Book Club Recommendations

"Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood", maybe? (I've read it.)

I just finished, "The Map that Changed the World" by Simon Winchester. It's about the stratigrapher who made the first geological map of England and Wales, William Smith. It's an engrossing story that has much meaning to me, because of my familiarity with London and Bath (and some others mentioned in the story). It even mentions Somerset House on the Strand where I visited the Courtauld Gallery on my last visit in March (during the A2K London Gathering). It even tells how William Smith influenced Charles Darwin, and here again, I was in the Galapagos at the Charles Darwin Research Center just last month, and spent seven days visiting the different islands to see first hand how the environment influences evolution of plants and animals. Simon Winchester attended Oxford where he studied geology. c.i.

There's an interesting book called A Lady's Life in the Rocky Mountains by Isabelle Bird which is not terribly long or difficult. It is the true story of an English woman in the 19th C. who travels around the world for her health. She was the first woman to be invited to join the Explorer's Club of London -- a real honor. First published in 1879, it is a classic, historically accurate, and fun to read.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0806113286/qid=1055445789/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/103-5681010-5293445?v=glance&s=books

Here's how one of the Amazon reviewers begins to describe the storyline:

I just got off the phone with my best friend who was RAVING about : Over the Edge: DEATH IN GRAND CANYON . She is not a raving kind of person, so I know I'm going to go track this one down.

I've read a number of Carol Shields books in book groups, and they've always gone over well (even with the members who recommended Harlequins when it was their turn to choose).

I recently read a Recipe for Bees by Gail Anderson-Dargatz link to a review, and would recommend it very very highly for a book group.

and then ... there's the Moosepath League series of books - there's a lot there if you're looking for it - or it's fun reading if that's what you want - my copy of Cordelia Underwood seems to be in permanent rotation through my friends and colleagues.
moosepath.com . If you're interested in Maine, American history, mysteries or humour, this is a GREAT series.

Aw geez where did my response go???

Sofia said somewhere that she thought her response wasn't there and then it turned up, so I'll wait a bit...

How about "The Secret Life of Bees"?

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0142001740/ref=pd_sim_books_5/103-7297310-8149400?v=glance&s=books

Or "Life of Pi"? (I tend to like Booker-winners -- anyone know if it's too capital L Literary?)

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0156027321/ref=pd_sim_books_2/103-7297310-8149400?v=glance&s=books

soz said...

"Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood", maybe? (I've read it.)

wasn't that a movie too? i remember a wild one i met tellin me something about the ya-ya sisters or some such nonsense this winter.

Yep, it was made into a movie. That's a serious drawback, a lot of the books I thought of have been made into movies and lotsa people have already seen the movie...

The lost post never showed. I thanked everyone for the great recommendations -- I want to read them!! I'm still a little flummoxed though because I'm trying to fulfill several different requirements simultaneously -- something everyone likes since I really want to keep the momentum from the first book club meeting and establish the club, but something I like since I have so little time for reading and won't have a chance to pick something for another year or so.

i've seen movies after reading the book that were pretty dissapointing. only one or two that i'd see again.

sozobe<

I think Sen. Clinton's new book, Living History, might be of interest to members of your club.

Whatever one thinks of the author's politics, she is probably the most powerful woman in America. The book has just been released and is a hot topic in the press.

Certainly her book would contain discussion issues pertinent to women, especially her "growing up" years and her role as First Lady.

If you want large L literary, that the other members will still enjoy, I'd recommend anything by Carol Shields. Among other things, she's got a Pulitzer.

I dunno about Life of Pi. I've heard some sort of hmmmmmmmm comments about it being a bit errrrrr, well, more for the large L reader.

carol shields - awards and reviews and stuff (cross fingers for hot link to work)

Lindsey Davis has written 14 books about a private eye in ancient Rome named Falco. He's co-habitating with a Senator's daughter, and the books are pretty cute. The first one is "Silver Pigs", and the most recent is "The Jupiter Myth". She's also written one stand-alone book in the same time period, "The Course of Honor".

Her books are well written and worth looking into.

mikey, yup, I'm almost always disappointed by movie versions of favorite books. Some exceptions.

williamhenry, that does look interesting, and could make for some good discussion. One more condition, though (I know, there are a lot of them -- that's why I'm having a hard time!) is that it be available in paperback/ free at the library. (The library has some sort of rental system for new hardbacks.)

ehBeth, I've read a lot of Carol Shields and do like her. She's on my radar, just isn't an "ooh" moment yet. If possible, I'd like to read an author who is new to me. And I think even she is a little too literary for this crowd. English as second language thing. I think they will want stories more than the telling of them. (Though Carol Shields does tell good stories.)

Yeah, I heard that about "Life of Pi", too. Hmph.

The sozlet is starting to be a wee bit more independent so I am hoping hoping hoping I'll have some time to do some serious reading this summer. I'm SO behind!!

Thanks, Jim! More for MY reading list, at the very least.

Anyone read or know about "The Secret Life of Bees"? It's the most promising candidate so far; good review in NYT, bestseller, appeared on "also bought" lists on Amazon for other books my friend likes, recent but in paperback, not too capital L.

I'm reading Life of Pi right now... not quite 100 pages into it. So far it has a lot of musing about religion which may or may not be what you'd want to discuss. It was advertised as the story of a boy who ends up on a lifeboat with a menagerie of animals. That's because he father ran the Pondicherry zoo. His commentary about zoo animals was also surprising.

I'd say Life of Pi may not be the best choice for a budding book club when you're not sure of the tastes of the women. I was in a book club that met monthly for seven years. The books that were most popular seemed to be about women & men together. Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner made for a great discussion. So did The Bone People by Keri Hulme. Love in the Time of Cholera was another one that everyone seemed to enjoy, read all the way through and have interest in discussing. Because there were some people on limited incomes, it was always important to choose a book that could be readily available at the library or purchased as a paperback.

Decided on "Secret Life of Bees"... reaction is good so far. (Whew.)

Piffka, do you recommend "Life of Pi" in general? I usually really like Booker winners and it sounds interesting, though I know there was a big flap when he won. (Plagiarism, etc.)

I just bought the life of pi the other day, but am yet to start reading it. Though I have to admit I am a bit sceptical abt the book....

Am currently reading "The Autograph Man" by Zadie Smith - and am throughly enjoying it. It's really funny.....

OOh, that does sound good. I like Zadie Smith a lot.

Good luck with your book club, sozobe! I tried to be in one once, but I found myself so out of synch with what others wanted to read that I gave up. But one of the books we read was quite good: "Bury Me Standing" by Isabel Fonseca. It's non-fiction and focuses on the time the author spent living amond the Gypsies. A fascinating look at a group everyone seems to think it's OK to discriminate against.

And it's a paperback!

Oh, that's a GREAT book! I've read it!

Yeah, I've done the out-of-sync thing too, but have decided the community aspect is too important to me and I'll put up with whatever. And the Michael J. Fox thing really was a pleasant surprise -- the resulting discussion, anyway.