did it take a while? Did the book intrigue, amuse, disturb, alienate, or irritate you?

The Lace Reader

2009-09-07T21:26:00.000-07:00

It’s time to talk books with the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group!

When? Thursday, September 10th at 7 p.m.
Where? Fairfax Library meeting room
What Book? The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry

Going Green: Instead of printing copies of background material for the meeting, it’s attached to this e-mail for you to read before or after our discussion or check out these links for more background info:

Border’s on-line book club discusses The Lace Reader with author
Original Essay by Brunonia Barry – The Hero’s Journey for Women
Summary of the steps of the Hero’s Journey
Youtube trailer for the book (very dramatic – is this the future of book marketing?)
Lengthy interview with Brunonia Barry
Audio Interview with Barry

Our October 8th book selection is The Song is You by Arthur Phillips.

Our November 12th book selection is Into the Beautiful North by Luis Alberto Urrea.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS (from the publisher)
The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry

1. For centuries, women have used lace as an adornment for their clothes and as a decoration for their homes. Just a small piece of lace on a sleeve could evoke a sense of luxury, beauty, and elegance. How does your family use lace today? Is it used every day or only on special occasions?

2. Have any pieces of lace been passed down to you or someone else in your family? If so, what feelings do you associate with these heirloom pieces of lace?

3. The author states that The Lace Reader is, at its core, about perception vs. reality. How does Rafferty's perception of Towner color his judgment of what she says and does? What about Rafferty's perception of Cal and his actions?

4. At the very start of The Lace Reader, Towner Whitney, the protagonist, tells the reader that she's a liar and that she's crazy. By the end of the book do you agree with her?

5. Eva reveals that she speaks in clichés so that her words do not influence the choices made by the recipients of her lace reading sessions. Do you think that's possible? Can a cliché be so over used that it loses its original meaning?

6. When May comments on the relationship between Rafferty and Towner, she states that they are too alike and predicts that "You won't just break apart. You'll send each other flying." Did you agree with that when you read it? And if so, in what ways are Towner and Rafferty alike?

7. The handmade lace industry of Ipswich quickly vanished when lace-making machines were introduced. At that same moment, the economic freedom of the women making the handmade lace also evaporated. Why do you think that these women didn't update their business, buy the machines, and own a significant portion of the new lace-making industry?

8. Do you think that May's revival of the craft of handmade lace with the abused women on Yellow Dog Island is purely symbolic or could it be, in some way, very practical?

9. What role does religion play in the novel? Is there a difference between spirituality and religion? Between faith and blind faith?

10. Towner has a special bond with the dogs of Yellow Dog Island—do you agree that people and animals can relate to each other in extraordinary ways?

11. How do the excerpts from The Lace Reader's Guide and Towner's journal function in the novel? Does the written word carry more truth than the spoken? Did you use the clues in the Guide to help you understand the rest of the book?

12. How much does family history influence who a person becomes? Do you believe that certain traits or talents are genetic and can be inherited?

13. Is it possible that twins share a unique bond? How does being a twin affect Towner?

14. Can geography influence personality? For instance, May lives on an island, does this say something about her? What does living in Marin say about you?

15. If you could learn to read lace and see things about your future, would you?

The Lost City of Z discussion

2009-08-12T23:02:00.000-07:00

It’s time to talk books with the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group!

When? Thursday, August 13th at 7 p.m.

What Book? The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon by David Grann

(Please let me know if you can join us.)

Going Green: Instead of printing copies of background material for the meeting, it’s attached for you to read before or after our discussion or check out these links for more background info:

The Hunt for Colonel Fawcett

Bio of Percy Fawcett and his expeditions

Book Review from The Nation

Video of The Lost Cities of the Amazon on National Geographic

Scientific American slideshow with pics of Heckenberg’s archeology findings -

Dissent in the Royal Geographic Society?

Was Percy Fawcett the last of his kind? Read this 2007 Obit of Gene Savoy

Coming Up Next:
Our next book for Thursday, September 10th is The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry

Our following book for Thursday, October 8th is The Song is You by Arthur Phillips.

Free books! Our group won 10 copies of The Song is You and I’ll be handing them out to anyone who is interested at our meeting this week.

Beth Bailey-Gates
Friends of the Fairfax Library

August and September books

2009-07-13T17:26:00.000-07:00

Read with the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group!

Thursday, August 13th : The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon

Our next book selection is The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon by David Grann which we’ll discuss on Thursday, August 13th. There are holds on the book at the library so be sure to reserve your copy soon!

Read more about The Lost City of Z (with maps and photos) at the author’s website.

Thursday, September 10th : The Lace Reader

On Thursday, September 10th, we’ll discuss The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry. This is a great summer read - I think you’ll enjoy it.

Brunonia Barry also has an author website with lots of good, fun information.

I look forward to seeing you at the library.

Beth Bailey-Gates
Friends of the Fairfax Library

July 9 Book Discussion

2009-07-08T16:24:00.000-07:00

It’s time to talk books with the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group!

When? Thursday, July 9th at 7 p.m.
Where? Fairfax Library meeting room
What Book? The Emperor’s Children by Claire Messud

Going Green: Instead of printing copies of background material for the meeting, it’s attached to this e-mail for you to read before or after our discussion or check out these links for more background info

Rothko Prints
Natasha and Pierre in War and Peace

Our next book selection is The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon by David Grann which we’ll discuss on Thursday, August 13th. There are holds on the book at the library so be sure to reserve your copy soon!

I look forward to seeing you at the library.

Beth Bailey-Gates
Friends of the Fairfax Library

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
The Emperor’s Children by Claire Messud

1. At the novel’s onset, most of the characters are outside New York. Why might Messud have chosen to begin in this manner? At what other points in the book do the characters leave the city, and with what results?

2. Which of the novel’s characters strikes you as its moral center? Is it Bootie, who comes to New York with such high ideals and easily rankled feelings? Is it Danielle, who has lived there long enough to feel at home but who still sees its pretensions and absurdities? With which of these characters is the reader meant to identify? Whose judgments seem the most reliable? And what flaws or blind spots afflict them?

3. Julius is obsessed with the characters of Pierre and Natasha from War and Peace, longing to be the sparkling Natasha but fearing he’s really more like the brooding, self-conscious Pierre. Bootie is constantly quoting Emerson. Which of the other characters has an emblematic book, and what role do those books play in their lives, in the way they see the world, and, of course, the way they see themselves? Is Julius anything like Pierre or Natasha? Does Bootie really live up to Emerson’s criterion of genius? At what points do they similarly misread other characters?

4. Almost everybody in The Emperor’s Children envies, and is intimidated by, somebody else. Julius, for instance, is in awe of Marina’s self-confidence and envious of her sense of entitlement. Marina is cowed by her father. Poor Bootie is a virtual pressure cooker of indiscriminate awe and resentment. What do Messud’s characters feel insecure about? Is there anyone in the book who seems truly comfortable with him or herself or any relationship that seems to be conducted by equals? Would you say that awe and envy are this novel’s dominant emotions?

5. Marina, we learn, frequently accompanies Murray to public functions, and is sometimes mistaken for his “trophy wife” [p. 40]. Does their relationship strike you as incestuous [p. 121]? Compare Marina’s unfolding relationship with Ludovic to her bond with her father. Do you think that Ludovic—incidentally, the only major character who is seen entirely from the outside—really loves Marina or is merely using her, and if so for what purpose?

6. Just as Marina has symbolically taken over her mother’s role, “Danielle had the peculiar sensation of having usurped her friend’s role in the Thwaite family, and more than that, of having usurped it at some moment in the distant past, a decade or more ago: she felt like a teenager . . and she was suddenly, powerfully aware of the profound oddity of Marina’s present life, a life arrested at, or at least returned to, childhood” [p. 46]. How many of the other characters seem similarly suspended? Which of them seems like a full-grown adult, and what does it mean to be an adult in the scheme of this novel? If Danielle has indeed usurped Marina’s place, what is the significance of her affair with Marina’s father? Which of the other characters takes on another character’s role, and for what reasons?

7. When pressed to take a job, Marina confesses, “I worry that that will make me ordinary, like everybody else” [p. 74]. To what extent are other characters possessed by the same fear, and how do they defend themselves against it? Do they have a common idea of what constitutes ordinariness? Can ordinariness even exist in a social world in which everyone is constantly, feverishly striving to be unique? Is it possible that Marina is just lazy and prevaricating in her charming way?

8. With his high-flown ambitions, his indolence, and his appalling sense of hygiene, Bootie initially seems like a comic character. But in the course of the novel Messud’s portrait of him darkens until he comes to seem either sinister or tragic—perhaps both. How does she accomplish this? Which other characters does she gradually reveal in a different light? Compare Messud’s shifting portrayal of Bootie to her handling of Julius and Danielle. In what ways do they too evade or defy the reader’s initial expectations about them?

9. On similar lines, both Ludovic and Bootie denounce Murray as a fraud while Bootie in particular prides himself on his sincerity. But is such sincerity a good thing? What other characters embrace that virtue, and with what results? Compare Bootie’s frank literary assessment of his uncle with Murray’s frank critique of his daughter’s manuscript, or his even franker response to Bootie’s essay. When in this novel does honesty turn out to be a pretext for something else? And when do subterfuge and deception turn out to be acts of kindness?

10. Murray feels that his mother’s efforts at improving him succeeded only in “turning her boy into someone, something, she couldn’t understand”. By contrast, he thinks, Marina has been paralyzed by the very expansiveness of her upbringing. What does this novel have to say about parents and children? Which of the Emperor’s children has proved a disappointment? Does any parent in this novel (Murray, Annabel, Judy, Randy) truly understand his or her offspring? And is it good for said offspring to be understood?

11. Some of Messud’s characters begin the novel in a state of happiness and others attain it, but nearly all of them see their happiness threatened or even shattered. How does this come about? Which of them is the victim of outside forces and which is responsible for his or her fall? How would you describe this novel’s vision of happiness? Considering that the typical comedy has a happy (or happy-ish) ending, what do you make of the fact that so many of Messud’s characters end up bereft or disappointed?

12. Among this novel’s many characters, one has to include the character of New York City. How does Messud bring the city to life? Compare Murray’s New York with that of Marina, Danielle, Bootie, and Julius. What is it that draws the characters to prove themselves in New York?

13. What role do the events of September 11, 2001, play in The Emperor’s Children? Are there other points when history—or reality—impinges on the safe and mostly privileged world its characters inhabit? What is the significance of Annabel Thwaite’s client DeVaughn or results of Julius and David’s affair? Does the ending make sense when compared with the rest of the novel?

14. Ludovic repeatedly declares that he wants to make a revolution with his magazine The Monitor, but what is the magazine supposed to be about? Lest we think that The Emperor’s Children is merely a satire of the New York media, what other highly touted ideas in this novel turn out to be light on substance, and what does this suggest about the value of ideas at this historical moment?

15. In addition to reading, many of Messud’s people are also engaged in writing: Marina has her book-in-progress and Murray has his (which he’s thinking of calling How to Live), and Bootie has his essay on Murray (and Murray’s book). What is their relationship to their writing? What do they hope to achieve through it? How do other characters respond to it? Does Messud give us any indication as to which of these characters’ work is good (or genuine) and which is failed or fraudulent?

16. Messud introduces her characters through their environments: the womblike bathroom where Bootie soaks in hot water and serious literature; the Thwaites’ resplendent Central Park West apartment; and Danielle’s pristine, aesthetically climate-controlled studio. What do these spaces tell us about their occupants? Why might the author have used this rather old-fashioned way of ushering us into a novel set in 2001? Where else does she employ the techniques of an earlier age of literature?

To Kill A Mockingbird

2009-06-02T23:00:00.000-07:00

It’s time to talk books with the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group!

When? Thursday, June 4th at 7 p.m.
Where? Fairfax Library meeting room
What Book? To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Going Green: Instead of printing copies of background material for the meeting, it’s attached to this e-mail for you to read before or after our discussion or check out these links for more background info:

Historical background
Reconstructing Atticus Finch
Prejudice and Tolerance in To Kill A Mockingbird:
Growing up white in the 1930’s South
Growing up black in 1930’s Alabama
Photos of 1930’s racial discrimination signs

On Thursday, July 9th, we’ll discuss The Emperor’s Children by Claire Messud

"Beautiful, Ivy League–educated, and the daughter of a renowned journalist, Marina Thwaite lives in New York City along with two close friends from Brown. All three are just barely 30 and making their way into adulthood. The group orbits around the post September 11 city with disconcerting entitlement. Messud’s comedy of manners is extremely well written and features characters that come alive. This wonderful read is an insightful look at our time and the decisions people make."

I look forward to seeing you at the library.
Beth Bailey-Gates
Friends of the Fairfax Library

Discussion Questions
To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

1. How do Scout, Jem, and Dill characterize Boo Radley at the beginning of the book? In what way did Boo's past history of violence foreshadow his method of protecting Jem and Scout from Bob Ewell? Does this repetition of aggression make him more or less of a sympathetic character?

2. In Scout's account of her childhood, her father Atticus reigns supreme. How would you characterize his abilities as a single parent? How would you describe his treatment of Calpurnia and Tom Robinson vis a vis his treatment of his white neighbors and colleagues? How would you typify his views on race and class in the larger context of his community and his peers?

3. The title of Lee's book is alluded to when Atticus gives his children air rifles and tells them that they can shoot all the bluejays they want, but "it's a sin to kill a mockingbird." At the end of the novel, Scout likens the "sin" of naming Boo as Bob Ewell's killer to "shootin' a mockingbird." Do you think that Boo is the only innocent, or mockingbird, in this novel?

4. Scout ages two years-from six to eight-over the course of Lee's novel, which is narrated from her perspective as an adult. Did you find the account her narrator provides believable? Were there incidents or observations in the book that seemed unusually "knowing" for such a young child? What event or episode in Scout's story do you feel truly captures her personality?

5. To Kill a Mockingbird has been challenged repeatedly by the political left and right, who have sought to remove it from libraries for its portrayal of conflict between children and adults; ungrammatical speech; references to sex, the supernatural, and witchcraft; and unfavorable presentation of blacks. Which elements of the book-if any-do you think touch on controversial issues in our contemporary culture? Did you find any of those elements especially troubling, persuasive, or insightful?

6. Jem describes to Scout the four "folks" or classes of people in Maycomb County: "…our kind of folks don't like the Cunninghams, the Cunninghams don't like the Ewells, and the Ewells hate and despise the colored folks." What do you think of the ways in which Lee explores race and class in 1930s Alabama? What significance, if any, do you think these characterizations have for people living in other parts of the world?

7. One of the chief criticisms of To Kill a Mockingbird is that the two central storylines -- Scout, Jem, and Dill's fascination with Boo Radley and the trial between Mayella Ewell and Tom Robinson -- are not sufficiently connected in the novel. Do you think that Lee is successful in incorporating these different stories? Were you surprised at the way in which these story lines were resolved? Why or why not?

8. By the end of To Kill a Mockingbird, the book's first sentence: "When he was thirteen, my brother Jem got his arm badly broken at the elbow," has been explained and resolved. What did you think of the events that followed the Halloween pageant? Did you think that Bob Ewell was capable of injuring Scout or Jem? How did you feel about Boo Radley's last-minute intervention?

9. What elements of this book did you find especially memorable, humorous, or inspiring? Are there individual characters whose beliefs, acts, or motives especially impressed or surprised you? Did any events in this book cause you to reconsider your childhood memories or experiences in a new light?

The Book of Salt

2009-05-13T22:00:00.000-07:00

It’s time to talk books with the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group!

When? Thursday, May 14th at 7 p.m.
Where? Fairfax Library meeting room
What Book? The Book of Salt by Monique Truong

Going Green: Instead of printing copies of background material for the meeting, it’s attached to this e-mail for you to read before or after our discussion or check out these links for more background info:

A little history of French colonization of Vietnam
Another short history of French colonization in Vietnam
A history of French colonization (with pictures!)

Some interesting background on Gertrude Stein

If you’re really interested, a play of Gertrude Stein’s is being produced in SF this month.

As always, refreshments will be served. Since we’re discussing Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas, it might be appropriate to think about serving Toklas’ famous Haschich Fudge.

Coming up next: On Thursday, June 11th, we’ll discuss To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee.

And on Thursday, July 9th, we’ll discuss The Emperor’s Children by Claire Messud

I look forward to seeing you at the library.

Beth Bailey-Gates
Friends of the Fairfax Library

New books chosen for discussion

2009-04-13T13:08:00.000-07:00

The Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group has chosen the books we’ll read and discuss together in the next three months. Our meetings for the next three months will be on the second Thursday of the month at 7 pm in the meeting room of the Fairfax Library.

On Thursday, May 14th, we’ll discuss The Book of Salt by Monique Truong.

Set in Paris during the late 1920s and early 1930s, this uniquely told tale by debut novelist Truong features Binh, the fictionalized Vietnamese cook to literary figures Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas. Early in the novel, readers are whisked inside 27 rue de Fleurus, the real-life residence of the two women, as Binh judiciously describes the daily nuances of his life as well as his own equally intriguing biography. The novel portrays varying dimensions of love as readers observe the relationships between Stein and Toklas, Binh and his lover Sweet Sunday Man, and the Old Man and Binh's mother. From a culinary perspective, this work is a sensual treat .

On Thursday, June 11th, we’ll discuss To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee.

Lawyer Atticus Finch defends the real mockingbird of Harper Lee's classic, Puliter Prize-winning novel--a black man charged with the rape of a white woman. Through the eyes of Atticus's children, Scout and Jem Finch, Harper Lee explores with rich humor and unswerving honesty the irrationality of adult attitudes toward race and class in the Deep South of the 1930's.

On Thursday, July 9th, we’ll discuss The Emperor’s Children by Claire Messud

Beautiful, Ivy League–educated, and the daughter of a renowned journalist, Marina Thwaite lives in New York City along with two close friends from Brown. All three are just barely 30 and making their way into adulthood. The group orbits around the post September 11 city with disconcerting entitlement. Messud’s comedy of manners is extremely well written and features characters that come alive. This wonderful read is an insightful look at our time and the decisions people make.

Thanks for reading with us!

Beth Bailey-Gates
Friends of the Fairfax Library

March discussion - A Bend in the River

2009-03-03T23:16:00.000-08:00

It’s time to talk books with the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group!

When? Thursday, March 5th at 7 p.m.
Where? Fairfax Library meeting room
What Book? A Bend in the River by V.S. Naipaul

Discussion questions are below and check out these links for more background info

The Enigma of V. S. Naipaul
Colonial Desire and Disappointment in V. S. Naipaul
V.S. Naipaul, Nikolai Gogol, and the illumination of darkness
Civilization and V. S. Naipaul

Our next book selection is the One Book/One Marin selection, What is the What by Dave Eggers which we’ll discuss on Thursday, April 2nd.

A shameless plug – All month long in March, Bookbeat offers you a free tea or espresso every time you buy a book. Bookbeat is also featuring live acoustic music every morning. Stop by and ask Gary for one of his book recommendations.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
A Bend in the River by V.S. Naipaul

1. "The world is what it is; men who are nothing, who allow themselves to become nothing, have no place in it."Salim says, “For people like myself…the world was really quite a simple place…the less educated we were, the more at peace we were, the more easily we were carried along by our civilization…” (p. 54) Socrates said, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” Is Salim describing an unexamined life? Are these philosophies complimentary or contrasting?

2. The motto of Ferdinand’s lycee was Semper Aliquid Novi – always something new. Father Huisman’s masks lived up to the motto since masks were made for specific religious purposes. Pliny, according to the Oxford Dictionary of Quotations, first said, Semper aliquid novi Africam adferre. Africa always brings [us] something new. Has the truth of Pliny’s statement been proved over the centuries?

3. Are there comparisons to be made between Salim’s experience in a newly independent African country with soldiers and tribal warfare and the experiences of Alexandra Fuller’s family as described in her memoir, Don’t Let’s Go To The Dogs Tonight?

4. On p. 21, “For Europe it was one little probe. For the Arabs of central Africa it was their all; the Arabian energy that had pushed them into Africa had died down at its source… Arab power had vanished.” On p. 76, “slave peoples are physically wretches, half-men in everything except their capacity to breed the next generation” Naipaul makes some very provocative statements in his book. Do these statements advance the story? Are they distracting in their provocation? Is Naipaul racist?

5. What were the differences between the Africa of the “Domain” and the Africa of Salim’s village? Were either the real Africa?

6. A reviewer in The Nation wrote, “In the last reckoning, A Bend in the River is about homelessness.” What does he mean by this? Would you agree that the novel is essentially about homelessness?

7. Speaking about leaving his hometown and family to go to England, Indar says, "It isn't easy to turn your back on the past. It is something you have to arm yourself for, or grief will ambush and destroy you. That is why I hold onto the image of the garden trampled to the ground--it is a small thing, but it helps" (141). Does Naipaul mourn the lost past of Africa or look forward to a new and better Africa?

8. Many writers wax poetic about the purity of the simple life of natives like those of the Bush country in Africa. How does Naipaul describe the African natives such as Zabeth?

9. How does Naipaul describe “the Big Man”? Is he a good ruler of his country? Does he offer hope for a better future in Africa?

10. When Salim first meets Raymond, Raymond says, “I began to wonder…whether the truth ever gets known…Time, the discoverer of truth. I know. It’s the classical idea, the religious idea. But there are times when you begin to wonder. Do we really know the history of the Roman Empire? Do we really know what went on during the conquest of Gaul? I was sitting in my room and thinking with sadness about all the things that have gone unrecorded. Do you think we will ever get to know the truth about what has happened in Africa in the last hundred or even fifty years?” In the beginning of the novel, Salim noted that all he knew about the world was from European history books. What does this say about African history or even world history? Is it important to know the truth of history? Are some things in history better forgotten?

11. What kind of man was Raymond - educated and married to a much younger woman and working as the “Big Man’s white man” and the town cuckold?

12. The description of Salim beating Yvette is very violent and graphic. How does the fictional beating compare to the reality of Naipaul’s confession of beating the women in his life in his new biography?

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao

2009-02-04T20:23:00.000-08:00

It’s time to talk books with the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group!

When? Thursday, February 5th at 7 p.m.

Where? Fairfax Library meeting room

What Book? The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Díaz

(Our next book selection is A Bend in the River by V.S. Naipaul which we’ll discuss on Thursday, March 5th.)

Check out these links for background information about Trujillo and the Dominican Republic:

Info about Trujillo http://www.colonialzone-dr.com/people_history-Trujillo.html

History of Dominican Republic http://www.everyculture.com/Cr-Ga/Dominican-Republic.html

Lonely Planet travel guide http://www.lonelyplanet.com/dominican-republic

Discussion Questions provided by the publisher for The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao are below:

1. Throughout the novel, Spanish words and phrases appear unaccompanied by their English translations. What is the effect of this seamless blending of Spanish and English? How would the novel have been different if Díaz had stopped to provide English translations at every turn? Why does Díaz not italicize the Spanish words (the way foreign words are usually italicized in English-language text)?

2. The book centers on the story of Oscar and his family—and yet the majority of the book is narrated by Yunior, who is not part of the family, and only plays a relatively minor role in the events of the story. Yunior even calls himself “The Watcher,” underscoring his outsider status in the story. What is the effect of having a relative outsider tell the story of Oscar and his family, rather than having someone in the family tell it? And why do you think Díaz waits for so long at the beginning of the book to reveal who the narrator is?

3. Díaz, in the voice of the narrator, often employs footnotes to explain the history or context of a certain passage or sentence in the main text. Why do you think he chose to convey historical facts and anecdotes in footnote form? How would the novel have read differently if the content of the footnotes had been integrated into the main text? What if the footnotes (and the information in them) had been eliminated altogether?

4. In many ways, Yunior and Oscar are polar opposites. While Yunior can get as many women as he wants, he seems to have little capacity for fidelity or true love. Oscar, by contrast, holds love above all else—and yet cannot find a girlfriend no matter how hard he tries. Is it fair to say that Yunior is Oscar’s foil—underscoring everything Oscar is not—and vice versa? Or are they actually more alike than they seem on the surface?

5. The narrator says “Dominicans are Caribbean and therefore have an extraordinary tolerance for extreme phenomena. How else could we have survived what we survived?” (p. 149). What does he mean by that? Could Oscar’s obsession with science fiction and the “speculative genres” be seen as a kind of extension of his ancestors’ belief in “extreme phenomena”? Was that his method of coping?

6. Yunior characterizes himself as a super macho, womanizing jock-type—and yet in narrating the book, his writing is riddled with reference to nerdy topics like the Fantastic Four and Lord of the Rings. In other words, there seems to be a schism between Yunior the character and Yunior the writer. Why do you think that is? What could Díaz be trying to say by making Yunior’s character so seemingly contradictory?

7. For Oscar, his obsession with fantasy and science fiction becomes isolating, separating him from his peers so much so that he almost cannot communicate with them—as if he speaks a different language (and at one point he actually speaks in Elvish). How are other characters in the book—for instance, Belicia growing up in the Dominican Republic, or Abelard under the dictatorship of Trujillo, similarly isolated? And how are their forms of isolation different?

8. We know from the start that Oscar is destined to die in the course of the book—the title suggests as much, and there are references to his death throughout the book (“Mister. Later [Lola would] want to put that on his gravestone but no one would let her, not even me.” (p. 36)). Why do you think Díaz chose to reveal this from the start? How does Díaz manage to create suspense and hold the reader’s attention even though we already know the final outcome for Oscar? Did it actually make the book more suspenseful, knowing that Oscar was going to die?

9. In one of the footnotes the narrator posits that writers and dictators are not simply natural antagonists, as Salman Rushdie has said, but are actually in competition with one another because they are essentially in the same business (p. 97). What does he mean by that? How can a writer be a kind of dictator? Is the telling of a story somehow inherently tyrannical? Do you think Díaz actually believes that he is in some way comparable to Trujillo? If so, does Díaz try to avoid or subvert that in any way?

10. The author, the primary narrator, and the protagonist of the book are all male, but some of the strongest characters and voices in the book (La Inca, Belicia, Lola) are female. Who do you think makes the strongest, boldest decisions in the book? Given the machismo and swagger of the narrative voice, how does the author express the strength of the female characters? Do you think there is an intentional comment in the contrast between that masculine voice and the strong female characters?

11. There are a few chapters in the book in which Lola takes over the narration and tells her story in her own words. Why do you think it is important to the novel to let Lola have a chance to speak for herself? Do you think Díaz is as successful in creating a female narrative voice as he is the male one?

12. How much of her own story do you think Belicia shared with her children? How much do you think Belicia knew about her father Abelard’s story?

13. The image of a mongoose with golden eyes and the a man without a face appear at critical moments and to various characters throughout the book. What do these images represent? Why do you think Díaz chose these images in particular? When they do appear, do you think you are supposed to take them literally? For instance, did you believe that a mongoose appeared to Belicia and spoke to her? Did she believe it?

14. While Oscar’s story is central to the novel, the book is not told in his voice, and there are many chapters in which Oscar does not figure at all, and others in which he only plays a fairly minor role. Who do you consider the true protagonist of the novel? Oscar? Yunior? Belicia? The entire de Leon and Cabral family? The fukú?

15. Oscar is very far from the traditional model of a “hero.” Other characters in the book are more traditionally heroic, making bold decisions on behalf of others to protect them—for instance, La Inca rescuing young Belicia, or Abelard trying to protect his daughters. In the end, do you think Oscar is heroic or foolish? And are those other characters—La Inca, Abelard—more or less heroic than Oscar?

16. During the course of the book, many of the characters try to teach Oscar many things—especially Yunior, who tries to teach him how to lose weight, how to attract women, how to behave in social situations. Do any characters not try to teach Oscar anything, and just accept him as who he is? How much does Oscar actually learn from anyone? And in the end, what does Oscar teach Yunior, and the other characters if anything?

Thursday meeting, People of the Book

2009-01-04T23:58:00.000-08:00

Our next discussion will be this Thursday, January 8th at 7 p.m. in the meeting room of the Fairfax Library.

People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks

Check out this link for photos of the actual Sarajevo Haggadah.
And check out this link for the article Brooks wrote for The New Yorker detailing the history of the Sarajevo Haggadah.

Discussion questions for the book are below.

FEBRUARY, 2009
Our February 5th choice for discussion is
The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Díaz.
(From Publisher’s Weekly) "This dark and exuberant first novel makes a compelling case for the multiperspectival view of a life, wherein an individual cannot be known or understood in isolation from the history of his family and his nation. The various nationalities and generations are subtended by the recurring motif of fukú, the Curse and Doom of the New World, whose midwife and... victim was a historical personage Diaz will only call the Admiral, in deference to the belief that uttering his name brings bad luck (hint: he arrived in the New World in 1492 and his initials are CC). By the prologue's end, it's clear that this story of one poor guy's cursed life will also be the story of how 500 years of historical and familial bad luck shape the destiny of its fat, sad, smart, lovable and short-lived protagonist."

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks

1. When Hanna implores Ozren to solicit a second opinion on Alia’s condition, he becomes angry and tells her, “Not every story has a happy ending.” (p. 37). To what extent do you believe that their perspectives on tragedy and death are cultural? To what extent are they personal?

2. Isak tells Mordechai, “At least the pigeon does no harm. The hawk lives at the expense of other creatures that dwell in the desert.” (p.50). If you were Lola, would you have left the safety of your known life and gone to Palestine? Is it better to live as a pigeon or a hawk? Or is there an alternative?

3. When Father Vistorni asks Rabbi Judah Ayreh to warn the printer that the Church disapproves of one of their recently published texts, Ayreh tells him, “better you do it than to have us so intellectually enslaved that we do it for you.” (p.156). Do you agree or disagree with his argument? With the way he handled Vistorni’s request?

4. What was it, ultimately, that made Father Vistorini approve the Haggadah? Since Brooks leaves this part of the story unclear, how do you imagine it made its way from his rooms to Sarajevo?

5. Several of the novel’s female characters lived in the pre-feminist era and certainly fared poorly at the hands of men. Does the fact that she was pushing for gender equality—not to mention saving lives—justify Sarah Heath’s poor parenting skills? Would women’s rights be where they are today if it weren’t for women like her?

7. Have you ever been in a position where your professional judgment has been called into question? How did you react?

8. Was Hanna being fair to suspect only Amitai of the theft? Do you think charges should have been pressed against the culprits?

9. How did Hanna change after discovering the truth about her father? Would the person she was before her mother’s accident have realized that she loved Ozren? Or risked the dangers involved in returning the codex?

10. The Haggadah's fate illuminates the prejudice and mindless persecution that fills the history of the world. Ozren wonders why more people do not realize "that to be a human being matters more than to be Jew or a Muslim, [or a] Catholic." Does this novel illustrate the necessity of diversity and tolerance in the world for you? Or is it a story of individuals valuing history and art more than religious differences?

11. When do we consider loss in our own lives? What cost and what effect does loss have on our everyday existence? Is it traumatic only when a loved one passes or is there more of a sense of collective loss when looking at centuries of war, loss of life or needless destruction of towns and cities? How do we measure that loss compared to a loss of love or even when a beloved object goes missing?

12. There is an amazing array of “people of the book”—both base and noble—whose lifetimes span some remarkable periods in human history. Who is your favorite and why?

13. People of the Book details time periods through history when Jews, Christians and Muslims lived together in harmony and also describes uglier times when they warred. The survival of the book is a testament to tolerance. Does that history have any relevance for today’s current events?

14. People of the Book tells several stories in the present day and 5 historical periods, Sarajevo in 1940, Vienna in 1894, Venice in 1609, Barcelona in 1492 and Seville 1480. Did any of those historical time periods strike a chord with you?

Dec. 4th Confessions of a Pagan Nun

2008-12-02T21:56:00.000-08:00

It's time to talk books with the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group!

Confessions of a Pagan Nun

When? Thursday,December 4th at 7 p.m.
Where? Fairfax Library meeting room
What Book? Confessions of a Pagan Nun by Kate Horsley

Discussion questions for the book are below.

Our next book selection (for January 8th) is People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks.
Late one night in the city of Sydney, Hanna Heath, a rare book conservator, gets a phone call. The Sarajevo Haggadah , which disappeared during the siege in 1992, has been found, and Hanna has been invited by the U.N. to report on its condition. Missing documents and art works are endlessly appealing, and from this inviting premise Brooks spins her story in two directions. In the present, we follow the resolutely independent Hanna through her thrilling first encounter with the beautifully illustrated codex and her discovery of the tiny signs that will help her to discover its provenance. In the other strand of the narrative we learn, moving backward through time, how the codex came to be lost and found, and made. From Publishers Weekly Review.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Confessions of a Pagan Nun

1. How much of this novel is a true story?

2. Is the novel an attack on Christianity?

3. Does the novel reflect a post-modern sensibility that all native traditions are superior to the Western/Invader culture?

4. Does the novel present a feminist’s story and perspective?

5. How are marriage and male/female relations presented in the novel?

6. How do the Pelagians and Druids differ from the Christians in the novel?

7. What is the significance of words and writing? Of education?

8. What purposes do chastity and celibacy serve in the story?

9. What is the significance of the various incidents of mutilation in the book?

10. What was the relationship like between Giannon and Gwynneve? Why did Giannon hide his identity from Gwynneve in the monastery?

November 6th Hannah Coulter discussion

2008-11-05T21:04:00.000-08:00

It’s time to talk books with the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group!

When? Thursday, November 6th at 7 p.m.
Where? Fairfax Library meeting room
What Book? Hannah Coulter by Wendell Berry

(Our next discussion will take place on Thursday, December 4th. We’ll be discussing Confessions of a Pagan Nun by Kate Horsley)

Wendell Berry is a distinguished and respected novelist and essayist. He has written several novels and short stories about the residents of Port William, Kentucky. His first novel was, Nathan Coulter, published in 1960. His latest is Hannah Coulter.

Check out these links to some of his essays:
Thoughts in the Presence of Fear
The Pleasures of Eating
Compromise, Hell!

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Hannah Coulter by Wendell Berry

1. Hannah Coulter is a story of a woman’s life and lifetime told by a man, Wendell Berry. Does the author do a credible job of writing from a woman’s perspective and with a woman’s language?

2. Consider Hannah’s Grandmam, Mrs. Feltner and the other women of Port William. What are the women described in Hannah Coulter like? Would you call them “liberated”? Realistic?

3. Describe the concept of “the membership.” Do you have a reliable person or group you can go to for help when you need it? Do you offer your services to anyone?

4. How does Hannah describe her marriages? Does her description of marriage seem modern or old-fashioned? Realistic?

5. Hannah says in the book,"The stream and the woods don't care if you love them. The place doesn't care if you love it. But for your own sake you had better love it. For the sake of all else you love, you had better love it. " Place is very important in all of Wendell Berry’s novels. His characters are very grounded in their community. Does this lifestyle still exist anywhere in our country? Has our community lost anything by being so mobile and disconnected?

6. Hannah describes her sadness that each of her children left the farm and community. She largely blames their education for taking them away. Do you agree? Were there other forces at work?

7. Why does Nathan refuse to talk about the war? What did Hannah learn in her research about the Battle of Okinawa and the war in the Pacific?
What role does religion play in the novel?

8. Why does Burley refuse to buy a tractor? Are the old ways better or is he being foolish?

9. Is Berry overly sentimental about a disappearing way of life?

10. How accepting of illegal immigrants or drug dealers would the Port William community be?

11. Several recent bestselling non-fiction books such as Omnivore’s Dilemma, In Defense of Food and Animal, Vegetable, Miracle encourage readers to consider a more sustainable lifestyle, including sustainable farming. Is the lifestyle described in Hannah Coulter more morally defensible than suburban or urban living? Do Berry’s writings describe a lifestyle of the past or a lifestyle of the future?

4th quarter books chosen!

2008-09-13T12:14:00.000-07:00

The Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group has chosen the books we'll read and discuss together in the next 3 months. All of our meetings are on the first Thursday of the month at 7 pm in the meeting room of the Fairfax Library.

On Thursday, October 2nd, we'll discuss Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight by Alexandra Fuller.

Fuller writes poignantly about a girl becoming a woman and a writer against a backdrop of unrest, not just in her country (Africa) but in her home. The story of one woman's unbreakable bond with a continent and the people who inhabit it, a portrait lovingly realized and deeply felt.

On Thursday, November 6th, we'll discuss Hannah Coulter by Wendell Berry.

A brilliant and inspiring novel that is filled with the truth of an inherent wisdom imprinted on the soul. Berry has captured the intrinsic nature of man and it is defined by God, family, community, and "place."

On Thursday, December 4th, we'll discuss Confessions of a Pagan Nun by Kate Horsley

A fictional memoir of a nun during Ireland's Dark Ages. Gwynneve's story is one of adventure, joy, and loss. She whispers to us the wisdom she isn't yet aware she has written herself. This powerful little book will be deeply
satisfying for many readers.

I look forward to seeing you at the Fairfax Library.

Thanks for reading with us!

Let's Discuss The Madonnas of Leningrad

2008-08-04T20:26:00.000-07:00

It's time to talk books with the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group!

When? Thursday, August 7th at 7 p.m.
Where? Fairfax Library meeting room
What Book? The Madonnas of Leningrad by Debra Dean

Discussion questions for the book are below.

A September Special: In our upcoming September 4th meeting, we'll discuss Broken for You by Stephanie Kallos. The author, Stephanie Kallos, has e-mailed me to ask if there is anything she can do to help our discussion of her book. Please let me know if you have any questions you'd like to ask her after you read the book.

With a riotous energy that recalls the works of John Irving and Anne Tyler, Broken for You is a debut novel of infinite charm and tremendous heart that explores the risks and rewards of human connection, and the hidden strength behind things that only seem fragile. When we meet septuagenarian Margaret Hughes, she is living alone in a mansion in Seattle with only a massive collection of valuable antiques for company. Enter Wanda Schultz, a young woman with a broken heart who has come west to search for her wayward boyfriend. Both women are guarding dark secrets and have spent many years building up protective armor against the outside world. But as the two begin their tentative dance of friendship, the armor begins to fall away and Margaret opens her house to Wanda. Funny, heartbreaking, and alive with a potpourri of eccentric and irresistible characters, Broken for You is a testament to the saving graces of surrogate families, and shows how far the tiniest repair jobs can go in righting the world's wrongs. Book Jacket

Get even more info with BookMovement.com: Sign up with BookMovement.com and get book reviews, reminders and more. This is a nice website that offers additional information and reviews of books. We've set up a home page for othe Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group that tracks the books we've read, books we're currently reading and offers suggestions for future reads. The site will also send you an e-mail reminder of upcoming meetings. Here is a link to our book club home page: http://www.bookmovement.com/app/club/view.php?clubID=2059

Discussion Questions
The Madonnas of Leningrad by Debra Dean

1. The working of memory is a key theme of this novel. As a young woman, remembering the missing paintings is a deliberate act of survival and homage for Marina. In old age, however, she can no longer control what she remembers or forgets. "More distressing than the loss of words is the way that time contracts and fractures and drops her in unexpected places." How has Dean used the vagaries of Marina's memory to structure the novel? How does the narrative itself mimic the ways in which memory functions?

2. Sometimes, Marina finds consolations within the loss of her short-term memory. "One of the effects of this deterioration seems to be that as the scope of her attention narrows, it also focuses like a magnifying glass on smaller pleasures that have escaped her notice for years." Is aging merely an accumulation of deficits or are there gifts as well?

3. The narrative is interspersed with single-page chapters describing a room or a painting in the Hermitage Museum. Who is describing these paintings and what is the significance of the paintings chosen? How is each interlude connected to the chapter that follows?

4. The historical period of The Madonnas of Leningrad begins with the outbreak of war. How is war portrayed in this novel? How is this view of World War II different from or similar to other accounts you have come across?

5. Even though she says of herself that she is not a "believer," in what ways is Marina spiritual? Discuss Marina's faith: how does her spirituality compare with conventional religious belief? How do religion and miracles figure in this novel? What are the miracles that occur in The Madonnas of Leningrad?

6. A central mystery revolves around Andre's conception. Marina describes a remarkable incident on the roof of the Hermitage when one of the statues from the roof of the Winter Palace, "a naked god," came to life, though she later discounts this as a hallucination. In her dotage, she tells her daughter-in-law that Andre's father is Zeus. Dmitri offers other explanations: she may have been raped by a soldier or it's possible that their only coupling before he went off to the front resulted in a son. What do you think actually happened? Is it a flaw or a strength of the novel that the author doesn't resolve this question?

7. At the end of Marina's life, Helen admits that "once she had thought that she might discover some key to her mother if only she could get her likeness right, but she has since learned that the mysteries of another person only deepen, the longer one looks." How well do we ever know our parents? Are there things you've learned about your parents' past that helped you feel you knew them better?

8. In much the same way that Marina is struggling with getting old, her daughter, Helen, is struggling with disappointments and regrets often associated with middle-age: her marriage has failed, her son is moving away, she may never get any recognition as an artist, and last but not least, she is losing a life-long battle with her weight. Are her feelings of failure the result of poor choices and a bad attitude or are such feelings an inevitable part of the human condition?

9. In a sense, the novel has two separate but parallel endings: the young Marina giving the cadets a tour of the museum, and the elderly Marina giving the carpenter a tour of an unfinished house. What is the function of this coda? How would the novel be different if it ended with the cadets' tour?

10. What adjectives would you use to describe The Madonnas of Leningrad? Given the often bleak subject matter - war, starvation, dementia -- is the novel's view of the world depressing?

11. Dmitri is unfailingly patient with Marina's memory loss and increasingly bizarre and unpredictable behavior. Would you have the patience to help a loved one in this way? Do you agree with their son, Andrei, who wanted to put Marina in an assisted living facility?

12. The fate of several characters is left unknown, such as Marina's niece and nephew and several plot lines are left unresolved, such as her uncle's book, his life's work. It was also sometimes difficult to distinguish between actual events and hallucinations. Did those unknowns detract from the book as you finished it?

13. The Madonnas of Leningrad tells two parallel stories, about the victims of the Siege of Leningrad and the effects of Alzheimer's on the Buriakov family. Are there any heroes in these stories? Any villains?

14. Do you have a "memory palace"?

15. Are there any similarities between Marina's memories of the siege of Leningrad and the reminiscences of Jacob in last month's book, Water for Elephants?

Water for Elephants this Thursday

2008-07-01T20:56:00.000-07:00

Happy Independence Day!

The Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group will meet this Thursday, July 3rd at 7 p.m. in the meeting room of the Fairfax Library to discuss our July selection, Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen,

“An atmospheric, gritty, and compelling novel of star-crossed lovers, set in the circus world circa 1932... Beautifully written, Water for Elephants is illuminated by a wonderful sense of time and place. It tells a story of a love between two people that overcomes incredible odds in a world in which even love is a luxury that few can afford.” From the book jacket.

Below are the discussion questions for Water for Elephants. Printed copies of the questions, author background and reviews of the book as well as refreshments will be available at the discussion group Thursday evening.

In our upcoming August 7th meeting, we will discuss The Madonnas of Leningrad by Debra Dean: “With spare, elegant language, taut emotion, and the crystal-clear ring of truth, Dean eloquently describes the works of Rembrandt, Rubens, and Raphael, but she is at her best illuminating aging Marina's precarious state of mind: “It is like disappearing for a few moments at a time, like a switch being turned off, a short while later, the switch mysteriously flips again.” Booklist

(If you’re reading ahead this summer, our September 4th discussion will center on Broken for You by Stephanie Kallos.)

Friends of the Fairfax Library

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

1. To what extent do the chapters concerning the elderly Jacob enhance the chapters recounting the young Jacob's experiences with the Benzini Brothers circus? In what ways do the chapters about the young Jacob contribute to a deeper understanding of the elderly Jacob's life?

2. How does the novel's epigraph, the quote from Dr. Seuss's Horton Hatches the Egg, apply to the novel? What are the roles and importance of faithfulness and loyalty in Water for Elephants? In what ways does Gruen contrast the antagonisms and cruelties of circus life with the equally impressive loyalties and instances of caring?

3. Who did you, upon reading the prologue, think murdered August? What effect did that opening scene of chaos and murder have on your reception of the story that follows?

4. In connection with Jacob's formal dinner with August and Marlena in their stateroom, Jacob remarks, "August is gracious, charming, and mischievous" (page 93). To what extent is this an adequate characterization of August? How would you expand upon Jacob's observation? How would you characterize August? Which situations in the novel reveal his true character?

5. August says of Marlena, "Not everyone can work with liberty horses. It's a God-given talent, a sixth sense, if you will" (page 94). Both August and Jacob recognize Marlena's skills, her "sixth sense," in working with the horses. In what ways does that sixth sense attract each man? How do August and Jacob differ in terms of the importance each places on Marlena's abilities?

6. After Jacob puts Silver Star down, August talks with him about the reality of the circus. "The whole thing's illusion, Jacob," he says, "and there's nothing wrong with that. It's what people want from us. It's what they expect" (page 104). How does Gruen contrast the worlds of reality and illusion in the novel? Is there anything wrong with pandering to people's need for illusion? Why do we crave the illusions that the circus represents?

7. Reflecting on the fact that his platitudes and stories don't hold his children's interest, the elderly Jacob notes, "My real stories are all out of date. So what if I can speak firsthand about the Spanish flu, the advent of the automobile, world wars, cold wars, guerrilla wars, and Sputnik --- that's all ancient history now. But what else do I have to offer?" (page 110). How might we learn to appreciate the stories and life lessons of our elders and encourage people younger than ourselves to appreciate our own?

8. Looking at himself in the mirror, the old Jacob tries "to see beyond the sagging flesh." But he claims, "It's no good. . . . I can't find myself anymore. When did I stop being me?" (page 111). How would you answer that question for Jacob or any individual, or for yourself?

9. In what ways and to what degree do Uncle Al's maneuvers and practices regarding the defunct Fox Brothers circus reflect traditional American business practices? How would you compare his behavior with that of major businessmen and financiers of today? What alternative actions would you prefer?

10. As he lies on his bedroll, after his night with Barbara and Nell, Jacob cannot empty his mind of troubling visions and he reflects that "the more distressing the memory, the more persistent its presence" (page 143). How might the elderly Jacob's memories corroborate or contradict this observation? What have been your experiences and observations in this regard?

11. In his Carnival of the Animals, Ogden Nash wrote, "Elephants are useful friends." In what ways is Rosie a "useful" friend? What is Rosie's role in the events that follow her acquisition by Uncle Al?

12. After Jacob successfully coaches August in Polish commands for Rosie, he observes, "It's only when I catch Rosie actually purring under August's loving ministrations that my conviction starts to crumble. And what I'm left looking at in its place is a terrible thing" (page 229). What is Jacob left "looking at," how does it pertain to August's personality and Jacob's relationship with August, and what makes it a "terrible thing"?

13. How did you react to the redlighting of Walter and Camel, and eight others, off the trestle? How might we see Uncle Al's cutthroat behavior as "an indictment of a lifetime spent feigning emotions to make a buck" (in the words of one reviewer)?

14. After the collapse of the Benzini Brothers circus and Uncle Al's having "done a runner" (page 314), Jacob realizes, "Not only am I unemployed and homeless, but I also have a pregnant woman, bereaved dog, elephant, and eleven horses to take care of" (page 317). What expectations did you entertain for Jacob and Marlena's --- and their menagerie's --- future after they leave the Benzini Brothers circus? How do the elderly Jacob's memories of Marlena and their life together confirm or alter those expectations?

15. At the end of the novel, Jacob exclaims, "So what if I'm ninety-three? . . . why the hell shouldn't I run away with the circus?" (page 331). What would you project to be the elderly Jacob's experiences after he runs away with the circus the second time? How does his decision reflect what we have learned about his early years?

16. Sara Gruen has said that the "backbone" of her novel "parallels the biblical story of Jacob," in the book of Genesis. On the first night after his leaving Cornell, for example, Jacob --- as did his biblical namesake --- lies "back on the bank, resting my head on a flat stone" (page 23). In what other ways does Water for Elephants parallel the story of the biblical Jacob? How do the names of many of the characters reflect names of characters in the biblical account? Apart from the appearance of “Jacob’s ladder,” the best-known part of the biblical story occurs when Esau sells his birthright to Jacob, his younger brother, for food. [In the time of Esau and Jacob, on the death of the father, the oldest son received twice as much property as any other child, known as the “birthright.] Does Water for Elephants have a counterpart to Esau?

17. In the words of one reviewer, Water for Elephants "explores . . . the pathetic grandeur of the Depression-era circus." In what ways and to what extent do the words "pathetic grandeur" describe the world that Gruen creates in her novel?

18. What would you do if faced with the woman you loved carrying your child, a bull elephant, twelve horses, and no job? Do you have people in your life who could get you on the right path again?

19. Historical novels are often overpraised, because good research can mask or distract you from flaws in the plot, characterization or structure of a book. Do you think Water for Elephants deserved all the praise quoted in the front matter of the paperback edition? Or do you believe some critics might have been willing to overlook its flaws because of interesting material that Sara Gruen turned up in her research? Were you willing to overlook any flaws you found in the novel? Why?

20. Susan Cheever, the novelist and memoirist, says in the same front matter that Water for Elephants is “a book about what animals can teach people about love.” Do you agree? If so, why? If not, what is this novel really “about”? If you agree with Susan Cheever that this is “a book about what animals can teach people about love,” what do the animals teach us? What do we learn from this book that you couldn’t get from movies and television shows like Babe or Lassie, which involved intelligent and loyal animals?

June meeting - Cadillac Desert

2008-06-05T17:47:00.000-07:00

The Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group will meet this Thursday, June 5th at 7 p.m. in the meeting room of the Fairfax Library to discuss our June book, Cadillac Desert by Marc Reisner.

I’m so glad that we’ll be joined by Mr. Jamie Reilly with Stetson Engineers who will provide insight and explanations of the current and historical western water situation (with maps, too!)

If you’re interested in the subject here are a few websites with additional information and photographs of the history of water in California:

The National Humanities Center has a great site with lots of links to articles about water in the Western United States.
NAU article about western water usage:
How much water does it take to raise one pound of beef?
The Water Education Foundation in Sacramento,
Fix the water shortage problem in 5 minutes:

In our upcoming July 3rd meeting, we’re actually leaving the topic of water (despite the title) as we read Water For Elephants by Sara Gruen, a book that has been on bestseller lists for over a year.

I look forward to seeing you at the library.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

Whisky is for drinkin’; water is for fightin’ over.
- - Mark Twain

Water is H2O, hydrogen two parts, oxygen one, but there is also a third thing, that makes water and nobody knows what that is.
- - D.H. LAWRENCE

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Cadillac Desert by Marc Reisner

1. Marc Reisner writes, “Westerners call what they have established out here a civilization, but it would be more accurate to call it a beachhead. And if history is any guide, the odds that we can sustain it would have to be regarded as low” (pp. 1-3). Would you agree that the communities that have settled in the Western states are unsustainable?

2. Today there is a growing concern about the effect of dams on fisheries. In Marin, there is a strong group known as SPAWN which works to preserve our creeks so salmon can spawn there. Do you think efforts like this are worthwhile? Will SPAWN or other groups be successful in their efforts to help salmon return to Marin?

3. Was the migration westward inevitable? Could any obstacles possibly have stopped desert areas like Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Phoenix from become populous cities?

4. Cadillac Desert offers a compelling description of the costs of the current water model used in the West. Can a culture change its mind about the trade-offs it makes? Are we Americans in the midst of such a shift regarding our water usage?

5. Cadillac Desert describes a time in American history when the cultural climate assumed engineering prowess to be an unmitigated good. Today environmentalists are more concerned with sustainability rather than productivity. Is there any room in today’s culture for big engineering water projects?

6. One of the tenets of modern agribusiness in the United States is cheap water. Water is affordable in all parts of the U.S. Now that gas costs well over $4/gallon driving habits are being changed and citizens are using mass transit and driving less. Would you support more expensive water to encourage conservation? Do you support subsidies for the agribusinesses that are the primary beneficiaries of current water policy? Do you know how much you pay for water now?

7. Do you agree with Marc Reisner’s conclusions about the disastrous effects of water policy in the West over the last century? What would a reasonable plan for Western land and water development look like if you could dictate such a policy?

8. What does sesquipedalian tergiversation (see p. 71) mean?

9. Cadillac Desert abounds with stories of unintended consequences as a result of the many water projects across the western United States such as the selenium crisis in central California or the fact that WWII was won with the power generated by western water projects. Can you think of any other unintended consequences?

10. There is a cost for the efforts to undo a century of water projects in the U.S. – in terms of both dollars and lost business. Are the costs too high? Will the efforts ever succeed in returning the environment back to what it was?

11. Has America stretched its use of water in the West to the breaking point? Will the current water projects be able to sustain the current uses? Do you think American citizens or agribusiness would be willing to change their water usage to more accurately match the water available?

12. Would you support the construction of a desalination plant in Marin County?

13. Cadillac Desert describes several larger than life personalities such as Otis, Mulholland and Dominy. Are there any big personalities overseeing and/or affecting our utilities and way of life today?

14. Reisner uses several throw-away but obviously biased phrases throughout the book such as “he followed the honorable Republican tradition of using the office as a vending machine for timber and minerals…” (p 271), “The Bureau’s response to the rising tide of conservation, however, was to let them eat cake.” (p 242) and, “ ‘New Age’ politicians who strive to disassociate themselves from the old Left or the old Right seem to fall into the same old habits where the pork barrel is concerned.” (p 310) Does this bias detract from the overall message of Cadillac Desert?

Meeting May 1st!

2008-04-29T15:37:00.000-07:00

The Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group will meet this Thursday, May 1st at 7 p.m. in the meeting room of the Fairfax Library to discuss our May book: Shooting the Boh by Tracy Johnston - a book about a woman “of a certain age” taking a risky rafting trip down a section of river in Borneo that even the natives feared.

“This story of a journalist joining an expedition down the Boh River starts out as standard adventure travel fare, but the difference rapidly becomes apparent: this journalist is over 40, her luggage is lost on the flight over and cannot be recovered in time, and the expedition has been planned by a company that takes irresponsibility to a new level. Only when they are already on the river do the participants realize how difficult and dangerous their time together will be.”

Below are the discussion questions for the book. Printed copies of the questions, author background and reviews of the book as well as refreshments will be available at the discussion group Thursday evening.

Next month, at our June 5th meeting, we’ll discuss Cadillac Desert: the American West and Its Disappearing Water by Marc Reisner. Winner of the National Book Critics Award, this timely history of the struggle to discover and control water in the American West is a tale of rivers diverted and damned, political corruption and intrigue, billion-dollar battles over water rights, and economic and ecological disaster

Since summer is almost upon us, you might like to start planning for our summer reading. Coming up we have the following titles to look forward to reading:

Thursday, July 3rd - Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
Thursday, August 7th - The Madonnas of Leningrad by Debra Dean
Thursday, September 4th - Broken for You by Stephanie Kallos

I look forward to seeing you at the Fairfax Library.

Beth Bailey-Gates
Friends of the Fairfax Library

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Shooting the Boh by Tracy Johnston

1. After reading Shooting the Boh, would you ever take an adventure trip with Sobek Travel? Here is a link to their website: http://www.mtsobek.com/ Would you take a trip with the author, Tracy Johnston?

2. On page 10, the author writes, “One of the reasons I had come to Indonesia was to get a story. In that regard, personal suffering could only help.” Did the participants on the trip suffer excessively? Did any of the participants suffer more than others? How did their suffering compare to the group in our previous book, River of Doubt?

3. Edmund Hillary climbed Mt. Everest “because it was there.” Tracy Johnston writes, “I have always been excited by uncertaintly, hated the notion that something predictable lay ahead.” Are these valid reasons for seeking adventure and risking your life and the lives of others?

4. The river guides failed to pack a radio, failed to anticipate the terrible foot rot and brought some food, “deng deng”, that the travelers loathed. Was the travel company, Sobek, irresponsible in leading the trip given that the previous attempt by expert rafters was abandoned as too dangerous and that they could not find any native Dabaks to guide them down the river for the same reason?

5. Do you get a sense of who the other passengers on the trip are through Johnston’s descriptions?

6. Johnston seems a bit obsessed about the looks of the other passengers and how her looks rate in comparison. Is this a result of her coming to terms with her age and new limitations? Was the trip a test for the author to prove something?

7. In a Caltech paper entitled, “Organizational Economics: A Behavioral Approach”, the paper’s author compares the adventure detailed in Shooting the Boh to an organizational meltdown where the weakest link in the group determines the overall strength of the group. He also points out that an inevitable weakness with a temporary organization such as the rafting group is the lack of knowledge of what the motivations or goals of the other travelers are. Are these valid descriptions? Could these weaknesses be overcome in another group? What did the members of Tracy Johnston’s group, including the author herself, each add to the experience?

8. Rivers are often used in literature as metaphors for life. Given Johnston’s descriptions of her voyage down the Boh River, how do you think she has approached her old age?

9. Sobek’s founder, Richard Bangs, heard about the Boh River when talking to someone who was trying to build up the local economy through tourism. Would this be considered ecologically sound today?

10. Adventurers like to test their mettle by risking their lives to see how far they can go. Is it possible to truly learn your limits and see inside yourself without climbing a high peak or otherwise physically and mentally exerting yourself? Have you experienced any physical or mental challenges that proved you could cope better than you might have expected?

11. The author is very descriptive of the rain forest in Borneo. Which (if any) of the dangers described (snakes, lizards, bees, mosquitoes, micro-organisms, the rain forest itself) would have kept you from taking this trip?

2nd Quarter Reading List

2008-03-15T15:19:00.000-07:00

The Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group has chosen the books we’ll read and discuss together in the next 3 months.

On April 3, 2008 we’ll be discussing River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey by Candice Millard. This is a gripping non-fiction story and can be found at 918.113 on the library shelves.

“After his humiliating election defeat in 1912, Theodore Roosevelt set his sights on the most punishing physical challenge he could find, the first descent of an unmapped, rapids-choked tributary of the Amazon. Together with his son Kermit and Brazil's most famous explorer, Roosevelt accomplished a feat so great that many at the time refused to believe it. In the process, he changed the map of the Western Hemisphere forever. Along the way, Roosevelt and his men faced an unbelievable series of hardships, losing their canoes and supplies to punishing whitewater rapids, and enduring starvation, Indian attack, disease, drowning, and a murder within their own ranks. Three men died, and Roosevelt was brought to the brink of suicide. The River of Doubt brings alive these extraordinary events in a powerful nonfiction narrative thriller that happens to feature one of the most famous Americans who ever lived.”

On Thursday, May 1, 2008 we will discuss another river adventure, Shooting the Boh: A Woman’s Voyage Down the Wildest River in Borneo by Tracy Johnston (wife of SF Chron columnist, Jon Carroll) This book can be found at 959.83 on the library shelves.

A thrilling, touching, and densely instructive book, Shooting the Boh is also a frank self-portrait of a woman facing her most corrosive fears--and triumphing over them--with fortitude and unflagging wit. "A captivating and truly offbeat rite of passage."

On Thursday, June 5, 2008 we’re still on our watery theme but closer to home as we discuss Cadillac Desert: The American West and its disappearing water by Marc Reisner (333.91)

“This timely history of the struggle to discover and control water in the American West is a tale of rivers diverted and damned, political corruption and intrigue, billion-dollar battles over water rights, and economic and ecological disaster. Winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award.”

I look forward to seeing you at the Fairfax Library.
Thanks for reading with us!

Beth Bailey-Gates
Friends of the Fairfax Library

Saving Fish From Drowning

2008-03-04T22:29:00.000-08:00

One Book/One Marin 2008
Saving Fish From Drowning by Amy Tan

The Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group will meet this Thursday, March 6th at 7 p.m. in the meeting room of the Fairfax Library to discuss our March selection and the 2008 One Book/One Marin choice, Saving Fish From Drowning by Amy Tan,

“A provocative journey, colored with picaresque characters and haunting imagery, and a mesmerizing tale about what is real and what is make believe—and the profound answers one seeks when things seemingly fall apart.”

You can check the Marin County Library’s One Book/One Marin link for even more information about Amy Tan and her book. (Don’t miss the YouTube video of Amy singing with her rock band, the Rock Bottom Remainders.)

We’ll also spend a few minutes of the meeting choosing our next 3 book selections. Please bring any titles you’d like to have us read together or send me an e-mail with your choices.

Below are the discussion questions for the Saving Fish From Drowning. I'll also have some additional author and other background information for our discussion on Thursday.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Saving Fish From Drowning by Amy Tan

1. In the opening chapter, Bibi says, "...in all my life no one had loved me wholly and desperately." Discuss how this is reflected in Bibi's voice and in the way she narrates Saving Fish from Drowning.

2. The ﬁrst time in her adult life that Bibi feels “unmindful” passionate love results in her accidental death. Is her demise tragic? Comic? Ironic? Why does Tan leave us to assume for most of the novel that Bibi was murdered?

3. As the opening epigraph, Tan has chosen a quote from Albert Camus that reads, "Evil ...almost always comes of ignorance, and good intentions may do as much harm as malevolence if they lack understanding." How does evil, ignorance, and good intentions play out in the novel? Discuss whether you have observed this in your own experiences with others.

4. The role of the media, including the Global News Network and the reality show "Darwin's Fittest" shapes outcomes and people's sympathies in the story. Do you believe the media really does have such an effect, and if so, in what ways and to what degree? Do you feel the media should have more or less of an effect?

5. Some of the group have mixed feelings about visiting Burma. "...it's in some ways a financial collusion with a corrupt regime," Roxanne says. (page 35). In a meeting with foreign journalists in Rangoon on November 17, 1995, the Nobel Peace Prize recipient Aung San Suu Kyi, when asked if she thought tourism could help her country, reportedly replied, "Well, I think that visitors to the country can be useful, depending on what they do, or how they go about it. But I think also, tourists have to be careful not to deceive themselves ...You can talk about 'trickle down' effect, but sometimes the trickle down effect is exactly that, a mere trickle, which dissipates before it gets to where it's required." Do you think it's better to boycott a place where the native people are oppressed? Does tourism help in these places, or does it hurt? What further information might you need if you were one of the tourists considering whether to go to Burma?

6. In what sense do the tourists feel culpable for the suffering they see in Burma? Does Amy Tan offer a solution to their feelings of guilt?

7. In Chapter 6 (page 161), the group's Burmese tour guide, Walter, says, "...being American has less to do with one's proficiency in English and more with the assumptions you hold dear and true - your inalienable rights, your pursuit of happiness." Do you agree? How do you think Americans are perceived overseas today? What other qualities define Americans?

8. How does the tour group’s behavior reinforce or rebut stereotypes of the “ugly American”?

9. Is it important to get credit for the things we do? What about the blame?

10. Another theme in the book is the idea of unintended consequences. Outcomes are not in our control. When they’re bad, who actually suffers?

11. What is the moral responsibility of the tourists?

12. In Chapter 8 (p. 215) Bibi says, “In Buddhism it is said you must have complete compassion to have complete understanding.” Is this true? Do any of the characters exhibit this trait?

13. The title of the book comes from the anonymous epigraph in the beginning of the novel and is mentioned again in Chapter 6. Discuss the implications of the book's title and how it might reflect any of the character's intentions or actions. How are words used to conceal truth and deceive in Burma and among the travelers?

14. In the opening of Chapter 12, "Darwin's Fittest," Bibi says, "The only thing certain in times of great uncertainty is that people will behave with great strength or weakness, and with very little else in between." Discuss how some of the characters demonstrate their own strengths and weaknesses in their time of crisis or great stress.

15. Toward the end of their ordeal, in Chapter 17, the eleven captives experience a sort of group out-of-body experience. What are some of the ways that might explain what has happened to them? Is this state of feeling similar to what you have observed other groups who have undergone a powerful shared experience?

17. "But if miracles are like rain after a drought, then greed is the flash flood that follows," Bibi says, when all the good that seemed to come right after their adventure begins to dissipate. What examples in current events can you think of that might support this sentiment? What are some examples in history?

18. The narrative of Saving Fish From Drowning winds itself around episodes of illusion and false impressions: the travelers are lured away from their resort under false pretenses; the world at large is seduced by Myanmar's glossy PR campaign; and in a larger sense, your readers will be seduced by the story's façade of travelogue and tourist escapades, only to find that there is something much darker at the its soul. By its very trickery, the novel asks the question - how does one deduce what is truth? How can a person separate fact from fiction in everything they hear or see? Does this come into play in one's personal life? Do you think there's a political element to this theme?

19. Burma - and the current situation there - serves as the perfect setting for the novel's themes of truth and moral responsibility. But how much of this novel, do you think, is fact and how much is based on Amy Tan's imagination?

The Glass Palace discussion Feb. 7th

2008-02-05T20:04:00.000-08:00

The Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group will meet this Thursday, Feb. 7th to discuss The Glass Palace by Amitav Ghosh.

I've enjoyed reading this book which has turned out to be a little lengthy for me - almost 500 pages! The story about the British invasion of Burma, the exile of the Burmese king and queen and the tales of the intertwining lives of three Burmese and Indian families over a century of history is genuinely riveting, although I could have lived without the excessive details of the cars of the period. The novel offers an important, alternative view of events from the native inhabitants of those countries during the reign of England during their colonial years.

If you're interested in delving a little deeper into the story, I found some websites that offer material worth your time:

An interesting blog discussion of colonial literature and post-colonial literature and their designations as such:
http://www.lehigh.edu/~amsp/2004/05/question-for-discussion-marketing-and.html

A discussion of the pro-democracy movement in Myanmar:
http://arbitrarymarks.com/wordpress/2007/09/28/covering-myanmar/

A fun story of Amitav Ghosh’s bookstore appearance in the Oxford Bookstore:
http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/mp/2003/08/11/stories/2003081101030100.htm

Discussion questions for the novel can be found on the Publisher's (Random House) website:
http://www.randomhouse.com/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780375758775&view=rg

The best books of 2007?

2008-01-14T20:16:00.000-08:00

What would the New Year be without a look back? Here are some of the lists of the Best Books of 2007. Have you already read some of these? Or are these on your list of TBR (to be read)?

Lists like these just prove the adage, "So many books, so little time."

So what are you waiting for?

Remember to check the Marin County Library's website for availability. If the book isn't currently available at the Fairfax branch, just click on the "Request" button and, for 50 cents, you'll be added to the wait list or a copy will be sent to Fairfax from another branch.

Happy reading!

NY Times list of the 10 best books of 2007
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/09/books/review/10-best-2007.html

salon.com’s list of best fiction of 2007
http://www.salon.com/books/awards/2007/12/12/best_books/index1.html

Kirkus Reviews best books of 2007
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/kirkusreviews/images/pdf/Best_of_2007.pdf

Barnes and Noble best books of 2007
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/bestof/index.asp?PID=20800&z=y

and 3 of the NY Times reviewers' picks for their personal favorites of 2007
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/28/books/28intro.html

Don't miss the Marin County Library's "Reader's Corner" with recommendations, Bookletters and Literature Resources:
http://www.co.marin.ca.us/library/readers.cfm

This Is Not Civilization

2008-01-11T18:22:00.000-08:00

The Fairfax Library Book Group met Wednesday night (a change from our usual first Thursday meetings) and discussed our January book selection, This Is Not Civilization by Robert Rosenberg. The overall consensus of the group was positive although most in attendance were not “wowed” by the book.

We all enjoyed the descriptions of the Kyrgyz village and Istanbul and appreciated the author’s comparison of the Kyrgyz village and the Apache reservation in Arizona as equally struggling communities suffering from poverty (both money and opportunities) internal corruption and the oversight and abandonment of their larger governments.

I would definitely recommend the book to others and look forward to reading more from Robert Rosenberg. An interesting (to me) footnote; my son attends the university mentioned in the first part of the book, Northern Arizona University. It’s a great school!

I made some of the recipes that are available on the publisher’s website:
http://www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com/readers_guides/rosenberg_this.shtml

Here are the 3 recipes that I tried and brought to the meeting:

Plov
This pilaf is popular throughout Central Asia, especially in southern Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.
5 Tbsp oil
2 cups rice
5–6 large carrots, cut in long thin strips
¾ cup raisins
2–3 large onions, chopped
5–10 cloves garlic, whole
2–3 fresh peppers, chopped
1–2 pounds beef or mutton, cut into cubes
salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil in a wok until hot, and add the meat, cooking until brown on all sides. Add the carrots, onions, and peppers, and cook until tender. Add 5 cups hot water and then the rice; the water should completely cover the rice. Push the cloves of garlic just under the surface of the rice, making sure they don't pop up. Cover and lower heat a little. After 10 minutes, add the raisins. Do not stir. Cover and cook until done, about 30 minutes. (I poured off all of the fat before adding the rice and used cubed London Broil since it was on sale this week.)

Note: Plov is usually eaten with the hands. Mash the rice into a small ball over the plate and slide it with the thumb into your mouth. (We used forks and plates…)

Apache Fry Bread
4 cups white flour
½ teaspoon salt
1 Tbsp baking powder
Lard or shortening

Combine all ingredients. Add about 1½ cups warm water and knead until dough is soft but not sticky. Shape dough into balls the size of a small apple. Flatten into patties by hand; dough should be about ½ inch thick. Fry one at a time in about one inch of hot lard or shortening in a heavy pan. Brown on both sides. Drain on paper towels and serve hot with honey or jam. ( I used olive oil to fry the bread.)

Crushed Tomato Salad Spread (Ezme)
½ pound ripe tomatoes
½ cucumber
1 green pepper
2 stalks green onions
1 tsp dried mint
salt, pepper, paprika
1 Tbsp paprika paste (optional)
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp vinegar

Peel tomatoes and cucumber. Remove stalk and seeds from pepper. Remove outer layer of green onions. Chop them all very fine without pulverizing them. Mix well all ingredients. Serve with bread for dipping. (Tomatoes are out of season now so I used a can of organic whole, peeled tomatoes. I also didn’t have dried mint so I used dried basil. I used plenty of paprika, but no paprika paste.)

January meeting date changed

2007-12-11T21:15:00.000-08:00

Our January meeting date has changed to accomodate the holiday schedule.

We'll be meeting on Wednesday, January 9th at 7 p.m. in the meeting room of the Fairfax Library to discuss our January selection, This is Not Civilization by Robert Rosenberg.

Hope to see you there!

Book Choices for Jan., Feb. and March 2008

2007-12-07T21:16:00.000-08:00

We’ve chosen our next three books – the first for 2008!

JANUARY: At our January meeting, we’ll be discussing This Is Not Civilization by Robert Rosenberg.

From the book jacket: This Is Not Civilization is an inspired, sweeping debut novel that hopscotches from Arizona to Central Asia to Istanbul with a well-meaning, if misguided, young Peace Corps volunteer. Jeff Hartig lies at the center of this modern take on the American-abroad tale, which brings together four people from vastly different backgrounds, each struggling with the push and pull of home. A young Apache, Adam Dale, forsakes the reservation for the promise of a world he knows little about. Anarbek Tashtanaliev, of post-Soviet Kyrgyzstan, operates a cheese factory that no longer produces cheese. Nazira, his daughter, strains against the confines of their village’s age-old traditions. With captivating insight, realism, and humor, Robert Rosenberg delivers a sensitive story about the cost of trying to do good in the world.

You can find discussion questions for This Is Not Civilization here.

FEBRUARY: At our February 7th meeting, we will discuss The Glass Palace by Amitav Ghosh.

“Set primarily in Burma, Malaya, and India, this work spans from 1885, when the British sent the King of Burma into exile, to the present. While it does offer brief glimpses into the history of the region, it is more the tale of a family and how historical events influenced real lives. As a young boy, Rajkumar, an Indian temporarily stranded in Mandalay, finds himself caught up in the British invasion that led to the exile of Burma's last king. In the chaos, he spies Dolly, a household maid in the royal palace, for whom he develops a consuming passion and whom years later he tracks down in India and marries. As their family grows and their lives intersect with others, the tangled web of local and international politics is brought to bear, changing lives as well as nations.” – Library Journal

You can find discussion questions for The Glass Palace here.

MARCH: At our March 6th meeting, we’ll discuss Saving Fish From Drowning by Amy Tan. This will coincide with another One Book/One Marin reading program to held in early 2008.

“Tan's hilarious new novel arrives at a time when we aren't laughing much at the news of the day. How much you enjoy "Saving Fish From Drowning" may have to do with how willing you are to be bewitched by a superbly executed, goodhearted farce that is part romance and part mystery with a political bent. With Tan's many talents on display, it's her idiosyncratic wit and sly observations about the nature of illusion that make this book pure pleasure. And by the end, all the travelers, including one charming tiny dog, seem like old friends.” The San Francisco Chronicle - Sara Peyton

You can find discussion questions for Saving Fish From Drowning here.

The Places in Between - Discussion Questions

2007-12-04T12:32:00.000-08:00

The Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group will meet this Thursday, December 6th at 7 p.m. in the meeting room of the Fairfax Library to discuss our December book, The Places in Between by Rory Stewart.

Here is a link to the discussion questions provided by the publisher of The Places in Between ...

http://www.harcourtbooks.com/bookcatalogs/bookpage.asp?isbn=0156031566&option=reading

If I have your e-mail address, I will also e-mail you the discussion questions. I'll have some additional background information about the author and the book at the meeting on Thursday, as well as some special goodies to help us celebrate our five-year anniversary.

How Are We Doing? - a questionnaire

2007-12-03T12:32:00.000-08:00

The five-year anniversary of the Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group ("FLBDG") seems like a good time to step back and review our mission. What is our mission?

I like to think of the FLBDG as the no-guilt book club. People come when they are able and interested and shouldn't feel guilty when they can't make it. The book club is sponsored by the Friends of the Fairfax Library, is held in the library's meeting room and is open to any interested readers.

Sometime during the 5 years, I started e-mailing the discussion questions to our e-mail list (which has over 80 names) which also acted as a gentle reminder of the upcoming meeting.

Are there any other changes or minor adjustments we could make to reach out to more readers? This blog is a start. I intend to post a link to discussion questions each month and then, after our discussion, post a brief synopsis of our thoughts on the book.

Below is a questionnaire I put together and I would love to get your thoughts on what we can do to make the FLBDG even better!

Questionnaire for Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group

1. Should we read…?

more current fiction
more themes in our selections (i.e. other cultures, gardens as metaphor, the sea)
more classics
historical fiction
more non-fiction (what kind of non-fiction? Memoirs, adventure, history, current events?)
keep the mix of novels/non-fiction we currently have

2. Would you like to see a brief synopsis of our discussions in an e-mail after our meetings?

3. Would you be interested in rating the books we read?
The library could post the ratings of our group for other interested readers. It could be a simple “thumbs up/thumbs down” or a rating from 1 to 10.

4. The book discussion group currently meets on the first Thursday of each month at 7 p.m. Would you be interested in meeting at another time or on another day? When?

5. Would you be interested in reading more than one book per month - for instance, if the subjects of the books are related?

6. Should discussions be more strictly centered on the discussion questions provided or should discussions be allowed to meander somewhat?

7. What is the ideal number of participants in a book discussion?
Has the number of participants in the library book discussions been too high? too low? just right?

8. Do you have any difficulty in obtaining the books chosen for discussion through the library?
Would that difficulty in obtaining a copy of the book prevent you from attending the monthly meeting?

9. Currently, discussion questions are e-mailed a few days before our meetings but other background information, such as author interviews, book reviews etc. are handed out at the meeting. Would you be interested in having that information sent as an attachment to an e-mail in MS Word format?

10. Are there any other improvements you would like to see made to make the Fairfax Library book discussion group more interesting or relevant for you?

Thanks for any and all suggestions/criticisms/advice you care to share with me!

Five Years of Reading

2007-12-01T12:47:00.001-08:00

The Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group will mark five years of reading with our December, 2007 meeting. I'll have some additional posts soon about that.

I thought it might be fun to share the list of books our group has read over the past five years. Our group chooses books 3 months at a time so we do the choosing 4 times a year - I think of it as a quarterly job. At times, we have tried to read 3 books around a theme such as, "gardening as metaphor", "Native American authors", "exploring India", "war is hell" etc.

I find it difficult to choose books by theme because there aren't too many on-line resources and sometimes I find books that fit the theme but won't work for us because there aren't enough copies in the library system. But ultimately themes are rewarding as we can really dig into a subject. We'll try to do more of that in our future reading. Suggestions, anyone??

Date Book Title Author
December, 2007 The Places in Between by Rory Stewart
November, 2007 The Brief History of the Dead by Kevin Brockmeier
October, 2007 The Family Tree by Carole Cadwalladr
September, 2007 Under the Banner of Heaven by Jon Krakauer
August, 2007 Fugitive Pieces by Anne Michaels
July, 2007 Drop City by T.C. Boyle
June, 2007 Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See
May, 2007 Case Histories by Kate Atkinson
April, 2007 Daughter of Fortune by Isabel Allende
March, 2007 The March by E. L. Doctorow
February, 2007 Beloved by Toni Morrison
January, 2007 Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri
December, 2006 Tender at the Bone by Ruth Reichl
November, 2006 The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell
October, 2006 Skeletons on the Zahara by Dean King
September, 2006 Any Human Heart by William Boyd
August, 2006 Gilead by Marilynne Robinson
July, 2006 The Memory of Running by Ron McLarty
June, 2006 The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
May, 2006 The Grace That Keeps This World by Tom Bailey
April, 2006 A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry
March, 2006 The Liar’s Club by Mary Karr
February, 2006 Devil in the White City by Eric Larson
January, 2006 Galileo’s Daughter by Dava Sobel
December, 2005 The Plot Against America by Philip Roth
November, 2005 The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
October, 2005 The Known World by Edward P. Jones
September, 2005 Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi
August, 2005 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time Mark Haddon
July, 2005 Three Junes by Julia Glass
June, 2005 Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
May, 2005 Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
April, 2005 Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
March, 2005 Bee Season by Myla Goldberg
February, 2005 Death in Venice by Thomas Mann
January, 2005 Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides
December, 2004 The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven by Sherman Alexie
November, 2004 Watermelon Nights by Greg Sarris
October, 2004 Animal Dreams by Barbara Kingsolver
September, 2004 The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
August, 2004 The Piano Tuner by Daniel Mason
July, 2004 The Dive From Clausen’s Pier by Ann Packer
June, 2004 Children of the Alley by Naguib Mahfouz
May, 2004 Your Mouth is Lovely by Nancy Richler
April, 2004 The Moor’s Last Sigh by Salmon Rushdie
March, 2004 Voyage of the Narwhal by Andrea Barrett
February, 2004 Ahab's Wife by Sena Jeter Naslund
January, 2004 Life of Pi by Yann Martel
December, 2003 Corelli’s Mandolin by Louis de Bernieres
November, 2003 Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier
October, 2003 Master and Commander by Patrick O’Brian
September, 2003 Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant by Ann Tyler
August, 2003 The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
July, 2003 The Republic of Love by Carol Shields
June, 2003 Gardens in the Dunes by Leslie Marmon Silko
May, 2003 The Lost Garden by Helen Humphries
April, 2003 The Samurai’s Garden by Gail Tsukiyama
March, 2003 Life of Pi by Yann Martel
February, 2003 Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer
January, 2003 Peace Like a River by Leif Enger

The Brief History of the Dead

2007-11-10T17:51:00.000-08:00

It's a blog! Here's a chance for interested readers to join our discussion of books at the Fairfax Library. The Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group meets on the first Thursday of each month at the Fairfax library to discuss books and have fun.

Last Thursday we met to discuss The Brief History of the Dead by Kevin Brockmeier. The overall consensus of the group was "so-so".

The first part of the book was the best with a wonderful description of wandering souls (with their old bodies) in a new world of the dead. The stories of the individual crossings into the netherworld are beautiful. This city looks, sounds and smells a lot like NYC but with borders that suddenly appear to accomodate the newly dead and shrink when they mysteriously disappear. The recently departed believe that they're in this limbo-like city because someone still alive on Earth holds them in their memory.

Brockmeier throws out lots of big ideas and deep thoughts in his description of the city but doesn't follow through on most of them.

Then he introduces Laura Byrd, a researcher hired by the Coca-Cola company to investigate Antartica for the possibility of using the rapidly melting ice there for their beverages. Laura begins some interesting adventures in the snow-strewn tundra when she is left alone in her station and supplies begin to run low and things begin to break. Laura's struggle to stay alive should be more gripping but her chapters begin to wear thin.

While Laura is struggling for survival, the remaining citizens of the city realize that they all have a connection with her. Laura is the last remaining human on earth and it is only her memories of them that sustain the city.

But the recently departed are curiously incurious about what comes next for them. Where is the faith of these people? Why do they continue to eat? Why do they continue to work? What happens when Laura finally succumbs to her hostile environment? What is the purpose of memory? Of human connections? Why does the car accident victim appear whole and the cancer victim appear healthy in the city, but the blind man remains blind?

The book throws enough big ideas at you that there is plenty to discuss for a book group, but in the end it lacked the depth that would have made it a great book.

In December, we'll be discussing The Places In Between by Rory Stewart. See you then!