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!

You can access the meeting with an Internet computer or by telephone on November 30th as early as 2:45pm. To join Zoom Meeting with your computer, click on this link:

https://zoom.us/j/92264730831?pwd=VXZkVy9yYmlsSlhwY0RlNkg4UGpUZz09 

Meeting ID: 922 6473 0831

Passcode: 591838

To join by telephone, dial 1-312-626-6799. The Meeting ID is 922 6473 0831 and 

Passcode is 591838.

Discussion sheets are available at: http://www.lmelibrary.org/attachments/article/108/Secrets%20We%20Kept%202020.pdf 

Discussion sheets are available at: http://www.lmelibrary.org/attachments/article/108/Nanaville%202020.pdf 

Our next book club meeting will be Monday, November 30th at 3pm. We hope to be able to meet by then in the library's meeting room but this is reliant on what is happening with pandemic mitigations. Copies of the book, Secrets We Kept by Lara Prescott are available for pickup at the LME Library desk. Discussion guides are also available for pickup or online.

Summary of Spies of Shilling Lane by Jennifer Ryan and readalikes (unbound content tab) are accessible through RSAcat.

Bruce Cable owns a popular bookstore in the sleepy resort town of Santa Rosa on Camino Island in Florida. He makes his real money, though, as a prominent dealer in rare books. Very few people know that he occasionally dabbles in the black market of stolen books and manuscripts. Mercer Mann is a young novelist with a severe case of writer's block who has recently been laid off from her teaching position. She is approached by an elegant, mysterious woman working for an even more mysterious company. A generous offer of money convinces Mercer to go undercover and infiltrate Bruce Cable's circle of literary friends, ideally getting close enough to him to learn his secrets. But eventually Mercer learns far too much.

1. I'm not sure how well the multiple storylines will be received by our group.  Usually members prefer a more linear storyline but I like how the author weaves them all together.
2. It was very disturbing to gain some insight on how the North Korean leadership controls and manipulates its people and other countries.  I think the author does a great job showing the reader how this happens and why negotiating with their government does not produce the results expected.
3. I felt that ending was very abrupt and would like to see a sequel.  I saw on Goodreads.com that the author is considering writing one.  I'll keep watching to see if any new title has been announced!

At our February 24th meeting, we discussed To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.  We chose this classic novel since many of our members had never read it, and it had been voted as America's Favorite Book via PBS's The Great American Read in 2018.  Several members commended that it lived up to its hype and they "couldn't put it down".  We had Toll House Cookie Bars and fruit for dessert.

One of our members also mentioned the Chillicothe Public Library's Big Read events for Into the Beautiful North.  More information on the programming is avaialable at https://www.chillicothepubliclibrary.org/1/nea-big-read-into-the-beautiful-north/.  In addition, the Peoria Public Library is doing Peoria Reads 2020 with the book, The Hate U Give.  Information about Peoria Reads events can be found at http://www.peoriareads.org/

Our February meeting will be at 3pm on February 24.  We are reading To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Copies of the book are available for checkout at the LME Library circulation desk and discussion sheets can also be picked up or viewed online.  Please join us!

We had the last book group meeting of 2019 on Monday, December 9th at 3pm.  We had great weather so attendance was good!  Members brought some wonderful goodies and we talked about some of our favorite book club books from the past and from 2019.  Favorites included:

We've picked the titles for 2020, and as an added bonus this year, we will be able to talk with one of our authors! We are very fortunate to have Amy Stewart author of Girl Waits with Gun who will Skype into our meeting on January 27, 2020 at 3pm.  This will allow us to talk with her and ask her questions about her book and series.  Please join us for this unique book discussion!