The Book Club with a Difference

Jun 17, 2010

Sharbot Lake’s Summer Book Club with a Difference: (l-r) Christine, Crystal, Sara, Diane, Glenys, Helen and Bee (missing is Shirley Peruniak)

A recent visit to the Sharbot Lake Summer Book Club with a Difference on June 4 was a great help in suggesting some possible summer reads.

Before the Sharbot Lake Public Library’s open hours, eight women gathered around a table at the branch and launched into an informal and interesting discussion of the world of books.

The club is open to everyone and participants are invited to speak about what they are currently reading, which allows listeners to take away ample food for thought regarding their next book picks.

First up was Bee Zawisza who spoke about The Fatherland, a first novel by Robert Harris, a fiction on the outcome of World War 2 in which Germany won and Hitler survived. The mystery unfolds as Detective March, assisted by a feisty young female journalist, discovers the body of a Nazi official. Together they unravel a Nazi conspiracy that began in WW2. In Bee’s words, “I’m not usually into war stories but it’s a very good mystery.”

Gloria Jenkyn, a fan of historical fiction, reviewed The Heretic’s Wife by Brenda Rickman Vantrease, a tale about the selling of books on the Lutheran reformation during the reign of Henry VIII when he is pulling away from the Pope in the hopes of marrying Anne Boleyn. “The book really brings the history to life and I simply can’t get my nose out of it.”

Diane Yerxa spoke next about La’s Orchestra Saves the World by Alexander McCall Smith, perhaps best known for his popular series The #1 Ladies Detective Agency. This story is about a recently widowed woman who starts up an amateur orchestra to "soothe her broken heart" and in the process meets a Polish flautist and refugee who joins the group. The story evolves as the orchestra disbands at the war’s end and La is forced to move ahead in her life. Diane found it a very enjoyable read.

Sharbot Lake librarian Sarah Carpenter, who hosted the event, spoke about Endless Feasts, a collection of food writing compiled by Ruth Reichl, the former editor of the now defunct Gourmet Magazine. “It’s as much a history lesson as it is about food because certain stories date back to prohibition and other periods in history.” Sarah especially enjoyed Madhur Jaffrey’s "magical account" of the huge family picnic excursions that she and her 50 plus member family undertook in India back when she was a young child, a common Indian tradition at that time.

Helen Coulombe spoke about Kane River, the story of five generations of black women in the southern United States in Louisiana and the occurrence of “bleaching”, a term used in the book to describe the interracial relationships between black slaves and the white families for whom they worked. Helen came across the book when she was wintering in Florida and that book led her to another on the same subject called The Help by Kathryn Stockett who writes of her childhood being brought up by a black maid while her white parents lived a high society kind of life. Helen said that both books were fascinating and shocking reads.

The Sex Life of Cannibals by J. Maarten Troost was reviewed by Christine Patterson who usually prefers reading non-fiction. She clarified the fact that the book’s title is somewhat misleading. The book is an account of the two years a husband and wife spent on the Gilbert Islands, which humorously shatters many common idyllic myths about life on the Pacific Islands. Christine described the author Troost as “a young Bill Bryson” and said she will definitely be searching out more titles by the former.

Glenys Bender spoke about Anita Rau Badami’s Can You Hear the Night Bird Call? which traces the lives of three families through the political turmoil and historical events of East India from 1928-1986. Glenys spoke of the way the author allows the reader to become attached to these characters, making the real events in India during that time even more so. She pointed out the fact that the title recalls an old Indian myth where "the night bird’s call is a portent of death”, which adds great suspense as the novel unfolds.

Shirley Peruniak discussed Out Stealing Horses by Norwegian writer Per Petterson, a story about the German occupation of Norway and the plight of two families there involved in the smuggling of secret documents into Sweden. It’s a suspenseful story and Shirley commented, “The interesting thing was the writing and the length of the sentences, which I’m not sure is typical of the Norwegian language, or just this author.” Her description was so enjoyed by members of her book club that many want to purchase the book.

The discussion ended rather abruptly as regular library customers began trickling in. Two more book club meetings will take place at the Sharbot Lake branch on July 9 and August 6, both at 1PM; at the Arden Branch on June 22 (anything goes), July 20 (mystery) and August 17 (non-fiction).