We have just had a query from a reader asking who we would consider the "saint" on the drowned girl's behalf. We had earlier considered the environmentalists or the parents to be, at various times, the saints mentioned.
Comments from the group?
Friday, June 26, 2009
Friday, June 19, 2009
Beach Music Discussion
We had a lively discussion of Beach Music on June 18. Brenda gave us a short biography of Pat Conroy and lead the discussion of this complicated work. We also read excerpts from the text and commented on the language, structure, and themes.
Brenda brought fabulous crab cakes from the Pat Conroy Cookbook, and Judy brought his delectable white chocolate pistachio cookies. Several others brought goodies to see that the group was well fed.
We will not meet in July. At our next meeting, August 20, we will discuss The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey by Candice Millard. Would someone please volunteer to lead the discussion? Contact me at fhays@bcgov.net, or come by the Beaufort Branch Reference desk.
Below are highlights of Brenda's presentation from last evening.
We heard from his publisher that Pat Conroy had had surgery recently [unspecified] and would be unable to accept our invitation for the monthly book club discussion. We wish him a speedy recovery, all best wishes for health, and much success with his forthcoming novel. Mr. Conroy, we want you around a long time!
This month’s selection, Beach Music, features Jack McCall, a South Carolina Lowcountry native, who flees the South for Rome with his daughter, Leah, after his wife commits suicide. There he tries to find peace and escape the drama of his dysfunctional family. Jack is an author of cookbooks and a restaurant critic. But his search for solitude is disturbed by his sister-in-law, and by two school friends who want his help in tracking down another classmate who went underground as a Vietnam protestor and never resurfaced. The novel explores Jack's younger years during the Vietnam War-era, the lives of his in-laws who survived the Holocaust, and coming of age in the twentieth century. Beach Music a complex and rich story that covers three generations and explores a cornucopia of themes and subthemes: sibling and parent/child relationships, orphans and orphanages, emotional abuse, mental illness, alcoholism, class differences, politics, man against nature in a test of survival skills, self-discovery, faith and religion, patriotism, and peace. You’ll find Holy Mother sightings, nunneries and monasteries, a tree house, mental asylums, communication with dolphins, immigrant stories, Appalachian terror, seafood recipes, a manta ray devil fish, collegiate rivalry, military brashness, Southern traditions, speech and food ways, turtle conservation; a love letter, a suicide letter.
Many in attendance had not seen images or even heard of the monstrous manta ray. Brendagael showed an 1858 engraving from our South Carolina Room of the creature, who had been struck by William Elliott’s great harpoon, as described in the novel. The group of fourteen in attendance were split on the literary success of the novel overall, but agreed there were exquisite passages to be enjoyed again and again. Some embraced the novel without exception, while others were distracted and annoyed with some of the tangential stories that veered from the immediate circle of Jack’s friends and family. Brendagael passed around examples of the beautiful language from various parts of the book, and each had a turn in reading Conroy’s poetic meter aloud. This brought up points of discussion such as who was ultimately responsible for Shyla’s suicide, and Jack’s love/hate relationship with the South, and how the South was personified throughout the novel as its own character, illustrating Jack’s conflicted world view. Also discussed were Conroy’s recurring themes and characters in the larger body of his work.
Since its inception three years ago, the Beaufort Book Club has read a Conroy novel each year. We look forward to discussing South of Broad (available in libraries and bookstores everywhere, August 11, 2009) in the near future. “Per la vostra salute,” Mr. Conroy.
Brendagael Beasley~Forrest, MA, MSLS
Brenda brought fabulous crab cakes from the Pat Conroy Cookbook, and Judy brought his delectable white chocolate pistachio cookies. Several others brought goodies to see that the group was well fed.
We will not meet in July. At our next meeting, August 20, we will discuss The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey by Candice Millard. Would someone please volunteer to lead the discussion? Contact me at fhays@bcgov.net, or come by the Beaufort Branch Reference desk.
Below are highlights of Brenda's presentation from last evening.
We heard from his publisher that Pat Conroy had had surgery recently [unspecified] and would be unable to accept our invitation for the monthly book club discussion. We wish him a speedy recovery, all best wishes for health, and much success with his forthcoming novel. Mr. Conroy, we want you around a long time!
This month’s selection, Beach Music, features Jack McCall, a South Carolina Lowcountry native, who flees the South for Rome with his daughter, Leah, after his wife commits suicide. There he tries to find peace and escape the drama of his dysfunctional family. Jack is an author of cookbooks and a restaurant critic. But his search for solitude is disturbed by his sister-in-law, and by two school friends who want his help in tracking down another classmate who went underground as a Vietnam protestor and never resurfaced. The novel explores Jack's younger years during the Vietnam War-era, the lives of his in-laws who survived the Holocaust, and coming of age in the twentieth century. Beach Music a complex and rich story that covers three generations and explores a cornucopia of themes and subthemes: sibling and parent/child relationships, orphans and orphanages, emotional abuse, mental illness, alcoholism, class differences, politics, man against nature in a test of survival skills, self-discovery, faith and religion, patriotism, and peace. You’ll find Holy Mother sightings, nunneries and monasteries, a tree house, mental asylums, communication with dolphins, immigrant stories, Appalachian terror, seafood recipes, a manta ray devil fish, collegiate rivalry, military brashness, Southern traditions, speech and food ways, turtle conservation; a love letter, a suicide letter.
Many in attendance had not seen images or even heard of the monstrous manta ray. Brendagael showed an 1858 engraving from our South Carolina Room of the creature, who had been struck by William Elliott’s great harpoon, as described in the novel. The group of fourteen in attendance were split on the literary success of the novel overall, but agreed there were exquisite passages to be enjoyed again and again. Some embraced the novel without exception, while others were distracted and annoyed with some of the tangential stories that veered from the immediate circle of Jack’s friends and family. Brendagael passed around examples of the beautiful language from various parts of the book, and each had a turn in reading Conroy’s poetic meter aloud. This brought up points of discussion such as who was ultimately responsible for Shyla’s suicide, and Jack’s love/hate relationship with the South, and how the South was personified throughout the novel as its own character, illustrating Jack’s conflicted world view. Also discussed were Conroy’s recurring themes and characters in the larger body of his work.
Since its inception three years ago, the Beaufort Book Club has read a Conroy novel each year. We look forward to discussing South of Broad (available in libraries and bookstores everywhere, August 11, 2009) in the near future. “Per la vostra salute,” Mr. Conroy.
Brendagael Beasley~Forrest, MA, MSLS
Monday, June 01, 2009
Questions for Beach Music
1.) Did you like it? Yes, no, or neutral and (briefly) why?
2.) Who was your favorite character and why? Your least favorite?
3.) Jack both reveres and reviles the institution of family. On the one hand, it is understandable that after the pain of the custody trial, he would want to remove both himself and Leah from the association of his in-laws. But what of his own family? What evidence is there to explain his refusal to maintain contact with them when they acquitted themselves so well in coming to his defense?
4.) Who does Jack blame for Shyla's death? Whose failing do you see as being greater and/or who do you hold most accountable: the individual, the close family and friends, or society at large? Further, Jack feels personally that had he known of Shyla's obsession, he could have helped her more. Is this just a typical survivor's reaction, or do you find some merit in this?
5.) Jack blames Shyla's parents for her sadness and his own parents for many of their children's problems. Dallas asks: "Can you ever forgive Mom and Dad for being exactly who they were born to be?” Is the wish to have one's parents be something different a futile desire? How do you assess Jack's own talents when it comes to child rearing?
6.) John Hardin's brothers, in their quest to deal with his emotional problems, make free use of their characteristic sarcasm, caustic wit, and irony. What effect, if any, do you believe this treatment has on John Hardin? In what other ways might you imagine them treating him differently, and what effects do you imagine such changes would make? Are family members' behavior more a cause or an effect of mental illness?
7.) There were a lot of topics addressed in the book... the old South, Vietnam War, the Holocaust, mental illness, cancer, etc. Was it too much for one novel? Did all the different issues make the story more realistic or less realistic for you?
8.) In the first portion of the story, Jack seems tired, bored--even annoyed--with Ruth's and George's repeated references to the Holocaust. What value does the telling of these unspeakable tales hold for Jack, and further, what value do they hold for the modern reader?
9.) Conroy’s plot winds and weaves, backward, now forward again, repeating on itself, and taking on the texture of waves. What effect does this technique contribute to the tale? Is there something that would be lost had Conroy adopted a more linear approach in the telling?
10.) To what extent do you believe that Jack's views are Conroy's views? At what points, if any, do you feel that they diverge? Finally, can you find instances where Conroy steps back and is actually critical of Jack?
11.) Virtually all of the characters here are affected in some way by the concept of masks--both metaphorical and literal--and the converse issue of nakedness. At one extreme, we have Lucy calling for her makeup first thing after waking from a near-death coma. At the other end of the spectrum, we have John Hardin talking to the turtle ladies on the beach while stark naked. Is the relative ability to don masks or abide one's own nakedness an asset or a hindrance to these characters? How is the mask/nakedness issue related to both the physical and emotional survival of other characters, particularly the Foxes?
12.) Jack speaks of his own sense of helplessness as a child when witnessing violent acts. Yet, in a sense, he subjects Leah to the same emotions when he beats up Mimmo DeAngelo, even if it is in defense of Mimmo's wife, Sophia. Is Conroy perhaps showing us here, with brutal honesty, that it is impossible to escape our own genetic/environmental past? Do you believe that it is possible to break out of our familial molds, or is each generation doomed to re-create in some fashion the wrongs of its predecessor?
13.) It can be said that "place" almost functions as another character in this book. What do you make of Jack's choice of Italy as a refuge for himself and Leah?
14.) It is interesting that Capers--arguably one of the least sympathetic characters in the novel--is often granted the discerning vision of the realist. "`Yours, Jack, is a world of either-or, all or nothing'" (153). With one sentence, he nails the fact that the very same fault that Jack finds with Catholicism, Judaism, and zealous patriotism--the extremity of it all--is one that he is guilty of himself. Is it just human nature, or is it a tragic flaw peculiar to Jack, this inability to see the thing we hate in ourselves, and so turn it outward on humanity?
2.) Who was your favorite character and why? Your least favorite?
3.) Jack both reveres and reviles the institution of family. On the one hand, it is understandable that after the pain of the custody trial, he would want to remove both himself and Leah from the association of his in-laws. But what of his own family? What evidence is there to explain his refusal to maintain contact with them when they acquitted themselves so well in coming to his defense?
4.) Who does Jack blame for Shyla's death? Whose failing do you see as being greater and/or who do you hold most accountable: the individual, the close family and friends, or society at large? Further, Jack feels personally that had he known of Shyla's obsession, he could have helped her more. Is this just a typical survivor's reaction, or do you find some merit in this?
5.) Jack blames Shyla's parents for her sadness and his own parents for many of their children's problems. Dallas asks: "Can you ever forgive Mom and Dad for being exactly who they were born to be?” Is the wish to have one's parents be something different a futile desire? How do you assess Jack's own talents when it comes to child rearing?
6.) John Hardin's brothers, in their quest to deal with his emotional problems, make free use of their characteristic sarcasm, caustic wit, and irony. What effect, if any, do you believe this treatment has on John Hardin? In what other ways might you imagine them treating him differently, and what effects do you imagine such changes would make? Are family members' behavior more a cause or an effect of mental illness?
7.) There were a lot of topics addressed in the book... the old South, Vietnam War, the Holocaust, mental illness, cancer, etc. Was it too much for one novel? Did all the different issues make the story more realistic or less realistic for you?
8.) In the first portion of the story, Jack seems tired, bored--even annoyed--with Ruth's and George's repeated references to the Holocaust. What value does the telling of these unspeakable tales hold for Jack, and further, what value do they hold for the modern reader?
9.) Conroy’s plot winds and weaves, backward, now forward again, repeating on itself, and taking on the texture of waves. What effect does this technique contribute to the tale? Is there something that would be lost had Conroy adopted a more linear approach in the telling?
10.) To what extent do you believe that Jack's views are Conroy's views? At what points, if any, do you feel that they diverge? Finally, can you find instances where Conroy steps back and is actually critical of Jack?
11.) Virtually all of the characters here are affected in some way by the concept of masks--both metaphorical and literal--and the converse issue of nakedness. At one extreme, we have Lucy calling for her makeup first thing after waking from a near-death coma. At the other end of the spectrum, we have John Hardin talking to the turtle ladies on the beach while stark naked. Is the relative ability to don masks or abide one's own nakedness an asset or a hindrance to these characters? How is the mask/nakedness issue related to both the physical and emotional survival of other characters, particularly the Foxes?
12.) Jack speaks of his own sense of helplessness as a child when witnessing violent acts. Yet, in a sense, he subjects Leah to the same emotions when he beats up Mimmo DeAngelo, even if it is in defense of Mimmo's wife, Sophia. Is Conroy perhaps showing us here, with brutal honesty, that it is impossible to escape our own genetic/environmental past? Do you believe that it is possible to break out of our familial molds, or is each generation doomed to re-create in some fashion the wrongs of its predecessor?
13.) It can be said that "place" almost functions as another character in this book. What do you make of Jack's choice of Italy as a refuge for himself and Leah?
14.) It is interesting that Capers--arguably one of the least sympathetic characters in the novel--is often granted the discerning vision of the realist. "`Yours, Jack, is a world of either-or, all or nothing'" (153). With one sentence, he nails the fact that the very same fault that Jack finds with Catholicism, Judaism, and zealous patriotism--the extremity of it all--is one that he is guilty of himself. Is it just human nature, or is it a tragic flaw peculiar to Jack, this inability to see the thing we hate in ourselves, and so turn it outward on humanity?
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Questions for The Art of Racing in the Rain
1. Some early readers of the novel have observed that viewing the world through a dog’s eyes makes for a greater appreciation of being human. Why do you think this is?
2. Enzo’s observations throughout the novel provide insight into his world view. For example:• “The visible becomes inevitable.”• “Understanding the truth is simple. Allowing oneself to experience it, is often terrifically difficult.”• “No race has ever been won in the first corner; many races have been lost there.”How does his philosophy apply to real life?
3. In the book's darkest moments, one of Zoe's stuffed animals --- the zebra --- comes to life and threatens him. What does the zebra symbolize?
4. Can you imagine the novel being told from Denny’s point of view? How would it make the story different?
5. In the first chapter, Enzo says: “It's what's inside that's important. The soul. And my soul is very human.” How does Enzo's situation --- a human soul trapped in a dog's body --- influence his opinions about what he sees around him? How do you feel about the ideas of reincarnation and karma as Enzo defines them?
6. Do you find yourself looking at your own dog differently after reading this novel?
7. In the book, we get glimpses into the mindset and mentality of a race car driver. What parallels can you think of between the art of racing and the art of living?
8. The character of Ayrton Senna, as he is presented in the book, is heroic, almost a mythic figure. Why do you think this character resonates so strongly for Denny?
Questions are from ReadingGroupGuides.com
Monday, March 30, 2009
Wild Swans
Here are some questions to consider as you begin our April selection, Wild Swans.
Does the book succeed in being primarily a memoir rather than a historical document?
How does the book convey the horror of Communist China?
What is your abiding memory of the book″
How do you view the relationship between Chang′s parents; What do you admire/dislike about the family′s attitude to their problems?
Questions are from harpercollins.com.au.
Does the book succeed in being primarily a memoir rather than a historical document?
How does the book convey the horror of Communist China?
What is your abiding memory of the book″
How do you view the relationship between Chang′s parents; What do you admire/dislike about the family′s attitude to their problems?
Questions are from harpercollins.com.au.
Savannah Grey Presentation
Fourteen attendees listened to Jim Jordan tell us about the 4 years of research and writing that went into his book, Savannah Grey. He found a professional editor to help him cut the book into readable size, but never found a publisher. His book is self-published, although available in many area bookstores. He has marketed it primarily through public speaking engagements.
On the topic of the plot, Mr. Jordan pointed out that he wanted to draw attention to the role of free "persons of color" in the antebellum south. Not all these people were black. He also explained why a certain pivotal character in the book had to die.
We all look forward to Mr. Jordan's next book, a work of nonfiction on one of the historical characters in Savannah Grey. Beyond that, we were told to look forward to the sequel to Savannah Grey.
Our next meeting is on April 16 when we will discuss Wild Swans: Three Daughter of China by Jung Chang.
On the topic of the plot, Mr. Jordan pointed out that he wanted to draw attention to the role of free "persons of color" in the antebellum south. Not all these people were black. He also explained why a certain pivotal character in the book had to die.
We all look forward to Mr. Jordan's next book, a work of nonfiction on one of the historical characters in Savannah Grey. Beyond that, we were told to look forward to the sequel to Savannah Grey.
Our next meeting is on April 16 when we will discuss Wild Swans: Three Daughter of China by Jung Chang.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Savannah Grey by Jim Jordan
I hope you are all reading our selection for this month. Please join us for Mr. Jordan's discussion of his book next Thursday, March 26, at 5:30 in the Children's Program Room.
Our February discussion of Tombee: Portrait of a Cotton Planter, lead by Librarian Grace Cordial was a lively one attended by 28 people. Grace gave us a lot of background on Beaufort and St. Helena Island in the period just before the Civil War. She even brought along an original map of the town that the Federal government planned, but never built, on St. Helena. I think most of us decided that we would love the opportunity to talk to Tom B. Chaplin about his life as a plantation owner, but we would not want him for a friend. He borrowed too much from those around him, and whined a lot!
I have discovered that I did not comment on Stuart's presentation of Suite Francaise in January. We were treated to a discussion of the Nazi occupation of France from the point of view of of a citizen of Britain. (Stuart is a Scotsman.) It was a unique perspective for most of us. Stuart had really done his homework on the period and on Irene Nemirovsky! We were all amazed that her orphaned children proteacted the manuscript of her work for so many years through so many relocations. We were glad that this fictionalized first-person account of life in a French village was preserved for us.
Our February discussion of Tombee: Portrait of a Cotton Planter, lead by Librarian Grace Cordial was a lively one attended by 28 people. Grace gave us a lot of background on Beaufort and St. Helena Island in the period just before the Civil War. She even brought along an original map of the town that the Federal government planned, but never built, on St. Helena. I think most of us decided that we would love the opportunity to talk to Tom B. Chaplin about his life as a plantation owner, but we would not want him for a friend. He borrowed too much from those around him, and whined a lot!
I have discovered that I did not comment on Stuart's presentation of Suite Francaise in January. We were treated to a discussion of the Nazi occupation of France from the point of view of of a citizen of Britain. (Stuart is a Scotsman.) It was a unique perspective for most of us. Stuart had really done his homework on the period and on Irene Nemirovsky! We were all amazed that her orphaned children proteacted the manuscript of her work for so many years through so many relocations. We were glad that this fictionalized first-person account of life in a French village was preserved for us.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Questions for Discussion from Grace Cordial
Tombee: Portrait of a Cotton Planter
While you are reading our selection for February 19, Rosengarten’s Tombee, please consider these questions:
Would you choose Thomas B. Chaplin as a friend? Why or why not?
What is your evaluation of the extended introduction that Rosengarten provides before Chaplin’s edited diary?
What do you think of his scholarship and conclusions? How did you arrive at your decision?
See you at 5:30 on Thursday, February 19th!
4:55 PM
While you are reading our selection for February 19, Rosengarten’s Tombee, please consider these questions:
Would you choose Thomas B. Chaplin as a friend? Why or why not?
What is your evaluation of the extended introduction that Rosengarten provides before Chaplin’s edited diary?
What do you think of his scholarship and conclusions? How did you arrive at your decision?
See you at 5:30 on Thursday, February 19th!
4:55 PM
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Suite Francaise-Questions from Book Browse
This guide is designed to enliven your group’s discussion of Suite Française, Irène Némirovsky's masterpiece—a unique work of fiction about the chaotic exodus from Paris in June, 1940, as the invading German army approaches, and the complex life of an occupied village a year later.
The novelist, who herself fled Paris on the eve of the Nazi invasion, wrote the book virtually while the occupation was happening, most likely making Suite Française the first work of fiction about World War II.
How do you think she managed to write while she herself was in jeopardy?
Do you think it was easier for her to capture the day-to-day realities of life under occupation?
In what ways might the book have been different if she had survived and been able to write Suite Française years after the war?
Suite Française is a unique pair of novels. Which of the two parts of Suite Française do you prefer?
Which structural organization did you find more effective: the short chapters and multiple focus of Storm in June, or the more restricted approach of Dolce?
What is the significance of the title Dolce?
How does Suite Française undermine the long-held view of French resistance to the German occupation?
Discuss Irène Némirovsky’s approach to class in Suite Française.
How do the rich, poor, and the middle classes view one another?
How do they help or hinder one another?
Do the characters identify themselves by class or nationality?(You might consider the aristocratic Mme de Montmort’s thought in Dolce: “What separates or unites people is not their language, their laws, their customs, but the way they hold their knife and fork.”)
In Dolce, we enter the increasingly complex life of a German-occupied provincial village. Coexisting uneasily with the soldiers billeted among them, the villagers—from aristocrats to shopkeepers to peasants—cope as best they can. Some choose resistance, others collaboration. Each relationship is distorted by the allegiances of war.
What happens when someone—who might have been your friend—is now declared your enemy during a war?
The lovers in the second novel question whether the needs of the individual or the community should take priority. Lucille imagines that “in five, or ten, or twenty years” this problem will have been replaced by others. To what extent, if at all, has this proved the case?
Has Western society conclusively decided to privilege the individual over the group?
How does Suite Française compare to other World War Two novels you have read? How would you compare it to the great personal documents of the war (for example, those written by Anne Frank and Victor Klemperer), or to fiction?
“Important events—whether serious, happy or unfortunate—do not change a man’s soul, they merely bring it into relief, just as a strong gust of wind reveals the true shape of a tree when it blows of all its leaves.” —Storm in June, p.203. Do you agree?
Consider Irène Némirovsky’s plan for the next part of Suite Française (in the appendix). What else do you think could happen to the characters?
The novelist, who herself fled Paris on the eve of the Nazi invasion, wrote the book virtually while the occupation was happening, most likely making Suite Française the first work of fiction about World War II.
How do you think she managed to write while she herself was in jeopardy?
Do you think it was easier for her to capture the day-to-day realities of life under occupation?
In what ways might the book have been different if she had survived and been able to write Suite Française years after the war?
Suite Française is a unique pair of novels. Which of the two parts of Suite Française do you prefer?
Which structural organization did you find more effective: the short chapters and multiple focus of Storm in June, or the more restricted approach of Dolce?
What is the significance of the title Dolce?
How does Suite Française undermine the long-held view of French resistance to the German occupation?
Discuss Irène Némirovsky’s approach to class in Suite Française.
How do the rich, poor, and the middle classes view one another?
How do they help or hinder one another?
Do the characters identify themselves by class or nationality?(You might consider the aristocratic Mme de Montmort’s thought in Dolce: “What separates or unites people is not their language, their laws, their customs, but the way they hold their knife and fork.”)
In Dolce, we enter the increasingly complex life of a German-occupied provincial village. Coexisting uneasily with the soldiers billeted among them, the villagers—from aristocrats to shopkeepers to peasants—cope as best they can. Some choose resistance, others collaboration. Each relationship is distorted by the allegiances of war.
What happens when someone—who might have been your friend—is now declared your enemy during a war?
The lovers in the second novel question whether the needs of the individual or the community should take priority. Lucille imagines that “in five, or ten, or twenty years” this problem will have been replaced by others. To what extent, if at all, has this proved the case?
Has Western society conclusively decided to privilege the individual over the group?
How does Suite Française compare to other World War Two novels you have read? How would you compare it to the great personal documents of the war (for example, those written by Anne Frank and Victor Klemperer), or to fiction?
“Important events—whether serious, happy or unfortunate—do not change a man’s soul, they merely bring it into relief, just as a strong gust of wind reveals the true shape of a tree when it blows of all its leaves.” —Storm in June, p.203. Do you agree?
Consider Irène Némirovsky’s plan for the next part of Suite Française (in the appendix). What else do you think could happen to the characters?
Friday, January 02, 2009
Date Change for March
Jim Jordan, author of Savannah Grey, was to present his book for us on March 19, but he has been invited to present at the Virginia Festival of the book. He is very excited, and we are excited for him. He is, however, free to speak to us on the following Thursday, March 26, so I took the liberty of changing our meeting date to the 4th Thursday for March only. We will, again, be using the Children's Program Room on the first floor. I hope to see lots and lots of book lovers at the March meeting, and at all of our meetings!
Happy New Year.
Happy New Year.
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