- September 9 (Tanya)
- October 14 (Denise) - at the cottage!
- November 25 (Elsa)
- January 6, 2012 (Sherri)
- February 10 (Hannah)
- March 23 or 30 (Rachel)
- May 4 (Sue)
- June 8 or 22 (Sarah)
- July 20 or 27 (Julia)
- September 7 (Tara)
- October 19 (Lois)
- November 23 or 30 (Patti)
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Revised dates for 2011 & 2012
I sent out an email about the revised dates but I thought I should put it here too. I hope you're all having a great summer, and I'm looking forward to seeing you at Tanya's place on Sept. 9! Maybe when I figure out how to get pictures off the little camera I'll post one or two from our sushi night :)
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Discussion Questions for Peace Like a River by Leif Enger
1. As the novel begins—indeed, as the very life of this novel's narrator begins—a miracle happens. Describe it. How does it happen? Who accomplishes it? Begin your discussion of this book by recounting the major and minor miracles that occur throughout. What role do they play in Peace Like a River?
2. Born with a severe case of asthma, Reuben Land, our young hero and narrator, must often struggle to bring air into his lungs. Throughout the book, Reuben is preoccupied with his own breathing, and the act of breathing functions in this story as a metaphor for life itself. How does Reuben cope with his ailment, and how is his character influenced by it? Provide instances where breathing takes on special meaning in the narrative.
3. Consider the details of the double homicide committed by Davy, Reuben's older brother. Does Reuben see Davy as a murderer, or as one who acted in self-defense? Does he want Davy brought to justice, or does he think justice has already been served? What about the other main characters: how do they feel? And what about you, the reader? How was your impression of Davy—and of this novel—influenced by his actions? Discuss how the novel explores the idea of loyalty.
4. Peace Like a River is set mainly in rural Minnesota and the Badlands of North Dakota during the early 1960s. Like early American pioneers, or perhaps like mythic heroes, the Lands set out to rescue one of their own amidst the beauty and cruelty of the natural world. How does the Land family contend with this raw, uncivilized, and sometimes brutal landscape? Identify events or circumstances in which the novel's setting contributes to its elemental or mythic quality.
5. Swede, Reuben's imaginative, prolific, and precocious younger sister, creates an epic poem about a cowboy named Sunny Sundown. Talk about Sunny's ongoing saga as an ironic commentary on Reuben's larger narrative. What are the parallels?
6. Besides the Sunny Sundown text, several other outlaw tales, literary allusions, biblical legends, and historical asides are offered—by Swede or by Reuben himself. Identify a few of these stories-within-the-story, explaining how each enriches or influences the main narrative.
7. Discuss the character of Jeremiah Land, Reuben's father—and the center of his moral compass. What are Jeremiah's strengths, as a person and a parent? Does he have any weaknesses? Why did his wife leave him, all those years ago? And why does he "heal" the grotesque employer who fires him (p. 80)? Explain how the novel's dual themes of familial love and ardent faith are met in this character.
8. Both during Davy's trial and after his escape from prison, we encounter a variety of public viewpoints on what Reuben's brother has done. Such viewpoints, usually presented as personal letters or newspaper editorials, are always steadfast yet often contradictory. What does Reuben seem to realize about the so-called "court of public opinion," in light of these viewpoints?
9. Prayer is described in many ways, and on many occasions, in Peace Like a River. Reading this book, did you discover anything about the activity of, reasons for, or consequences of prayer? What larger points—about religion and human nature, say—might the author be making with his varied depictions of people at prayer? For instance, when remembering a prayer he said that included blessings for even his enemies, Reuben comments thus regarding Jape Waltzer: "Later I would wish I'd spent more time on him particularly" (p. 285). Why does Reuben feel this way? What power does he recognize in his own prayers? Discuss the impact prayer has on Reuben, and how it transforms him.
10. Recovering from a near-fatal asthmatic collapse, Reuben muses: "The infirm wait always, and know it" (p. 290). Given Reuben's physical condition, and given what we know about his ancestry and the story at hand, what is Reuben "waiting" for? How is his waiting resolved? Can this analogy be applied to any of the other characters?
11. The final miracle in Peace Like a River occurs, of course, when Jeremiah surrenders his life for Reuben. But why, at an earlier point in the story, does Reuben observe, "Since arriving at [Roxanna's] house, we'd had no miracles whatever" (p. 257). Discuss the truth and falsehood of this remark. How might Roxanna herself be seen as a miracle?
12. What does the character of Roxanna bring to the Land family? What does she provide that the Lands had lacked before her arrival? Over the course of the novel, Reuben's attitude and his physical descriptions of Roxanna change. In what ways does it change, do you think Roxanna’s attitudes toward the Lands as a family and Jeremiah as a person undergo a similar metamorphosis?
13. In "Be Jubilant, My Feet," the next-to-last chapter, Reuben and Jeremiah enter a world beyond this one. "Here in the orchard," our hero recalls, "I had a glimmer of origin: Adam, I thought" (p. 301). Where exactly are Reuben and his father? What happens to them? How have these crucial events been foreshadowed, and how are they new or unprecedented?
14. Much of this novel concerns the inner life of childhood: imagination, storytelling, chores, play, and school life. Discuss the author's portrayal of childhood. Do the children depicted here seem realistic? Why or why not?
15. Remembering his own childhood, author Leif Enger recently noted: "I grew up squinting from the backseat at gently rolling hills and true flatlands, where you could top a rise and see a tractor raising dust three miles away. So much world and sky is visible, it's hard to put much stock in your own influence." Does this type of relationship between the individual and the natural world appear in Peace Like a River? If so, where? Identify key passages or scenes where the characters seem inferior to the landscape, or even at the mercy of it.
16. Finishing his story, Reuben notes: "You should know that Jape Waltzer proved as uncatchable as Swede's own Valdez" (p. 309). What do the characters of Jape and Valdez represent in this novel? Conclude your discussion by comparing and contrasting Peace Like a River with the traditional morality play—the symbolic drama (dating back to medieval times) based on the eternal struggle between Good and Evil.
2. Born with a severe case of asthma, Reuben Land, our young hero and narrator, must often struggle to bring air into his lungs. Throughout the book, Reuben is preoccupied with his own breathing, and the act of breathing functions in this story as a metaphor for life itself. How does Reuben cope with his ailment, and how is his character influenced by it? Provide instances where breathing takes on special meaning in the narrative.
3. Consider the details of the double homicide committed by Davy, Reuben's older brother. Does Reuben see Davy as a murderer, or as one who acted in self-defense? Does he want Davy brought to justice, or does he think justice has already been served? What about the other main characters: how do they feel? And what about you, the reader? How was your impression of Davy—and of this novel—influenced by his actions? Discuss how the novel explores the idea of loyalty.
4. Peace Like a River is set mainly in rural Minnesota and the Badlands of North Dakota during the early 1960s. Like early American pioneers, or perhaps like mythic heroes, the Lands set out to rescue one of their own amidst the beauty and cruelty of the natural world. How does the Land family contend with this raw, uncivilized, and sometimes brutal landscape? Identify events or circumstances in which the novel's setting contributes to its elemental or mythic quality.
5. Swede, Reuben's imaginative, prolific, and precocious younger sister, creates an epic poem about a cowboy named Sunny Sundown. Talk about Sunny's ongoing saga as an ironic commentary on Reuben's larger narrative. What are the parallels?
6. Besides the Sunny Sundown text, several other outlaw tales, literary allusions, biblical legends, and historical asides are offered—by Swede or by Reuben himself. Identify a few of these stories-within-the-story, explaining how each enriches or influences the main narrative.
7. Discuss the character of Jeremiah Land, Reuben's father—and the center of his moral compass. What are Jeremiah's strengths, as a person and a parent? Does he have any weaknesses? Why did his wife leave him, all those years ago? And why does he "heal" the grotesque employer who fires him (p. 80)? Explain how the novel's dual themes of familial love and ardent faith are met in this character.
8. Both during Davy's trial and after his escape from prison, we encounter a variety of public viewpoints on what Reuben's brother has done. Such viewpoints, usually presented as personal letters or newspaper editorials, are always steadfast yet often contradictory. What does Reuben seem to realize about the so-called "court of public opinion," in light of these viewpoints?
9. Prayer is described in many ways, and on many occasions, in Peace Like a River. Reading this book, did you discover anything about the activity of, reasons for, or consequences of prayer? What larger points—about religion and human nature, say—might the author be making with his varied depictions of people at prayer? For instance, when remembering a prayer he said that included blessings for even his enemies, Reuben comments thus regarding Jape Waltzer: "Later I would wish I'd spent more time on him particularly" (p. 285). Why does Reuben feel this way? What power does he recognize in his own prayers? Discuss the impact prayer has on Reuben, and how it transforms him.
10. Recovering from a near-fatal asthmatic collapse, Reuben muses: "The infirm wait always, and know it" (p. 290). Given Reuben's physical condition, and given what we know about his ancestry and the story at hand, what is Reuben "waiting" for? How is his waiting resolved? Can this analogy be applied to any of the other characters?
11. The final miracle in Peace Like a River occurs, of course, when Jeremiah surrenders his life for Reuben. But why, at an earlier point in the story, does Reuben observe, "Since arriving at [Roxanna's] house, we'd had no miracles whatever" (p. 257). Discuss the truth and falsehood of this remark. How might Roxanna herself be seen as a miracle?
12. What does the character of Roxanna bring to the Land family? What does she provide that the Lands had lacked before her arrival? Over the course of the novel, Reuben's attitude and his physical descriptions of Roxanna change. In what ways does it change, do you think Roxanna’s attitudes toward the Lands as a family and Jeremiah as a person undergo a similar metamorphosis?
13. In "Be Jubilant, My Feet," the next-to-last chapter, Reuben and Jeremiah enter a world beyond this one. "Here in the orchard," our hero recalls, "I had a glimmer of origin: Adam, I thought" (p. 301). Where exactly are Reuben and his father? What happens to them? How have these crucial events been foreshadowed, and how are they new or unprecedented?
14. Much of this novel concerns the inner life of childhood: imagination, storytelling, chores, play, and school life. Discuss the author's portrayal of childhood. Do the children depicted here seem realistic? Why or why not?
15. Remembering his own childhood, author Leif Enger recently noted: "I grew up squinting from the backseat at gently rolling hills and true flatlands, where you could top a rise and see a tractor raising dust three miles away. So much world and sky is visible, it's hard to put much stock in your own influence." Does this type of relationship between the individual and the natural world appear in Peace Like a River? If so, where? Identify key passages or scenes where the characters seem inferior to the landscape, or even at the mercy of it.
16. Finishing his story, Reuben notes: "You should know that Jape Waltzer proved as uncatchable as Swede's own Valdez" (p. 309). What do the characters of Jape and Valdez represent in this novel? Conclude your discussion by comparing and contrasting Peace Like a River with the traditional morality play—the symbolic drama (dating back to medieval times) based on the eternal struggle between Good and Evil.
Monday, May 16, 2011
And our next book club pick is....
The meeting will be at my house on Friday June 17th. Closer to the day I will send out some questions. Hope to see you there!
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Book Choices - Fall 2004 to Spring 2011!
Once in a while someone asks me for the list of books that we've discussed since Hannah, Rachel, Jenn Burnett and I started the book club in the fall of 2004. Since I just updated it for another book clubber whom I met at the kids' music school, I thought I'd share it here too ... enjoy!
Monday, February 21, 2011
Our Next Meeting ...
... is at Sarah's place on Friday, March 18. We will be discussing "Sarah's Key" by Tatiana de Rosnay. According to the schedule, Julia will be revealing the book that we're discussing on April 15. Please take a look at the schedule (in a previous blog entry) and keep our meeting dates in mind as you're planning other things, if at all possible. If you have a conflict on the date of your own meeting, you might want to ask Tanya (with as much notice as possible) to take your spot since she hasn't had any luck with her scheduled dates :)
See you in March!
See you in March!
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Our Favourite Children's Books
Patti
• The Secret in the Box by W. G. van de Hulst
Denise
• Leo the Magnificat by Ann M. Martin
• Rugby and Rosie by Nan Parson Rossiter
• High-Wire Henry by Mary Calhoun
Rachel
• Love You Forever by Robert Munsch
Lois
• Apple Pigs by Ruth Orbach
• Edward the Emu and Edwina the Emu by Sheena Knowles
• The Mitten by Jan Brett
• Bread and Jam for Frances by Russell Hoban
• The Frogs Wore Red Suspenders by Jack Prelutsky
Sue
• When We Were Very Young by A. A. Milne
• A Fish Out of Water by Helen Palmer
Tanya
• The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds
• Ish by Peter H. Reynolds
Elsa
• Owl Moon by Jane Yolen
• Just in Time for Christmas by Louise Borden
• Follow Me, The Leader by Dorothea Warren Fox
Julia
• The Baby Sister by Tomie dePaola
Sherri
• Little Hoot by Amy Krouse Rosenthal
• Something From Nothing by Phoebe Gilman
Tara
• All the Places to Love by Patricia MacLachlan
• James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
Hannah
• Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
• Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey
• Officer Buckle and Gloria by Peggy Rathmann
• The Island of the Skog by Steven Kellogg
• Random House Book of Poetry for Children selected by Jack Prelutsky
• The Secret in the Box by W. G. van de Hulst
Denise
• Leo the Magnificat by Ann M. Martin
• Rugby and Rosie by Nan Parson Rossiter
• High-Wire Henry by Mary Calhoun
Rachel
• Love You Forever by Robert Munsch
Lois
• Apple Pigs by Ruth Orbach
• Edward the Emu and Edwina the Emu by Sheena Knowles
• The Mitten by Jan Brett
• Bread and Jam for Frances by Russell Hoban
• The Frogs Wore Red Suspenders by Jack Prelutsky
Sue
• When We Were Very Young by A. A. Milne
• A Fish Out of Water by Helen Palmer
Tanya
• The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds
• Ish by Peter H. Reynolds
Elsa
• Owl Moon by Jane Yolen
• Just in Time for Christmas by Louise Borden
• Follow Me, The Leader by Dorothea Warren Fox
Julia
• The Baby Sister by Tomie dePaola
Sherri
• Little Hoot by Amy Krouse Rosenthal
• Something From Nothing by Phoebe Gilman
Tara
• All the Places to Love by Patricia MacLachlan
• James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
Hannah
• Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
• Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey
• Officer Buckle and Gloria by Peggy Rathmann
• The Island of the Skog by Steven Kellogg
• Random House Book of Poetry for Children selected by Jack Prelutsky
Monday, December 20, 2010
Hi guys!
I hope you're enjoying The Historian. I'm thrilled that I enjoyed it even more the second time around; and I'm really looking forward to discussing it next month. I also happened upon an episode of Cities of the Underground on History that's about Dracula's history. I thought we could watch it at the beginning of the meeting...it includes a trip to Snagov, so we can see what it looks like!
Here are some discussion questions...not sure how much discussion they'll lead to - they're pretty general! But these are the only questions specifically about this book that I could find anywhere!
1. In the "Note to the Reader," the narrator tells us, "There is a final resource to which I have resorted when necessary - the imagination." How does she use this resource in telling her story? Is it a resource to which the other historians in the book resort, as well?
2. The theme of mentors and disciples is an important one in the book. Who are the story's mentors, and in what sense is each a mentor? Who are the book's disciples?
3. Near the end of Chapter 4, Rossi says, "Human history's full of evil deeds, and maybe we ought to think of them with tears, not fascination." Does he follow his own advice? How does his attitude toward history evolve in the course of his own story?
4. In Chapter 5, Paul's friend Massimo asserts that in history, there are no small questions. What does he mean by this and how does this idea inform the book? Do you agree with his statement?
5. Helen and Paul come from very different worlds, although they share a passion for history. How have their upbringings differed? What factors have shaped each?
6. Throughout the book, anyone who finds an antique book with a dragon in the middle is exposed to some kind of danger. What does this danger consist of? Is it an external power, or do the characters bring it upon themselves?
7. Each of the characters is aware of some of the history being made in his or her own times. What are some of these real historical events, and why are they important to the story?
8. At the beginning of Chapter 1, Paul's daughter notes, "I had been raised in a world so sheltered that it makes my adult life in academia look positively adventurous." How does she change as a person in the course of her quest?
9. Helen's history is deeply intertwined with that of Dracula. In what ways are the two characters connectedc? Does she triumph over his legacy, or not?
10. In Chapter 73, Dracula states his credo: "History has taught us that the nature of man is evil, sublimely so." Do the characters and events of the novel prove or disprove this belief?
I hope you're enjoying The Historian. I'm thrilled that I enjoyed it even more the second time around; and I'm really looking forward to discussing it next month. I also happened upon an episode of Cities of the Underground on History that's about Dracula's history. I thought we could watch it at the beginning of the meeting...it includes a trip to Snagov, so we can see what it looks like!
Here are some discussion questions...not sure how much discussion they'll lead to - they're pretty general! But these are the only questions specifically about this book that I could find anywhere!
1. In the "Note to the Reader," the narrator tells us, "There is a final resource to which I have resorted when necessary - the imagination." How does she use this resource in telling her story? Is it a resource to which the other historians in the book resort, as well?
2. The theme of mentors and disciples is an important one in the book. Who are the story's mentors, and in what sense is each a mentor? Who are the book's disciples?
3. Near the end of Chapter 4, Rossi says, "Human history's full of evil deeds, and maybe we ought to think of them with tears, not fascination." Does he follow his own advice? How does his attitude toward history evolve in the course of his own story?
4. In Chapter 5, Paul's friend Massimo asserts that in history, there are no small questions. What does he mean by this and how does this idea inform the book? Do you agree with his statement?
5. Helen and Paul come from very different worlds, although they share a passion for history. How have their upbringings differed? What factors have shaped each?
6. Throughout the book, anyone who finds an antique book with a dragon in the middle is exposed to some kind of danger. What does this danger consist of? Is it an external power, or do the characters bring it upon themselves?
7. Each of the characters is aware of some of the history being made in his or her own times. What are some of these real historical events, and why are they important to the story?
8. At the beginning of Chapter 1, Paul's daughter notes, "I had been raised in a world so sheltered that it makes my adult life in academia look positively adventurous." How does she change as a person in the course of her quest?
9. Helen's history is deeply intertwined with that of Dracula. In what ways are the two characters connectedc? Does she triumph over his legacy, or not?
10. In Chapter 73, Dracula states his credo: "History has taught us that the nature of man is evil, sublimely so." Do the characters and events of the novel prove or disprove this belief?
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