Comments from the De Soto Book Discussion Group regarding our December 2016 selection:

The Boys in the Boat 

by Daniel James Brown 

We had so much to talk about with this amazing book. Our discussion last two hours and we had a great time. The Boys in the Boat is an inspirational story that will stay with you long after you finish reading. This nonfiction adventure is one of the best books I’ve read this year. The University of Washington rowers shows how hard work and teamwork pay off. We all felt these resilient boys had strength and courage beyond what we have today.

The personal stories of our group members will stick with me the most. Hearing about how one member’s grandfather had to leave the house at age 14 because it was too hard to feed growing boys was shocking. Hearing members describe their trips and experiences of living in Germany was very interesting. One member lived in Munich. The people were very different and were not helpful or pleasant to her. Everywhere she went people seemed to think her politeness were an affront to them. Her hilarious stories showed how different our cultures are. 

Comments from the De Soto Book Discussion Group regarding our October 2016 selection:

Fates and Furies 

by Lauren Groff

The more we dislike a book, the more there is to talk about! This is definitely the case with Lauren Groff’s Fates and Furies. Most of us had to force ourselves to read Fate and Furies. Instead of looking forward to the experience, we were dreading having to read more. Groff’s back-and-forth in time is one of the many reasons this book fails to grab the reader’s attention. The characters in this novel are difficult. Their personalities are different than most characters. They are flawed, narcissists, and in Mathilde’s case sociopathic. Mathilde is too conniving and keeps too many secrets from Lotto for us to trust her.

The book is cut into two sections, “Fates” is Lotto’s section and “Furies” belongs to Mathilde’s life. The order of this novel is important because you see the happy side of the marriage first. Then you see the behind-the-scenes work Mathilde put into the marriage to make things go smoothly. Mathilde’s section is eye-opening because she hides so much of herself. She was born in France, may have killed her brother, was sent to live with her uncle, and became an escort to Ariel to get through college.

Surprisingly we all agree that Lotto and Mathilde have a good marriage and happy life. Mathilde hides so many things from Lotto that he is blissfully ignorant of her entire past, her sterilization, and her ongoing feud with Antoinette, his mother. Had Lotto known all these things we all feel the marriage would have quickly ended. By the end of the novel we feel Mathilde has grown as a character because she does not ruin Chollie’s business. However, this is one of the only times she decides not to wreak havoc on others.

Our discussion is fascinating and many issues including marriage, mental health, and Greek myths are brought up because of this novel. 

Comments from the De Soto Book Discussion Group regarding our August 2016 selection:

The Boston Girl 

by Anita Diamant 

The Boston Girl is a delightful story that none of us were expecting to find so enjoyable. The characters of this novel were richly brought to life through dialogue and action. Diamant pulls you into Addie's life so effortlessly that you do not want to leave. Addie is a smart, plucky, and strong-willed girl who sees the changing role of women first-hand. As the first American born child in her family Addie goes to school, befriends girls from other backgrounds, and finds lifelong friends at the Settlement House’s Saturday Club.

The Boston Girl reads like a biography because of the historical elements throughout. Herman Levine is Addie’s brother-in-law and he helps the whole family through the depression and beyond. Levine is also a great character who helps time and again but does not get recognition from his in-laws for all he does. Levine makes shirts for World War I, two of Addie’s nephews die from the Spanish Influenza, Addie dates a World War II vet, and her husband helps pass Child Labor laws. The historical elements of this novel add so much to the story and we are all enthralled to read about how these big events shaped the lives of our characters.

The group is hurt by Addie’s mother, Memah, because she treats Addie poorly throughout the novel. Some members think Memah was mentally ill. Others wonder if Memah does not like Addie because she is born in America and is flourishing in life, while two of Memah's children die trying to get to the U.S. and Memah blames America for their deaths. Either way Addie has a hard time with her mother. Memah thinks Addie is lazy, stupid, and needs to work harder for her place in the family. Relations between them do not get better with time or after Celia’s death. Celia is such a fragile girl who could not deal with the realities of life and was not prepared to be a wife and mother to two boys. The stress and isolation drove Celia to her death. We wish we knew more about Celia and even Betty who is always there but somewhat of a mystery. But Diamant perfectly shows how an older sister is not always well known, but is there for support. 

Our discussion of this novel is lively, amusing, and we are all happy with this selection. 

Comments from the De Soto Book Discussion Group regarding our July 2016 selection:

A Spool Of Blue Thread 
by Anne Tyler

Our discussion this month was great. The majority of the members enjoyed A Spool of Blue Thread. The novel starts off slowly and includes a long list of names and family relationships to piece together, but once you are past that the novel pulls you in to the Whitshank family. We feel like we know a few of the characters well, like Abby and Linnie Mae. However, we never really know the motivations of Denny, Stem, or the girls.

Denny is a mystery to all of us. We do not understand what made him the way he was. He kept his family on the hook throughout his life. The Whitshank’s did not know Denny’s phone number or address for long stretches of time. Then Denny would show up out of the blue and stay with his family until they said something to anger him and he would leave. We all recognize how taking in Stem affected Denny; however, we do not understand why it made him withdraw from his family so completely.

The chapters dedicated to Linnie Mae and Junior were rather shocking. Junior did not want anything to do with Linnie Mae when she followed him to Philadelphia. Knowing that Junior thought Linnie Mae ruined his life brought an additional level of meaning to the novel. The Whitshank family line started with Junior and Linnie Mae, they both left their families behind and did not go back or keep in contact. They only had each other to depend on and knowing Junior often felt disappointed by Linnie Mae was sad. 

Comments from the De Soto Book Discussion Group regarding our May 2016 selection:

Before I Go 

by Colleen Oakley 

Our group discussion shows a mix of reactions to Before I Go.  

As Daisy gets ready to celebrate her four year cancerversary, or life without cancer, she discovers there is now Lots of Cancer throughout her whole body including a tumor the size of an orange in her brain. Daisy is given 6 months to a year to live. During that time Daisy plans to fix up her house and see her husband, Jack, complete the dual PhD and DVM in veterinary medicine. Another item on Daisy’s to-do list is finding Jack a new wife because he will need someone to take care of him. Daisy begins trying to meet women in coffee shops and starts internet dating for Jack. This turns out to be harder than she imagines.

Most members enjoy the touching story and conversational language of the novel. Cancer is a difficult topic to deal with and it is hard to know Daisy is dying. But the novel is heartfelt and moving. We all appreciate the way Oakley handles the end of this novel and are glad we do not see Daisy severely decline in health.

Others do not like Daisy or the voice of the novel. Admittedly, Daisy does get rather hard to like when she adamantly thinks Jack is cheating on her, but she is going through a hard time. Another drawback of the novel is too many adjectives making one member feel the writing is lacking.  The present tense of the novel is distracting for another member.

One thing our members can agree on, Jack is great. His absentminded nature and sweet temperament towards Daisy made him loveable to the group. Everything revolves around Jack’s school. They miss out on spending time together because school comes first. Everything is put off to the future when Jack graduates. Jack needs to finish school for them both. This is a huge goal for them and something to work towards and keeps their minds off the cancer.

Kayleigh is one of the group’s favorite characters because she was the most real. There were many comedic moments from Kayleigh’s misadventures in love and her cursing. We were all sad Daisy pushes Kayleigh away and yells at her about wasting her life with a job she hates. However, it is surprising much time Daisy wastes in pushing Jack away when they should be spending more time together.

Reading books dealing with cancer is tough for our group as the majority of the members had cancer at one point. Congratulations to one special member who is now cancer free! 

Comments from the De Soto Book Discussion Group regarding our April 2016 selection:

Dear Committee Members 

By Julie Schumacher 

Schumacher’s novel, Dear Committee Members, is smart, snarky, and often laugh-out-loud funny.  Cantankerous and eye-rolling inducing Jay Fitger has written over 1,300 letters of recommendation during his career as Professor of Creative Writing and English at Payne University.  Dear Committee Members is an epistolary novel, meaning it is written in letter of recommendation format, making for an interesting read because of the way you must piece the story together from Jay’s perspective. 

This humorous tale leads to a fantastic discussion about Jay’s foibles.  Jay is angry and constantly mentions cuts to the liberal arts, especially the English department, in favor of economics and the technological sciences.  The English building has been sealed because of construction for a new tech building next door.  Jay has a tough exterior but seems lonely.  He is living in the past and is too brutally honest for his own good.  The story is often one-sided and readers are left wondering how events really play out. Jay usually reveals details a few letters later.  The stories of Jay’s ex-wife, Janet, and his ex-girlfriend, Carole, show how hapless Jay is about women, love, and his lack of tact.  

The majority of our members enjoy this novel.  All members are impressed by Schumacher’s ability to move the story along through the letters.  This novel could easily lose steam because of the format. However, Schumacher finds the right balance between humor, insight, and weaving an engaging, intelligent story about modern university life.  Some of the best parts of this novel came from Jay’s sign offs and titles he gave himself.  One of the best is Jay Fitger, Professor/Hazardous Material Specialist.

Comments from the De Soto Book Discussion Group regarding our March 2016 selection:

Someone 

By Alice McDermott

Someone is well-written, but the book club members did not like McDermott's style of moving back-and-forth in time.  There were too many gaps in Marie's life.  We all want more details about Tom Commeford and their courtship.  Marie briefly meets Tom before the war, while the next section starts with Marie and Tom married.  We are all disappointed we do not know more about Gabe's life.  We would like to know his thoughts and the real reasons why he left the priesthood and how he ended up in the Suffolk Mental Institution.  Tom and Gabe were the two characters we like the most, but know the least about.  

The job at Mr. Fagin’s seems to increase Marie’s station in life and help her mature because of the way she softly greeted mourners, guided them through the wakes and services.  Marie is happy to work in Brooklyn after hearing how hard it is to work in the city.  Marie decides to take the job because she is allowed to charge five dresses to Mr. Fagin’s account.  These dresses change her life; she refers to the dresses numerous times throughout the book.

Marie also learns a lot of people from Mr. Fagin's sister and the nuns who discussed all the people who pass through the funeral home.  The women tell stories and remember each person.  And if they did not know the person, they read their obituary and created things about the person. 

One of my favorite topics discussed was the idea that we each have stories to tell that are fascinating and extraordinary and someone would love to read.  But not each of us has the talent to write these stories and bring together a motif of our lives.  I think this is definitely true, we all live interesting lives.  Each decision you make leads to different paths and no two lives are exactly the same.  

Even though no one liked the book but we had plenty to discuss. 

Comments from the De Soto Book Discussion Group regarding our February 2016 selection:

The World We Found 

by Thrity Umrigar

Below is a summation of the members' reactions to this work.

February’s book selection is The World We Found by Thrity Umrigar.  This novel focuses on four women living in modern Bombay and recalling their youth and college days together.  Over the years, Armaiti, Kavita, Laleh, and Nishta lose touch because life gets in the way.  Now Armaiti is living in America with her family and she is dying from a brain tumor.  Armaiti’s last wish is to see all her friends again. 

The World We Found receives unanimous praise from the group.  The majority will recommend this novel because of the great characterization Umrigar provides the reader.  The story is touching and real because we all have friends we slowly lost touch with and know the feeling of being reunited.  

 

Most of our discussions led back to Iqbal and Nishta's relationship.  Many could not understand the reasoning behind Nishta's acquiescence to Iqbal's wishes.  How could such a strong woman slowly lose herself and follow all of Iqbal's orders?  We all agree losing touch with Armaiti, Kavita, Laleh, did not help Nishta and could have made her feel even more isolated.  Nishta slowly falls into the routine of wearing a burka, feeding her mother-in-law, living in a rundown apartment in the Muslim part of town, and being unhappy.  We are all surprised at Umrigar's explanation of wearing a burka.  The feeling of claustrophobia and not being able to see what was happening around you sounds terrifying.      

Armaiti’s tumor lead us to share our cancer stories.  The majority of the group has been touched by cancer in some way through family and friends.  We could all emphasize with the friends in this novel wanting to be together again.  Most agree the story would have felt better if Armaiti spoke with Diane, her daughter, about why she did not want treatment and her conflicted feelings about dying.  We have so much more to discuss, but ran out of time.  

Thanks to all the members for making me feel so welcome and part of the group.  I look forward to our monthly meetings and the terrific discussions!  

Comments from the De Soto Book Discussion Group regarding our January 2016 selection:

Nora Webster

by Colm Toibin

Below is a summation of the members' reactions to this work.

Nora Webster by Colm Toibin depicts a mother of four, struggling with grief and financial hardships after the death of her beloved husband, She struggles to support her four children and clings to secrecy in the intrusive community of her childhood before finding her voice.

Most members of the group enjoyed the book.  We discussed the relationships between Nora with her mother as well as Nora's relationship with her daughters. No surprises there as the similarities passed through the generations confirm that history continues to repeat itself. 

It was interesting for us to note that all of her family members, worked around her. Was everyone trying to protect her in her grief?  Did they just not want to deal with her?  Reactions were mixed on this topic!  Nora was very well protected (insulated?) while married to Maurice which caused her to become very focused (or was she actually just self-centered?).

We also discussed her relationships with her two younger sons.  Why did she not discuss selling their vacation home with them? It was clear that she understood the importance of the Cush house to the boys.  Was she "protecting" them from dealing with adult financial problems?  Or perhaps, she just didn't want to deal with it.

All members appreciated the excellent job that the author (a man) did writing from a woman's perspective; however, we also all agreed that there were too many unfinished stories started throughout the novel. 

When asked if this is a book you would recommend to a friend, no one jumped up with a resounding "Yes!!"....which I interpret as, "Hmmmm... maybe, depends on the person."