Three books thrashed in a thrice!

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!

Between the Lines Book Club ready to meet this Thursday at Gordon White Library!

Just a reminder that this week is Between the Lines Book Club week! We meet at 6 pm on Thursday 27 February at Gordon White Library, Mt Pleasant.

How is everyone going with March and The Lemon Table? At least both of these novels are far lighter than The Luminaries. Hopefully we will be cyclone-free this Thursday and be able to get our monthly book club fix.

As our last book club meeting was rained out by Cyclone Dylan's proximity, we'll spend some time this meeting discussing our impressions of The Luminaries as well our two February titles. We should have a lot to discuss!

If you have not got around to reading any of these titles and you are keen to join our group of avid readers, please come along and join in. We are a friendly group eager to chat with and listen to others with a reading passion.

Keep those pages turning! It's exercise for mind, body and soul!

February book choices information

Hello folks,

It was very disappointing to miss on our first book club discussion for the year, especially after persisting through such a thick volume! Falling branches and palm fronds,  a gusty wind and heavy rain with an unpredictable Cyclone Dylan thrown into the mix seemed to be sufficient reason to cancel book club so people could stay off the roads and be home where they could ensure adequate preparation.

At our last meeting we decided to read the last two books borrowed from Townsville Libraries; March by Geraldine Brooks and The Lemon Table by Julian Barnes.

 



March purports to tell the story of the father who was an absent character in Louisa May Alcott's classic Little Women. This is what one reviewer had to say about the book. Other reviewers had these comments.

 

The Lemon Table is a collection of short stories about aging by Julian Barnes. They certainly blow any aged stereotypes out of the water. I am interested in why Julian Barnes gave this particular collection of stories this title. Hopefully by the time I've finished it, I'll have a better idea.

 

This is what Frank Kermode (interesting reviewer's name especially for this topic??) had to say.

Just drop in to Gordon White Library to collect your copies for our next discussion which all being well, will be at 6 pm, Thursday 27 February at Gordon White Library. You'll find these novels a little easier on the biceps!

Happy reading!

 

 



 

 

 

 

 

 



Between the Lines Book Club cancelled for this evening

Hello everyone,

I've decided to cancel tonight's book club as it is just too dangerous to be out. We will meet again on 27 February and try to fit in discussion on three books!

The books for February are March by Geraldine Brooks and The Lemon Table by Julian Barnes and these can be collected from Gordon White Library. Please give your name to the friendly staff so that I have an idea of who has their books.

If you're tired of carrying the hefty The Luminaries around please feel free to drop it off when the weather improves.

At least it's great reading weather! Enjoy!

I'll put more information up about our February books soon!

Stay dry!

Welcome to 2014!

Well how are we going with The Luminaries?  How are the biceps from all the weight lifting? I'm almost there but it has been a long haul!

Looking forward to our discussion at Gordon White Library on Thursday 30 January at 6 pm!

A little more light on "The Luminaries"

I promised I would find a little more information on our Christmas read The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton.  This hefty tome won the 2013 Man Booker Prize.

Here is what Telegraph's Lucy Daniel had to say about it in October 2013. Bill Roorbach (What an incredible name for a book reviewer!) in a Sunday Book Review from The New York Times has this to say about it.

All in all it sounds like it a great way to spend the Christmas break! I can't wait till someone brings their copy back so I can get reading it!

Hope you get time to try out a few other books as well! Happy reading!

Awash with tragedy

Well talk about reading the blues!  It seemed to be the general consensus that this month's reads were generally hard work. Some folk hadn't quite finished them despite valiant efforts while some folk who waded through felt a little underwhelmed with the conclusions.

"On Chesil Beach" was considered the more rewarding read of the two. Some readers found themselves frustrated with the communication breakdown between the two protaganists while others spoke of the tragedy of timing - they just met in the wrong decade! Many readers empathised with the pain experienced by the main characters and therefore felt sympathy towards them while others just wanted to shake the book and thus bring the characters to their senses.

However "The Sea" did not seem to evoke the same degree of empathy. While some readers really enjoyed the beauty of Banville's language and thought the sea provided an underlying rhythm to the book, others got tired of feeling caught in the backwash and just got annoyed with the main character.
Other readers thought the language used made the story less accessible than it needed to be. Many readers opted to skim the book and just read the final chapter. One reader shocked everyone by admitting they always read the final chapter first and then go back and read the book, claiming this gives them a better idea of what they need to be looking for in the book. This admission certainly raised a lot of eyebrows and animated discussion.

As it was our last Book Club for the year we spent time reminiscing about the books we've read over the past couple of years and some of our participants decided to catch up on some of the ones they had missed. There was also much discussion about reading plans for the Christmas break.

As we do not meet until 30 January 2014, we opted for a big read over Christmas - "The Luminaries" by Eleanor Catton. This bulky tome won the 2013 Man Booker Prize and should ensure readers gain rather sculpted arms as they read!

I'll include more information about this book in my next blog.

Keep those pages turning!