The Summer Before the War, by Helen Simonson

Characters
Rye Prominent Families	Rye Citizens	Others
Agatha Kent John Kent – Senior Official in Foreign Office Hugh Grange – nephew, medical student Daniel Bookham – nephew, poet   Mayor Fothergill Bettina Fothergill Charles Poot – nephew   Lady Emily Wheaton Colonel Wheaton Harry – son Eleanor – daughter, married to German Baron   Mr. Tillingham – writer   Dr. Lawton - doctor	Beatrice Nash – Latin teacher Joseph – father, writer, deceased   Mrs. Turber – landlady Abigail – servant   School boys: Richard Sidley “Snout” – Abigail’s brother Jack Heathly Arty Pike   School: Headmaster Mr. Dobbins – math Mr. Dimbly – science and gymnastics Miss Clauvert – French Miss Devon – English, history, sewing   Alice Finch - Suffragette Minnie Buttles – Suffragette, Vicar’s daughter   Algernon Firth – writer Amberleigh de Witte – writer under name of A. A. de Witte	Lady Merbely – Beatrice’s aunt, guardian   Refugees: Professor Celeste – daughter, raped by Germans   Maria Stokes – gypsy, Snout’s great-grandmother   London: Sir Alex Ramsey – surgeon Lucy - daughter   Lord and Lady North Craigmore – son, Daniel’s friend

For Discussion:

NOTE: Page numbers are from hardback edition.

 

1. Did you think the author gave an accurate depiction of education during that time period?  On page 51 she wrote that Beatrice’s father had the opinion that “…education in general, and Latin in particular, should not be kept for the few, that it was wrong to divide the world and keep all success and distinction in the hands of a small elite.”  Do you think this was a common belief?   What about today?
2. When the refugees arrived, the town was disappointed with the people who came, they were hoping for children. Does this disappointment tamper their good intentions?
3. When Beatrice was talking with Abigail about getting married, Abagail said that her prospects for a husband, “likely won’t take kindly to a wife with airs of reading books and such” (page 164).   Beatrice replied, “I think you’ll find most women in pursuit of a husband share an interest in appearing less educated than they really are…It’s why I have a low opinion of them [husbands]” (page 164).  Do you understand how the times might have made this a true statement?   Is it any different today?
4. On page 183 Hugh, when thinking about Snout, said, “But I’ve found that intelligence is often no match for the circumstances of life.”   Do you think this is a true statement?    Can we overcome our circumstances or are there times when they are just too influential?
5. When Cook was telling Agatha about her son-in-law going off to war and her worries about her crippled granddaughter, the author wrote that, “Agatha was forced to consider whether her sympathetic interest in her staff’s families might have more to do with appearing generous than with any willingness to be inconvenienced by their actual problems” (page 186).   Was she being too hard on herself?  Is this a natural thought process?
6. On page 187 the author wrote that Agatha took off her mobcap before talking on the telephone, “as a nod to the importance of maintaining standards.”  How importance was standards in that time period?  What about today? 
7. Discuss the view of women in that time:
1. When talking with Beatrice about the prospect of writing an essay promoting the war to American’s Mr. Tillingham said, “Always tricky to be embraced by the ladies…The risk of dismissal by serious minds” and “on the other hand, it is the ladies who seem able to whip up a frenzy for some idea” (page 202). 
2. Both Beatrice and Celeste were betrayed by their fathers; Beatrice’s by telling her she was independent and then putting her money in a trust and Celeste’s father sacrificing her to the German’s to save some books.
3. When her husband did not tell Agatha that Daniel had left for the war until he was gone, she said, “Why do men presume to know what is best for us?” (page 286).
8. Agatha offered to be secretary of the Belgian Relief Committee because she felt that position gave her, “complete control over the committee” (page 208).  Does the secretary wield the most control in many organizations?
9. In the Acknowledgements, the author wrote that “writers and poets are at the heart of my novel.”  But Mr. Tillingham is not depicted in a positive light.  When he was at the war cemetery with Beatrice, she observed him looking “as greedy as that of a glutton before the feast” and that “it seemed to her that all of his novels were filled with people he knew and betrayed” (page 473).   How were writers and poets portrayed as positive?
10. Do you think Beatrice would have liked Mr. Tillingham if he were not a famous writer?
11. Lady Emily refused to talk on the phone and always had someone relay her messages.  She said, “Terrible thing, the telephone, I refuse to be a slave to it.”  Has that changed?
12. What was your reading experience at the end of the novel compared to the beginning?

*****
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 Chilbury Ladies’ Choir, by Jennifer Ryan

REVIEW: I love this book!  It is the perfect blend of a good story, interesting characters and meaningful ideas to consider long after the reading is done.  I enjoyed the format of telling the story through diary entries, letters, etc.  and thought the author did a good job of revealing the characters through their own thoughts as well as their observations of others.  I highly recommend this book to individuals and book groups.  I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for this review.

Characters

Mrs. Tilling – widow, nurse David – son Colonel Mallarad – widower, Mrs. Tilling’s boarder - Head of Litchfield Park Brigadier Winthrop Mrs. Winthrop – pregnant Edmund – son – killed in war Venetia – 18 Kitty – 13 Silvie – 10 – Jewish evacuee Lawrence – newborn son (switched with Hattie Lovell’s baby) Proggett - butler Hattie Lovell – pregnant, school teacher Rose – newborn daughter (switched with Mrs. Winthrop’s baby) Mrs. Edwina Paltry – midwife Clara – sister Vicar Angela Quail – daughter, friend of Venetia’s Mr. Alastair Slater – artist, spy Mrs. Primrose Trent (Prim) – Professor of Music, must tutor, choir director Mrs. Brampton-Boyd (Mrs. B.)

For discussion:

NOTE: The page numbers are from the hardback edition of the book.

1. On page 4 the author wrote, “There is something bolstering about singing together.”  If you do not like to sing, could you appreciate the power of singing and how the Ladies’ Choir helped unite the women and also helped them cope with their intense feelings?  If you currently are in or have sung in a group, do you think the author accurately described the experience or was it magnified because of the war?
2. Could you understand how difficult and how much courage it took for the women to form an all-female choir at that time?  What would be a comparable undertaking today?
3. On page 112 Kitty wrote in her diary about the positives in conventional wisdom and continuing to do things the way they had always been done.  When do you think tradition is good and when should it be abandoned?  How do you know?
4. In one of her journal entries Kitty mused about the power of women; “Does Hitler have any idea of the force and determination of thirteen impassioned women?”  (page 140) What did the women accomplish in the novel?  Would the men of the town been able to do the same?
5. Prim held a special choir practice open to everyone in the village to commemorate the lives lost at Dunkirk.  She had them stand in a circle, hold hands and sing a Gregorian chant.  Mrs. Tilling wrote in her diary, “We gingerly held hands.  Such a simple, childish think, but so rare in our busy, untouching world.”  (page 146) Why do you think the experience was so moving to everyone?  What do you think of holding hands with someone outside of your family today?
6. Do you think it was realistic that Hattie was able to switch the babies?  Do you think a mother would recognize her own child or not be able to tell?
7. After the bombing, were you surprised that people were looting their neighbors’ homes?  Do you think this would happen in a small town?
8. Which character did you think was the most interesting?  The most likeable or unlikeable?  Why?
9. Discuss your reading experience.  Did you like the chapters from different character’s viewpoints?  Would you recommend this book to a friend?  Why or why not?
10. Do you think a man would enjoy and appreciate this book or is it geared toward a woman’s experience?

*****

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.

Big Little Lies, by Liane Morarity

Characters
Parents and Children Pirriwee Public School -  Sydney, Australia	Others
Madeline Martha Mackenzie Ed – 2nd husband Abigail – 14 (with Nathan) Fred – 7 Chloe – Kindergarten   Nathan – Madeline’s ex-husband Bonnie – wife Skye – Kindergarten   Jane Ziggy – Kindergarten   Celeste Perry – husband Josh and Max – twins, Kindergarten   Reneta Geoff – husband Juliette – nanny Jackson Amabelle – Kindergarten   Blond Bobs – PTA Harper	Miss Patty Ponder – lives next to school Lucy Ponder – hair dresser, daughter   Miss Barnes – Kindergarten teacher   Detective-Sergeant Adrian Quinlan   Tom O’Brien – owner, Blue Blues   Saxon Banks (Perry)   Susi – Celeste’s counselor

For discussion:

NOTE:  Page numbers refer to the hardback edition.

1. How could Miss Barnes have handled the incident on Orientation Day more effectively?    Was that possible given the parents involved?
2. On page 169 was the first clue that it was a parent who had been murdered.  As you read, who did you think was the victim and the perpetrator?  Did your idea keep changing?
3. How well did the author depict the struggles of parenting?  Did she sensationalize the struggles or was it realistic?

4. The book addresses many serious issues such as:
1. Domestic violence
2. Bullying
3. Women’s body image
4. Self-esteem issues
5. Divorce
6. Step-parenting/shared parenting/single parenting
7. Working mothers and stay-at-home mothers
8. Infidelity
9. Gay stereotyping

Are there any other issues you identified?  How well did the author address these issues?  Do you think the author planned this book as purely entertainment or to draw attention to these issues?

5. Through Jane the book addressed women’s feelings of inferiority.  Madeline at one point thought, “It seemed to her that Jane’s mother had probably helped lay the groundwork for Jane’s mixed up feelings about food.  The media had done its bit, and women in general, with their willingness to feel bad about themselves, and then Saxon Banks had finished the job.” (page 197)   What were your feelings about this? 
6. What did you think about Jane’s feeling of doubt about Ziggy’s innocence regarding the choking incident on Orientation Day?  Do we ever really know what our children will do?  What anyone will do?
7. Did you like Bonnie?  Do you think Madeline would have liked her if she was not Nathan’s second wife?
8. How did you feel when it was revealed that Juliette and Goeff were having an affair?  Did you feel sympathy for Reneta or something else?
9. Did you like the way the author often hinted at something else the reader does not know yet?  For example:
1. Page 396 when Bonnie ways, “I’ve had personal experience.”
2. Page 151 when Nathan hints that financially things were tight for them and about his sports car not being worth what Madeline thought.

10. When Madeline and Ed were talking about lying about Perry’s death, Madeline said, “…but sometimes doing the wrong thing was also right.”  (page 430)   Do you agree?  Is this possible?
11. If Bonnie had not confessed, would you have gone along with the cover-up?  Why do you think Madeline in particular was going to lie for Bonnie, who she did not like?
12. On page 433 Madeline thought about there being so many levels of evil such as, “Small evils like her own malicious words…Bigger evils like walking out on your wife and newborn baby or sleeping with your child’s nanny.”  Does the “level of evil” make a difference?  Are there also levels of goodness?
13. What were the big and little “lies” in the novel?

*****

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.

Dodgers, by Bill Beverly

REVIEW: On the one hand this was an enthralling story and on the other rather difficult to read.  It described a world that is entirely foreign to me, but the author described it in such a way that I could emphasize with the main character and, in some ways, understand the choices he had to make.  I wouldn’t categorize it as a crime novel, but rather as a story of a young boy trying to find himself and have a life under his control and not others.  Would I recommend this book to others?  Not to someone who was expecting a crime story, but maybe to someone interested in the inner city, gang life or overcoming odds to establish a life.  I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for this review.

Characters
The Boxes – Los Angeles, CA	Eastern US
East – age 15 Ty – younger brother – age 13 Fin – boss, East’s uncle Sidney Johnny  Girl from Jackson, Mississippi – killed on street	The Van East Ty Michael Wilson Walter - age 17 Judge Carver Thompson - target Melanie – daughter Nebraska – Maggie – girl who got in car Iowa – Martha Jefferson – woman in car at airport Stone Cottage, Ohio Perry Slaughter – Slaughterrange Martha – wife Arthur – son

For discussion:

1. East’s job was to organize the crew that guarded Fin’s house.  What skills did East have that he could have used for legitimate purposes?  Could he have used these skills and succeeded if raised elsewhere?
2. When the four were on the road, why did Michael stop at the Casino?  He said it was to try to form the four into a team.  Do you think that was the real reason?
3. What did you think about the four boys on the trip, their personalities, their skills, etc.?
4. Was it possible for the four boys to trust each other?
5. Discuss the relationship between East and his brother, Ty?
6. Was it realistic that Martha Jefferson gave the boys a ride to the airport?
7. When East was working at the paint ball range, were you surprised that he was such a good and honest employee and worker?   Why did he not steal from Perry?
8. Why do you think Perry trusted East when he did not know him?
9. How was East able to understand people so well at the paint ball range?  Was that a skill he learned watching the houses in LA?
10. Were you surprised at the ending?  How did you think the novel would end?
11. What do you think happened to East after the novel ended?
12. Did the author do a good job of describing a world different from the one you, the reader, know? 

*****

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. 

Hag-Seed, by Margaret Atwood

REVIEW: This was very enjoyable as a free-standing book, but even more so with the Shakespeare connection.  Margaret Atwood’s intertwining of The Tempest with the story is so creative it is not all apparent on the surface.  More and more small but insightful connections appear as you are reading as well as later at random times thinking about the novel.  I am not a Shakespearean scholar, but with just a little research and the synopsis in the back of the novel (HINT: Read this first!) I was able to understand and enjoy the multiple layers of connections.  Also, as a reading educator, the work Felix did with literacy in the prison was masterful!  Margaret Atwood obviously did her research!  I highly recommend this book!  I received a complimentary copy of this book for my review.

Characters

Felix –a.k.a. Mr. Duke Nadia – wife, deceased Miranda – daughter, deceased age 3 Anne-Marie Greenland – part of Miranda in The Tempest Anthony (Tony) Price – Felix’s manager at festival, then minister in government Sal O’Nally – Heritage Minister, Minister of Justice Sebert Stanley – Minister of Veteran’s Affairs Freddie O’Nally – Sal’s son, Assistant Director of Makeshiweg Theater Festival at end of novel Makeshiweg Theater Festival Fletcher County Correctional Institute 8Handz Bent Pencil (see expanded list in chapter 32) Estelle – professor, supervised Fletcher courses

 For discussion:

NOTE: Page numbers refer to the hardback edition of the book. 

1. After he was fired from the festival, Felix realized that he needed a purpose.  How important do you think it is to have a purpose in life?
2. The main purpose of Felix’s class at the prison was to improve the inmate’s reading ability and he was very successful.  Why do you think he had such good results? 
3. Other teachers, chaplains, etc. thought that Felix was a bad influence on the prisoners because he “expose[s] these vulnerable men to traumatic situations that can trigger anxiety and panic and flashbacks, or worse, dangerous aggressive behavior.” (page 79)   Felix contends that, “It conjures up demons in order to exorcise them!”  Which opinion do you agree with and why?
4. In the second assignment in the class Felix has the prisoners identify the prisoners, prisons and jailers in The Tempest.  Do you think it was realistic how deeply they were able to understand the play?
5. What did you think about limiting the students’ use of swear words to only those used in the Shakespeare play?    
6. At the end of the class, Felix has the prisoners predict what will happen to their characters from The Tempest.  What do you think will happen to Felix, Estelle, Anne-Marie, Freddie, 8Handz, etc. after the novel ends?
7. Did you think the Shakespeare class as taught by Felix was a worthwhile project and should be funded?
8. Felix told the prisoners in the class that the play was about “changing you mind.”  (page 253) Who changed their minds in the novel?  Who did so of their own choice or because of Felix’s plan?
9. In the Hogarth Shakespeare project, acclaimed authors write a more current version of a Shakespeare play.  How well did Margaret Atwood capture the essence of The Tempest in her book?
10. Could this be enjoyed as a free-standing book with no reference to The Tempest?  Why or why not?  What was positive or negative about the 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.

Left Neglected, by Lisa Genova

Characters

Sarah Bob Lucy Charlie Linus   Mother Nate - son – drowned when six   Heidi – Occupational Therapist, friend   Mrs. Gavin – Charlie’s teacher   Mike – New England Handicapped Sports Association

For discussion:

NOTE: The page numbers are from the paperback edition.

1. Did you find that the dream sequences at the beginning of the novel added to your understanding and enjoyment?
2. Did you find yourself judging Sarah and her lifestyle at the beginning of the novel?  Would you like that lifestyle?
3. What do you think was positive and negative about Sarah’s life before the accident?
4. Is there a solution to help working mothers like Sarah and her family?
5. Were you able to understand the Left Neglect condition from the author’s description?  Was there one event that was most moving to you?
6. Discuss the importance of the poster in the Rehabilitation Center gym.  (See pages 126 and 167.)  Why was the original message and her new view of the poster important to her?
7. On page 135, when Sarah’s pants were too small, her mother advised her to “accept yourself the way you are.”  Was that good advice or do you think Sarah should keep striving to achieve normalcy?  Could she do both?
8. In the same vein, on page 139 Heidi said to Sarah about getting back to pre-accident life, “I hope you get back to a hundred percent.  But you might not.  Instead of only focusing on getting better, you might want to also focus on getting better at living with this.”  Sarah thought this was a defeatist and negative attitude.   Do you agree or not?  Why?
9. For Christmas Bob bought Sarah a new set of skis that she did not feel she was ready for.  He called it “Bob’s Ski Therapy Theory.”  (page 207) Was he being unrealistic or supportive?  Why?
10. Would Sarah have figured out how to help Charlie is she hadn’t been injured and was having similar struggles herself? 
11. What do you think was positive and negative about Sarah’s life after the accident?
12. Both Mrs. Gavin and the clerk at New England Handicapped Sports Association used the phrase, “normal is overrated.”  Do you agree?
13. At the end of the novel, Sarah reflects that “…what I’ve lost in dollars, I’ve gained in time.”  (page 318)   How valuable is time?  Do we value it as a society?  How important is time to you?

*****

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.

 

My Name is Lucy Barton, by Elizabeth Strout

NOTE: This month my Library Book Group is discussing two of Elizabeth Strout's novels, My Name is Lucy Barton and The Burgess Boys.  (The guide for The Burgess Boys was posted in 2014 and updated this week.) It will be a jam-packed evening!

Characters
Family	Others
Lucy William – husband, divorced when children grown Chrissie and Becka – daughters 2nd husband Mother Dad Vicky – older sister William - older brother Aunt Harriett Uncle Roy Abel and Dottie - children	Jeremy – upstairs neighbor Sarah Payne – writer Professor – artist – Lucy had an affair with him in college Evelyn – Catwin’s Cake Shoppe – shared town’s gossip with Lucy’s mother Molla – friend Kathy Nicely – only child from hometown – left husband for teacher who never married her – lost connection with children and husband

 For discussion:

NOTE: Page numbers are from hardback edition.

1. Discuss the various characters.  Did you like them?  Were you able to relate and understand them?
2. How did Lucy’s childhood affect her as a grown up?  Do you think it was realistic that she overcame her childhood experiences – for example, as a preschooler she was routinely locked in the car trunk when there was no one to watch her. (page 58)
3. On page 112, Lucy wrote that she asked experts about what her mother could have remembered about Lucy’s childhood and they stated that they did not know what her mother remembered.  What do you think?  Could these memories be why she never contacted Lucy?  Can you understand Lucy’s childhood?
4. Could you understand Lucy’s father’s reaction to William, Lucy’s first husband, being of German descent after it was revealed that the father had killed two young German men in the war who were not soldiers?   Do you think the father should have been able to overcome that and accept William?
5. Lucy’s second husband grew up poor like she did.  Do you think that will make a difference in their marriage compared to Lucy and William?
6. Discuss the father’s two reactions to William (brother) being gay.  In one he made him walk through town wearing women’s clothes and screamed at him and in the other he held him and cried.  Given the father’s life, could he have reacted any differently? 
7. Was it realistic that Lucy’s mother did not attend or acknowledge her wedding and they barely talked after children first born, but then she showed up at hospital and never left the room for five days?  Then, when Lucy was faced with serious surgery, she abruptly left.
8. Knowing the family relationships, why did William call Lucy’s mother to come and stay with her?
9. On the second to last page, Chrissie told Lucy she hoped her two step-parents would die and Lucy and William could reunite.  Lucy thought, “I did this to my child.”  (page 190) Was this a better or worse situation than the one Lucy grew up in?
10. What did you think about Lucy’s transition to college?  What were some of the gaps in her “knowledge about popular culture?” (page 25) Was it realistic that she would be able to make this transition?
11. When Lucy was having the affair with her college professor, she ended it after he made one small comment about her family eating baked beans.  (page 28) Lucy thought, “…a tiny remark and the soul deflates and say: Oh.”  Do you think this is an insightful comment or is she overreacting?
12. At the writing workshop with Sarah Payne, one of the participants asked Sarah how long she had had PTSD after she jumped when a cat came in through an open window.  Do you think Lucy had PTSD? 
13. After reading this book, do you think you understand the characters?  Do you understand people any better?
14. On page 86 and 87, Strout writes about Lucy seeing a statue in the Metropolitan Museum of Art of a man and his children.  The placard said the man was starving and the children were offering themselves to their father to eat.  Lucy thought, “So that guy knew.  Meaning the sculptor. He knew.  And so did the poet who wrote what the sculpture has shown.  He knew too.”  What did they both know?
15. Lucy had a private consultation with Sarah at the workshop, and Sarah told her, “This is a story about love, you know that. This is a story of a man who has been tortured every day of his life for things he did in the war.  This is the story of a wife who stayed with him.” (page 107) Do you agree that this novel is about love?
16. At the writing workshop, Sarah told the class, “You will have only one story…You’ll write your one story many ways.  Don’t ever worry about story.  You have only one.”  (pages 145-145) Ann Patchett said the same thing at a speech in Pittsburgh, PA in October 2016.  Looking at several of Strout’s book, do you agree?  Are they all one story told differently?
17. At the workshop, Sarah said that the job of a fiction writer is to, “report on the human condition, to tell us who we are and what we think and what we do.”  (page 98) Did Elizabeth Strout fulfill this job for you in this novel?
18. Especially toward the end of the novel there were several short chapters that left a lot of white space on the pages.  Was this white space important to the reading of the book of could the pages have been condensed and thus the cost of the book?
19. What do you think the last page meant?

*****

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.