Book Club On-Line

- Janet Pelz

I’m always interested in a good read. My guess is that you are, too.

So, how about sharing some of the best books you’ve read this year. What titles do you think we should all consider and why? Maybe we’ll get some ideas for year-end gifts or just a boost of reading inspiration to take into the next year.

One of my book highlights this year came to me from a suggestion. My friend Leslie, who has known me for long enough to know told me I should read The Elegance of the Hedgehog, by Muriel Barbery. I fell headfirst into an amazing novel that took equal care with the smallest moments and the broadest themes. Plus, it’s set in Paris, so I had lots of mental imagery to supply. I wasn’t too fond of the ending, however. What did you think?

Among books I read that I wouldn’t recommend, A Map of the World, by Jane Hamilton. An unthinkable sadness occurs in the first chapters and from there the story becomes even more depressing. I also disliked Alice Hoffman’s Here on Earth, another from Oprah’s Book Club. The book spins you into a number of complex characters, some reminiscent of Dickens, and at the end they all just scatter, like dandelion seeds. I’d be curious to know if anyone had different impressions of either of these.

On the non-fiction side, I’m having fun reading The Tipping Point, by Malcolm Gladwell. Don’t know how much of it I’ll ever have the chance to apply to my own life and pursuits, but it’s full of interesting anecdotes and studies, connected in a fascinating way.  And of course, I was bowled over by the women’s stories told in the book Esther Instebo gave to me, Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide, by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn.

The women I’ve interviewed for How Does She Do It? have many interesting things on their bookshelves – scroll back through the archives to see what they are reading.

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What have been your favorites/dud this year?  Click the word ‘comment’ at the end of this story and add your recommendations in the white box titled “Post a Comment".”  Then check back periodically to see what others have written by clicking the red comment link again. 

Comments

[Anne Gilbert]

Anne Green Gilbert recommends "Cutting for Stone" by Abraham Verghese. An epic story that spans two continents by an author born in Ethiopia of Indian parents who is now an American doctor. The author's life experiences inform his characters' story.

[Janet Pelz]

Anne: I thought to put that book on my list as well. I kept thinking, how amazing that this author can command such vast amounts of skill -- a doctor; head of a department at Stanford; a historian and novelist. So interesting how each of these disciplines finds its way into this novel. I really enjoyed it as well. Thanks for bringing that one up (and it isn't a British turn-of-the-century classic!)