Book Club - 26/09/12

This months book club was all about ‘The Book Thief’ which is one of my favourite books (my second reading) so you can assume my opinion on it already! We had a great discussion about the characters in the story, the way it was written and its subject.  The book is narrated by Death which gives it an automatic curiosity factor.  This seemed to appeal to some but others felt that it didn’t impact the story as much as it could have and was perhaps a bit forced in places.  We discovered last night that it is actually a children’s book which most of us had not realised.  This made me love it even more (if possible) as I know this is something I would have both loved when I was young and would read again and again as I grew older.

The book is beautifully written and the characters are so vivid.  You knew the subject of Nazis and the holocaust loomed in the background with an angry face, but it was really about a little girl called Liesel.  Surrounded by death from the very start of the story, we saw her grow into a gutsy, vibrant young woman, who was strong, loving, fearless and courageous. 

We each gave it a score out of 10, ranging from 6.85 (Neil started with points!!) up to 10 out of 10 from me and Kelly (sorry 'Kelly and I' hee hee).  We also talked about who our favourite characters were.  There were so many to chose from because each was so well crafted, so easy to imagine as a real person that you almost felt that you knew these people.  My favourite character was Hans who is Liesel’s foster father.  He reminded me a little of my grandad and his relationship with Liesel I saw as more of a grandaughter and grandfather.  Although he didn’t say much you knew what he was thinking and what a sensitive person he was.  The secrets they shared, looks definitely spoke louder than words.  Smoking roll ups, playing the accordion, teaching Liesel to read in the basement and being there for her from the moment he opened the front door through every nightmare. 

Some of the most touching moments in the book were due to the relationships that Liesel had with Max the young Jewish man who they were hiding in their basement. She drew the weather on the wall, even brought snow into the house so he could make a snowman to keep him in touch with the outside world.  They were a poor family and presents consisted of thoughtful stories written on tatty painted pages.  The other relationship which I loved was with her best friend Rudy, who she played football with, went out stealing and bantered with.  They really loved each other.  As Eve said last night Rudy was the kind of cheeky boy you'd love to be friends with too.

I could go on and on about this but all I will say now is that you should read this book.  This one is definitely not going to the charity shop, it stays tucked in my bookshelf amongst my favourite reads of all time.

So instead of folding up little pieces of paper with numbers on this week (as I end up taking these home and littering them around the house) I numbered the list and asked Jennie to pick a number between 1 and 12 and the choice for this month was *drum roll*

‘Before I go to Sleep’ by S.J.Watson

This was actually one of my additions to the list, its still in the chart, a relatively new book and a thriller so something a bit different to what we have read so far at book club! It is rated as being gripping and slowly terrifying which seems perfect for this month as we have decided that next months book club will be held on Halloween! WOOOooooo *scary ghost impression*

So what’s it about I hear you say…

‘Memories define us.  So what if you lost yours every time you went to sleep? Your name, your identity, your past, even the people you love – all forgotten overnight.  And the one person you trust may only be telling you half the story.  Welcome to Christine’s life.’    

Next Book Club Meet:

Date: Wednesday 31^st October 2012

Time: 7.30pm

Location: TBC (need a venue that will not be too rammed being Halloween – possibly the dog and bull pub, am also toying with my house? But suggestions welcome)

Fancy dress optional…treats a necessity

Book Club - 29/08/12

I can’t believe how quickly the months seem to be disappearing, holidays have been and gone and so has another book club! (Jenny P has already mentioned we should be thinking about Christmas outings!!)  We had two new editions to the group this time, I hope Eve and Kelly had fun and will be coming back for more, they’ve added a couple of titles to our list so that is a good sign!  This month we met up in our usual spot to talk about the wartime fiction work of Irene Nemirovsky ‘Suite Francaise’, a book that Nemirovsky was unfortunately never able to complete, due to being detained at Auschwitz where she sadly died. 

This was a book I was really looking forward to as it’s the sort of thing I’d pick up if I saw it in a shop.  I’m not really into the politics of war but I find the characters and the stories of how people lived fascinating. 

Although it was a good book nobody felt the book was amazing, it didn’t have the wow factor of a ‘masterpiece’ (as described on the cover).  That’s not to say that we didn’t like it and there were some beautifully written moments throughout the story.  My favourite aspect of it was the descriptiveness.  The way it was written allowed you to easily conjure an image of what these people and their surroundings looked liked at that moment.

The main debate of the evening…was it really an accurate portrayal of the times, how the French really felt about the Germans during that time of the occupation?  Yes it is fiction, but clearly the author wrote with intent to describe what life was like at this time period using her characters to take us to that moment in time.  It was interesting as some felt the author portrayed the French people as growing to like and even to fall in love with the officers, as they became a part of their daily lives, living amongst them in their homes.  And why could this not be true, these soldiers were just people, not unlike the husbands and sons they had sent away to war.  They too had families back home.  Others argued that it was just too safe, that surely the French were not this easily swayed and that simply the author was writing this afraid of the Germans herself and so being restrained about in which light they were portrayed.

After despairing at book club that I had lost my notebook containing ‘the list’, I did manage to find the early list on my blog so that we could choose a book for next month.  We decided to pick at random and the winning title was:

‘The Book Thief’ by Markus Zusak

Myself and a couple of others in the group have actually already read this book, however we were so eager to encourage others to read it and indeed to find out what they think that we are all quite content to re-read it.  This is personally one of my favourite books, which when I first read about 3 or 4 years ago blew me away.  It will be interesting for me to read again and see if I feel the same way the second time around…

‘Narrated by Death, the book is set in Nazi Germany, a place and time when the narrator notes he was extremely busy. It describes a young girl's relationship with her foster parents, the other residents of their neighbourhood, and a Jewish fist-fighter who hides in her home during the escalation of World War II.’

Get your book immediately and start reading, go on off you go!!

I still haven’t found my notebook but have managed to compile this list which includes the two added by our newcomers this week.  Let me know if I’ve missed anything off people!!

Childhood's End - Arthur.C.Clarke
The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins
Before I Go To Sleep - S.J Watson
Me Before You - Jojo Moyes
Of Human Bondage - W.Somerset Maugham
Tess of The D'urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
The Slap - Christos Tsiolkas

Bleak House – Charles Dickens

The Colour of Milk – Nell Leyshon

Cold Comfort Farm – Stella Gibbons

Wild Seed – Octavia. E. Butler

Next Book Club Meet:

Date: Wednesday 26^th September

Time: 7.30pm

Location: Half & Half bar, South Croydon

My book club blog’s seem to be getting longer, I hope you’re not falling asleep there in the back row!

Book Club - 25/07/12

Last night we met up in our usual spot at the Half & Half to discuss ‘The Witch of Portobello’ by Paolo Coelho.  I think we all agreed that it was quite an unusual book which we felt wasn’t a bad book but certainly wasn’t a great book either.  Although the spiritual theme of the story was interesting in some ways, it didn’t come across in a believable way.  There didn’t seem to be enough sceptics in the book and it seemed all too easy for these people to drop everything and follow Athena with very little resistance.  We all agreed that the way the book is written as a collection of accounts by certain characters in the story meant that you never really got the whole picture and never heard Athena’s side, how she felt or what impact the events had on her life.  It also didn’t allow you to fully connect to any of the characters including Athena.  I felt the characters were not distinct enough and sometimes whilst reading had to flick back to the beginning of the chapter to remind myself of who was ‘talking’. 

It wasn’t all negative, the central theme of searching yourself, asking yourself questions about your existence and purpose in life is something I think most people can relate to having been through at some point in their life even if not necessarily in a spiritual way.  It was also clear (to me) that Athena fully believed in what she did and the people who followed her believed in her also.  The references to dance and rhythm were interesting as music can be emotional and you can emerse yourself in music.  It was suggested at one point last night maybe we should all get up and starting trying to dance ‘against the rhythm’…

In conclusion there were too many open questions without answers and so many areas which could have been explored to give the story more depth.  It had potential but didn’t quite get there (for me at least).     

We chose next months book at random again as there were fewer of us and Jennie Greenslade picked out the winning number:

'Suite Francaise' by Irene Nemirovsky

'In 1941, Irene Nemirovsky sat down to write a book that would convey the magnitude of what she was living through, not in terms of battles and politicians, but by evoking the domestic lives and personal trials of the ordinary citizens of France. She did not live to see her ambition fulfilled, or to know that sixty-five years later, "Suite Francaise" would be published for the first time, and hailed as a masterpiece. Set during a year that begins with France's fall to the Nazis in June 1940 and ends with Germany turning its attention to Russia, "Suite Francaise" falls into two parts. The first is a brilliant depiction of a group of Parisians as they flee the Nazi invasion and make their way through the chaos of France; the second follows the inhabitants of a small rural community under occupation who find themselves thrown together in ways they never expected.'

I am really excited about reading this book, it sounds just my cup of tea! Grab your copy and get reading! 

Next Book Club Meet:

Date: Wednesday 29^th August 2012

Time: 7.30pm

Location: Half & Half bar, South Croydon

We were also thinking of having a book club outing to Neil’s Museum of Brands, Packaging and Advertising as their Jubilee exhibition runs until the 31^st August. So I’ll work out a date (probably a Saturday) and send out an invite via fcbk/email to see who fancies it!

http://www.museumofbrands.com/whatson.html

Book Club - 13/06/12

‘The Catcher in The Rye’ resulted in some very mixed opinions this month.  There appeared to be a direct split between the men and women in the group.  The men all giving it a 5 out of 5 rating and the women between 2.5-3.  I enjoyed reading the book to some extent but it really didn’t grab me, I couldn’t get involved. I started to find a new depth to the characters as others in the group talked about their take on the meaning of Holden’s actions and personality but on a first read it didn’t translate to me.  It was interesting to hear the controversy and see how it had affected some in a personal and emotional way whilst others were left a little confused thinking it a bit lacklustre.  Could it be that to understand the complexity of the character you had to have once been a sixteen year old boy?  Everyone agreed there was no doubt that it was very well written but not everyone could agree that it deserved its status as a ‘classic’.

Instead of voting on the next book we decided to number the list and pick one out of the hat and the result was…

'The Witch of Portobello' by Paolo Coelho

'A fiction work by Brazilian writer Paulo Coelho published in 2007, The Witch of Portobello is the story of Athena, a mysterious young woman born in Romania, raised in Beirut and living in London.  The central question posed by Coelho is how do we find the courage to be true to ourselves - even if we are unsure of who we are?'

Sounds intriguing, I've not heard of the book and not read anything by Coelho before although I had heard of one of his famous books 'The Alchemist'.  I'm looking forward to delving into the book to see what I find!

Next Book Club Meet:

Date: Wednesday 25th July at 7.30pm

Location: Half & Half Bar, South Croydon

Doogey the Parrot

Doogey the Parrot

By Gemma Warnock & Jenny Payne - Woodside Junior School (age 8 ish?)

 Chapter 1

Doogey is a normal sized parrot, with grey feathered wings and a bright red chest.  He is so funny and clever.  He’s just like a little boy, a cheeky boy and a naughty one.  Tom and Jane are brother and sister and Doogey is their pet parrot.

When Tom went shopping Doogey came with him.  When Tom wasn’t looking Doogey did something naughty.  The shop keeper went over to the toys and said “I don’t remember a toy parrot being here”, “It’s not a toy it’s me”.  Doogey squawked so loudly that Mr Gimps the shop keeper nearly jumped out of his skin and suddenly jumped back in again. 

Tom laughed loudly and Mr Grimps said “what’s so funny?” Tom said “that’s no toy parrot its Doogey my pet parrot”. Mr Grimps was very angry.  He shouted “You two get out immediately I’m not having you young scamps in my shop!”, “Now you’ve got us into trouble” said Tom “Hee hee hee” jeered Doogey.  He really was a naughty little bird.

Chapter 2

The next day when Jane went to school Doogey climbed into her satchel and decided to draw on her lunch box.  On the way he thought it was a bumpy ride and was happy when they got there.  He got out of the satchel when Jane was talking to her friend.  He followed Jane to her classroom as soon as he could. 

Suddenly someone heard a squawk and everyone saw a parrot on the table.  Jane called out “Doogey what are you doing here?” “Squawk, I wanted to see what’s going on at school, squawk”, “Ok, you can stay I suppose,” said Jane.  But Jane shouldn’t have said that because Doogey caused a lot of trouble that day.

Doogey followed Jane into assembly and everyone was roaring with laughter when a parrot appeared behind Jane.  But Mr Jenkins the head teacher wasn’t pleased.  He was very angry.  He didn’t say anything but everyone could see that he was angry.

In the middle of assembly there was a funny part in Mr Jenkins’s story and Doogey thought it was extremely funny.  And what do you think Doogey did?  He squawked and squawked and was rolling with laughter.  Mr Jenkins went red and cried “get rid of that parrot, now!”  Mr Jenkins said “who does this parrot belong to?” Everyone looked at Jane.  Jane meekly put up her hand.  “So why did you bring this…this thing into school, did you think if you did you would get a sticker or something?”, “No sir, he followed me to school sir, please sir…it is true sir.” “All right, all right don’t cry, just don’t bring him in tomorrow”, ”ok yes sir” said Jane.

Chapter 3  

This day was a bad day.  It was Friday the 13^th of November.  Everything went wrong.  Everything went wrong anyway in their house. 

Tom was ill that day and had to have some dreamy drunk hot chocolate.  Jane bought him some chocolates but the dog ate them all.  Doogey bought Tom a comic but sat in the corner and read it, instead of giving it to him.  Mum ran out of bird seeds for Doogey and Jane had to go to the pet shop to get some more.  She missed the school bus, forgot her satchel and missed her favourite lesson.  She had to go and see Mr Jenkins but he forgave her, as after all it was the day for things going wrong.

Chapter 4

 Doogey was very excited, an important letter had come that day.  “Post!” said mum, “one is for you Jane.”  “Is there any for me?” said Tom.  “Yes there is” said mum “awesome” said Tom.  “Open it then!” said mum “Wow!” cried Jane, “What is it?” squawked Doogey.  “It’s from the Queen” said Jane, “she’s invited me and Doogey for tea at the palace”, “wow” said Doogey.  “Wait a minute…she’s going to send out one of her special cars to pick us up!” said Jane.  “What does yours say Tom?” said mum “Oh, it’s just from a friend” sulked Tom.

The door rings.  “I’ll get it!” called mum.  It was the milkman.  Apparently he had to have his money today instead of Friday “oh well it’s a tough world”.

Beep Beep!  “Oops” said Jane, “that will be my school bus.  I’ll just grab my satchel and go”.  “I’ll do the same” said Tom.  “Ok have a good day you two” mum said.  “We will, bye!”  The door slams.  “I know, I’ll fix up some cakes and gingerbread men for when they get home from school.  I better get working” said mum. 

At school Jane was making paper parrots and Tom was painting a picture of Doogey.  Later on that day the teacher told everyone a story and all the class had fallen asleep when the bell rang.  Everyone quickly woke up and the teacher sent the children out to get their coats one at a time.

Chapter 5

They were going to visit the Queen on Sunday and Doogey couldn’t wait.  “But you mustn’t be silly Doogey” said Jane “going to see the royal family is very special.”  Doogey tried to make some cakes for the queen but he wouldn’t let anyone help him.

At last it was Sunday and Jane and Doogey were ready to go.  They waited for the royal car to pick them up.  Beep Beep! “That’s our lift, oh bye mum, bye Tom!”  Tom didn’t say goodbye.  He was sulking because he wanted to go too.

Meanwhile Jane and Doogey had arrived.  Jane was just about to open the door of the car when a man opened it for her and said “Please, step out”.  They entered the palace gates and their eyes lit up.  Before them they saw the royal family.  “Hello” said the Queen, “please, sit down”.  “Your majesty, I’ve baked you some cakes” squawked Doogey “and no one helped me,” he said proudly.  The Queen was very nice and said “they look marvellous and I think they will taste lovely too.”  Doogey went red with pride and quite agreed with her.

“The reason I wanted you to come today, is because I’ve heard of your amazing parrot”, “oh, thank you” blushed Jane.  “Now” said the Queen “what exactly can he do?”  Jane said “He can play chess, make the dinner…I mean burn the dinner”.  “Oh, splendid!” cried the Queen “but I wonder if he could cook the dinner and not burn it?” “He has a lot of trouble making the tea, you see, he is a bird and doesn’t have any hands.” said Jane.  “yes I see your point” said the Queen “it just goes to show that you can’t expect a bird to do everything can you.” And so Doogey and Jane spent the day with the Queen.

Chapter 6

It was a very special day because it was Doogey’s birthday.  But Doogey thought that everyone had forgotten it.  Doogey tried to make them remember by saying “don’t you think it’s a day when something special happens?”, “oh, yeah” said Jane “its Doogey's turn to do the washing up!”,”oh, yeah I forgot about that” said Tom.  Doogey looked sad.  He really did think they had forgotten.

He thought he’d go into the living room but Jane stopped him because they were doing a surprise party.  It was certainly going to be a surprise.  Doogey wept and wept.  He wished everyone had remembered his birthday, then maybe he might not be in this state.  But these things happen, and they always happen to Doogey.  “Why don’t you take a nice hot bath?” said Jane.  Something’s very strange around here, thought Doogey.  He went to the toilet, then he climbed into his cage and sulked and sulked for about two hours. 

Then suddenly Tom called up “Doogey you still haven’t done the washing up!”, “All right, all right I’m coming” said Doogey.  So Doogey went downstairs and into the kitchen without passing the living room and without looking where he was going.  He did the washing up.  When he was nearly finished Jane came in and told him to come into the living room.  Doogey went in and there were all his friends, relatives and family, plus all his presents and party things, and hats to wear.  Everyone shouted “HAPPY BIRTHDAY DOOGEY!”  A smile returned to Doogey’s face and he was happy once again.

Chapter 7

It was Christmas Eve and everyone was excited including Doogey.  Doogey was being very good on Christmas Eve because he knew that if he was not good he would not get any presents from Father Christmas.  He tidied his room (or rather his cage), although it had nothing in it to tidy, he did the washing up and put out some carrot and apple for the reindeer and some cookies for Father Christmas. 

It was time for bed and Doogey had a nice long story.  Jane, Tom and Doogey went straight to sleep, for Christmas was the next day and it would be very exciting. 

At last the morning came and Doogey got up and went to the bathroom.  He put some shaving cream on but didn’t wash it off so he looked like Father Christmas.  He walked down the stairs whistling while he went and got out his bike.  He went into the living room and rode around the Christmas tree four times.  He did that every Christmas.  He picked up the bicycle and put it in his cage.  THUMP, THUMP, THUMP went Jane and Tom running down the stairs to the living room.  “Where are they?” asked Tom “Where are what?” asked Doogey, “the presents of course” said Jane “oh, they’re under the Christmas Tree!” said Doogey.  “How do you know?” asked Tom, “because I saw them when I was riding around the tree on my bicycle” said Doogey.  THUMP, THUMP, THUMP “that will be mum!” squawked Doogey. 

The living room door opened “time to open your presents” said mum, “now, I think we can all go to the funfair today, if you will be good for me.” And so everyone went to the funfair and had a great Christmas.   

The End.

Book Club - 02/05/12

A fantastic evening discussing our first read ‘Travels with Charley’ took place on Wed 2nd May at the Half and Half bar, South Croydon.  It was an enjoyable night exploring all aspects of the book from individual first impressions, key characters and delving into Steinbeck’s journey across America.  I was surprised at how much there was to talk about! Everyone had picked up on different quotes & moments of the book and the time period of the 1960’s brought with it a whole host of discussion topics, some of which steered us into comparisons with current culture.  We were all left wondering did Steinbeck actually find what he set out to find and what exactly was it that he was looking for?  I think overall we agreed it was a great read and a definite recommend!   

One of my favourite quotes was Steinbecks reflection on the weather, having experienced living in near perfect climate in his past 'For how can one know colour in perptual green, and what good is warmth without cold to give it sweetness'.

For me this first book choice established what our book club is really about, providing the opportunity & perhaps a gentle nudge in the direction of books that you might never have found or thought about reading before.  Jen’s homemade pastries and jam doughnuts were a welcome addition to the group!!

Having already compiled quite a hefty list of suggestions the first week, we decided to vote from the same list for our next choice, although there was one added title ‘Bleak House’ by Charles Dickens.  The winning book choice for May (I believe suggested by Rachel) is...

Catcher In The Rye by J.D.Salinger

‘Since his debut in 1951 as The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield has been synonymous with "cynical adolescent." Holden narrates the story of a couple of days in his sixteen-year-old life, just after he's been expelled from prep school, in a slang that sounds edgy even today.  His constant wry observations about what he encounters, from teachers to phonies (the two of course are not mutually exclusive) capture the essence of the eternal teenage experience of alienation.’

Grab your copy and get reading!

Next Book Club:  Wednesday 13^th June, 7.30pm

Venue: Half & Half Bar, South Croydon.

  

 

Book Club - 05/04/12

Our first book club meet last night at Bad Apple in Croydon was very successful! Thanks to everyone who came! I didn't really know how popular an idea it would be and was pleased when lots of eager people responded.  It was a really nice start as most people didn't know each other and everyone got on really well, we've also got a really good mix of people with different interests and ideas so it is a good sign of things to come over the coming months! I think there may also be a few outings in the summer...

Instead of me deciding on something to read I decided it would be better for our first meeting to give everyone a chance to meet and to talk about the kind of books we enjoy and to vote on some suggestions.  The winning book choice for April was one of Neil's suggestions *drumroll please*

Travels with Charley by John Steinbeck

In 1960, when he was almost sixty years old, John Steinbeck set out to rediscover his native land. He felt that he might have lost touch with its sights, sounds and the essence of its people. Accompanied only by his dog, Charley, he travelled allacross the United States in a pick-up truck. His journey took him through almost forty states, and he saw things that made him proud, angry, sympathetic and elated. All that he saw and experienced is described with remarkable honesty and insight.  Nobel Prize-winning author John Steinbeck is remembered as one of the greatest and best-loved American writers of the twentieth century.

Grab your copy and get reading! I've ordered mine this morning on amazon! 

Other books that made it to the list this month were:

The Catcher In The Rye - J.Salinger
The Book Thief - Markus Zusak
Childhood's End - Arthur.C.Clarke
The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins
Before I Go To Sleep - S.J Watson
Suite Francaise - Irene Nemirovsky
To Kill A Mockingbird - Harper Lee
Me Before You - Jojo Moyes
Of Human Bondage - W.Somerset Maugham
Tess of The D'urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
The Slap - Christos Tsiolkas

If you couldn't make it last night and want to come along next time please do anyone is welcome :)

I originally said first thursday of the month but thursdays are tricky for some so we will just play it by ear each month and decide at the meeting the next date and where to meet!

Next Book Club: Wednesday 2nd May 2012
Venue: Half & Half Lounge Bar, South Croydon 7pm
http://www.halfandhalf.uk.com/