Iranian Revolution

Have any of you heard of Persepolis? Carey, I'm assuming you have since you really get into graphic novels, perhaps you even have the movie? =) Anyway, for those of you who don't know about it, it's a graphic novel about growing up during the Iranian Revolution. I just saw a preview to the movie. What coincidental timing, eh?

Sadly we don't have any more time this year to get together, but it'd be an interesting read, and we could chat about it on here if anyone is interested. Carey, I'd be interested in your thoughts and how you think it compares to what we just read.

I'd love to talk about Reading Lolita in Tehran again in the fall if others want to do that. I loved it and it's so dense we could talk about it a lot more. Or we could just blog about it here. =)

I'm really going to miss book club with you all! I enjoyed every conversation we had this year (not to mention the delicious food). The books were significantly more fulfilling after being able to process with you guys. I'm sad we won't be the same group next year, but hopefully the book club will continue.

I also mentioned tonight that if we don't have enough people around to keep it going, we could just have a blogging book club, far less exciting (especially for my taste buds), but better than nothing.

Let's talk about what we're reading over the summer. Anyone interested? You could all read the romantics with me! =) Sense and Sensibility? Frankenstein? ...

If Only I Had 20 More Hours in a Day

I'm really enjoying Reading Lolita in Tehran.  I only wish I had read all the books they talk about.  Much of their discussions throughout are connections between great works of literature and their own lives.  I wish I didn't have to rely on their analysis alone of these things.  I wish I could make some of these connections myself.  I appreciate their connections, and would surely not discover them on my own since apparently I know very little about life in Iran, but I just wish I had enough time to read all the books they discuss to make my own evaluations before reading someone else's.

So my proposal for next year's book club is that we should read some of these books, discuss them, and then come back to this one and reread it.  There's a fantastic list of books in the back.  Let's read those next year?

Interior Design

Sorry, folks, I just couldn't help myself.  I just discovered blogger's new draft version where you can make your own templates.  Holy moly, what a fun distraction!  I hope y'all don't mind the new layout or background.  =)

What We Search For in Fiction

I love this: what we search for in fiction is not so much reality but the epiphany of truth. -page 3

Reading Lolita in Tehran

Our next book is Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi. Deanna & I are going to pick up books for you while we're in Anc. next weekend. Everyone requested a copy, I think.

For now, let's say we'll meet on
28 April
Carey's house
at 6:30

If the consensus is that we need more time to finish we can bump it back a week to May 5th.

Books...

If anyone needs a copy of Eat Pray Love, I borrowed 2 extra copies from a friend. Let me know.

What If?

I love this book.  It inspires and challenges me.  Really, it just makes me want to try something new.  So I was thinking, maybe sometime, soon hopefully, I'll just take off, go spend a year in Spain, or a few months anyway.  It's something I've always wanted to do, and it'd be a dream to be immersed in Spanish.

Books often have the power to transport us to other places, places we mostly just dream about, and sometimes that satisfying enough.  But this, geez, it's not satisfying in the least, it's really just a tease.  So...

Eat, Pray, Love... by Elizabeth Gilbert

This is the next book we chose to read. We're all ready for something refreshing!

Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia

The meeting will be at my house on April 7th at 6:30, provided everyone has the book by then.
~Carey

Next Meeting

Because most seem far from finishing the book, we've moved the date.  So here's the updated info:

The Sound and the Fury

Monday, March 15

Vicki's House

Also, please vote for which book you'd like to read next.  

One more thing, if you post something, put your name in the "Labels" box so we know who wrote it.

Happy reading, everyone.

Confusion for Characterization

Maria L. just informed me that Faulkner was known for his characters.  If that be the case I think I might have a theory for why his writing is so hard to follow.  I'm on about page 140 and I still don't really have a clue about what the story is.  I don't really know what's going on.  Despite having no plot to follow, I do kinda have a picture in my head of the characters.

So I was sitting on the toilet thinking (sorry if that's too much information), if characterization is so important in Faulkner's writing, why is it necessary to make the plot so darn confusing?  Then it hit me: when we finish the novel, we won't be thinking about the story, because that wasn't Faulkner's point; in the end, we'll know the characters, and perhaps, that was his goal.

Anyone else have ideas?

Do you need a copy of The Sound and The Fury?

I checked out a book set of The Sound and The Fury from the media center. Maria G. borrowed one. So, I have two extra books now. Plus, Deanna loaned one to me; That might be up for grabs. I guess we each checked out 1/2 of the set. ^_^ If you need one, let me/us know. ~Carey

Struggling

The Sound and the Fury is tough!  I'm really struggling through it.  I understand it is in four parts, each told from a different point of view.  The first part is from Benjy's perspective.  Since Benjy is mentally handicapped, I'm hoping the other three aren't as difficult to understand as his.  I read and reread the words over and over but can't put a story or a plot together enough to follow the narrative or the dialogue.  The story jumps around a lot, and I can't find any indicators to know when the time has shifted.

Is anyone else struggling here?

An Executive Decision?

Since the vote wasn't too helpful (2 for Eat, Pray, Love and 2 for The Sound and the Fury), I'm going to make a decision, or it'll take us two weeks to decide on a book.  So let's read The Sound and the Fury by Faulkner.  I'll put together another poll and we can have a book decided before hand.  So be sure to vote if you have an opinion.

So,

The Sound and the Fury by William Faulker

Wednesday, March 10

Vicki's House

More 1984

Holy moly!  A school district is sued for spying on students through their webcams.  Scary!  Again, brought me back to 1984.  Perhaps this book really is a lot closer to a reality than I had imagined!

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2010-02-18-lawsuit-school-PC_N.htm

Another possibility

While looking for book ideas and reviews, I stumbled across this website called the Book Movement.

It's designed for people to register their book clubs with separate accounts for each book club member. On the website, you can read reviews of books, see what other book clubs are reading, create personal book lists, and add to potential reads for the club/clubs you participate in. It also has a conversational piece to it, with a feature where you can discuss the books through postings and responses with other club members (from your own private book club--this wouldn't mean that our book club was suddenly internet based with a giant cyberspace community). It serves very much the same purpose of this blog, except for the added element of the data base of books and reviews, study guides/questions, and access to other book club picks right there on the website.

I enjoy this blog and layout and everything, but I encourage you guys to take a look at the book movement and see if this would possibly be something you would be interested in.

What Next?

Yesterday's book club was one of much thought-provoking conversation.   I always enjoy our meetings and get so much more out of the book by talking with all of you.  So thanks to everyone who was able to make it (even if only by speakerphone).

We didn't decide on the next book yet.  We thought it'd be nice to let everyone offer their opinions and take a vote.  So in the comment section of this post (which is the little number in the right hand corner, across of the post title), let us know what book you'd like.  You have until Friday, tomorrow, then we'll vote.

Meeting- The Road

The Road

This Wednesday

6:30 P.M.

Deanna's House

See you there.  

Broken Rules in The Road

Fragments, lots of them.  Occasional contractions without apostrophes.  Dialogue without quotation marks. Missing commas.  It's like Grammar Rules Gone Wild.  Perhaps it's because I spend several hours a week reading and grading papers that these things stand out as badly as I do when standing in a group of Yup'ik women (my height, that is).  

Surely I'm not the only one to have noticed this, right?  So what's the point?  Are any of you finding that it affects the story?  Why do some contractions have apostrophes and others don't?  I'm having a hard time getting into the story because I can't get past all the broken rules.  


Any thoughts?

Looking Back to 1984

I read this from the New York Times this afternoon:

"Iran’s leadership says it is determined to maintain control of the streets on the anniversary of the revolution, one of the most emotionally charged days in the Iranian calendar. In this smoldering political conflict, the leadership of the opposition and the government have both tried to lay claim to the revolution, with each accusing the other of straying from the path charted by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. Iranian officials often rely on large crowds of people — many of them paid by the state, the opposition charges — to prove the regime’s legitimacy, and on Thursday — a day steeped in symbols and myths — the streets are likely to be filled with those who support the state."
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/10/world/middleeast/10arrests.html?partner=rss&emc=rss


I couldn't help but be reminded of 1984.  Doesn't it sound like the organized Hate.  In fact, the entire article is littered with situations like those of the book.  A little disconcerting to have something seemingly very fictional and distant become so real and close to home.  

Don't Have the Book Yet

I ordered The Road well over a week ago, but I haven't received it.  I'm hoping we can push the next book club back a week because I'm not going to be ready this coming Wednesday.  That would make it the 17th of February.  Is everyone okay with that?

Also is this a good way of communicating?  Or should logistics be communicated through email and this be used only for thoughts and such?

Welcome

This is an evolving project that I hope we are all able to contribute to.  If you feel compelled to change something on the blog, please feel free.  I've also added a "Potential Reads" gadget where we can post books we're interested in reading.  To add to the list, simply click the little tool icon just below it and type in your book in the "Add List Item" box.