Book Club I

2025 has begun well for us. We've read four very different but interesting books.

Bear, by Julia Phillips, tells of two sisters on a Pacific Northwest island whose lives are upended by an unexpected visitor. It's a tale of family, obsession, and a mysterious creature in the woods.

Elizabeth Strout's Tell Me Everything is a story about the meaning of life and the meaning of a specific life. These themes are explored through the tale of Bob Burgess, who is an ordinary person and an extraordinary person.

James, by Percival Everett, is a reimagining of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn but told from the perspective of Huckleberry's friend on his travels, Jim, who is an escaped slave.

A book about sisterhood and the importance of family and community, When the World Fell Silent, by Donna Jones Alward, portrays the profound effects of the Halifax Explosion of 1917, particularly on the lives of two very different women.

Our next book, The Berry Pickers, by Amanda Peters, tells of a four-year-old Mi'kmaq girl who goes missing from the blueberry fields of Maine, sparking a mystery that remains unsolved for nearly fifty years.

If you're a new member of L’ARSE, we'd like to take this opportunity to wish you a long and stimulating retirement! Much as we would like to invite you to join our group, we have no room, as we're currently at the maximum number to encourage discussion. However, L’ARSE can never have too many book clubs! Start your own! Don't worry if you don't know anyone. People who love books soon become friends and enjoy many interesting and informative hours together. I think that the members of our group would agree that it has certainly enriched our retirement.

 

 

Book Club II

Our book club has continued to meet the first Thursday of the month, occasionally on Zoom, but usually in person at the homes of our members.

We finished off the year reading "Irregular Portugese Verbs" by Alexander McCall-Smith. We changed our format for this meeting by encouraging our members to read any book by this author. We discussed the style, humour, pretensions of the characters, and how many books this author has written (144 !) We enjoyed the books, most of them a light easy read.

"How to Read a Book" by Monica Wood examined the difficulties of leading a book club within a prison. Much to be learned here in a deeply moving novel about second chances. It is a hopeful story about letting go of guilt, and the power of books to change our lives. The author illuminates the decisions that define a life and the kindnesses that make life worth living. We all enjoyed the discussion of these issues that affect each of us.

Our next choice was "Lady Tan's Circle of Women" by Lisa See. This is an historical novel inspired by the true story of a woman physician in 15th century China. In this book we learn a great deal about the codes of conduct, treatment of women and social structures of this fascinating society. The protagonist, Yunxian, is expected to act like a proper wife, embroider bound-foot slippers, recite poetry, give birth to sons, and stay within the walls of the family compound. A book about friendship, and a remarkable physician.

"James", by Percival Everett is the re-telling of Mark Twain's 1884 classic "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn", from the point of view of Jim, the run-away slave who joins Huck on his journey. Everett reconceives the novel and its world of slavery. We are constantly shown that the stakes for James are life and death. The result is brilliant, and very thought-provoking. Our group had a very animated discussion about this one.

Our latest choice is "The Frozen River" by Ariel Lawhon. A book of historical fiction inspired by Martha Ballard, a midwife who lived in Maine in the period starting around 1789. She kept diaries about her life which become central to the plot of the novel. The book begins with Martha being asked to examine the body of a man found in the frozen Kennebec River. It moves quickly on from there, getting much more complicated as the dead man has been accused of raping a woman several months earlier. Rich character development and a fast-based plot makes this a very entertaining read.

Our book club is open to new members. Any questions about the group can be directed to bevdaye@sympatico.ca