Benjamin Franklin's Bastard by Sally Cabot

Thursday December 4, 2014       Host:  Cheryl

Attendees:  Janna, Myra, Susan, Nan, Amy, Michelle, Lori, Mary Margaret, Pat and Pam

Okay, who read the book this month?   Hands up!! Believe it or not, everyone who attended book club had read the entire book. That makes two months in a row for us so good job ladies!



Pat toasts while raising her hand and Mary Margaret looks incredibly sincere about her hand raising. These ladies definitely read Benjamin Franklin's Bastard.

Here are the happy, smiling faces of Myra, Janna, and Cheryl after eating some food. We are now ready to discuss our book.

Benjamin Franklin's Bastard is a historical fiction book that told the story of Benjamin Franklin and his bastard son, and the women who loved them both. William Franklin was the son of Benjamin and his favorite mistress, Anne. However, the child William is raised by Deborah, Benjamin's common-law wife. The book tells much of Anne's love for her son William and her efforts to remain in touch with him over the years but always from afar and unknown to William as his mother. The book also details Benjamin Franklin's many profession and talents along with his ambitious son's eagerness to rise in stature politically.

In our discussion, we hit upon several agreed-upon points:

• As talented a man as Benjamin Franklin was (author, printer, inventor, postmaster, scientist, statesman, etc.), he was quite the scoundrel and a real lady charmer.
• Class consciousness affected the lives of both Deborah and William (common-law wife/uneducated; a bastard son), so they both had trouble fitting comfortably into their society at certain points in their lives.
• It was hard to really be sympathetic with many of the book's characters except Grissom.
• The last third of the book dragged a bit with William and his political struggles; "writing style went downhill" (Pam).
• The book had way too much sexual detail with Anne's bed partners.
• It was interesting to us that Benjamin considered himself "monogamous but not celibate".

Pam gave us a quote from Benjamin's real "advice to a friend on choosing a mistress". The quote refers to older mistresses from below the girdle (impossible of two women to know an old from a young one): "as in the dark all cats are grey", so the pleasure of corporal enjoyment with an old woman is at least equal. Oh my...thank goodness for that!

Quote of the evening: When Michelle told of her relative who works in a chicken processing plant, and the chicks are no longer receiving antibiotics (so more are dying), Amy replied: "Isn't killing them the idea anyway?".

Our rating: 3.75 out of 5





Me before You

by Jojo Moyes

Attendees: Lori Gilbert, Pam Meyers, Michelle Smith (host), Cheryl Swenson, Mary Margaret Shepherd, Amy Rarick, Janna Atkins

Discussion:  As a group, we really liked this book! It was a quick read. If we had a criticism, it was that Louisa's declining relationship with Patrick was predictable.  

Lively discussion! Topics ranged from the theological ramifications of euthanasia, where assisted suicide is legal (Washington, Oregon, Luxembourg), to how Christian Bale will be an excellent Will Traynor in the movie coming out in 2015.

Character Development:  Really thinking about what it would be like to be quadriplegic was one of the greatest lessons that we got from the book. We really liked both the main characters and were rooting for their relationship. Ultimately, we understood why Will made his decision and how his death freed Louisa to do things she wouldn't have done before meeting Will.

Lori (aka, English teacher in a former life) said, "Will changed, but he didn't change his mind."

Our quote of the night came later in the evening and shouldn't be repeated in polite company. 

We gave this book a solid 5 stars: I would recommend this book to a friend.

Our next Book Club is Thursday, September 11 and we'll discuss What She Left Behind by Ellen Marie Wiseman. Host TBD.

The Death of Bees by Lisa O'Donnell May 8, 2014

The Death of Bees by Lisa O'Donnell

Attendees:  Cheryl Swenson, Michelle Smith, Janna Atkins, Mary Margaret Shepherd, Pam Meyers (host)

The book takes place in present-day Scotland. The point of view rotates between Marnie (age 15), Nellie (age 11), and Lennie (an elderly gay man).  Marnie and Nelly's parents are dead, and they buried their parents in the back yard. The girls are trying to avoid being put into foster care, so they are pretending that their parents are still alive. According to the author, the title is related to a part of the book, when the girls are talking about bees, "She hasn't mentioned them, but she still thinks about them." The conversation is about bees (literally) but refers to the parents.

Pam heard about the book from NPR's "Fresh Air." The message that the author wants to convey is one of abandonment. This is Lisa O'Donnell's first book.

At the beginning of the book, we were wary of reading it....it's shocking and abrasive at the outset.  The tone of the book becomes more gentle and palatable, partially due to Lennie's influence.

Rating:  Of the four members who read it, two members gave it a 3. One gave it a 3.5 and one gave it a 4.

Book for August: Me before You by JoJo Moyes

Possibilities for future book clubs:
The Goldfinch
Let's Just Say It Wasn't Pretty
Brewster
The Fault in Our Stars
The Light Between Oceans
Orphan Train
Burial Rites
The Valley of Amazement
The House Girl
Orphan Train
The Bloodletter's Daughter
Pecan Man

The Lowland 
by Jhumpa Lahiri

Welcome back to India! The Princeton Walk book club has read several books set in India - Beyond the Beautiful Forevers and The Space Between Us.

This book is set partially in India.  Subhash and Udayan were brothers very close in age but very different in temperment.  Subhash ends up coming to Rhode Island to go to school. Udayan is killed as a revolutionary in India. His wife, Guari, ends up marrying Subhash and moving to the US.

Jumpha Lahiri was born in London and raised in the US.  She also wrote The Namesake.  (Highly recommended by the book club!) She's a Pulitzer Prize winner.

The theme of guilt is pervasive in the book. Guilt follows Subhash around his life. 

Ratings:
We rated this book the usual 4.5 stars.  Ha! In between "I wouldn't have picked it, but I am glad that I read it," and "I would recommend it to a friend." 

Character Development:  We thought the character of Subhash was well-developed.  Cheryl commented that the character of Udayan was lacking....we weren't sure what led to his development as a terrorist.  

Plot: We thought that the author handled the jumping back and forth between setting and times.  Some times it was hard to figure out at the beginning of the chapter who was talking - we had to read a page or two to figure out who was talking and what was going on.

Themes:  "Parenthood" was a theme.  Subhash was the real parent to Bela, while Guari and Udayan were the  biological parents. There was a lot of sadness, grief and depression in this book.

The Lowland

by Jhumpa Lahiri

Attendees: Mary Margaret (host), Pat, Pam, Nan, Janna, Susan, Lori, Cheryl

For this month's book club, we were back in India. We've read several books in the past set in India - Beyond the Beautiful Forevers and The Space Between Us. 

Jhumpa Lahiri was born in London and raised in Rhode Island. She wrote The Namesake (highly recommended by book club members), and is a Pulitzer Prize Winner. 

Rating:
We rated this book at 4.5, the usual! Ha! In between 4, "I wouldn't have picked this book, but I am glad that I read it," and "I would definitely recommend this to a friend."

Characterization:
We thought that the author did a good job with developing the character of Subhash.  Subhash was the central character and most relatable. With the character of Udayan, we were wanting to understand his motivation....how quickly he escalated into terrorism.  We also didn't really understand Bela; how she could not put down "roots" even though she was a farmer. (Pun intended.)

Plot: 
Sometimes we started a chapter and had to read a page or two to understand what time and what place that particular chapter was about. But, for the most part, we didn't mind the back and forth between settings and times. We did wonder about the ending, though; it seemed a little "out of order." 

Quote of the night:  
From Cheryl - "We've all done that....or something similar...."

 

Killing Lincoln by Bill O'Reilly (and Martin Dugard) March 13, 2014

Date: 3/13/14                                                           Hostess:  Michelle Smith

Rating ****1/2        

Attendees: Janna, Lori, Nan, Cheryl, Mary Margaret, Myra, Emily, Amy, Pam, Pat

Notes:

Lincoln was the first American president to be assasignated. 

JWB was a very high profile actor with status of current day George Clooney or Brad Pitt (and he had similar political platform and personal views).

Many similarities between murders of Lincoln and Kennedy starting with the zealot personalities of their murderers, and ending with where they were one month prior to their murders (Lincoln "in" Monroe, Maryland and Kennedy "in" Marilyn Monroe) - "Quote of the night".

Lincoln seemed morose from the very beginning of the book, almost like he expected that he would be killed in the near future.

We were shocked at the lack of security at the theatre on the night of Lincoln's murder.

We discussed how polarizing the author of the book, Bill O'Reilly, was to many of us.  One of our members who began the book on audiotape wasn't able to continue listening due to his abrasive style.  

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings - Maya Angelou - February 13, 2014

Hostess:  Pat Parmalee

Attendees:  Amy, Lisa, Lori, Cheryl, Emily, Susan, Janna, Nan and Pat


This book is the 1969 autobiography about the early years of African-American writer and poet Maya Angelou.  It covers her life from age 3-17, during the years of 1930-1944.  The first in a seven volume series, it is a coming-of-age story that illustrates how strength of character and a love of literature can help overcome racism and trauma.

The book begins when three year old Maya and her older brother are sent to Stamps, Arkansas by their parents to live with their strict grandmother who runs the store in the black community.  After a few years their father reappears and takes them to St. Louis to live with their mother.  It is during this time that Maya is raped by her mother's boyfriend.  She becomes mute from the trauma and is sent back to Stamps to live with her grandmother again.

Eventually they move with their mother to San Francisco and Maya learns to stand up for herself.  The book ends when Maya becomes a mother at the age of 16.  In the course of Caged Bird, Maya transforms from a victim of racism and rape with an inferiority complex into a self-possessed, dignified young woman capable of responding to prejudice.

Everyone enjoyed the book and there was much discussion about the overall theme of racism and sexual identity.  We rated the book 4 stars.****

Quote of the night:  By Amy, of course, after the discussion went off topic!

"Single nuns cannot have babies. I believe they frown on that."

Were we desperate to get out after 48 hours of Snowjam or what???

The Resurrectionist by Matthew Guinn - Dec 5, 2013

The Resurrectionist by Matthew Guinn -   Dec 5, 2013
Hostess: Janna Atkins
Attendees: Nan, Cheryl, Pam, Lori, Pat, Susan, Emily, Michelle
RATING: 3.5 STARS

Nemo Johnston was one of many Civil War-era "resurrectionists" responsible for procuring human corpses for doctors' anatomy training. More than a century later, Dr. Jacob Thacker, a young medical resident on probation for Xanax abuse and assigned to work public relations for his medical school's dean, finds himself facing a moral dilemma when a campus renovation unearths the bones of dissected African American slaves--a potential PR disaster for the school. 

This book is based on a true story that actually took place at the UGA Medical school in Augusta, GA.

Even though it was a nice, easy read, we didn't feel like the characters were very well developed.  
There was a feeling of looking into the story rather than being a part of it.

We enjoyed the past and present day plots.  

Favorite part of the book was when Nemo put the antagonist's mother on the dissecting table as the cadaver he unknowingly dissected.

The ending was rewarding when Nemo ends up stealing the funds from the University account and making a new life for himself as a "doctor" in the Caribbean.

The Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman 1-9-14
RATING 4.5 STARS
Hostess:  Emily Ellingwood
Attendees: Michelle, Lori, Cheryl, Nan, Susan, Myra, Janna, Amy, Pam

The lives of these four complex and fiercely independent women intersect in the desperate days of the siege. All are dovekeepers, and all are also keeping secrets — about who they are, where they come from, who fathered them, and who they love.

In 70 CE, nine hundred Jews held out for months against armies of Romans on a mountain in the Judean, desert, Masada. Only two women and five children survived. Based on this tragic and iconic event, Hoffman weaves a spellbinding tale of four extraordinary bold, resourceful, and sensuous women, each of whom comes to Masada by a different path. Yael’s mother died in childbirth, and her father, an expert assassin, never forgave her for that death. Revka, a village baker’s wife, watched the horrifically brutal murder of her daughter by Roman soldiers; she brings to Masada her young grandsons, rendered mute by their own witness. Aziza is a warrior’s daughter, raised as a boy, a fearless rider and expert marksman who finds passion with a fellow soldier. Shirah, born in Alexandria, is wise in the ways of ancient magic and medicine, a woman with uncanny insight and power.

Discussion was robust.  Characters were very well developed.  Very descriptive imagery - we decided Amy would have been able to smell these characters.  Susan said it was a "scratch 'n sniff book".  

Although these women were very strong, it was obvious that there was a difference between men and women in the battle - men can be more removed from the horrors of the situation, while Aziza struggled because she had a woman's heart. Hearing the women's perspective on the details of the story gave a lot more insight into the feelings and emotions they were going through (as opposed to a man's view would have been more fact based).

There were many complex character and story lines in this book that required a lot of attention to detail.  And as if that weren't enough opportunity for confusion, we had Nan adding in character from other books to our discussion (the woman with the lost money???). 

We had trouble ascertaining who was or was not a good mother given the horrific circumstances these poor women were raising their children in and the fact that the "mothers" were 12-14 years old when they gave birth.  Michelle felt it was a loaded question - "they didn't have alcohol or antidepressants".

We agreed with Channa's dying confession to Shira that it would it would have been better if they had just been sister wives rather than enemies all these years.  Emily said she would just want to make sure she wasn't the "sex wife" and she would prefer to be the "coffee in the morning wife". 

We all discussed that we enjoying learning about history from this book and other historical fiction books we have read.  Myra summed it up perfectly: "historical fiction fluffs it up so we can learn something".  

Quote of the night from Cheryl: "These dysfunctional books make me feel so good about my own family - Oh, my daddy wasn't an assassin!"

MASADA