Second Half of Christmas Carol

I feel so bad, I meant to post this almost a week ago, but I've been so busy I honestly haven't finished reading. Well, let's aim for the end of the New Year to finish this up, and feel free to just pop in and discuss once you read the book. I highly doubt the ending is a surprise to any of us, but we can carry on the discussion of the previous topics and anything else that comes to mind as we finish. Hope you all have a merry Christmas, and stay safe through any travels.

A Christmas Carol Reading Schedule

Ok, I guess I'll start off leading this discussion, since I'm the first done reading. By this Friday let's all have read the first two sections, ending with the departure of the first spirit. By next Friday, we'll finish the book and have a break for the holidays, and then we can start on Ender's Game and Ender's Shadow in the new year.

For the first discussion, and probably for the later one as well, let's focus on the choices of events the spirits choose for Scrooge, and the details of their descriptions as well. The symbolism of what they represent and how they are portrayed should lend itself well to discussion. Let's also look at the same thing with the appearance of Jacob Marley, and the descriptive words used for Scrooge and his surroundings. Dickens uses a wide variety of adjectives to create very real and vivid surroundings and characters.

Thoughts For Our Next Reading Selection

Since we've run through almost our whole reading selection so far and it's time to start choosing the next set of books to read, I wanted to get a sounding for what people think of how this round went and whether we should try something different for the next one. Do we want to go with some sort of theme, like books that have won awards, or stick with choosing books that we all want to share or want to read with a group like we did last time around? I've got some ideas for books I want to share, but I want to know how everyone else feels and open the floor for other ideas. Theme ideas could include things like genre, author, subject, time period, award winner, favorite from a particular time in life, and so on.

Seven Daughters and Seven Sons Finale - Part 3 Discussion

So. What do you think? How did you like this book?

I really enjoy this section. In addition to her return home and reunion with Mahmud, it's neat at the beginning to get Buran's perspective on some of the events from Part 2, especially insight on Amin and his attitude towards her.

Rather interesting what happened to her cousins, isn't it? Hassan's situation was especially sad. What do you think of her revenge on all of them, and the unforeseen advantage it would give her later? At one point after arriving home, she laments,

"I wept of the lonely years that stretched in front of me like an empty track through the desert. Of what use was it to be rich as the caliph is there was to be no one in the world that loved me best, no one in the world whom I loved best? The revenge I'd achieved on Hassan was as empty as death. I'd have given it over in a instant for five minutes with Mahmud. What good is revenge when you're alone at night?" (p. 196 of my book)

Any thoughts on this? Have any of you ever sought revenge and achieved it? Would you be willing to share how you felt?

Did anyone look into where Orontes is located? I checked it out and it is a river in Syria. But I don't really understand why someone would say they were from a river. Also, she's shocked at how far away the man from Orontes had come just to court her, but from what I could tell on a map, she'd had other suitors that were from places not much farther away: Aleppo, Damascus... Just a random thought there.

Well, I hope you enjoyed this book! Thanks for reading it with me!

Seven Daughters and Seven Sons - Part 2 Discussion

Okay, everyone, with your hand on your heart and a romantically-touched look on your face, take a deep breath and sigh with me, "Awwwhhh." That pretty much describes what I did when I finished Part 2. Were you able to keep from starting Part 3? Confession: even though I've read this book multiple times, I gave in and finished in. I know! I'm a horrid example.

This section touches on a couple topics that I thought were interesting:

-Friendship and what attributes true friends possess (or what attributes fake friends have) - I find it interesting that from the very beginning of Mahmud's account, he basically says that Amin and Uthman are not true friends. What is it about his friendship with Nasir that gives them a strong relationship? How are our friendships? What do you think of Uthman's attempt at being a true friend at the end?

-The relationship between men and women - Of course, we all recoiled at the men's narrow-minded attitudes towards women. I personally believe these attitudes are still pervasive in our society, but much more disguised. Can you think of any ways it's hidden? I love how Nasir defends women against the men's views.

-Deception - This topic continues into the next section. Does deception have a time and a place when it may acceptable?

It was in this section that we get an idea of what Buran/Nasir looks like. I got a kick out of Mahmud describing Nasir as "a slight, remarkably good-looking young man..." (p. 88 of my book).

One thing that bothers me is how lightly some of the morals of the characters' religion are regarded. It seems that Uthman and Amin don't exactly engage in wholesome entertainment. Mahmud gets drunk. And other types of immorality are implied in a general sense in Part 1.

I love how Nasir/Buran cleverly reveals her secret to Mahmud. Beautifully poetic.

Finally, finish the book this week and we'll open the discussion on Friday, November 27th. Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Seven Daughters and Seven Sons - Part 1 Discussion

As I read this section, it reminded me that my roommate friend dreamed of making this book into a movie. Even though the book starts out kind of slow, it's beginning to pick up and the plot thickens.

This section has some lines in it that impress me as being quite wise. One of them is in the first paragraph of Buran's account: "What we imagine to be a blessing can actually be a curse, and what we suppose to be a curse may blossom into a blessing." Have you had any experiences where this has been the case?

I really admire Buran's parents. Her father seems like a really sweet guy, especially in his graciousness of having to put up with his snotty brother practically every day. I imagine her mother to be like Golda, the matriarch in Fiddler on the Roof. What do you think of the mother's saying, "Each of us has a place, and if we fall out of it, the world will turn upside down" (p. 33 of my book). Does she make a good point, or is she being a little close-minded? Will Buran prove her wrong? Exactly what is our "place?"

One of my favorite secondary characters is Gindar the Chief. He's just cool.

For this next week, read Part 2 and we'll open the discussion for it on November 20th.

Seven Daughters and Seven Sons - Part 1

Howdy, y'all,

I first encountered Seven Daughters and Seven Sons when a college roommate introduced it to me. It's a girl power book and I have an affinity for those. It also gives readers a glimpse of Middle Eastern culture, which I love to learn about. This is my third or fourth time reading it and I'm excited to read it again. From the little background research I've done, I've found out that this story has been part of Iraqi folklore since around the eleventh century.

This book is a fairly quick and easy read. It's divided up into three parts and I'm thinking we'll read one part a week. If this is too fast and we need to wait for anyone to catch up, just let me know.

One thing I've never done while reading this book that I'd like to do this time is to find the locations of the many geographical features mentioned...mainly cities and rivers. Just an idea for anyone that wants to join me in that.

I think that's about it. So, finish reading Part 1 by Friday, November 13th and we'll go ahead and start the discussion for it whenever anyone is ready. Alsalamu alaykum.

Watership Down Chapter 30-Epilogue

Hi all,

I deeply apologize for all the waiting I've made you all do. I had a lot going on what with work and my sister's wedding, among other things, and on top of that, I appear to have misplaced my book. This had my notes on all the chapter divisions and the like, so I'd be flying blind, and since it's been so long since I've posted, I've decided to make this discussion go through the end of the book. Because I'm anticipating that not all of you have read through to the end, I'm not going to post any commentary until later (so that no one gets spoiled). Feel free to discuss what you wish in the comments, and I will come back later and add my own thoughts.

Thank you everyone for your patience.

Watership Down Chapters 24-29 discussion

Hello everyone! It is time, once again, for our discussion.

We had quite a bit going on in this particular section, but the upshot is that the warren needs does, neighboring warren Efrafa has them, and they will not be easily obtained. Efrafa is another example of clashing rabbit culture, as seen in its heavily militaristic attitude. The beginning of the book hinted at this, when the Sandleford warren's owsla was described as "rather military in character (though...not so military as some)." I wondered how likely a warren like Efrafa was to exist in real life; to me it seemed a bit beyond what rabbits could be cognitively capable of doing. The Marks in particular seemed to me to be a bit too methodical for a rabbit to come up with, whereas places like Cowslip's warren seemed a bit more realistic to me. However, it would not surprise me if different, real-life warrens were to adapt differently to different circumstances. I suppose it also wouldn't surprise me if rabbit kittens could be taught many different ways of life, and not just rely solely on instinct.

Of course, in real life rabbits probably also don't tell stories and have language, so I suppose a little bit more anthropomorphism isn't necessarily going to hurt.

Another theme played with in the section is the idea of domesticated rabbits. These rabbits are more often than not specifically bred for domesticity, which might mean that in real life they'd be too different to interact with wild species. In the context of the story, I would almost have imagined that the Nuthanger Farm rabbits would speak a similar but less comprehensible dialect of Lapine, if not speak a different language entirely. Still, it is good that we're getting some interaction between the two groups all the same.

For next time: Chapters 30-35 for Friday, October 2nd. This section is a bit longer, so if anyone wants me to extend the time by a day or two, just let me know. Also, the update probably won't come until evening, since I'll be working for most of the day that day, which hopefully will give everyone enough time to gather their thoughts.

'Till next time!

Watership Down Chapters 18-23 Discussion

Blast! It seems I have forgotten that I needed to make a blog post on Thursday! I thought I'd already started the chapter 18-23 discussion and that we were on the next section, that appears not to be the case. I deeply apologize for the delay.

So here we have some interaction between the rabbits and other species around them. I thought it was a bit of an interesting shift on the author's part: the last few chapters had them dealing with other rabbits; now we've moved to other populations. I also liked the lingua franca of the field, that the field mouse and Kehaar both used. It makes sense that there'd be some form of communication between the species, I thought, since species often work together, or compete, or otherwise affect one another. The thing is, though, there isn't a real human equivalent: humans only really interact with other humans (in that other animals don't really have any sort of language). Dunno why I found that interesting, I just did.

Also...did anyone else find Holly's story to be incredibly chilling? The hair stood up on the back of my neck when he first came to the down, and in my opinion, one of the more powerful lines in the book is "It wasn't I who tried to arrest you, Bigwig--that was another rabbit, long, long ago." You never really realize just what sort of torment species go through when their habitat is destroyed until you see it from their point of view (well...a dramatized, somewhat anthropomorphic point of view).

The next hardship we're going to be seeing coming into play is breeding. This has been touched upon in the last chapter, but the warren's in need of does. We'll see how they handle that in the next few chapters.

Next reading: Chapters 24-29 for Sunday, September 27th. See you next time!

Watership Down Chapters 12-17 discussion

Hey all,

Again, sorry about the lateness. It is now discussion time!

So, Cowslip's warren. I thought it was one of the more interesting parts of the book, in my opinion, mostly because there's more than just a hint of culture. Because of the warren's unique circumstances, the rabbits there have created a society based on avoidance and denial. What ultimately makes this interesting is that it's not entirely far removed from real life: animals without a doubt adapt their lifestyles to different environments. Those who cannot adapt must leave, or risk death.

This is also the point of the book where the dynamics of all the Sandleford rabbits are tested. Fiver's complete and total aversion to Cowslip's warren is completely at odds with the rest of the group, who only want security. He and Bigwig in particular seemed to butt heads: Bigwig always strikes me as the kind of character who doesn't put a whole lot of merit on "bad feelings" and premonitions. The rest of the rabbits, too, are simply exhausted by their whole idea and wish to settle down. It reminded me a lot of human group dynamics; I'm sure many of you have experienced much the same sorts of problems as the Sandleford rabbits.

All right, I think that's all I have for now. Next discussion will be Thursday, September 17, for chapters 18-23. Hopefully this is acceptable to everyone.

Till next time,

Ellen

Watership Down Chapters 1-11 Discussion

Hello everyone! Since it is September 8, it is time to go ahead and get our first discussion going. Sorry it's a bit late, but there were real life things I needed to get taken care of.

Anyway, I'll just post my own thoughts, then I'll let everyone else take it away.

I really loved the way setting plays a large part in the story. Richard Adams does a very good job describing a place, and then putting the rabbits within it. You get the impression that these were the types of things that he himself grew up with, and that what he's really describing is his own home.

The level of anthropomorphism is also something I find particularly interesting in this book. He gives the rabbits (as well as other animals) a culture, as well as a language, but at the same time, the rabbits aren't running around in clothing or trying to establish themselves as different or rebellious. Indeed, the rebellion that happens in the story (Hazel, Fiver, et. al running from the Sandleford Warren) is done only out of necessity, and not out of a mere desire for something more. They have human qualities, but very rabbit-like ones as well.

One thing's for certain: it's a somewhat darker book than you'd expect, considering it's about rabbits. It's not the Wind in the Willows--it's more a tale of survival and courage than anything else.

Mmkay, that's all I got for now. Have fun!

Watership Down Introduction

Hello everyone,

Sorry it took me so long to get this set up; I had to find my book and divide it into manageable chunks for you all to read. (I'm not very good at that, so it took me awhile.) I think I've got at least this first section mostly figured out, but if anyone feels the need to read ahead, please don't hesitate to do so.

For this first session, I'd like for us to read chapters 1 ("The Notice Board") through 11 ("Hard Going") for Tuesday, September 8. The initial chapters are fairly short, but starting with chapter 12 they start getting longer, so I had us stop there. My page numbers are 17-71, though I don't suspect they're like that for every version. I hope I've given you all enough time to read; if you have issues with the length, feel free to let me know and I shall adjust accordingly.

So, in case you missed it, here it is again: Chapter 1 ("The Notice Board") through chapter 11 ("Hard Going") for Tuesday, September 8

And as an added bonus, I'd like to give you all a starting question:

What are your initial thoughts about this book? What are you expecting from this book? What have you heard about it? What thoughts or concerns do you have? If you've already read the book, try and recall what you thought before you first read it. I ask this because I want to know what people think the book is going to be about. This isn't terribly formal or anything...I'm just curious, is all.

Enjoy, everyone!

Ellen

Peace Like a River Final Discussion

I'm posting this a day early, as promised, since I'll be away from computer and internet over the weekend. I was packing and doing laundry when I remembered I needed to get this posted.

Reuben was really slipping into the end of his life. It was just so sad. You hate to see kids get really sick like that. He seemed resigned to it though. What really tore me up, and him too, was Swede's attitude toward him. It wasn't until she realized that he was actually going that she decided to really forgive him.

I was so glad to see Jeremiah and Roxanna tie the knot. I agree with Ruth that Jeremiah was very sweet about courting her. What a shock for her, losing him so soon after marrying.

Walzer was everything we had feared. Poor Andreeson never stood a chance against him. On the one hand I was glad that Davy came home and Sara was saved, but on the other you just knew something bad was going to happen. I was crushed when Jeremiah was hit but even moreso when Reuben went down.

So, Reuben saw the promised land? The description was similar to others I've read. I wasn't surprised to see Jeremiah there since we knew he had been injured. I was really glad to see that final miracle but still felt sort of cheated that Jeremiah didn't come back too. It makes sense that he didn't come back but I just really wanted him to be happy with Roxanna.

Tell me what you thought of the book. Like I said earlier, what I really love about the book is the beautiful language. I love the words he chooses, the way he phrases things, the poetry... just all the language. I also like the mystery and tension in the story. The characters are all well-done too. We never really know all that much about Davy but in the end we see that it makes sense because Reuben never really knew much about Davy either, even though they were able to meet again.

I hope you all enjoyed Peace Like a River and I'm looking forward to the next one.

Peace Like a River Discussion 7/31/09

Finally, Davy reappears. I never really know how I want to feel about Davy. On the one hand, I think I can understand his outrage and wish him well. On the other hand, he makes me nervous. I wonder if Reuben feels the same way. He's the only one in the family who knows where Davy is, has actually seen him and talked to him, but the visits are unsettling, filling Reuben with a guilt that he's not sure he can handle. Reuben's illness is also frightening. I don't have asthma but I've had trouble getting my breath when I had pneumonia and it's scary. You also feel pretty useless when just going for a walk is exhausting.

Jape Waltzer is a scary thought no matter how you look at him. I thought it was interesting that Davy claimed that he wasn't afraid of Waltzer yet he listened close when Jape was around. You can't help but think that Davy may have jumped out of the frying pan and into the fire. It's extremely ironic that Sara, now 14, was probably about Swede's age when she was handed over to Waltzer. Davy killed two people for an evening spent abusing his sister, yet seems alright with the abuse that Sara has suffered for years. Sara made me very sad. I was proud of Reuben for realizing what Waltzer had planned. I guess I'm not a very good detective because I didn't see it coming.

These chapters were full of foreboding and probably some symbolism that I didn't quite catch. At one point Reuben talks about Andreeson as his enemy but I got to wondering who the real antagonist is in the story. I do apologize for stopping when I did. I couldn't help myself. :-D

On to the end of book for next week.

Peace Like a River discussion 7/25/09

Sorry for posting a day late. I had an unexpected One Piece chat last night that has complicated all my plans and I'm getting sick. Excuses over now on to the discussion.

I love the way Andreeson is suddenly made to be more human in the last chapter. No one likes him but he's not an evil person. I can just picture him I think. It's easy to see how his ingratiating manner would bother everyone. At the same time, he's just trying to do his job. Jeremiah is not going to lie. Andreeson knows this and takes advantage of it when asking if Davy had contacted August and Birdie. Jeremiah is not going to compromise his principles and is assuming that God will take care of August and Birdie. Yet even though Andreeson knows that Jeremiah won't lie, he still hopes that Jeremiah knows more than he's saying.

Just a mention of the language in this section...I like the way Rueben compares his style of writing as the witness with Swede's much more romantic style.

We are introduced to a new character. Roxanna is such a real person. Once again Rueben is painfully honest when he admits that he didn't think she was really pretty the first time they saw her. That is the reality of life. Very few people are truly beautiful in the popular culture sense and Enger doesn't waste his time populating his novel with them. These are characters that live and breathe and with whom we can identify. Roxanna is a brave soul, allowing a strange man into her house like that. On the other hand we have gotten the impression that Jeremiah is little more than a skeleton at this point and he has these two kids to support so I suppose that he looked much safer than most.

I love the sense of relief we get in this section. The family has finally reached a safe harbor. We don't know what's going to happen next but at least they now have the necessities of life. Now, what's up with Davy?

Edit: Had to add labels and what to read next.
Read through Boy Ready, p. 274 in my edition.

Setting for Peace Like a River

When I first started reading this book, I wasn't sure what the setting was. I figured that Roofing was in outstate Minnesota somewhere and their travels confirm this impression. Enger was born and raised in Minnesota so he knows this place well. Half of all Minnesotas live in the Twin Cities metro area so anyplace that is outside the metro area is called "outstate." There is often some tension between these parties, claiming that more money is spent on the metro area, etc. My parents come from the southeast corner of North Dakota, right on the Minnesota border, and I now live in Minnesota, so it's easy for me to envision this setting.

One of the things that confused me initially was the time period. It is finally fully confirmed in this section as 1963. I would have been 10 years old at the time. Towns are far apart and traveling in a gas guzzling car at that time could easily have been a huge problem. I myself have driven into a gas station running on fumes because I didn't stop one town earlier.

Once again the place and time really resonate with me. I know how cold and miserable it can be. I've traveled through North Dakota many times, in all seasons, and if it's not too cold, it's too hot and muggy and buggy. You really can't imagine how flat the landscape is if you haven't been through it. The reason that the flooding Red River is so devastating is because of the flat land. Once it leaves the bank the water has miles and miles of completely flat land to spread out. That's why the Badlands are so dramatic. They are really gorgeous, very colorful and interesting to look at. Their history as a hiding place for Native Americans and outlaws alike would have fascinated Swede. It's a natural, but also dangerous place for someone on the run to hide.

Comments on Peace Like a River 7/17/09

I decided to go ahead and post another thread just for discussion of the last reading. There were some things that struck me in this one so I thought maybe others would feel the same way. We can put those things here.

I love Reuben's comments just thrown out there about faith. "Once traveling, it's remarkable how quickly faith erodes. It starts to look like something else -- ignorance, for example."

"Was it possible that real loss had occurred at the death of Israel Finch?" That sentence in reference to Finch's grandfather (I think that's right) shows how Rueben is starting to see the unanticipated consequences of Davy's actions. One of the things I like about Reuben is his unwavering examination of all aspects of the situation, even if they make him uncomfortable.

What do the dead crows on the road symbolize?

Justice in Peace Like a River

As suggested in the last one, this thread will be about what I think is one of the major themes of the book. Sometimes it seems like no matter where you look you see some mention of this theme. Sometimes it is a well-developed part of the plot and sometimes it's not much more than a sentence.

The plot is riddled with references or inferences to justice. Davy is outraged by Finch and Basca. The fact that no one seems to be willing to bring them to justice is what, I think, ultimately gets under his skin more than he can stand. By kidnapping Swede they violated someone Davy held dear. He responded by violating something they were fond of, a rather rough justice.

Justice for Davy is rather complicated. He's not surprised about the arrest and seems to be prepared for the justice that the jury would soon deliver. Then he decides that he doesn't want to face it and heads out. Since we don't know that much about him yet, it's not clear whether he was planning on doing this all along or whether it was a later development. However, Davy has not been brought to justice and you have to wonder what's going to happen to him.

All the media hoopla over the deaths and trial demonstrates a kind of justice by public opinion. Enger does a good job showing how the various views morphed during the trial. As mentioned in another thread, the letter to Davy that starts, "Dear Butcher," seems extreme but sounds like something an editor might come across in a mail bag. In fact, Davy is neither a poor misunderstood kid, nor a butcher so what is an appropriate punishment? Where's the justice in this situation? I think that Rueben is struggling to find it but he loves his brother and is afraid of what the outcome will be.

What about the healing of the superintendent? On the surface it looks like Jeremiah is being sorely used by fate and self-important men and he just doesn't deserve this grief. On the other hand the superintendent is scum who deserves the face he got. How can the healing of that face be considered justice?

Feel free to add to this thread as we continue through the book.

Peace Like a River (Characters)

I thought maybe we'd change the format of the discussions a little and have threads on different aspects of the book. We can talk about the characters in this thread, adding to it as we continue reading the next chapters. Now that we're well into the book we know enough about the characters to discuss them.

Let me start with yet another digression. There is a medieval mystery series that I like a lot by Candace Robb, the Owen Archer mysteries. The setting and stories are great, however there is a serious problem with one of the characters. If I remember correctly, this boy is supposedly about 10 years old. Since he's an orphan, he survived by following after soldiers. The boy is treated like a 5 or 6 year old and it drove me crazy. In that time, and living in that way, I would imagine him to be much closer to being an adult that a child raised safely in a home. Presenting him as such a young child was annoying.

Fortunately, I don't feel the same way about Swede. I've known children with extraordinary abilities. We had one kindergarten student who could do very advanced math...if someone read him the problems which he could not yet read himself. He thought that test was a lot of fun. I do appreciate the story being told through Rubin's more "normal" eyes. We see that Swede is a very gifted writer, and clearly intelligent, but she's still a child.

I felt so bad for Rubin when he testified on the stand and I love the way he tells the story. Rubin feels his job is to bear witness and he is unwavering in his honesty, even about himself. The descriptions of his breathing difficulties makes you feel like you can almost understand what it would be like.

Davy is a mystery to me. I have no problem understanding why he did what he did but the way he disassociates himself from the consequences makes you wonder about him. You know he's a good person because Rubin tells us so but killing someone, even when they've hurt someone you love, seems to indicate a certain contempt for the importance of life. This is surprising to me, given his family beliefs. One of the biggest surprises of the story for me was when we found out at the trial that Davy had escalated the conflict by breaking out the windows on Finches car.

Jeremiah Land is the biggest mystery of all. Rubin is telling two stories here, one about his brother, and the other about his father. You can't help but be impressed with this dad, no matter what his profession. The irony surrounding Jeremiah is interesting. Here's a man who can heal others but he suffers from nearly continuous headaches. He is kind and forbearing but didn't hold back when beating the boys in the locker room.

For just a minute I'd like to mention the language in the latest passage. Enger's use of irony can be very subtle however, that is not the case with the letter that starts, "Dear butcher...." I hate this letter but I love the irony in it. All the things the writer is saying about Davy were actually true about the boys that Davy killed.

NEXT READING:
Read through "The Last Thing He would Do" (p. 148 in my edition)

Peace Like a River Discussion (1st 4 chapters)

I'm going to start with a brief digression:

I once went to a presentation by a well-known librarian about what we librarians call reader's advisory. She was telling us how to help patrons find books that they would like to read. For many people the most important thing about a book is the action, the story line. For others, it's the characters or setting. You have to talk to people to find out why they like a particular title before you can recommend something else. When my husband and I were traveling in Alaska we each bought 2 books to read, planning to trade off during the trip. Jim chose a science fiction work by a famous person whose ideas Jim really liked. Now, I like science fiction too, however the writing in this book was just terrible. Jim is himself an excellent writer and readily acknowledged the issue but, as a physicist, he was most interested in the science of the story.

The language in Peace Like a River is what attracted me to the book. I think it is some of the most beautiful prose I've ever read. I didn't realize that it was the language of a book that was important to me until I read this book and went to this librarian's talk. Therefore, I'm going to start my discussion by looking at the language a little bit.

Enger is able to write a descriptive paragraph that tells me what the setting looks like but also gives me a sense of how the place feels. He's able to do it with a careful choice of word and phrase, yet isn't verbose. I don't get bored reading his descriptions. He also incorporates discussion of language itself into the story through Swede and her writing. I'll have more to say about Swede as a character later, but for now I'm just thinking about her use of language. I like her poetry and what it tells us about her. Enger comments on his own use of language when talking about Swede. Here's an example of that:

Swede opened her mouth and couldn't find a word in it. While loving all things Western, I doubt the facts of horse and saddle had ever occurred to her as real; they were simply poetry, though of the very best kind. Hammerhead roan and dancing bay pony and, now I mention it, Texas stock saddle -- to Swede such phrases just loped along, champing and snorting and kicking up clover. And rightly so: Take away such locutions and who's Sunny Sundown? Just a guy out walking.

Enger doesn't just say, "Swede stood there with her mouth hanging open." He turns that simple phrase into a poetic paragraph. That's why I love this book.

Feel free to talk about anything that caught your eye in this book. I'll talk more about character, setting, etc. in another post on another section. For next time read through "A Boy on a Horse", p. 107 in my edition. Should we read for one or two weeks? Let me know what you prefer.

Peace Like a River Information Post

I'm so glad we're going to do this one next. I started looking at it again tonight to get a sense of what we should read and the way the chapters lay and I'm getting excited to start talking about it. Sounds like most of you have it. Here's my suggestion for our first discussion.

Let's read p. 1-50. That will take us through 4 chapters. I guess we'll take 2 weeks to read this first section and see how everyone feels about it. I'll put up a discussion post on Friday July 3. If anyone has any other ideas about how to do this let me know.

Wee Free Men Chapters 13-14 Discussion

We reach the end of Tiffany's story, her showdown with the Queen and her discovery of the true power of the land she holds in her bones through her Granny. We also get an introduction to the most respected witch on the Disc, Granny Weatherwax, and Tiffany reminds Roland who the real boss of the land is. All's well that ends well, and Tiffany understands that she has a duty to the land, and to the borders.

Along with the discussion, we should probably decide what to read next so that people can procure the books. I like the look of both of our current suggestions, and if those who haven't contributed yet think of a title they're interested in sharing, by all means put it on our list and we can take a vote or something.

Wee Free Men Chapters 11-12 Discussion

Tiffany learns how to play the Queen's game at managing dreams, learns about the indestructability of the Nac Mac Feegle, and receives a devastating blow when, despite all her efforts, she finds herself unable to save her brother. My apologies for the tardiness of this post, it's been a busy weekend, but here it is. I'm glad you all are enjoying the wordplay. As a bit of a word player myself, I'm always so fond of reading the work of a master of the game. Let the discussion commence!

Wee Free Men Chapters 9-10 Discussion

Tiffany learns more of Fairyland, what there is to fear and what the Queen does to those who cross her. She also finds the lost son of the Baron, Roland, and resolves to bring him back home again also. Fairyland, while not quite what she expected, is becoming quite the challenge as she works to help her brother and Roland and keep the Queen at bay long enough to get out. Let the discussion commence!

Wee Free Men Chapters 7-8 Discussion

I apologize for being late with this post, but I've had a busy few days and a difficult week. Anyway, this week's chapters give Tiffany and the Feegles the information they need to rescue Wentworth...at a price. Tiffany becomes kelda, does a bit of political maneuvering to keep things running smoothly, learns about her own abilities with First Sight and Second Thoughts, and enters into the maddeningly unreal land of Fairy, impatient for the trees to smarten up and look like the real thing. Thoughts?

Wee Free Men Chapters 5-6 Discussion

Here we encounter some more creatures out to get Tiffany and she learns more than perhaps she wanted to know about the Feegles and their relationship to her grandmother. I love Tiffany's recollections of her granny, and how she sees them differently as she grows and changes her world viewpoint. I suppose all of us do this as we mature, but realizing that even from the age of seven up to eleven someone like Tiffany could look back and realize what she'd done to someone she loved, without even meaning to...

On with the discussion!

Wee Free Men Chapters 3-4

Another Friday night, another two chapters. I know we've gotten off to a slow start, but the story is picking up, and now the title's meaning is a bit more apparent, as we meet the Wee Free Men themselves. Thoughts on them, or on Tiffany's thoughts on fairy tales? Let the discussion begin!

Wee Free Men: Chapters 1-2 Discussion

Ok, it's Friday night, and hopefully everyone has had a chance to read these two chapters. What are our initial thoughts about Tiffany Aching and Miss Tick the witch? Also, how is everyone finding the schedule? Is this easy reading to a point where we'd like to speed up, or slow down, or anything of that nature? Let the discussion commence!

Wee Free Men Schedule

Ok, the majority has spoken, and it's been decided that we'll start out with two chapters a week and see how that works for everyone, given that this reading is much lighter and the chapters are much shorter than the previous book. I'm aiming to start on Friday, April 10th and continue from there with the following schedule, so that people still have the rest of this week to acquire the book and then next week to start reading. I'll open my discussions, such as they are, on Friday nights, since I usually go to church on Saturday nights.

Schedule:
Ch. 1-2 April 10th
Ch. 3-4 April 17th
Ch. 5-6 April 24th
Ch. 7-8 May 1st
Ch. 9-10 May 8th
Ch. 11-12 May 15th
Ch. 13-14 May 22nd
Ch. 15-16 May 29th
Ch. 17-18 June 5th

Tell me now if there are any problems with this schedule, and we can also step it up to three chapters a week if people feel we are progressing too slowly. That's all from me for now, and happy reading!

Wee Free Men Startup

This post is mostly about opinions. I know we're not ready to start yet since not all of us have acquired the book, but I just want to put a feeler out for how people want to proceed with it, since it's much shorter and also much lighter fare than our previous book. In my copy, since I own the hardcover, the first chapter is 18 pages, and as this is a young adult/children's book, the reading is fairly simple. Do people think one short chapter a week would be too fast, or would you like to do larger blocks over a longer span of time? I feel like this book will finish quickly, and I want to make the discussion enjoyable, though I may just wing it and leave you guys to pull whatever opinions you like out of it, as it's purely pleasure reading and not terribly deep. As I love this author to death and will probably suggest more of his books as we make further nominations, and as I know most of you guys haven't read him before, I may ask you to look at the writing style as much as anything, since that's what I love most about Pratchett. And now, as I'm babbling and have had a hard day, I'll leave you guys to give opinions on how fast we should move.

Dreams from My Father - Part 3: Kenya and Epilogue

Let's open the final discussion for Dreams from My Father. I found this final section to be very interesting, and I'm curious to see what others thought of it, too.

Also, if you have any feedback on the way we discussed this first book, please comment about that, too. Was the pace too fast, too slow? Should I have put up more thought questions in the discussion post?

Next book up is The Wee Free Men. Angela will be "hosting" this one. Thanks!!

popular vote

In order to give the next person time to prepare the discussion post, and so that we have a new book to look forward to, let's go ahead and choose the next book. In the previous post, most people wanted to choose by a vote, so here is the list (each link should take you to a brief description from either amazon or goodreads to help make your choice). We'll read each of these in turn, this vote is only to choose the next book.

• The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
• Seven Daughters and Seven Sons
• Peace Like a River
• The Wee Free Men

The final discussion for Dreams from My Father will open this weekend. I know some have already finished the book. Even if you're still reading when the final discussion starts, don't feel like you can't comment. I have really enjoyed reading everyone's comments and the discussions that we've had from this book.

time to choose the next book!

Edit to post: just to make sure it's clear, we're not done discussing the current book. We're still only discussing through the first two sections. I've been getting a few emails about what the next book is going to be, so I thought we could go ahead and start choosing it even though the discussion for it won't be for several weeks. Hope that makes sense, and sorry for any confusion!

I've been getting great feedback about our first book, Dreams from My Father. It seems that the general consensus is that people are glad that we chose it, but also that the material is a little heavy.

So, for our next book, let's choose something a little lighter. On the right sidebar of the page is the link list of books suggested so far. If anyone wants to recommend a book and hasn't done so yet, go ahead and add your book.

How would everyone like to choose the next book? We could choose by a vote or choose via a randomizer. If we choose by popular vote, we can have a say in what book we're more in the mood to read at this point (we'll read each book on the list - it's only a matter or when). If we choose a book at random, there isn't as much input, but that could be fun. Post your preference in the comment section, and we can go from there. I would like to have a book chosen by the end of next week, so on Tuesday night, we'll choose the book by the method the majority voted for.

Dreams from My Father - Part 2: Chicago

Discussion for Part 2: Chicago is open!

I think the discussion went really well last time without the need for any thought questions, so we'll let the discussion go wherever people want to start with it.

Discussion for Part 3: Kenya and the Epilogue will open in 2 weeks - March 21.

Also, in a week I will put up a post about choosing the next book so that people will have time to find it and get reading once the current discussion wraps up.

Dreams from My Father - Part 1: Origins Discussion

Discussion is open for Part 1: Origins! (my apologies for getting this up later than I said I would - it's been an unexpectedly busy day and two little boys kept interrupting me this afternoon while I tried to compose my thoughts; I'll do better next time as in getting the post drafted before the discussion opens so that things like this won't happen again!)

I hope you've enjoyed reading Dreams from My Father as much as I have. I went into this reading having a little background from listening to Diane Rehm's Reader's Review on NPR (you can listen to that discussion by following the link), which made me curious to read the book myself.

In order to facilitate the discussion, listed below are some thought questions and topics to get us started (don't feel like you need to answer any or all of these - this is merely to get us thinking). I'm especially interested in everyone's impression with the book and their initial thoughts. Let's get the discussion started and we can let it go from there.

* Obama's father was absent from much of his childhood. What kind of impact did this have on him? How did he cope?

* How did Obama's mother's remarriage affect his image of himself and his image of his father? What kind of role did Lolo play as a father to Obama?

* How did Obama's time in Indonesia affect his world view?

* What was it like growing up in Hawaii for Obama? How did race play a part in his childhood and adolesence?

* What kind of influence did Obama's mother have in his life? What kind of influence did his grandmother have?

Discussion for Part 2: Chicago will open in 2 weeks - March 7.

Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance

This first book is going to be a trial book in several ways. First, I'm not sure how things will progress with an online discussion. Second, I've never read this book before, so the content will be new to me as well as to each of you.

The book is divided into three fairly equal parts, so I suggest we read each part and then open up for discussion and so on. To give everyone time to acquire the book, we'll start the first discussion (of Part One) in about three weeks - the weekend of February 21st.

Part One: Origins - to page 129 NOW DISCUSSING
Part Two: Chicago - starts on page 131 - to page 295 NOW DISCUSSING
Part Three: Kenya - starts on page 297 - to page 430 (discussion starts March 21)
Epilogue - starts on page 431 - to page 442 (discussion starts March 21)

*note - pages listed are from paperback edition; hardcover might be slightly different
**edited: red for current reading/gray for future reading - if this pace is too slow, we can adjust it as we go

book suggestions

Let's go ahead and start making our book suggestions so that we can get started reading. I know that some people are still thinking about what they want to recommend, but maybe by getting a list started, that will spur some ideas for those still undecided.

If you have a particular preference to when your book is read, go ahead and state that in your recommendation post. Otherwise, I suggest that we just randomize the list once it's all together. We can always change things up a little, but it's nice to be able to know what books are coming up so we can plan to get them whether by purchasing them, borrowing from a friend, or checking them out from a library.

Be sure to check out the introduction post as people finish up making their introductions. We'll get to know each other even better through discussion, but it's nice to have a little background before we start.

Introductions

Hi Everybody! This reading blog is going to be lots of fun. I think our comments and discussions will have a lot more meaning behind them if we all know a little about each other. I'll start and then you can follow the same format in the comments section to tell us about you.

Name: Havilah
Age(optional): 26
Location: Lubbock, Texas
Favorite Book Genre: Fantasy. I've been branching out lately to other genre and have discovered I love almost anything as long as the story is interesting and it is well-written.
Favorite Book and/or Author: The book series that started my love of reading was the Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan. It will always hold a special place in my heart. David Eddings, Patrick Rothfuss, Brandon Sanderson, and Douglas Adams are also among my favorite authors.
Occupation: I work full-time as a stay-at-home mom. I have two kids (Ruth, 4 and Gareth, 2). We're expecting our third during the first week of June.
Why you are here: I am here because I love reading! Reading is even more fun when there are other people you can talk to about what you're reading.
Anything else? I can't think of anything else to add but if you can, please add it!!

let's start this party

Hi everyone!

I'm excited that everyone has been interested in forming an online bookgroup. Credit goes to all of you in helping form this group and the format that we'll follow in our discussions.

From my correspondence with Angela, this is how I understand we'll progress with the bookgroup:

1. We'll each choose a book to read. I know some people have mentioned concerns about content or genre. I think as long as we take some careful consideration in our choices, we'll be able to avoid most conflicts; if there are any serious objections, we can work those out.

2. Once we've chosen our books, unless there is a preference to a particular order, I suggest we randomize the order and go from there.

3. I like the suggestion that we discuss in 2 week intervals. This not only keeps everyone reading, but it allows flexibility in our schedules. For each book, the person recommending the book can determine the best way to break down the pages of reading for each discussion. Some books may be short enough to discuss completely in just one or two discussions.

So, let's go ahead and open this up for book recommendations! I'm excited to see what everyone wants to read. Hopefully we can choose our first book and get started by the end of the month.