From the category archives:

Book Club

Book Club – Oct

September 4, 2010
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Sophie’s World – Jostein Gaarder.  Looking in her mailbox one day, a fourteen year-old Norwegian school girl called sophie Amundsen finds two surprising pieces of paper.  On them are written the questions: ‘Who are you?’ and ‘Where does the world come from?’
The writer is an enigmatic philosopher called Alberto Knox, and his two teasing questions [...]

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Review of Sexing the Cherry

August 12, 2010
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It wasn’t greatly liked – “twisted melon” it was re-named by some!  But I defended my love (renewed) for this old friend.  I acknowledged that it isn’t and won’t ever be a classic but it’s youth in all that it expounds (love, philosophy, arch feminism, mother nature) allowed me to appreciated it differently but again.  And yes I would re-read [...]

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Book Club – August

July 19, 2010
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Sexing the Cherry – Jeanette Winterson
Oh dear god! See Feb 2010 entry.
Next Meeting 9th August

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Book Club – July

June 29, 2010
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Amongst Women – John McGahern. Moran is an old Republican whose life was forever transformed by his days of glory as a guerilla leader in the War of Independence. Now, in his old age, living out in the country, Moran is still fighting – with his family, his friends, even himself – in a poignant [...]

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Review of Unaccustomed Earth

June 29, 2010
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Overall, a luke warm reaction to this lauded collection.  It was agreed that the first story spoiled us and it, as the rest of the stories could not match up. This story was like a masterclass in short story writing, it was perfectly formed (Lisa); a tender story told with restrained but palpable emotion. Beautiful.  [...]

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Book Club – June

May 12, 2010
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Unaccustomed Earth – Jhumpa Lahiri.  Beginning in America, and spilling back over memories and generations to India, Unaccustomed Earth explores the heart of family life and the immigrant experience.  Eight luminous stories – longer and richer than any Lahiri has yet written – take us from America to Europe, India, Thailand as the follow new [...]

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Book Club – May

April 14, 2010
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1984 – George Orwell
Winston Smith works for the Ministry of Truth in London, chief city of Airstrip One. Big Brother stares out from every poster, the Thought Police uncover every act of betrayal. When Winston finds love with Julia, he discovers that life does not have to be dull and deadening, and awakens to new [...]

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Review of War of the Worlds

April 14, 2010
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This was liked, not universally but definitely liked. How so….. well it is early science fiction and not sensationalised in a “run for the hills, grab your wife , girlfriend blah…” kind of way.  The style of writing is succint, unemotional and to the point.  Also an interesting study on how language has evolved and how words, while [...]

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Other Book Clubs – April Reads

April 12, 2010
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Drumshambo 

Alone in Berlin – Hans Fallada
Otto, an ordinary German living in a shabby apartment block, tries to stay out of trouble under Nazi rule.  But when he discovers his only son has been killed fighting at the front he is shocked into an extraordinary act of resistance, and starts to drop anonymous postcards attacking hitler [...]

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Book Club – April

March 16, 2010
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War of the Worlds by H.G.Wells
The night after a shooting star is seen streaking through the sky from Mars, a cylinder is discovered on Horsell Common in London. At first, naive locals approach the cylinder armed just with a white flag only to be quickly killed by an all-destroying heat-ray, as terrifying tentacled invaders emerge. [...]

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