Oct 1st - Get together to discuss The Gathering!

Winner of the 2007 Man Booker Prize, Anne Enright's The Gathering is the tale of Veronica, one of a large Irish family, who wrestles with the complexities of life. The adult Verionica must wrestle with her brother's suicide and the family drama and emotion that surrounds it.

While The Gathering clearly shows Enright's excellent use of prose. Those same strong words and the emotions they evoke tend to make this title one that you will either love or intensely dislike.

We'd love to hear your opinion! Share here online or come and meet with us!

Join us Wednesday, September 3rd!

We will be discussing Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout.

In this new "novel in stories" you view Olive through the eyes of those who know her best by witnessing the situations she encounters in a small Maine town. She is a schoolteacher and a wife, but she is also much more. Olive is a life influence over far more people than she ever realizes.

Artfully written and easy to read, this charming book of tales gives you a reason to reflect and smile a secret smile about everyday life.

Important News: The East Lake Book Group will now meet on the first Wednesday of the month. This means the next book group meeting will be on August 6th at the usual time - 6:30 PM. We will be discussing The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri. New book marks will be available at the front desk.

Yesterday, we met to discuss Anne Fadiman's informative, eye-opening book - The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. Fadiman gives readers a in-depth look at the clash of two cultures - the Hmong culture and the American medical system. It is difficult to explain the frustration we all felt reading about a Hmong child with epilepsy and the American doctors who tried to save her. Fadiman helps the reader understand the Hmong culture, their beliefs, the way they view life and how this is in direct opposition to American medical practices. This fascinating book received a 4.5 rating.

BOOK CLUB UPDATE 6/23/2008

Last week we met to discuss Maya Angelou's second autobiography, Gather in My Name. The group was amazed at the scope of Maya's life experiences in the two short years the book covers. She had an amazing array of jobs including waitress, cook, madam and prostitute. She had heartbreaking love affairs and lost her child for a short time. We were inspired by her courage and tenacity though wondered at few of the choices she made. The book left us wanting to found out how she got from that place in her life to the enormously successful, accomplished woman she is today. The book received a score of 3.

The following is a list of books for July through December 2008.

The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman
The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri
Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Stout
The Gathering by Anne Enright
Ten Thousand Islands by Randy Wayne White
Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson

Hope to see you all in July!

SATURDAY, MAY 3, 2008

We were delighted to have Emily Allen Garland, the author of Giving A Voice to Ancestors, come and speak to the book group last month. Emily gave us the background on how and why she came to write a riveting book about her ancestors. This led into a discussion of Afro-American and white race relations and her hopes for the future. Emily also shared the early story of her own life and has written a second book, her autobiography. Entitled Bittersweet Memories, this book is currently in cataloging and will soon be available to check out here at East Lake.

The book for this month is On Beauty by Zadie Smith. It is the humorous story of 2 families and their complicated relationships with each other. The author explores religion, race, class, family relationships and marriage. Our next meeting is on May 21st at 6:30 PM. Please bring in your list of suggestions for books to read over the next six months. If you are not able to attend, please email me your suggestions.

FRIDAY, MARCH 28, 2008

Last week, we discussed The Zookeeper's Daugher by Diane Ackerman. Amazing is the word that describes the true events taking place in Poland during World War II. Ackerman tells the story of Antonia and her husband Jon and how they managed to save over 300 Jewish people from the Nazis. This true story of the Warsaw Zoo, Warsaw's Jewish ghetto and the Polish Resistance gives the reader a unique glimpse of World War II. On a scale of 1 to 5, the book ended up being rated as a 3.5.

Just a few reminders: the library will be closed April 21 through April 26 while we convert our computers to a new, improved computer system. The I Borrow System that allows us to obtain books from other libraries in the state will not be available for use until May 1.

Our next Book Group meeting will be on Wednesday, April 16, to discuss Emily Allen Garland's book: Giving A Voice to the Ancestors. We look forward to meeting the author and discussing her book with her. Coffee and dessert will be provided. I encourage everyone to attend this special evening even if you don't get time to finish the book. I hope to see you all in April.
Sherry

Book Club Update - 02/21/2008

Our February selection was a hit. Everyone present enjoyed reading The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls. Jeannette's story of growing up in a very challenging situation impressed us with her perseverance and ingenuity. What was more impressive is that after facing a childhood plagued with poverty and neglect, she is able to tell the story with deep affection for her parents. It was definitely a story of triumph against all odds.

On March 19th, we will be discussing The Zookeeper's Wife. We have ordered a number of copies of the book and expect them to be delivered by the end of this week. I will call the people that left me their names. If you did not add your name to the list, feel free to email me to let me know that you need a copy. See you all on March 19th. Sherry