Just Kids by Patti Smith

A few of us had a hard time getting into the book, but many of us really enjoyed it.

Some highlights:

• Beautiful writing
• Couldn’t relate to subject matter, but still compelling read
• Hard to imagine that kind of unbreakable relationship
• New York in the late 60s was an amazing microcosm of famous/talented people
• Sam Shepard was kind of a jerk!
• We didn’t recognize a lot of the names she dropped
• Was Robert attracted to Patti because she was so masculine?
• Their relationship may have been more interesting than her struggle as an artist
• Waiting for her big breakout moment that never came
• Did she blur over a lot of “big” stuff?
• She influenced so many other musicians
• She didn’t make a big deal about meeting so many famous people
• She obviously kept a diary, with precise details such as what she was wearing to certain events
• Photography creates a visual record of our lives
• The overuse of modern photographic technology has taken the “specialness” out of having a single picture to remember an event; also, we are only seeing our lives through our cameras instead of being there in person!

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Not everyone had a chance to finish The Fault in Our Stars, but the book was very well-received by all.  It also brought on more than a few tears!

Some highlights:

• Dark and depressing, but honest look at cancer and death
• Sounds weird to recommend to others, but it’s really beautifully written
• Strange to think about all the people who come out of the woodwork when you die, even if they haven’t seen you in years
• How does a person change when they’re diagnosed with cancer?  How do their loved ones change?  More upbeat to try and help the patient?
• Does the book make you want to live better, or with more meaning in your life?
• Would be hard to have an eidetic memory – you could never let go of any pain in your life
• Time does help you forget about the pain of losing a loved one
• You can’t break up with someone who has cancer – except Monica did it with Isaac!
• The title from Julius Caesar – it’s not our choice if we get cancer, but everyone wants to know, “Why me?”
• Both Hazel & Gus have a dry sense of humor, but they differ in goals & confidence – Gus wanted to make a difference in the world, but Hazel was just resigned

The Sociopath Next Door by Martha Stout

Little Bee by Chris Cleave

This month we discussed “Little Bee” by Chris Cleve. Overall, everybody really liked it despite the dark subject matter at times. Some people were a bit disappointed in the end as they felt the ending was a bit too “Hollywood ending.” Many found it frustrating that Sarah would take her son to Nigeria despite how risky the situation was. Also, several indicated they would have liked to have known more about the oil company that initiated the slaughter of Little Bee’s village to begin with.

Additional highlights of our discussion included:

• Andrew was a coward. We could not believe he wouldn’t cut off his finger or at least attempt to buy the girls’ lives. Given his character, it was not surprising Sarah was having an affair. There was nothing he could do to redeem himself after that, although he could have tried harder.
• Little Bee was not to blame for Andrew’s death. Once the decision is made to commit suicide, not much anyone can do to help. He would have done it sooner or later, although she may have been a catalyst for it.
• It gave Little Bee a sense of control to plan her death in every situation she encountered and know how she would die. Given her sister’s horrific death, this was not surprising.
• When Little Bee died, she probably felt relief that she would finally be with her sister again.

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

Most thought it was okay but everyone agreed that it had a lot of potential and fell short of our expectations.  Here are some highlights:

• We loved the photos!  The photos were actually more interesting than the book.  Some of us would have preferred only pictures and others enjoyed fantasizing about what was going on in the pictures versus what the author forced his story into.  Those who read it on our e-books didn’t think the pictures were nearly as impressive as if we had the actual book.
• What was wrong with Jacob?  He was a spoiled teenager.
• We liked the twist that the psychologist ended up being the “bad guy”.  Was the “bad guy” too many roles in Jacobs real life?  Too much?  Makes you stop and think about all of the people you cross paths with…that feeling of “something is familiar about that person”…hummm…
• We were split on whether his power was lame.  He was the only one that could save the day but on an everyday basis, not that cool.  Not to mention that this power wouldn’t have been around prior to the bad peculiars…that part of the story line felt forced.  Our favorite peculiars were the one that could bring things back to life, the one that could float, the one that could get things to grow quickly and the invisible guy.

Room by Emma Donoghue

Room was not universally liked, mostly due to the rough subject matter or to what some felt was the insubstantial ending.  Some highlights of our discussion:

• Jack’s voice helped lighten the very heavy subject matter
• Jack put a damper on the excitement of the rescue
• Might be a bit unbelievable that Ma was able to live on her own with Jack so soon after trying to kill herself
• Did the suicide ring true for Ma’s character?  Was it too unbelievable, since she had devoted her entire life to protecting Jack?  Or was it the crash of emotions from finally not having to do that anymore?
• It would be so interesting to read the same story but from Ma’s perspective
• The website (www.roomthebook.com) is cool but Jack’s voice is annoying
• Ways Jack’s development was stunted: weak immune system, sensitive skin, sensitive eyes, problems with spacial awareness

Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice

This month we had the rare occurrence of everyone finishing the book!  Most of us liked it, though a couple just thought it was OK.

Some highlights:

• Scary at times, overall dark tone
• Beautifully written
• Even those who liked it wouldn’t necessarily read any of her other books
• Flowery language walked a thin line between creating a beautiful mood and being too heavy to get through
• Well-written to describe Louis’s state of confusion
• The movie – casting good or sucked because they picked such big stars?
• In the movie, Claudia is much older than in the book, probably because they couldn’t get a 5-year-old actress to do that part
• They avoided the sexual tension with Claudia in the movie
• Louis: great angst-ridden character or moody drip??
• Tom Cruise: greatest role or awful casting??

The Family Fang by Kevin Wilson

The Family Fang was pretty well-liked, even by those who didn’t get a chance to finish it.  Some highlights:

• Bizarre subject matter, which is why many of us loved it
• Laugh-out-loud funny
• A bit draggy in some parts but good overall
• No good visuals of A&B, but good description of Buster’s girlfriend
• Was the last part like watching a piece of performance art?  Leaving you confused, and maybe dissatisfied?
• A&B were ridiculously obedient
• Love descriptions of them as kids, being so sophisticated

Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand

We had a great discussion about Unbroken!  Everyone liked or loved it, although not everyone was finished yet.  Some highlights:

• Could get hard to read, SO many bad things happened to him!  Some had to take a break b/c it was so intense
• The book may have been a little one-note, maybe not showing enough of Louis himself
• Some thought it should be required reading
• Difference between then and now – during WWII, everyone was helping with the war effort in some way
• Is it a good thing that today, we don’t really know the big picture of what is going on with war?
• Awful that the Japanese officers got pardoned after the war because we suddenly became friends with Japan
• Geneva Convention – Japanese never signed it
• Many Japanese carry guilt about what happened in the war and the Rape of Nanking

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

For the most part, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society was very well-liked.  Some highlights of our discussion:

• Easy Read
• Liked letter format, but hard to get into for some people
• Had to write down characters’ names to keep them all straight
• Some didn’t like Juliet, thought she was fake and/or trying too hard (hiding behind her writing – hard to know who she really was)
• Hard to believe how perfectly everything fell into place (like the end of Cold Comfort Farm), and how much everyone loved Juliet immediately
• Good balance between fluff & serious
• Relationship with Mark reynolds seemed like a mis-match
• You don’t get any descriptions of the Guernsey people until Juliet goes there
• Mark Reynolds – love him or hate him?