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2011-2012 Book List

June 2011 The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks Rebecca Skloot Jul-11 The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane Katherine Howe

August 2011 TBA
September 2011 Freedom Jonathan Franzen
October 2011 Townie Andre Dubus
November 2011 My Life in France Julia Child & Alex Prud’homme
December 2011 Party!!!! Lots of good food and sharing of Christmas stories and joys.
Games and potluck! Contact us if you would like to take part.
January 2012 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Mark Haddon
February 2012 A Reliable Wife Robert Goolrick
March 2012 The Women T.C. Boyle
April 2012 Evensong Gail Godwin
May 2012 TBA
June 2012 Heads You Lose Lisa Lutz & David Hayward

Bookends October book, interview with author link

Hello all,

A few announcements -

1) Our next book will be “A Thread of Grace” by Mary Doria Russell.
About the book:
A Thread of Grace is set in northern Italy during the waning days of World War II. European Jews trying to stay one step ahead of the Nazis cross the Alps into northern Italy, believing they’d find safety since Italy converted to the Allied side of the war. Two of these Jews are 14-year-old Claudette Blum and her father, losing everything they had, including Claudette’s mother, in their scramble through the mountains. They find northern Italy a dangerous place full of Nazis, fascists, Catholics, Jews, spies, and collaborators. Many of the local populace aid in hiding the Jews from the Nazis, often paying the ultimate price for their compassion. Claudette, a bright young woman full of life, finds that survival means giving up much that makes a life worth living. Mary Doria Russell’s complex story has received mixed reviews with the Seattle Times calling it “densely populated, well-plotted novel, which is thick with intersecting plots and characters – most of them both colorful and memorable.” http://www.reviewsofbooks.com/thread_of_grace/

2) The following books we discussed to read will be moved back one month
November – The Maltese Falcon (Edith will be able to get books from the Hattiesburg Library for us to read).
December – Generally we do not read a book this month, just bring you favorite Christmas story/poem to share if you like.
We will be having a party and playing Dirty Santa.
January – To Kill a Mockingbird

3) Rita asked I share this link with you. Mary Doria Russell was on Speaking of Faith January 29, 2009. If you go to the following link you will find either a place to read the transcripts or hear the interview. http://being.publicradio.org/programs/2009/novelist-as-god/transcript.shtml .(Thanks Jenny for finding this link!)

The Glass Castle Discussion questions

1. Though The Glass Castle is brimming with unforgettable stories, which scenes were the most memorable for you? Which were the most shocking, the most inspiring, the funniest?
2. Discuss the metaphor of a glass castle and what it signifies to Jeannette and her father. Why is it important that, just before leaving for New York, Jeannette tells her father that she doesn’t believe he’ll ever build it? (p. 238).
3. The first story Walls tells of her childhood is that of her burning herself severely at age three, and her father dramatically takes her from the hospital: “You’re safe now” (p. 14). Why do you think she opens with that story, and how does it set the stage for the rest of the memoir?
4. Rex Walls often asked his children, “Have I ever let you down?” Why was this question (and the required “No, Dad” response) so important for him — and for his kids? On what occasions did he actually come through for them?
5. Jeannette’s mother insists that, no matter what, “life with your father was never boring” (p. 288). What kind of man was Rex Walls? What were his strengths and weaknesses, his flaws and contradictions?
6. Discuss Rose Mary Walls. What did you think about her description of herself as an “excitement addict”? (p. 93).
7. Though it portrays an incredibly hardscrabble life, The Glass Castle is never sad or depressing. Discuss the tone of the book, and how do you think that Walls achieved that effect?
8. Describe Jeannette’s relationship to her siblings and discuss the role they played in one another’s lives.
9. In college, Jeannette is singled out by a professor for not understanding the plight of homeless people; instead of defending herself, she keeps quiet. Why do you think she does this?
10. The two major pieces of the memoir — one half set in the desert and one half in West Virginia — feel distinct. What effect did such a big move have on the family — and on your reading of the story? How would you describe the shift in the book’s tone?
11. Were you surprised to learn that, as adults, Jeannette and her siblings remained close to their parents? Why do you think this is?
12. What character traits — both good and bad — do you think that Jeannette inherited from her parents? And how do you think those traits shaped Jeannette’s life?
13. For many reviewers and readers, the most extraordinary thing about The Glass Castle is that, despite everything, Jeannette Walls refuses to condemn her parents. Were you able to be equally nonjudgmental?
14. Like Mary Karr’s Liars’ Club and Rick Bragg’s All Over But the Shoutin’, Jeannette Walls’ The Glass Castle tells the story of a wildly original (and wildly dysfunctional) family with humor and compassion. Were there other comparable memoirs that came to mind? What distinguishes this book?

The Red Tent Discussion Questions

1. Over the course of her life, Dinah has many different “mothers.” Discuss the differences or similarities in her relationships with each woman.

2. Dinah’s point of view is often that of an observer. What effect does this have on the reader? On the narrative?

3. Discuss the marital dynamics of Jacob’s family. He has four wives; compare his relationship with each woman.

4. Childbirth and childbearing are paramount in The Red Tent. Discuss the importance of childbearing in the female characters’ lives.

5. The novel follows Dinah from childhood to old age. How does she change and mature, and what lessons does she learn from life?

6. Female relationships are prevalent in The Red Tent. Discuss the importance of Inna, Werenro, and Meryt.

7. There is no historical account of whether Dinah ever had children. Diamant gives her a son. Why do you think she chose not to give Dinah a daughter?

8. While the red tent has been a custom of various peoples in the world, it was not used by Dinah’s people in her time. Why does Diamant make it a prominent feature of her account of Dinah’s life?

7. Discuss Dinah’s twelve brothers. Discuss their relationships with each other, with Dinah, and with Jacob and his four wives. Are they a close family?

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen book discussion questions

I meant what I said, and I said what I meant…
An elephant’s faithful–one hundred per cent!
~Theodor Seuss Geisel, Horton Hatches the Egg, 1940

1. Did you like the book?

2.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?

3.How does the quote from Dr. Seuss’s Horton Hatches the Egg in the novel’s epigraph apply to the novel’s theme? How are faithfulness and loyalty defined in Water for Elephants?

4. 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?

5. Why was Jacob so angry when Mr. McGuinity lied about carrying water for circus elephants? Do you see similarities of spirit between the young Jacob and the old Jacob?

6, 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?” How would you answer that question for Jacob or any individual, or for yourself?

7. 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?

8. 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)?

9. 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?

10. 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?

11. At the end of his story Jacob says, “So what if I’m ninety-three? . . . why the hell shouldn’t I run away with the circus?” (pg. 331) What would you predict to be the elderly Jacob’s experiences after he runs away with the circus for the second time?

The State of Jones Discussion Questions

1. Did you like the book?
2. Before reading the book, what was your opinion of Newt Knight? Was this opinion based on a family/friend perception?
3. What are some things you found interesting about the history of this time period, Mississippi, or JonesCounty?
4. How do you feel about his relationship with Rachel even though he was still married to Serena?
5. We tend to get caught up in myths and legends regarding Newt Knight and his band of “misfits,” do you think his actions showed he was loyal to the Union?
6. Beyond the war, what did Newt Knight do after the war?
7. How do you feel life in Mississippi would be different if the South had won?
8. What do you think was really the “Southern Cause”?
9. After reading the book, how has your opinion changed? If no, then why not?

Amy Hinton
hintonamy

PFLAG-Laurel, MS

Parents, Friends, and Families of Gay and Lesbians

Email: pflag.laurelms

Web: http://pflaglaurelms.wordpress.com

Who would give a law to lovers? Love is unto itself a higher law. ~Boethius, The Consolation of Philosophy, A.D. 524

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In the Sanctuary of Outcasts

Before you read In the Sanctuary of Outcasts, what did you think of when you heard the word “leper”? Did the book change your impressions?

White began his publishing career fighting for underdogs and the disadvantaged. What happened to those initial hopes? How can someone else escape the “success” trap that ensnared White and so many others?

“For as long as my children could remember, I had ignored fences and boundaries and rules. Nothing much had prevented me from getting what I wanted, and I made my children know it,” White admits. How did this attitude land him in Carville? Do you see a correlation between White’s attitude and that of our wider society? How did White eventually break free from this kind of thinking?

White came into contact with a variety of diverse characters during his year Carville, including Ella, Link, Doc, Jimmy Hoffa’s lawyer, Frank Ragano, Jimmy Harris, Steve Read. Talk about some of these people. What role did they play in White’s life while he was there? What did he learn from each of them?

White looked forward to seeing another leprosy patient, Sister Teresa Pazosas. Though the disease had ravaged her nose and fingers, “just being in her presence made me feel light and peaceful,” White writes. “I didn’t fully understand why she had that effect on me, but I was beginning to feel certain about one thing. Carville was a sacred space.” What made Carville a sacred place? Why was White able to see what many of the other inmates could not?

Why was White so drawn to Ella? What was the importance of the Coke bottle story?

What lessons did prison teach White?

“The Help” Book Discussion

WE HAVE CHANGED OUR ORDER OF BOOKS…. FOR JANUARY 2010, WE WILL BE READING “THE HELP” BY Kathryn Stockett.

Book Club Discussion Questions

1. Who was your favorite character? Why?

2. What do you think motivated Hilly? On the one hand she is terribly cruel to Aibileen and her own help, as well as to Skeeter once she realizes that she can’t control her. Yet she’s a wonderful mother. Do you think that one can be a good mother but, at the same time, a deeply flawed person?

3. Like Hilly, Skeeter’s mother is a prime example of someone deeply flawed yet somewhat sympathetic. She seems to care for Skeeter— and she also seems to have very real feelings for Constantine. Yet the ultimatum she gives to Constantine is untenable; and most of her interaction with Skeeter is critical. Do you think Skeeter’s mother is a sympathetic or unsympathetic character? Why?

4. How much of a person’s character would you say is shaped by the times in which they live?

5. Did it bother you that Skeeter is willing to overlook so many of Stuart’s faults so that she can get married, and that it’s not until he literally gets up and walks away that the engagement falls apart?

6. Do you believe that Minny was justified in her distrust of white people?

7. Do you think that had Aibileen stayed working for Miss Elizabeth, that Mae Mobley would have grown up to be racist like her mother? Do you think racism is inherent, or taught?

8. From the perspective of a twenty-first century reader, the hairshellac system that Skeeter undergoes seems ludicrous. Yet women still alter their looks in rather peculiar ways as the definition of “beauty” changes with the times. Looking back on your past, what’s the most ridiculous beauty regimen you ever underwent?

9. The author manages to paint Aibileen with a quiet grace and an aura of wisdom about her. How do you think she does this?

10. Do you think there are still vestiges of racism in relationships where people of color work for people who are white?

11. What did you think about Minny’s pie for Miss Hilly? Would you have gone as far as Minny did for revenge?

Middlesex Discussion Questions

1 Calliope is the name of the classical Greek muse of eloquence and epic poetry. What elements of Greek mythology figure in Cal’s story? Is this novel meant to be a new “myth”?

2 Middlesex begins just before Cal’s birth in 1960, then moves backward in time to 1922. Cal is born at the beginning of Part 3, about halfway through the novel. Why do you think the author chose to tell so much of his grandparents’ and parents’ stories in order to tell about his own life?

3 Middlesex is set against the backdrop of several historical events: the war between Greece and Turkey, the rise of the Nation of Islam, World War II, and the Detroit riots. How does history shape the lives of the characters in the novel?

4 Were you surprised by Lefty and Desdemona’s courtship and marriage? Could you understand why they fell in love? Do you think their marriage was morally wrong?

5 How is Cal’s experience living within two genders similar to the immigrant experience of living within two cultures? How is it different?

6 How are Cal’s early sexual experiences similar to those of any adolescent? How are they different? Are the differences more significant than the similarities?

7 Why did Callie feel the need to run away after reading Dr. Luce’s report? Do you think her parents could have accepted her decision not to have the surgery? Could Callie have changed her identity if she did not go out on her own?

8 What is Dr. Luce’s role in the novel? Would you describe him as a villain?

9 “Watching from the cab, Milton came face-to-face with the essence of tragedy, which is something determined before you’re born, something you can’t escape or do anything about, no matter how hard you try”. According to this definition, is Cal’s story a tragedy?

10  Does the author give us reason to believe that Cal’s relationship with Julie will be successful?