Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen

Our February love story was Sense and Sensibility. We read Pride and Prejudice a few years ago and Jane Austen gets a lukewarm reception from our group. Some of us enjoy reading her, others prefer to watch the movie version. It was agreed that this book progressed very slowly. It was interesting to note that it was Jane's first novel and then compare it to Pride and Prejudice. We discussed some of the characters and what we liked and disliked about them. But conversation about the book was tricky as very few of us actually finished reading it. Luckily our plan for this meeting was to enjoy food and drink and then watch Becoming Jane in a newly completed home theater. The movie was a fun way to find out more about the author.

Food was very excellent! We enjoyed bread with farmer cheese, guacamole and chips, chilis rellenos, fresh salsa (I'm not sure why we ended up with a Mexican theme), pizza, strawberries, special K bars, a box of Russell Stover chocolates, LU Petit Ecolier Dark Chocolate Biscuits, and of course, wine.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

This plot-driven young adult novel was devoured by everyone in our book club. Half of us had read the second book in the series by the time of our monthly meeting. We enjoyed discussing the moral implications of the Hunger Games along with potential first dates, children's activities, tatoos and body piercing, homelessness, and politics.

We started with the Scholastic questions, but most were more like elementary reading comprehension questions rather than questions for discussion. So we took a few that we liked and mostly made our own.

1) How does the "indifferent mask" worn by Katniss and the roles played by the contestants in the games compare to the masks worn by you and I every day?

2) Compare the contestants in the Hunger Games to characters in other movies and books. Particularly, how does Katniss compare to Bella in Twilight, another hugely popular YA novel, the author of which acclaimed the Hunger Games series?

3) Discuss Katniss's relationships with people back in her district. What do these relationships teach us about Katniss's character? Would you have volunteered in the place of your younger sibling had you been in the same position as Katniss?

4) What did you think of the character of Haymitch? Was his drunkenness understandable, inexcusable or somewhere in between?

5) Discuss Effie, Cinna, and other capitol characters who crossed paths with Katniss over the course of her preparation for the games.

6) Katniss says about Peeta, "I feel like I owe him something, and I hate owing people." How does this statement reflect the way the games play out? When have you felt that you have owed someone and how does it make you feel?

7) Discuss the career tributes and how they compared to other contestants in the games. What makes some tributes more likable than others?

8) What makes Katniss successful in the games? What would your strategy have been had you been one of the tributes? How would you have fared?

9) Compare and contrast the Hunger Games to events in the real world today and in the past.

10) How does the author's choice to tell the story from Katniss's point of view effect your experience as a reader?

11) What do you predict will happen or hope will happen in future books in the Hunger Games series?

12) How well do you think this novel will translate into a movie?

This was a great novel for food options. The idea of having squirrel or rabbit was thrown out there, but overruled early on in the meeting plans. We did, however, get treated to some wonderful lamb stew with plums. It's no wonder it was a favorite of Katniss! There were a couple of bread options, of course. One Red Lobster biscuit and another to go along with a yummy artichoke dip. The salad was fresh and tasty and even incorporated berries! Wine was a must. And I had meant to attach a silver parachute to my Butterfinger brownies for dessert, but it totally slipped my mind. A veggie tray and some luau meatballs rounded out one of the healthiest meals we've ever pulled off without any planning.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by Mary Ann Schaffer and Ann Barrows

Hooray! Everyone enjoyed this book! Not everyone was able to finish it, with the holidays taking up much of their time. The snow storm that was supposed to keep people homebound actually ended up creating a lot of impromptu gatherings for locals who changed their Christmas travel plans. While not quite reaching predicted snow totals, it was certainly a white Christmas this year! Thankfully it was also a safe and happy one for all of our members.

The Random House discussion guide has fun questions for this book. The paperback copies include the questions, which is very handy! Some other topics we enjoyed talking about were:

* Our perspective on WWII as Americans - family members who fought, travel experiences after the war, and current attitudes about WWII.

* While we all struggled to recall the literary tastes of the characters, we enjoyed comparing our own and considering what our taste in books tells about us.

* We admired the character of Elizabeth and touched on whether or not we would be able to put ourselves at risk to help another as she did. We related her experience to the recent attempted bombing on an airplane in Detroit which was prevented by alert passengers who restrained the terrorist. The question was, "Would you be the one to jump on the terrorist if given the opportunity?" Most of us agreed that we wouldn't have the reflexes or the observational skills to be that person and we discussed the background experiences and skills that the brave individual would need to have.

* One amusing conversation revolved around Sidney's sexual orientation as it related to various characters in the book.

* Finally, is Dawsey a good match for Juliet? Why or why not?

Our hostess did a great job with food for this book. She made a pork loin and baked rolls to go with it! She included brie on 'biscuits' as a reminder that the biscuits they received as rations in the book were actually what we could consider crackers. And for an amazing dessert she brought out some yummy teas and chocolate! Other additions to the menu included Southwestern Chicken soup, crab dip with crackers, humus with carrots and peppers, and meat and cheese. There were also some delicious little pastries filled with brie that I'm not enough of a gourmet to describe, I'm sorry. But the moral of the story is that we enjoyed great food and drink as usual. I shouldn't forget the Martha Stewart punch made by our hostess either. I'll say it again... I really need to get people to submit recipes for this site. Happy reading and eating! :)

WLT: A Radio Romance by Garrison Keillor

What did our members have to say about WLT? If you're planning to listen to it on tape during a long car trip, be aware that some of the subject matter may be uncomfortable depending on the mix of people you have in the vehicle. One reviewer used the word "bawdy," which is apt here. We have many Garrison Keillor fans among our members, some who have gone to see him live. This was not their favorite work of his. In fact, no one really cared for it and we did not have much to discuss. I would be happy to add more comments from other book club members that they would care to pass on. Personally, I did not finish it. I did not connect with any of the characters and had no motivation to read very far into the book.

We had some very lively conversations about school politics, standardized testing, female circumcision, the current wars, and other topics of personal interest. We never have any lack of conversation even if we do not find inspiration in the book.

We always find inspiration in food, whether it's from the book, or in this case from the holidays. Desserts were Christmas cookies and pound cake. There was hot wild rice soup and hot buttered rum for the cold weather. Some carrots and humus and cheese and crackers made us feel a little bit healthy. Red wine is healthy, too, correct?

The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson

I don't feel like the best qualified book club member to be writing this month's blog since I did not finish the book. I'm only on page 132, so that's definitely a weak showing on my part. I just couldn't get excited about the book for the first 100 pages or so, which garnered much sympathy from other book club members. However, I am now enjoying the book and most of the others finished it and liked it. I hope to finish it as well. But it's only just now grabbing my interest. It was definitely a good creepy story for October. One book club member mentioned that Larson must be a good writer because she never thought architecture or serial killers would be topics that she would enjoy reading about. We were able to get the book kit from the library, which is always nice. Multiple copies of the book were included along with the book on tape, discussion questions, and some information about H.H. Holmes printed off from wikipedia. We went along with the discussion questions this time in the sense that we found we talked about most of the questions in the course of our discussion. Below is our version of the questions:

1) How were Holmes and Burnham different and how were they alike?

a) Discuss sociopaths throughout history and how they have been similar.

2) What motivated Chicago to take on the impossible and build the fair? Were their motivations admirable or problematic? Where do we see the same drive and determination in today's world?

3) How were they able to create the dreamlike fantasy land of the fair? To what would you compare the experience of those who attended the World's Fair in the White City? To what extent is escaping from reality positive or negative?

4) Discuss lasting inventions, innovations, and important people who came out of Chicago's World's Fair.

5) What were some of Holmes' motives revealed in the book?

6) Share opinions of the format of the book and the alternating story lines.

7) If you're interested in architecture, this might be a good place to discuss the architects. Sorry, we didn't.

8) Where did Holmes get his power? What weaknesses did he prey on? Why wasn't he caught sooner?

9) How was Chicago in the late 1800s like America today? How is it different?

Food selections that were theme related:

Chicago-style deep dish pizza (yum!)

Candies brought from Turkey in the spirit of the "world's" fair!

Other tasty treats:

Caramel and apples, Candied popcorn, Humus and crackers, Veggies and dip, Snack mix, Candy corn with peanuts, Hot apple cider, Wine

The Boy in the Striped Pajama

Despite some hesitation to read yet another holocaust book, we decided to read this one by John Boyne during the first month back at school since it's quick and easy juvenile fiction. It cushions a lot of the harsh realities of the holocaust being from the point of view of a child. Yet it's still a heartbreaking tale, especially for those of us who are all too aware of the grisly details that the child is too innocent to imagine. It made for a great discussion that explored new territory in this familiar topic. We used a few of the discussion questions that we found intriguing, but also added our own. Such as...

1) Did you sense that there was an affair between any of the characters in the novel? Why or why not?

2) Did the reaction of the boys in the novel seem typical of boys their age? Why was each of the boys so naive as to what was happening?

3) Do you think that other ordinary citizens were as blind a Bruno to what was happening? How does our society turn a blind eye to similar issues in our communities and world today? Could another holocaust happen today? How can we prevent it?

4) Discuss what motivates the parents to be involved in such a diabolical campaign. What would you have done had you been in their positions? What if you were one of the children? A German citizen?

5) Were you surprised at the ending? What was your response to the outcome of the story?

6) If you watched the movie, did you find it to be satisfying? How closely did it follow the book? What was left out or added?

Book club menu:

We had sausage with sauerkraut and chocolate brownies for the Germans (or to smuggle to Shmuel). There were chips with guacamole and/or taco dip, chicken wings, meatballs, and cookies for the general food lovers. And for fall we added hot apple cider, carrot cake, peanuts with candy corn, and the "good" popcorn (candy coated).

Yes, My Darling Daughter

One of our members picked up the July issue of O magazine in hopes of finding the next great read, as our recent book picks had proved disappointing (with the exception of Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon, which was well-loved by all). The description of the book Yes, My Darling Daughter by Margaret Leroy was intriguing to us, since we've all been teachers in some capacity over the years. It was basically described as the story of a single mom struggling with her young daughter who has some unique special needs. It is certainly a page-turner, being as much a mystery novel as anything else. This is the only time that our entire 7-member book club has passed a single library book amongst ourselves within the month. Some of the first members to read it deemed Yes, My Darling Daughter a book to read before purchasing, especially in hardcover. After the book completed its circuit, it seemed everyone was in agreement with this opinion. We all breezed through the book and enjoyed a good discussion. But it's worth waiting for the paperback version or checking out from your local library. It's a great read during a busy time, such as back-to-school, when you want a book that grabs your attention and doesn't make you think too hard. With that being said, here is our discussion guide:

1) Sylvie refused to call her mother "Mum." Discuss the reactions of the other mothers in the novel. What was your feeling about her insistance on calling her mother by her first name?

2) Grace has two close friends in the novel. Compare and contrast her friendships with Karen and Lavinia.

3) Sylvie is forced out of her nursery school due to her special needs. Was this an appropriate response by the school? Why or why not?

4) Discuss Grace's response to her daughter's bizarre behaviors. Why was she often fearful of Sylvie? What would you have done in Grace's situation? Would you have gone to talk to Adam Winters? Taken the child to Ireland?

5) The bulk of the novel was focused around the mystery of Sylvie's memories. To what extent were you able to predict each of the revelations. Should the characters in the novel have put the pieces of the puzzle together more quickly? Why or why not?

6) A secondary theme throughout the novel was romance. Discuss the men in Grace's life. What was her attraction to Dominic, Sylvie's father? Adam Winters, the psychologist? Predict the future of Grace's relationship with Adam.

7) The author uses a great deal of description, evoking all of the senses to give a clear image of the neighborhoods, the landscape, and the characters. Share any descriptions that stood out to you that you particularly enjoyed or any that you disliked.

Book Club Menu for Yes, My Darling Daughter:

This was a fun book for thematic food. Anything English or Irish was fitting for this book, but we just love good food, so anything goes. This month's menu included Bailey's with mint and a hint of chocolate (yum!) either on the rocks or in coffee, Irish beef stew, bread and butter, cheese and crackers, grapes, scones, chocolate chip cookies, and Bailey's cheese cake. We should strongly consider the addition of recipes to this blog, don't you think?