Book Club ~~ Next Book?? - Page 2

Claire · 12-04-2007, 02:17 PM

What about putting Water for Elephants back on the list? i thought it looked so good I bought it, but have not had time to read it yet.

Bucsnpats · 12-04-2007, 02:35 PM

That is a good idea Claire. And I think aliadam said that book was very good.

Funny I had that one in my hand to buy, and then got Forever instead, and I haven't read that one either...

Thanks everyone for your suggestions....I will get a vote together pretty soon. This week hopefully.

I still want to find something from the 40's, 50's or 60's to add to the list.

aliadam · 12-04-2007, 02:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Claire

What about putting Water for Elephants back on the list? i thought it looked so good I bought it, but have not had time to read it yet.

That was my second favorite book last year after A Thousand Splendid Suns.

Bucsnpats · 12-07-2007, 09:47 AM

How does this look??

Thoughts anyone??

Amazon.com: Visions of Belonging: Family Stories, Popular Culture, and Postwar Democracy, 1940-1960 (Popular Cultures, Everyday Lives): Books: gareth E. jones

Bucsnpats · 12-07-2007, 09:49 AM

Here's another:

Amazon.com: 120 Charles Street, The Village: Journals and Writings, 1949-1950: Books: Holly Beye

Bucsnpats · 12-07-2007, 09:53 AM

Amazon.com: The Feminine Mystique: Books: Betty Friedan,Anna Quindlen

Bucsnpats · 12-07-2007, 09:59 AM

Oooo check this one out too:

Amazon.com: Hollywood Nocturnes: Books: James Ellroy

Ok I am done...lol....let me know if any of these sounds appealing...and I will add it to the vote.

Starlite · 12-10-2007, 09:33 AM

Stacey - thanks for researching older books!

120 Charles Street looks great, but my library doesn't have that book. I'll have to check out the used bookstore for that one.

The James Ellroy book looks interesting too. The library doesn't have that particular book, but they do have several James Ellroy books. I'll have to check one of these out and see how I like the writing.

Would anyone be interested in this book?

Amazon.com: The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio: How My Mother Raised 10 Kids on 25 Words or Less: Books: Terry Ryan,Suze Orman

A movie has been made out of this book (I've seen it), but there were details left out of the movie that are in the book.

penelope · 12-18-2007, 06:15 PM

I would read The Prize Winner of Defiance Ohio. I would have to look into the other books, to see if they interest me. I am going to geuss that I probably don't read the kind of books that the rest of you read. But I will do some work on reading some reviews to see if whatever book you gals pick would interest me.

aliadam · 12-19-2007, 12:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Starlite

Are there any good books that take place during the 1940's, 50's, and early 60's? This is my favorite era in the United States and I have a hard time finding books that take place during that time period.

I read a book this summer ("Whistling in the Dark") that was set in that era that I LOVED!!! It wasn't "about" that era, it was about 2 small sisters that had a lot of family problems and were sort of left to fend for themselves. So the book is mostly about their traumatic summer, but there's much of the "flavor" of that era in the book. It's gotten really good reviews from amazon, and as I said...I loved it. It's told from the perspective of the older of the two young girls. Here's some of the reviews that explains a bit more about it.

"Whistling in the Dark" is an endearing tale about the "O'Malley sisters," Sally and Troo, 10 and 9 years of age, and their summer chalked full of turmoil and suspense. Their mother becomes gravely ill leaving them to be tended by a drunken stepfather, a disinterested older sister, and a neighborhood full of delicous, eccentric characters. Set in 1959, the book remembers days of lazy summers filled with "red rover," "green light, red light," and playground antics. Though seemingly the era of innocence, darkness hides in the shadows, and Sally and Troo stumble upon it in it's most dangerous form. Thankfully, the O'Malley's have enough family and neighbors in their arsenal to allow this book to be enlightening, humorous, and charming, as well as intense.

Ms. Kagan has the ability to make the reader experience belly laughter, jitters, tingling fear, and sentimental sadness. Descriptions and dialogue are colloquial, while the plotline turns the pages for you. Gift yourself to this summer treat.....you won't regret it.

Told from the perspective of a young girl, Sally O' Malley, this is the kind of summer read that can change your life - or make you remember a world you used to know, if you grew up during the 50s.
From start to finish, I was completely enthralled. Sally is a totally believable child and she has a combination of innocence, kindness and common sense that is unique. She also has great intuition, which eventually lets her sense when true danger is around (although she takes a few wrong turns along the way).

I don't know how to best categorize this book - is it the tale of two sisters who learn to turn to each other when crisis strikes? Is it a suspenseful murder mystery? There is certainly great danger, in the form of a child murderer, true evil in a world full of 50s nostalgia, standing out even more against the contrast of simpler times, long summers and kind neighbors.

To add to the drama, Sally and her sister, Troo, are nearly on their own for the summer, while their mother recuperates from a long illness. Yes, sister Nell is supposedly in charge, but she is far more preoccupied with her boyfriend and other distractions to do a proper job. SO Troo and Sally have to depend on each other. They have intensely different personalities but an equally strong bond.

Don't ignore the Conversation Guide by author Leslie Kagen, at the back of the book. It offers insight into how she actually wrote this novel, not something she had a great deal of confidence in actually completing. She came up with a superb, heartwarming work, full of heart, suspense and a master's touch at evoking time and place.