Christmas Jars

For our Christmastime pick, we went with “Christmas Jars” by Jason F. Wright. This short and sweet story introduces us to Hope, first left as an infant in a diner at Christmas, raised by an adoptive mother, and born with a passion for journalism. 

Hope receives a jar full of money and begins to investigate, trying to solve the mystery of the Christmas Jar she received. In doing so, she meets the family who started the charitable tradition, learns about their lives, the lives they have touched, and the power of spreading a loving idea.

This is a sweet little story that reminds us of the spirit of giving that we see so often at Christmas, but it’s also a story of how circumstance can often help intertwine us in others lives. The little book is straightforward, but memorable and leaves the reader feeling a desire to be kind. What a nice thing at the end of a book?

Our group enjoyed this tale and appreciated the sentiments and how one person can make a difference.

“Although discovering an unattended, blue eyed, newborn baby girl was not on her list of expectations, Louise was the faithful brand of woman who believed that everything happened for a reason.”

― Jason F. Wright, Christmas Jars

The Book of Lost Names

We chose “The Book of Lost Names” by Kristin Harmel for our November 2020 book and found it to be a powerful, and incredible story based on the true-life story of a talented young women thrust into helping Jewish children escape the Nazis in WWII France.

The book begins with Eva, a librarian in Florida, learning that a book she hasn’t seen in sixty-five years has been discovered in France, and she knows far more about it than the researchers who discovered it. They realize it appears to have some kind of code, but are unable to decipher it, and Eva realizes it’s time her story came out. Years of hiding her past are about to come to an end.

A Jewish student in France, her father is arrested and taken away as she and her mother happen to be helping a neighbor. They manage to get to a mountain town in the Free Zone, but begins forging documents for the French resistance, allowing Jewish children to flee to Switzerland. The story that follows is powerful, intriguing and fascinating- allowing readers a small insight into some of the ways people fought back had less to do with guns, and more to do with other gifts.

The book left a powerful impression and we had a lovely discussion about this very interesting story.

“Once you’ve fallen in love with books, their presence can make you feel at home anywhere, even in places where you shouldn’t belong.” Kristin Harmel, The Book of Lost Names

All That Makes Life Bright: The Life and Love of Harriet Beecher Stowe

The book we chose for October 2020 was a fascinating historical fiction novel about the life of Harriet Beecher Stowe. “All That Makes Life Bright: The Life and Love of Harriet Beecher Stowe” by Josi S. Kilpack was rich with history and character. It follows the life of Harriet Beecher Stowe, who went on to write “Uncle Tom’s Cabin”, but the novel mostly covers the first few years of her life with her husband, Calvin, and the transition from a single woman determined to use her literary skills, to a mother who is overwhelmed with the domestic duties before her.  

This unexpected focus on the domestic vs. creative side of the talented writer was filled with interesting tidbits of historical significance. Harriet was clearly interested in politics and making a difference through the written word. Her upbringing, surrounded by intellectual debate and shifting world dynamics, lead into her becoming an important figure in changing the views of Americans about slavery. It is anecdotally mentioned that the impact of her book, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, greatly influenced the country as it shifted toward the Civil War.

The story is rich with the details of life in the 1830’s and the challenges that women faced to balance career and family in a time where women’s voices were not often heard. Our book club had much to discuss as we evaluated the relationships and challenges that Harriet likely faced in her marriage and as a mother. The author carefully created a view of this independent woman that was easy to understand and relate to the problems and struggles she must have faced.

Well written and rich with personal conflicts, including the fact that she was a second marriage after her husband’s first wife died, led to very real emotional hurdles to overcome next to the considerable physical demands of parenting.

Death on the Nile

 

We took on the master mystery writer, Agatha Christie, for our September 2020 choice- going with “Death on the Nile” specifically so we could go see the movie together. Aaannd the pandemic messed everything up for us again. Typical!

The movie, which was slated for release in October, was pushed back as the pandemic continued to shut down everything fun and good! In fact, due to the pandemic, most theaters closed, and movie producers all adjusted and pushed back most of their films. The film is now not set to open until 2022! So maybe we can go see it together then, and we may have to re-read the book!

But, even with that disappointment, the book was well worth the read! Fantastically written, clever, interesting, and always with clues and tricks that throw you off until the very end! The story revolves around the famous detective Hercule Poirot, who is on a cruise ship when a famous young heiress is murdered.

The other characters are of course, suspect, and Poirot cleverly takes them all to task to solve the crime. Some of us had already read it, others had seen the movie from 1978, but it was a fascinating read and one that brought up much discussion about the interesting characters, the mores and morals of the era it was set, and the twists that give this classic mystery a high place in classic fiction.

“They conceive a certain theory, and everything has to fit into that theory. If one little fact will not fit, they throw it aside. But it is always the facts that will not fit that are significant.”
Death on the Nile, Agatha Christie

The Selection

In August we chose “The Selection” by Kiera Cass. This Young Adult novel falls into a dystopian future category and was a pretty fluffy read. We all agreed we wanted a fluffy and easy romance while so much of the real world was not looking so great. The Selection is the first in a series about a girl who lives in a futuristic United States that has been altered dramatically.

The world in which the main character, America, lives has been shifted into a world with a strictly kept rules that seem unchangeable and non-negotiable. The country that was the United States in years past, is now a very different place, ruled by controlling castes and a royalty with a firm grip on power. 

The country was conquered by a past China and Russia and there are clearly factions of rebels who are pushing against the iron rule of the King. Amid this backdrop, America is chosen as one of the contestants in a selection process for the prince to find a bride. Despite her lower class ranking, the Selection gives her the chance to compete to win his love and affection and change her life.

But she is torn, and only participates because her boyfriend encourages her, and she has no thought that she will ever be even looked at. And of course, she moves forward into this process and learns as she goes, with an interesting love triangle developing throughout the story.

This wasn’t a novel with deep themes to discuss, but we did talk quite a bit about the motivations of the characters, what we thought of their behavior and it was enjoyed as a nice, escapist romance, a summer read that was engaging and entertaining enough for us to appreciate.

“True love is usually the most inconvenient kind.” 
Kiera Cass, “The Selection”

Seeking Persephone

In July of 2020, with us in full pandemic protocols, and having figured out Zoom, we chose “Seeking Persephone” by Sarah M. Eden. This sweet romance was a delight to read and enjoyed by most everyone in our group.

The story is a “Beauty and the Beast” type romance, set in regency England, with the heroine, Persephone, being recruited to marry a Duke, sight unseen. This was because he had some significant scars from botched surgeries during childhood and didn’t like being around others much. He was crusty and grumpy, and she was kind and gentle, and willing to marry him to save her family. Their relationship developed and brought them both to realize their growing love was real.

The story had a nice balance of love, conflict, background motivation, and adventure to make this story a really nice choice. Our group found the book to be very engaging, full of both mystery and wit. It was a much needed selection for a very challenging and uncertain time.

While we didn’t have to dive deep into any huge discussion on serious themes for this romance, it was wonderful to enjoy and appreciate the sweet tale for what it is.

“No one is as dangerous as the Duke of Kielder.”
― Sarah M. Eden, Seeking Persephone

The Trouble with Goats and Sheep

 

After a few months of adjusting to staying at home and dealing with a pandemic, our book club decided to try continuing regular meetings via Zoom. It was a little challenge to figure out all the logistics, and we know we have some that struggled, but it was the best we could do in the circumstances.

We chose a clever little book called "The Trouble with Goats and Sheep" by Joanna Cannon as our June choice. The story follows Grace and her friend Tillie, both young girls in England, as they explore their neighborhood in search of clues to a woman's disappearance. It was perfect to read in the summer, as the story unfolds during an unusually warm summer in the 1970's. 

The two girls learn about the neighbors, some of what they know and some things they have to hide. It seems like all the neighbors aren't what they seem, and they all have something that might answer the reasons for the mystery. The adventures give insight into judgement, honesty, and the dangers of secrets. 

And in the middle of it all, they see Jesus on a drainpipe, and the experience draws the entire neighborhood together in a quirky, and interesting twist. We really enjoyed this story and all it's unique flair. 

“And I decided it really was true after all. You only really need two people to believe in the same thing, to feel as though you just might belong.”

― Joanna Cannon, The Trouble with Goats and Sheep

Orphan Island

Our plans for March 2020 included attending book club and discussing "Orphan Island" by Laurel Snyder, and the week before we had a chance to meet, just about everything shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic! While that was disappointing, most in our book club were busy trying to adjust to all the lock down related concerns. Eventually, as it seemed we were not suddenly going to get to be back to normal, we decided to shift our book club to a virtual setting. 

As practice, we decided to discuss this book. That meant we had basically three months to read the book, and about a week to figure out Zoom. While many have been able to connect in this way, it does pose its challenges. Sometimes the internet isn't great, other times it's problems with software or hardware. But in May we were finally able to discuss this book! 

Those who attended had mostly read the book and enjoyed it overall. The story follows Jinny, a girl on an island with only 9 children. Each year a young child arrives in a boat, and the oldest leaves in the boat. Jinny is second oldest when the book begins and she begins to mentor Ess, a young girl who has just arrived. Her best friend Deen leaves at the outset and the impact of his departure lingers throughout the story. 

She spends the next 'year' (we are not really told how long it is, and seasons don't seem to be a thing), raising Ess the best she can and dealing with the frustrations of being in charge. She struggles to allow others to help her and questions her world. When it is her turn to leave, Jinny refuses to go. Instead she just brings in the new child and tries to move forward. 

This leads to many things going wrong on the island, and eventually she does leave with the youngest child who was bitten by a snake (which were previously not venomous). The writing is quite beautiful, and the world the author builds is really quite beautiful, somewhat confusing and unclear but still quite interesting. The ending is rather abrupt, and does not clarify any answers to the many questions a reader may have. Why are these children on the island? Where do they come from and where do they end up going? Many questions about why the island is the way it is are unanswered. 

The story itself is supposed to be an allegory about the confusion of growing up and not knowing, but it did leave several of our group unsatisfied and wondering. It was an interesting read that had a very different view of children and childhood, but was also a little confusing at the end. However, we were all very pleased to be able to discuss it virtually! And we did find quite a lot to discuss, so overall we were glad to have the chance to mull it over together.

“There are more important things than what we want. Sometimes it isn't about us. Sometimes we aren't the center of the story.” Laurel Snyder-Orphan Island

 

The Screwtape Letters

Our February choice for book club was "The Screwtape Letters" by C.S. Lewis. This unique book is a compilation of letters written by Screwtape, a senior demon/tempter, to his nephew Wormwood who is a junior demon/tempter on a first assignment. The letters are all from Screwtape, thus you miss the information that is assumed to have been included in letters to him from Wormwood. 

The letters follow the struggles that Wormwood has in tempting and diverting his 'patient', a young man who is going through life's challenges. Most letters address specific areas where these tempters can influence people in their choices to keep them from doing good. The entire book is showing the 'secrets' of demons and their influence on mortals as they go through life. 

The powerful letters explain how often it is the smaller things rather than big 'sins' that can push mortal beings either further toward or away from heaven or hell. It is rich with insight and worth pondering and finding the truths hidden in each letter. We as a book club had a thoughtful discussion on many points in which we could see the truth of this fascinating read.

"Indeed the safest road to Hell is the gradual one--the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts..." C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters