Talk About a Good Book

March 2021 - Hemingway

For our March 29th meeting, we will be reading a novel by Ernest Hemingway or a readalike.
Whatever title you pick, please make a note of the following:
Title:
Author:
Why you chose the book:
3 key words (examples: historical-fiction, western, hopeful):
Would you recommend--yes, no, or with reservations

More information will be available shortly about how to attend our March meeting online.

If you're interested, PBS is doing a series of 9 virtual programs starting February 23 and continuing through March with the filmmakers of the new Hemingway documentary. The event page lists all the programs and how to register at pbs.org/hemingwayevents.

In addition, the documentary Hemingway debuts on PBS on Monday, April 5th. This is a three-part, six-hour documentary film by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick. It examines the visionary work and the turbulent life of Ernest Hemingway, one of the greatest and most influential writers America has ever produced. The series reveals the brilliant, ambitious, charismatic, and complicated man behind the myth, and the art he created.

PBS Books presents on January 29

This PBS Books conversation brings together filmmaker, scholar, journalist and cultural critic, Henry Louis Gates, Jr. with prominent historian Eric Foner to contemplate how a divided nation comes together. The two will discuss Reconstruction, the all-too-brief period following the Civil War when the United States made its first effort to become an interracial democracy. The period saw the Constitution rewritten to incorporate the ideal of racial equality, but ended as a result of a violent backlash that erased many of the gains that had been made, with consequences we still confront as a nation. The program will also preview Gates’ most recent project, The Black Church, which will premiere on PBS in February.

https://www.dptv.org/programs/arts-culture/penny-stamps-series/?fbclid=IwAR2RNSOv0YE8Yh3EZqPOaDLWhSko9JZxscsctf09gRsbivSQzWebCTmZC5Q

https://www.facebook.com/PBSBooks1/posts/3475863315876729

February 22 - African American Author

For our January 25th book, All Creatures Great and Small, we had 3 members participate. One member joined me in Zoom, one called by phone and one left me her review. All enjoyed the book and Herriot's portrayal of the life of a vet.

For February 22, we are celebrating Black History Month with each member choosing a book by an African American author. I have a book display at the LME Library if you need some ideas. You can also browse some titles in the library catalog or through eReadIL.

Whatever title you pick, please make a note of the following:

Title:

Author:

Why you chose the book:

3 key words (examples: historical-fiction, western, hopeful):

Would you recommend--yes, no, or with reservations

Members can participate online through Zoom on February 22 at 3pm or email me their responses and I'll post here. My email address is bethd@lmelibrary.org.

Join Zoom meeting online

https://zoom.us/j/99771606421?pwd=OWdnaUJMTXhGL1Q1a01CTlRZeHA4QT09

Dial by phone

1-312-626-6799

Meeting ID: 997 7160 6421

Passcode: 316874

January 25 - All Creatures Great and Small

With the pandemic restrictions continuing and the weather too cold for outside meetings, we will have our next few months of bookgroup online. You can access the meeting with an Internet computer or by telephone on January 25th as early as 2:45pm. To join Zoom Meeting with your computer, click on this link: https://zoom.us/j/98577421899?pwd=OU1IKzd0c2RoRUo3ZkJQNHpBUkRmQT09

To join by telephone, dial: 1-312-626-6799

Meeting ID: 985 7742 1899

Passcode: 339445

PBS has just launched a new initiative called PBS Books and we will be focusing on their schedule through the next months. In January they will be launching the new series based on James Herriot's All Creatures Great and Small so we will read (or reread in some cases!) and discuss it at our January 25th meeting. Books are available at the LME Library and there are some great resources from PBS Books listed below:

Interview with Ben Vanstone who adapted the Harriot books for the new PBS series
Q&A page about the new series
About the author, cast and books (Did you know James Harriot is the pseudonym for James Alfred Wight?)

In addition, here is a book guide from the publisher and also a link to our shorter discussion sheet.

Tentative, the schedule outlined below should take us into the spring. The rest of the bookgroup selections will be decided together after the weather improves and/or restrictions have been lifted.

2021 (Our 18^th year)

January 25	All Creatures Great & Small	James Harriot
February 22	Celebrate Black History Month and pick a book by an African American author
March 29	Pick a Hemingway book or readalike
April 26	Pick a poem by US Poet Laurate, Joy Harjo
May 24	Pick a book by Amy Tan or readalike
June 28	TBD
July 26	TBD
August 30	TBD
September 27	TBD
October 25	TBD
November 29	TBD
December 13^th @ 3pm —Coffee Chat about your favorite books of 2021 & get our new list for 2022

Book group for 2021

We had a Zoom meeting yesterday for book group and had 2 members attend online and 2 other members gave me their opinions of the book to share. We discussed The Secrets We Kept by Lara Prescott. Overall, most felt that it was difficult to keep track of the characters but that the historic period was well portrayed.

We will not have our normal gathering in December due to COVID restrictions. However, we will try to meet again in January 2021 online in Zoom. I will post again in early January with details.

Some of the best of 2020 book lists are coming out--here's some links:

https://www.shelf-awareness.com/readers-issue.html?issue=975

https://time.com/collection/must-read-books-2020/

https://bookriot.com/best-books-of-2020/

https://www.nypl.org/125/best-books-2020

https://apps.npr.org/best-books/#view=covers&year=2020

https://www.goodreads.com/choiceawards/best-books-2020

Happy reading and enjoy your holiday season!