Seven enthusiastic readers turned up ready for rip-roaring discussion. Missing our January dose of book club meant our February meeting could not come fast enough!
First up was Eleanor Catton's The Luminaries which had won the 2013 Man Booker Prize and our title for December/January. Most agreed that it was unnecessarily long and found the tapering ending unsatisfactory. Some enjoyed the structure but others found it over-structured. The astrological references and the work that had gone in to their accuracy seemed to be lost on and therefore superfluous for most of our readers. Everyone had finished the book, which considering its size is an achievement in itself. As it was some time since most of us had read the book it was difficult to remember the detail and though everyone agreed it contained a lot of detail, most of us were stretched to remember its intricacies.
Next on the menu was The Lemon Table, a collection of short stories about ageing, by Julian Barnes. Everyone seemed to have their favourite which resonated with them for one reason or another. Some found the coarse language in some of the stories off-putting to the extent they could not continue reading the book. Overall folks were not fans of the short story and found this collection not particularly riveting.
The last book discussed was March by Geraldine Brooks. Some really liked the idea of modern authors writing novels attached to older classics while others found it was a genre often ill-handled. Our readers found March filled a gap in their knowledge of American history and from this perpective was an interesting novel. Many found the character March lacking in appeal.
Discussion then went on to other books that our members had read and there was a flurry of notetaking as folk listed some of the titles that our members had enjoyed.
Overall we had a lovely lively discussion and all seemed to leave a little happier that they had had their monthly 'book fix'.
Keep those pages turning!
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