January Book Club Meeting

January Book Club Meeting

Host: Teresa

Book: The Diary of Libby Beaman by Betty John

Response of Book Club Members: This "diary" was written as a novel by Libby Beaman's granddaugher Betty John. It tells the story of Libby Beaman living in the Arctic Circle in the cold of January when it is almost total darkness all day and all night. I almost sent my husband Jack to the meeting because he did some army audits up in Fairbanks, Alaska in January and back in the 1970's he had some similar experiences as Libby. For example:

142 inches of snow that January

If the temp was below -30 degrees, you had to leave the cars running all the time

The coldest temp Jack saw was -63 degrees in Fairbanks that January

With the cars running all the time there was ice fog from the fumes of the car which meant that one person would drive and the other person would walk along beside the car giving directions like stay straight, make a turn, etc.

December Book Club Meeting

Host: Lucille

Book: The Art of Racing in the Rain, by Garth Stein

Response of the Book Club Members: Everyone had mixed feelings about this book. Some because the dog in the story is dying of old age while narrating the story of his relationship with his owner Enzo. Some thought the book didn't go into enough detail about the dog's relationship with his owner Enzo. Others thought the book was a sad selection for the merry month of December.

WallyLamb, another author describes the novel as "...a meditation on humility and hope in the face of despair."

November Book Club Meeting

November Book Club Meeting

Host: Maura

Book: Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, by Jamie Ford

Response of the Book Club Members: Everyone like this book. The setting is San Francisco's China Town and tells the story of a Chinese American and a Japanese American. Their ups and downs. Thus the title of the book--Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet.