Jan 2018: All The Light We Cannot See

All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr via Goodreads:

"Marie-Laure lives in Paris near the Museum of Natural History, where her father works. When she is twelve, the Nazis occupy Paris and father and daughter flee to the walled citadel of Saint-Malo, where Marie-Laure’s reclusive great uncle lives in a tall house by the sea. With them they carry what might be the museum’s most valuable and dangerous jewel.

In a mining town in Germany, Werner Pfennig, an orphan, grows up with his younger sister, enchanted by a crude radio they find that brings them news and stories from places they have never seen or imagined. Werner becomes an expert at building and fixing these crucial new instruments and is enlisted to use his talent to track down the resistance. Deftly interweaving the lives of Marie-Laure and Werner, Doerr illuminates the ways, against all odds, people try to be good to one another."

Author Website: Click here. (spoilers possible)
Anthony Doerr on his novel: Click here. (spoilers possible) video

We'll meet to discuss All The Light We Cannot See on Thursday, January 25, at 7pm. Location: Community Room of the Atlantic Highlands branch of the Monmouth County Library, 100 First Avenue, inside Borough Hall in downtown Atlantic Highlands. Books are available at the Library Desk.

Please note: This title wasn't available via the Monmouth County Library Bookclub List and quantity is limited!

AHLEBC 2017 Round Up

Happy New Year fellow readers!

Before we get started with 2018, I wanted us to take a look back at our year of reading in 2017 via our voting in December (which was done via email and during our annual holiday / December meet up).

Here are the results from Lori's email:

Remember, our voting systems was a little unorthodox, for example, you could have more than one favorite, but we are not a rule following book club. We do things our way, baby! :-)

My Brilliant Friend Fav: 7 Liked: 4 No one thought this book was meh or hated it.

Thank Who Mistook his Wife... Liked: 5 Meh: 3 No one's favorite and no one hated it.

One Thousand White Women Liked: 6 Meh: 1 Hated: 1 No one's favorite.

When the Emperor was Divine Fav: 1 Liked: 6 Meh: 4 No one hated it.

The Bridge of San Luis Rey Fav: 1 Liked: 3 Meh: 5 No one hated this book.

Olive Kitteridge Fav: 4 Liked: 6 No one thought this book was meh or hated it.

Being Mortal Fav: 2 Liked: 8 Meh: 11 No one hated it.

Frankenstein Liked: 4 Meh: 3 Hated: 3 No one's favorite.

Euphoria Liked: 5 Meh: 4 Hated: 1 No one's favorite.

Orphan train Liked: 10 Meh: 2 No one's favorite and no one hated it.

A Man Called Ove Fav: 2 Liked: 7 Meh: 2 Hated: 2

So...

Favorite book: My Brilliant Friend Least Favorite: Frankenstein Most Liked: Orphan Train Most Meh: Being Mortal

Thanks for voting!

Speaking of "rules" - along with input from those who attended the annual holiday / December meet up, Lori and I have come to the decision (for lack of a better word) that we're bringing the bookclub back to its' roots in some ways to make it more inclusive for all who attend, and less "to-do" pressure for Lori, who has been our fearless and faithful leader though thick & thin, but as can happen with us all, needs to have less on-hands time with the bookclub now, as I have needed these last couple of years.

So in that spirit, here are the new old "rules" for 2018 and beyond:

-If you pick a book that gets chosen as a monthly selection, You are responsible for facilitating the month your book is assigned to.
-If you are unable to do so, please let Lori and myself know ASAP (or hit "reply all" to the latest email from us) so that we can go from there and someone can volunteer to facilitate in their place.
-(Emergencies are the obvious exception here, so in this case those who attend that month will carry on and discuss the book sans facilitator).

-If you are facilitating, that month you bring the snacks.
-If you're unable to do so, or would like everyone to try and bring something as well, please let the group know by hitting "reply all" to the latest email from us. This way those who are able to bring something can do so.
-(There are paper goods at the library already - if Lori or I aren't there, just ask the librarians).
-Lori will continue to bring the electric kettle and tea.

As a reminder: If you pick a book that is not on the Monmouth County Bookclub Library List, all will be done to try and locate enough copies of that book throughout the system, however, we cannot guarantee that there will be enough system wide and therefore we may ask you to pick a back-up title in case.

In closing, here is our 2017 annual Holiday / December meet up group photo!

Here's to another great year of reading together!
-Jo

Nov/Dec 2017: A Man Called Ove

A Man Called Ove: A Novel by Fredrik Backman (author), Henning Koch (translator)

From Goodreads:

"A grumpy yet loveable man finds his solitary world turned on its head when a boisterous young family moves in next door.

Meet Ove. He's a curmudgeon, the kind of man who points at people he dislikes as if they were burglars caught outside his bedroom window. He has staunch principles, strict routines, and a short fuse. People call him the bitter neighbor from hell, but must Ove be bitter just because he doesn't walk around with a smile plastered to his face all the time?

Behind the cranky exterior there is a story and a sadness. So when one November morning a chatty young couple with two chatty young daughters move in next door and accidentally flatten Ove's mailbox, it is the lead-in to a comical and heartwarming tale of unkempt cats, unexpected friendship, and the ancient art of backing up a U-Haul. All of which will change one cranky old man and a local residents' association to their very foundations."

Author site: Click here.

We will meet to discuss A Man Called Ove on Thursday, December 7, 2017 at 7pm in the Community Room of the Atlantic Highlands branch of the Monmouth County Library located inside Borough Hall at 100 First Avenue in downtown Atlantic Highlands. (If we are having a holiday party during this discussion, look for details in the email preceding this meetup).

Oct 2017: Orphan Train

Orphan Train: A Novel by Christina Baker Kline

From christinabakerkline.com:

"Between 1854 and 1929, so-called orphan trains ran regularly from the cities of the East Coast to the farmlands of the Midwest, carrying thousands of abandoned children whose fates would be determined by luck or chance. Would they be adopted by a kind and loving family, or would they face a childhood and adolescence of hard labor and servitude?

As a young Irish immigrant, Vivian Daly was one such child, sent by rail from New York City to an uncertain future a world away. Returning east later in life, Vivian leads a quiet, peaceful existence on the coast of Maine, the memories of her upbringing rendered a hazy blur. But in her attic, hidden in trunks, are vestiges of a turbulent past.

Seventeen-year-old Molly Ayer knows that a community-service position helping an elderly widow clean out her attic is the only thing keeping her out of juvenile hall. But as Molly helps Vivian sort through her keepsakes and possessions, she discovers that she and Vivian aren’t as different as they appear. A Penobscot Indian who has spent her youth in and out of foster homes, Molly is also an outsider being raised by strangers, and she, too, has unanswered questions about the past.

Moving between contemporary Maine and Depression-era Minnesota, Orphan Train is a powerful tale of upheaval and resilience, second chances, and unexpected friendship."

Author background on writing Orphan Train (spoilers likely): Click here.
Author site: Click here.
Google search on orphan trains: Click here.

We will meet to discuss Orphan Train on Thursday, 26, 2017 at 7pm in the Community Room of the Atlantic Highlands branch of the Monmouth County Library located inside Borough Hall at 100 First Avenue in downtown Atlantic Highlands.

Sep 2017: Euphoria

Euphoria by Lily King

From Goodreads:

"Inspired by events in the life of revolutionary anthropologist Margaret Mead, Euphoria is the story of three young, gifted anthropologists of the 1930s caught in a passionate love triangle that threatens their bonds, their careers, and, ultimately, their lives."

Author site: Click here.

We will meet to discuss Euphoria on Thursday, 28, 2017 at 7pm in the Community Room of the Atlantic Highlands branch of the Monmouth County Library located inside Borough Hall at 100 First Avenue in downtown Atlantic Highlands.

Aug 2017: Frankenstein

Frankenstein; Or, the Modern Prometheus Mary Shelley

From BN.com:

"Mary Shelley began writing Frankenstein when she was only eighteen. At once a Gothic thriller, a passionate romance, and a cautionary tale about the dangers of science, Frankenstein tells the story of committed science student Victor Frankenstein. Obsessed with discovering "the cause of generation and life" and "bestowing animation upon lifeless matter," Frankenstein assembles a human being from stolen body parts but; upon bringing it to life, he recoils in horror at the creatures hideousness. Tormented by isolation and loneliness, the once-innocent creature turns to evil and unleashes a campaign of murderous revenge against his creator, Frankenstein.

Frankenstein, an instant bestseller and an important ancestor of both the horror and science fiction genres, not only tells a terrifying story, but also raises rofound, disturbing questions about the very nature of life and the place of humankind within the cosmos: What does it mean to be human? What responsibilities do we have to each other? How far can we go in tampering with Nature? In our age, filled with news of organ donation genetic engineering, and bio-terrorism, these questions are more relevant than ever."

Poetry Foundation author bio: Click here.

We will meet to discuss Frankenstein on Thursday, 31, 2017 at 7pm in the Community Room of the Atlantic Highlands branch of the Monmouth County Library located inside Borough Hall at 100 First Avenue in downtown Atlantic Highlands.

Jul 2017: Being Mortal

Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End by Atul Gawande

From Goodreads:

"In Being Mortal, bestselling author Atul Gawande tackles the hardest challenge of his profession: how medicine can not only improve life but also the process of its ending. 

Medicine has triumphed in modern times, transforming birth, injury, and infectious disease from harrowing to manageable. But in the inevitable condition of aging and death, the goals of medicine seem too frequently to run counter to the interest of the human spirit. Nursing homes, preoccupied with safety, pin patients into railed beds and wheelchairs. Hospitals isolate the dying, checking for vital signs long after the goals of cure have become moot. Doctors, committed to extending life, continue to carry out devastating procedures that in the end extend suffering.

 Gawande, a practicing surgeon, addresses his profession’s ultimate limitation, arguing that quality of life is the desired goal for patients and families. Gawande offers examples of freer, more socially fulfilling models for assisting the infirm and dependent elderly, and he explores the varieties of hospice care to demonstrate that a person's last weeks or months may be rich and dignified.

Full of eye-opening research and riveting storytelling, Being Mortal asserts that medicine can comfort and enhance our experience even to the end, providing not only a good life but also a good end."

Author site: Click here.

We will meet to discuss Being Mortal on Thursday, 27, 2017 at 7pm in the Community Room of the Atlantic Highlands branch of the Monmouth County Library located inside Borough Hall at 100 First Avenue in downtown Atlantic Highlands.