A Mad Desire to Dance by Elie Wiesel. Most will know Wiesel's memoir Night. See a biography and information on his humanitarian works in the Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity website. Check the New York Times for a review of his latest book, Mad Desire to Dance.
Comments by the group leader are entered in the comments section at the bottom of the post.
Monday, February 15, 2010
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
What We Are Reading in February
On Monday, February 15, we will meet to discuss: The Year that Follows by Scott Lasser. For a blog review of the book, check out January Magazine. This is Scott Lasser's third book. You can read more about him on his blog. One interesting tidbit I learned from Contemporary Authors, Lasser was a bond trader when his first book, Battle Creek was published, and he has an MFA and an MBA.
Monday, December 21, 2009
What We Are Reading in January
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Book To Film: No Country For Old Men
Our book selection for November was No Country For Old Men. We viewed and discussed the film with Elaine Wertheim last night in our Book To Film program.
First the book: It is rare for the entire book group to like a book AND have a lengthy discussion; because when the entire group does like it, the discussion is truncated; what is there to talk about after all when you are in agreement? I, however, was fully prepared to dislike this book. I knew it was going to be bloody, and while I like edgy and gritty, I am uncomfortable with gratuitous violence. I also have little patience with sentimentality, but while the book is a morality play, it is told without too much sanctimoniousness. Although I did get a teeny bit weary with the monologues of the Sheriff. After all, all generations believe the members of younger generations are more immoral, less mannerly than theirs, and believe they are the causes of the end of the world as we know it. The vernacular (missing punctuation and west Texas speech) captures the characters perfectly. Speaking of characters; while I was reading the book, I heard Tommy Lee Jones' voice clear as day. For a better review than I could ever provide, see the link to metacritic.com
The movie: The casting was a work of perfection. One could not avoid reading about the film given the Oscar wins and press it garnered. So when I read the book, I saw the faces and heard the voices of the actors; I would believe it if McCarthy had written the book with Tommy Lee Jones in mind for Sheriff Tom. I rarely see movies in which I have read the book. Invariably, I am disappointed. This was the best adaptation I have ever seen. I could write a review, but I would not do it justice. Of all the reviews I read, the best is written by A.O. Scott in the New York Times.
For our book selections for the next several months, see our Reader's Connection.
First the book: It is rare for the entire book group to like a book AND have a lengthy discussion; because when the entire group does like it, the discussion is truncated; what is there to talk about after all when you are in agreement? I, however, was fully prepared to dislike this book. I knew it was going to be bloody, and while I like edgy and gritty, I am uncomfortable with gratuitous violence. I also have little patience with sentimentality, but while the book is a morality play, it is told without too much sanctimoniousness. Although I did get a teeny bit weary with the monologues of the Sheriff. After all, all generations believe the members of younger generations are more immoral, less mannerly than theirs, and believe they are the causes of the end of the world as we know it. The vernacular (missing punctuation and west Texas speech) captures the characters perfectly. Speaking of characters; while I was reading the book, I heard Tommy Lee Jones' voice clear as day. For a better review than I could ever provide, see the link to metacritic.com
The movie: The casting was a work of perfection. One could not avoid reading about the film given the Oscar wins and press it garnered. So when I read the book, I saw the faces and heard the voices of the actors; I would believe it if McCarthy had written the book with Tommy Lee Jones in mind for Sheriff Tom. I rarely see movies in which I have read the book. Invariably, I am disappointed. This was the best adaptation I have ever seen. I could write a review, but I would not do it justice. Of all the reviews I read, the best is written by A.O. Scott in the New York Times.
For our book selections for the next several months, see our Reader's Connection.
Monday, December 7, 2009
What We Are Reading in December
All Shall Be Well; And All Shall Be Well; And All Manner of Things Shall Be Well by Tod Wodicka. Described by a reviewer for the New York Times as "tender and oddball", this is a first novel for the author. Book discussion is Monday, December 21 at 7pm.
And don't forget our film viewing and discussion of No Country for Old Men Monday, December 14 at 6:30pm.
And don't forget our film viewing and discussion of No Country for Old Men Monday, December 14 at 6:30pm.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
What We Are Reading In November
On November 16 we will discuss the book: No Country For Old Men, by Cormac McCarthy. A lot of information can be found on the Official Web Site of the Cormac McCarthy Society. Including his biography, discriptions of his books, and more. There are several reviews to be found of the book, including the New York Times, The Guardian, etc. These links are provided by metacritic.com.
BOOK TO FILM: No Country For Old Men
We have a special Book to Film treat to offer in addition to the book discussion in the month of December. We will have a viewing and discussion on the film No Country For Old Men on December 14. Elaine Wertheim will show and lead the discussion of the film starting at 6:30. To prepare yourselves, here are a few links to film reviews:
Rolling Stone
New York Times
BOOK TO FILM: No Country For Old Men
We have a special Book to Film treat to offer in addition to the book discussion in the month of December. We will have a viewing and discussion on the film No Country For Old Men on December 14. Elaine Wertheim will show and lead the discussion of the film starting at 6:30. To prepare yourselves, here are a few links to film reviews:
Rolling Stone
New York Times
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
What we are reading for October
The October book is Map of Home by Randa Jarrar. What I really like about choosing books for the book group, is finding books that people may never hear about, that are contemporary, and which deal with issues of our time. Randa Jarrar is a novelist and translater who grew up in Kuwait and Egypt. Her novel Map of Home won the Arab American Book Award in 2009.
Some of the books I have chosen lately are by authors who have their own web sites. In most cases these are very young authors, but not always. I find this ability for artists to promote themselves and their work exciting and very interesting; it provides a view into the author that we might not have had before. For instance Ms. Jarrar's web site includes a link to a review of her book. The reviewing source is a blog called Electronic Intefada which "is a not-for-profit, independent publication committed to comprehensive public education on the question of Palestine, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the economic, political, legal, and human dimensions of Israel's 40-year occupation of Palestinian territories."
Some of the books I have chosen lately are by authors who have their own web sites. In most cases these are very young authors, but not always. I find this ability for artists to promote themselves and their work exciting and very interesting; it provides a view into the author that we might not have had before. For instance Ms. Jarrar's web site includes a link to a review of her book. The reviewing source is a blog called Electronic Intefada which "is a not-for-profit, independent publication committed to comprehensive public education on the question of Palestine, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the economic, political, legal, and human dimensions of Israel's 40-year occupation of Palestinian territories."
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