Winter Garden, by Kristen Hannah

Characters
Whitson family and others	The Snow Kingdom – fairy tale
Evan Anya Meredith Nina Jeff – Meredith’s husband Jillian and Mandy – daughters Danny -Nina’s boyfriend Vasily Adamovich – professor Maksim – Vasily’s son Stacey Koontz – Anya – waitress in Alaskan Russian restaurant	Petyr Andreyevich – father Zoyo – mother Baba – grandmother Veronika – Vera Petrovna Olga Prince Sasha Black Knight Vera and Sasha’s children: Anastasia – Anya Leo

For Discussion:

NOTE: All pages are from paperback edition of the book.

1. Was Jeff being fair when he left Meredith so soon after her father died?
2. Danny also wanted Nina to leave her family briefly and go with him to check out his job offer in Atlanta.  Should he have understood Nina’s situation better?   Does being married or not make a difference?
3. Why do you think Meredith and Nina could not communicate?  How could either of them have changed this?
4. When Nina was thinking about the fairy tale, she noted that the Russian fairy tales are different from the ones by the brothers Grimm in that the Russian ones “ended unhappily to teach a lesson.”  (page 174) Do you think a happy ending can teach a lesson just as effectively?
5. Which sister did you like/understand the best?
6. One criticism of Meredith that many characters agreed on was that she cared “too much about everyone else.”   Is it possible to care too much about other people and not enough about yourself?
7. In the same vein, on page 245 Meredith reflected that, “She’d lost too much of herself in parenthood to simply go back to who she’d been before.”  What do you think about this?
8. On page 250 Meredith reflected that she learned after her dad’s death that “Every choice changed the road you were on and it was too easy to end up going in the wrong direction.”   Aside from illegal choices, can you put too much pressure on yourself about your choices?   Don’t we learn something from each choice even if we have to change direction after?
9. Anya’s behavior during a play was mentioned several times throughout the novel as a negative turning point for Meredith and it was not explained until the end on page 375.  The play was Meredith and Jeff acting out Anya’s love story and she realized at the end of the story how painful that was for Anya.  Did you think this was emphasized too much earlier in the story and then glossed over at the end?
10. In general, did you like the story?  Was it an enjoyable read?  Did you like the writing style?

*****

First Semester Success: Learning Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (or Any Semester) of College, by Dr. Arden B. Hamer, is available at amazon.com, wordassociaiton.com and barnesandnoble.com.  Click on the upper right link.

Playing St. Barbara, by Mirian Szczepanski

Characters
Downhillers	Uphillers
Sweeney Family Fin – father Clare – “Mutti” – mother Deirdre Katie – Sister Mary Gertrude Norah Rosie – Deirdre’s friend Kamila – Clare’s friend – husband did not join union Essie Hunt – African American woman who helped Clare with birth control and “miscarriages” Billy McKenna “The Cossack” – married Deirdre Jack Kukoc – Katie’s boyfriend – arrested and jailed in riot Paul Visocky – Norah’s boyfriend who she rejected – married Grace Cverna Tina Kukoc – died in slate dump collapse Frank Sestak – new fire boss – first Slovak to be promoted Tereza – daughter	Dan Phelan – Asst. Superintendent, 1940 promoted to Arizona Big Bill Keating – pit boss – became Asst. Superintendent in 1940 Maeve – wife - took over pageant when new Superintendent’s wife refused Bill Finch – Superintendent – returned to Pittsburgh 1940 Mrs. Finch – “The Queen” – director of 1929 pageant
	Others
	Fr. Kovacs – parish priest H.C. Frick Coke Company Trudy – Clare’s cousin in Pittsburgh Drastovic – tale-teller Klu Klux Klan The Brotherhood – company-sponsored union – outlawed by Pres. Roosevelt in 1941 United Mine Workers Roz Hamilton – owner of “La Femme” David Steinback – bacteriologist, “Dr. Ketchup”

For Discussion:

NOTE: All page numbers are from paperback edition.

1. Discuss Fin Sweeney:
1. Why was he so angry and abusive?
2. Could his wife and daughters have done anything to change him?
3. On page 330 after Fin was rescued from the mine, Norah wonders, “Had he ever been happy?  Had swinging a bat and hitting home runs given him whatever fleeting pleasure that she and sisters and Mutti could not?”  Is Norah taking too much responsibility for Fin’s happiness? 
4. Could you find any goodness in Fin?  He was instrumental in unionizing mine workers and saved Anton Zekula in mine collapse.
5. On page 355 Fin asks Clare, “You’re wishing I died in the pit, aren’t you now?”  Do you think he has any regrets?
2. It was obvious to everyone that Fin was beating Clare and yet only Kamila would address it.  Did the rest of the community, in particular Fr. Kovacs, have any responsibility to change the situation?
3. Discuss Norah and Katie’s reactions to Fin physically abusing Clare.  How did this situation influence the decisions they made in their lives?  Considering Norah, why did she reject Paul?  Was it to stay and protect her mother or was it something else?
4. Do you think Jack Kukoc, Katie’s boyfriend, would have ended up just like Fin?  Why or why not?  See page 208 where he, “pressed Katie’s cheeks until her lips could no longer make words.”
5. On page 368 the author wrote about Clare, “She couldn’t help but wonder – had he worked for a company that allowed the union, would their lives have turned out differently?”  What do you think?
6. What did you think about Clare’s actions to abort and prevent pregnancies?  Were these actions justified?   Norah thought it was her fault that one of the babies dies (page 306).  How did this affect her future as well as the relationship between Clare and Norah?
7. When the Sweeney family first moved to The Hive they all went to the church to register as parishioners and Fin forced Clare to say she was Irish, not German.  He also did not allow her to speak German. Given the war that followed, was this a good thing or inconsiderate?
8. Consider women’s options today compared to the time period of this novel (1930s and 1940s).  How would the story be different today?
9. Consider the United Mine Workers and the progress they made for workers in this country.  Could this progress have been made without men like Fin?
10. Consider the central role the pageant and Festival of St. Barbara played in the novel.  Why was it so important?  What affect did it have on the various members of the Sweeney family?
11. Discuss your reading experience.  Did you enjoy the book or did you find it uncomfortable to read?

*****
First Semester Success: Learning Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (or Any Semester) of College, by Dr. Arden B. Hamer, is available at amazon.com, wordassociation.com and barnesandnoble.com.  Click on the upper right link.

When Lions Roar: The Churchills and the Kennedys, by Thomas Maier

REVIEW: Reading this book (643 pages) is quite an undertaking!  Happily, I thought it was well worth my time.  I have always been interested in the Kennedys but did not know much about Winston Churchill and his family.  I enjoyed reading a different perspective on the Kennedys, focusing more on Joe Sr. and the early career of JFK, paired with the Churchill family.  At times I thought FDR should be added to the title as he and his family had a significant part.   The book presented an interesting history of England and America’s part in WWII through the story of the two men and their families.   I thought there were other themes presented that are worthy of thought such as parenting and encouraging sons, family loyalty, fidelity in marriage, and loyalty to country.  Especially noting the 100+ pages of notes and references, this was an extremely well researched book.   Many of the people in the book voraciously read history and it was reported how that reading affected their future lives.  I think this book should be included in the list of history books that would change your view history and life.  I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for this review.

Kennedys	Churchills	Roosevelts
Joseph P. Kennedy – father Rose – mother Joe Jr. – killed in war JFK – president, assassinated Robert - assassinated Kathleen – Kick – killed in England Rosemary – unsuccessful lobotomy Jacqueline – JFK’s wife Caroline – daughter John Jr. - son	Sir Winston Churchill Clementine Randolph Diana Sarah Mary Pamela – Randolph’s first wife Winston – son June – Randolph’s second wife Arabella – daughter Lord Randolph Churchill – Winston’s father	Franklin D. Roosevelt James Roosevelt
Others
Friends of Kennedy and Churchill: Lord Beaverbrook – Max Bernard Baruch Kay Halle Clare Booth Luce Evelyn Waugh Aristotle Onassis David Ormsby-Gore

For discussion:
NOTE: All page numbers refer to paperback edition of the book.

1. Discuss the relationship between fathers and sons, particularly how Kennedy and Churchill’s parenting differed (page 636).  The author made the point that both Jimmy Roosevelt and Randolph Churchill had more challenges due to their fathers being famous and not having much time for them compared to Kennedy who micromanaged the raising of his sons.   Do you think Randolph would have found more of the success he wanted if he had been born a Kennedy?
2. How do you think Winston’s relationship with his father influenced his parenting of Randolph?  On page 20 the author wrote about how Lord Randolph’s remoteness affected Winston as a child compared to page 36 where he wrote “much of Randolph’s egotism has to be blamed on a great man’s tendency to pander to his beautiful only son.”
3. Can you understand Joe Sr. blaming Churchill for Joe Jr.’s death?
4. Discuss the continuous references to private reading, particularly JFK’s reading Churchill’s book, The World Crisis, as a teenager.   How do the reading choices of the people in the book compare to our choices today? Have you read any books that greatly influenced your life?
5. Were you surprised about all of the affairs, in many cases out in the open and with knowledge of one or more spouses?  Winston (page 593) was apparently the only person in the book who was faithful to his spouse.
6. Were you able to keep everyone and their marriages straight? 
7. Discuss the friendship between Evelyn Waugh and Randolph.  Were they good friends? 
8. On page 110 the author wrote, “Adversity, not advantage, had been most character-forming for Winston.”  Discuss how both adversity and advantage affected everyone in the book – particularly the sons.
9. Why do you think Joe Kennedy Sr. was so clueless that he didn’t know his negative comments before and during the war were being forwarded to other people?  In particular Kennedy was watched by British intelligence when he returned to America (page 301).
10. Churchill was a scholar of history.  On page 328 the author wrote that, “History provided perspective when faced with many frustrations” and at another point wrote that Churchill knew from studying US history that we are slow to enter a conflict but when did, did so wholeheartedly.   Did reading this book change your view of studying and reading history?
11. Reading this book was quite an undertaking.  Did you think it was a worthwhile use of your time?  Why or why not?

*****
First Semester Success: Learning Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (or Any Semester) of College, by Dr. Arden B. Hamer, is available at amazon.com, wordassociation.com and barnesandnoble.com.   Click on the upper right link.

The Boys in the Boat, by Daniel James Brown

People
Joe’s family	University of Washington	Germany
Joe Rantz Harry – father Nellie – mother Fred – older brother Thelma – Fred’s wife   Thula stepmother Step-siblings: Harry Jr. Mike Rose Polly   Joyce Simdars – Joe’s sweetheart and wife	George Pocock – built racing shells   Al Ulbrickson - head coach   Tom Bolles – freshman coach   Royal Broughman – sports writer   Ky Elbright – head coach, Univ. of California	Adolf Hitler   Werner March – architect   Dr. Joseph Goebbels – minister of public enlightenment and propaganda   Leni Riefenstahl – film maker
Olympic crew of the Husky Clipper: Bob Moch – coxswain Don Hume – seat #8 – stroke position Joe Rantz – seat #7 George “Shorty” Hunt – seat #6 – always told Joe, “I got your back.” Jim “Stub” McMillan – seat #5 John White Jr. – seat #4 – worked with Joe at Grand Coulee Dam Gordon Adam – seat #3 Chuck Day – seat #2 – worked with Joe at Grand Coulee Dam Roger Morris – seat #1 - bow

For discussion:
Note: The page numbers are from the paperback edition.

1. What do you think about Joe’s father and stepmother, Thula.  Were you able to understand how Thula felt toward Joe?  How was she able to justify kicking Joe out of the house at such a young age?  Also, how did both parents justify leaving their four children alone without much food to go off and have fun?
2. How did Joe’s experiences growing up help or hinder him in the boat?  In life?
3. All of the boys on the Olympic Team were extremely successful later in life.  Was this part at least due to their experiences in the boat?
4. Did you like how the story flipped between Joe and the boat and Hitler and Germany?  Did you learn anything new about Hitler and Nazi Germany leading up to WW II?
5. In boating when all are working at their ultimate it is called “swing.”  In Psychology Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi called it “flow” or “the zone,” which is defined as  ”a mental state of operation in which a person performing an activity is fully immersed in a feeling of energized focus, full involvement, and enjoyment in the process of the activity.”  (Wikipedia)  Have you ever experienced that in something you like to do?
6. What did you think about the boy’s restricted diet leading up to races.  How would that be viewed with today’s knowledge of nutrition?
7. There was a lot to learn about life from the boy’s experiences and people’s thoughts.  Here are some I found:
1. Page 106 – “Like so much in life, crew was partly about confidence, partly about knowing your own heart.”
2. Page 235 – “What mattered more than how hard a man rowed was how well everything he did in the boat harmonized with what the other fellows were doing.”
3. Page 353 – “What is the spiritual value of rowing?...The losing of self entirely to the cooperative effort of the crew as a whole.”  George Pocock
4. Page 53 – “It is hard to make that boat go as fast as you want to.  The enemy, of course, is resistance of the water….So is life: the very problems you must overcome also support you and make you stronger in overcoming them.”  George Pocock
5. Page 51 – At the beginning of the freshman year when many men tried out for crew, “The first to drop out had been the boys with impeccably creased trousers and freshly polished oxfords.”
6. Page 39 – “Every good rowing coach, in his own way, imparts to his men the kind of self-discipline required to achieve the ultimate from mind, heart and body.  Which is why most ex-oarsmen will tell you they learned more fundamentally important lessons in the racing shell than in the classroom.”  George Pocock
8. Discuss your reading experience.  What did you learn from reading this book?

First Semester Success: Learning Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (or Any Semester) of College, by Dr. Arden B. Hamer, is available at amazon.com, wordassociation.com and barnesandnoble.com.  Click on the upper right link.

Empty Mansions: The Mysterious Life of Huguette Clark and the Spending of a Great American Fortune, by Bill Dedman and Paul Clark Newell

Family

Others

W. A. Clark – born in southwestern PA Kate – first wife Children: Charlie W. A. Jr. or Will May (Mary) Katherine   Anna – second wife Andree – died age 16 Huguette   Bill Gower – Huguette’s husband – divorced   Etienne de Villermont – closest male friend Elisabeth – wife Marie-Christine – adopted daughter   Nineteen relatives who contested will   Properties owned: Mansion – NY - Fifth Ave and Seventy-seventh Street Bellosguardo – CA Rancho Alegre – donated to Boy Scouts Le Beau Chateau – Connecticut – never occupied 907 Fifth Avenue – NY – Apartments 12W (Huguette’s), 8W (Anna’s), 8E (purchased 1963)

Hadassah Peri – private nurse for 20 years   Chris Sattler – personal assistant for art projects and hobbies   Suzanne Pierre – wife of longtime doctor, Jules Pierre – friend and social secretary   Anna’s goddaughters Leontine Lyle Ann Ellie   Tade Styka – painting teacher Wanda Magdeleine Styka – daughter and Huguette’s goddaughter   Wally Bock – attorney   Irving Kamsler – accountant   Various Doctors and Doctor’s Hospital

For discussion:

NOTE: Page numbers are from paperback edition of the book.

 

1. What do you think of W.A. considering the following:
1. His questionable Montana Senate election
2. He was a shrewd and honest businessman.
3. He was fair to employees: supported fair wages, opposed wage reductions when copper price fell, offered good healthcare for employees, supported giving women the vote (page 87)
4. He had no succession planning for his business
5. In his will he made minimal charitable donations unlike Carnegie and Rockefeller

 

2. Does W.A.’s fairness in business outweigh his underhandedness in politics, particularly the Montana State Senate?
3. What was the impact of Andree’s death on Huguette?  Did her parents seem to learn anything after reading Andree’s journal about how unhappy she was?
4. Had Huguette been a few years younger and had the opportunity to go to college, would her life have been different?  How?
5. Discuss the various people and their lives.  How would they have been changed if they had less money or no money?  How did money enhance or diminish their lives?
6. Why do you think Anna and Huguette continued to give money to so many people they barely knew?
7. In a conversation with her attorney, Wally Bock, Huguette said about giving so much money away, “I want to see people enjoy the gifts that I give while I’m alive.” (page 266).  Can you understand her thoughts on this?
8. What did you think of Hadassah?  Did she deserve the money Huguette gave her?  After all she did work 12 hours a day, 7 days a week and had no life of her own. 
9. Wanda Styka last saw Huguette when she was 11 and Huguette was 48 but they corresponded for 50+ years.  Chris Sattler commented about Wanda, “If there ever was anybody in the world who ever loved Mrs. Clark just for her love, it was that lady” (page 259).  Did you think anyone else loved Huguette just for herself and not her money?
10. Discuss Doctor’s Hospital, part of Beth Israel Medical Center in New York, and the Development Department.  The chapter title was “Shakedown” (page279).  Was it ethical for the doctors to talk with Huguette?
11. Do you think Huguette was competent or manipulated toward the end?
12. What did you think about her 19 relatives?   Why did they not pay more attention to Huguette earlier in her life?  Through the four children of W.A. and Kate, each family had already received 1/5 of his estate, same as Huguette.  Was it fair that they wanted Huguette’s share?
13. Did you think the final settlement of Huguette’s estate was fair?  Why or why not?

*****

First Semester Success: Learning Strategies for Your First Semester (or Any Semester) of College, by Dr. Arden B. Hamer, is available at amazon.com, wordassociation.com and barnesandnoble.com.  Click on the upper right link.

Wild, by Cheryl Strayed

NOTE: My book group had a great discussion about this book.  For a group of friends who frequently stray from the book, we discussed it for well over an hour.

People
Family	Pacific Coast Trail
Cheryl Paul – husband – divorced   Mother Eddie – second husband   Leif and Karen – siblings   Joe – drug user and enabler   Lisa – friend mailing boxes	Ray Jardine – PCT legend   Greg   Albert and Matt – father and son   Doug and Tom – same age as Cheryl   Ed – Trail Angel – met at first campground   Christine and Jeff – Packer Lodge   Trina, Stacy and Brent   Rex   John and Sarah - dating   Sam and Helen - married   Three Young Bucks – Rick, Josh and Richie   Jonathan – worked at club, one-night stand   Two bow hunters

For Discussion:

NOTE:  Page numbers are from paperback edition.

 

1. Why did her mother’s sickness and death have such a negative impact on Cheryl’s marriage?

 

2. Discuss Cheryl’s family.  Why weren’t they able to stay connected after their mother died?

 

3. Discuss Cheryl’s mourning of her mother.  What did you think of her mother’s list of faults (pages 265-267) and how they were offset by her “all-encompassing love” (page 268).  Was there anything Cheryl or someone else might have done to help her through her mourning?

 

4. At the beginning of her journey (page 30) she had no address to list as “home” on the motel card.  Can you imagine how that would feel?

5. On page 53 she wrote a description of what it felt like to take drugs.  Did you think this might be an accurate description?  Did it help you understand why some people wanted to do so?

 

6. Discuss Monster.  What things from home would you want to carry with you?

 

7. When she got divorced from Paul, Cheryl realized she could name herself anything she wanted so she changed her last name to Strayed.  What new name would you chose to describe you?

 

8. Did you understand why she and Paul divorced?  Should they have tried harder to save their marriage?

 

9. How would it feel to be totally on your own with no one knowing where you are – particularly in this day of cell phones and instant contact?

 

10. Did you think the two bow hunters were going to harm Cheryl?   Did they know they were being frightening?  Did they care?

 

11. Were you surprised that one of the books she packed in the boxes was Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov?  Why did she choose that book?  What books would you pack?

 

12. Of course it has to be asked – would you ever do anything like what Cheryl did?

*****

First Semester Success: Learning Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (or Any Semester) of College, by Dr. Arden B. Hamer, is available at amazon.com, wordassociation.com and barnesandnoble.com.  Click on the upper right link.

 

 

Luther and Katharina, by Jody Hedlund

REVIEW:  One thing I liked about this novel was the historical perspective.  I felt I gained information and insight into that particular Biblical period and Martin Luther.  Also, I thought the author did an interesting job of showing how difficult it was for nuns who grew up in a convent to get used to being in control of their own time and thoughts, but given the time period and that Luther arranged marriages for them I wondered if they really were free.  I got a little bored with Katharina and Luther sparing and always being confrontational.  I wanted them to say what was in their hearts and get along with each other.  (But then the story would have been very short!)  I would recommend this book to someone who likes historical fiction and romances.   I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for this review.

People/Characters
Martin Luther – Black Cloister	Katharina von Bora – Marienthron Convent
Hans – father – mine owner Jacob – younger brother Wolfgang – manservant   Elector Frederick – benefactor and protector   Duke George – archenemy Brother Gabriel – spying on Luther for Duke George Karlstodt – professor – enemy   Melanchthon – friend Jonas - friend	Greta – maidservant Thomas – Greta’s lover Merchant Koppe – Thomas’ uncle – helped nuns escape   Aunt Lena – nun – helped nuns escape   Margaret Schonfeld – nun and friend Eva   Fronica and Etta Zeschau – circulated Luther’s letters among nuns   Abbot Baltazar   Jerome Baumgartner – suitor   Reichenbach family – took Katharina in as a servant Elsa – wife Husband – mayor   Lucas Cranach – apothecary,  printer Barbara – wife Took in Margaret and Eva, eventually Katharina

For discussion:
NOTE: The page numbers refer to the paperback preview edition of the novel.
1. Discuss the women in the book, particularly Katharina, Greta and Barbara Cranach - all strong women.  Were they typical of women at that time?  Why or why not?
2. The book describes Katharina's struggles letting go of her pride.  Did you think she was too proud or was there a more positive way to describe her personality?
3. In one sense the nuns went from one form of control (the Abbot) to another (Luther who arranged marriages for them).  Do you think any may have wished for the cloistered life again albeit without the abuse?  Why?
4. Discuss Luther and Katharina's "courtship" and road to marital harmony.  Were their struggles realistic?  Did you enjoy reading about their struggles to understand each other or did you just want them to get over it?
5. Discuss Luther burning Katharina's indulgence from her mother, the only thing she had of hers.  Did she treasure it more for a religious or sentimental reason?
6. When the nuns were settled in the Black Cloister, how did you evaluate their transition to a "normal life?"  Was it realistic, too fast, too slow or something else?
7. The one topic of the book - nuns and monks forsaking their vow of chastity and cloistered life - is quite timely.  What do you think about priests marrying? 
8. Did you understand Martin Luther's father's disappointment with him?  Was it disappointment, fear for him, or both?
9. As you were reading, did you wonder what was true and what was fiction?  Did the author's notes satisfy your curiosity?
*****
First Semester Success: Learning Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (or Any Semester) of College, by Dr. Arden B. Hamer, is available at amazon.com, wordassociation.com and barnesandnoble.com.  Click on the upper right link.