Recap of a Lecture given by Erik Larson at Monmouth University

Last year I wrote an article for a local paper about a lecture given by Larson at Monmouth University.  I’m sharing this with you in case your book club is looking for a good book.

“If you don’t know history, then you don’t know anything. You are a leaf that doesn’t know it is part of a tree. ” ― Michael Crichton

Well, Erik Larson knows history.  He is a mastermind at finding those historical exploits that people don’t know or have forgotten, then researches the hell out of them and turns them into New York Times bestselling novels. That sounds a lot easier than it is.

On Monday night, March 28, Larson spoke to a packed house at the Pollak Theatre at Monmouth University. The event was part of the Department of History and Anthropology’s Charles Mayes lecture series on World War I.

Larson’s latest book “Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania,” deals with the torpedoing of the ship by the Germans two years before the United States entered World War I.  

Just as he did in his previous books, Larson’s characters are presented in a narrative arch in a natural way. “…by finding the right bits and pieces to the story we can experience the event through their eyes when they don’t know the ending.” Larson told the assembly.

The lawsuits that were brought after the sinking created a lot of archival material.  Larson found that most writers had written about the diplomatic pressures of entering World War I after the sinking of the ship, but not about the people involved or the ship’s fateful voyage. (more…)

Born in the USA

This is why I love book cub, because you end up reading a book that you would not have picked. And bam – you just love it.  One of our members suggested “Born to Run,” by Bruce Springsteen. Although I like memoirs, I haven’t read one in quite a while, and certainly not about a rock and roll superstar.  But I like Bruce Springsteen and I ended up loving his memoir.

According to the summary on Amazon, Springsteen took seven years to write his story. The book is interesting, thoughtful, and soul-searching.  Honest. Like having a drink with the man at the bar before one of his gigs.

Springsteen accounts of his childhood are vivid.  I’m not sure how he remembers so many details.  I loved the fact that his mother had him take dance lessons so she had someone to dance with at weddings and other functions. Mom sure knew best and gave her son a step up with the girls in high school. He didn’t stand on the sidelines during school dances.  He felt confident enough to ask girls to dance.

His aha moment came early in his life when he saw Elvis Presley on The Ed Sullivan Show.   He became unrelenting in quest to become a musician.  Springsteen worked all sorts of odd jobs to get a guitar, eventually also lessons. He had found his passion and desire. (more…)

A Unique Perspective on Success

I’m always curious about everything and love reading non-fiction books just as much as I do fiction.  I have a stack of books in my office, bedroom, living room, just about everywhere, and in one of those beautiful dusty piles was Malcolm Gladwell’s “Outliers.”  I picked it out from under the pile, blew the dust off and thought we’d end our 2016 book club year with “Outliers.”

bfbc-11-16-gladwellI love reading Gladwell’s work.  It’s understandable to a non-scientific rube like me and it’s always fun to discuss at book club.  When I read his work, it’s like I’m sitting down having a conversation with him.  I get it.  Well, most of it. And I remember pieces of it for a long time.

We are a product of our environment – we all know that innately.  We know somehow that we have similarities with Grandma or Grandpa because our parents always told us “you’re just like your Grandmother or Grandfather.”  But after we eye-rolled ourselves out of the conversation with our parents we never gave it much thought.  In “Outliers,” Gladwell not only believes there is a strong connection with immediate family, but also with your ancestors. 

He has such an inquisitive mind and I can imagine him sitting in Central Park, or anywhere, absorbing everything around him, connecting the conversation of the people behind him with a conversation he heard at a lecture the week before, forming a connection then researching and interviewing people until he starts to connect the Legos of our lives building one on top of the other until this his unique perspective is complete.  (more…)

The Weather and Book Club

A freak weather storm thwarted plans for our July book club meeting.  Power went out and trees were down so we had to cancel.

It’s funny in a way, I just finished “Isaac’s Storm,” by Erik Larson.  The book is non-fiction about the deadliest hurricane in history, which occurred in Galveston, Texas on September 8, 1900.  Our little puffer paled in comparison and we are grateful it did after experiencing Hurricane Sandy. 

It is so hard to imagine nature’s fury unless you’ve been through it. “Isaac’s Storm,” is an amazing read and great for conversation at book clubs.   You’ll discuss just how far we’ve come in predicting storms and in the bureaucratic red tape that cost a lot of people their lives.  Excellent read.  I haven’t read an Erik Larson book I didn’t love.

Adversity and Life Transformations were May’s book club topics

bfbc 5-13 wineWe had book club at my house featuring some scrumptious cupcakes, good wine and other tasty edibles.  As always we never seem to make it out of my kitchen.  

Over sandwiches and salad we talked about this month’s book “Ten Years Later – Six People Who Faced Adversity and Transformed Their Lives,” by Hoda Kotb with Jane Lorenzini.  All six people conquered huge physical and emotional challenges and some overcame tragedy. See my review to the right under Kotb.

Nothing inspires like a courageous person going through hell and raising above it. That’s what these six brave people did.  No matter what you are going through in your life, there is always someone worse off.  These six people found that special combination of hope and perseverance and transformed their lives.

Definitely worth the read.bfbc 5-16 cupcakes

January 2016 Book Club Meeting

bfbc january 2016-1January always seems to start off with a bang.  Our lovely ladies regroup after the holidays and begin the year with gusto.

Fran picked “The Happiness Project,” by Gretchen Rubin to begin the year.  We are going to do one chapter a month to restore our happiness levels and go after our goals.  January’s section is “Boost Energy.”  Rubin gives some good clear ways to help achieve that.

We are of an age where we appreciate advice and learn from it.  We filter out anything that hasn’t worked in the past and are grateful for new insights.

In Chapter 1 Rubin suggests going to sleep earlier, exercising better, tossing out stuff, organizing stuff, tackling a nagging task and acting more energetic.  All these steps will boost your vitality.  And we know that she’s right, it’s just making yourself do it.  She talks about her own struggles and helps target ways of overcoming your doubts and inspiring you.

Next month we will read and discuss Chapter 2 along with the book “Appetite for Violets,” by Martine Bailey.

#thebestpairing

Every year I’m amazed at how our lives twist and turn. How events hit out of the blue and change us forever.  By now we’ve all experienced the in the blink of an eye crisis, surprise illnesses and other life-altering experiences that test us fully.  We, in time, manage to pick up ourselves, our family, our friends and continue on.  Each event takes something and adds something leaving behind a revamped version of ourselves.

Reading and friends have always helped me bridge the gap of my pain after an event and help restore me to functioning. Stories show us how other people overcome and change.  They can guide us on a course of action, and show us we are not alone.   Friends soothe us.  True friends bestow their love and listen without judgment.  Sometimes all you need is someone standing by your side.

That’s the real value of reading and friendship. If you put them together you have a book club.  The very best of both worlds and I’m so incredibly happy to have such an amazing group of women I call friends.

Here’s to another year of twists and turns and knowing that we are all their together.

Photo by Denise Panyik-Dale
Photo by Denise Panyik-Dale

 

 

November 2015 Book Club

bfbc mom childWe had a lovely book club last night.  Our book was “Pieces of My Mother” by Melissa Cistaro.

The author’s memoir is heartbreakingly sad.  She elevated the harshness of the story with elegant prose, but it never leaves the reader uplifted or inspired.

I’m glad I read the book, sadness and all, and I think book clubs can use this book to open up dialogue about our own dysfunctional moments.  See my review to the right.

 

July 2015

bfbc groupThis month we did something different.  We joined another book club for a discussion of the Morristown Festival of Books’ One Community, One Book (OCOB) selection “The Lost Ravioli Recipes of Hoboken,” by Laura Schenone.  Book clubs and readers from all over the area were asked to read a single book and discuss it. (See my review under the author’s name to the right.)

We had met the lovely ladies of Long Valley at the Morristown Festival of Books’ kick-off reception in April and decided to try to join together for the OCOB pick.

Two of the Long Valley ladies made the ravioli recipe in Schenone's book, which was delicious.
Two of the Long Valley ladies made the ravioli recipe in Schenone’s book, which was delicious.

It was an amazing experience and I highly recommend it to other book clubs.  Not only was it fun, but it was also enlightening.

March 2015

pctIn case you couldn’t guess from the picture we read “Wild,” by Cheryl Strayed for this month’s pick.

We all loved it and recommend it to other book clubs.  (See my review on right under the author’s name.)

We wanted to go to the movie to see the Pacific Crest Trail, but unfortunately only a few shots are on the PCT and they are all in Oregon.  Too bad!

 

July 2014 Book Club

bfbc booksWe had book club at my house on a beautiful July evening.  It was so close to our June meeting that we decided to read a Kindle Single tilted “An Unexpected Twist,” by Andy Borowitz.  It’s about his experience with a medical procedure and just how bad some procedures go.  Worth the read.

We also read “Masters of Love,” by Emily Esfahani Smith.  It’s about a study done in “The Atlantic.”  The link is http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2014/06/happily-ever-after/372573/.  The article is quite good and we had a lot of discussion between us.

Kindle Singles are a great alternative to those stressed out months when people have no time to read an entire book.  I like short stories and am writing a few myself right now.