February Meeting

A rather more healthy group of 6 of us met at the Warwick Arms to discuss 'The Behaviour of Moths' by Poppy Adams, thanks to everyone who came and also welcome to our newest member, Louise.

I think most people enjoyed the book which was voiced by an aging moth collector (lepidopterist), Ginny, who after years of living alone is suddenly joined by her sister, Vivien.  Ginny starts to recall her youth and the story of her family which is very bizarre and dark in places.  Vivien rocks Ginny's world when she uncovers secrets from their youth which were maybe better left unsaid.  Some of us thought that Ginny was just an eccentric whilst others though she was mentally ill, her narration is quite cold and severe in places which backs up the mental illness case and her decision at the end of the book (not to give anything away) is surprising and unnerving.  There were many unanswered questions raised by the book which made a lively discussion which really made me appreciate this book all the more.

Result: 5 of us enjoyed this book.

We chose our next book from the following:

• Sacred Hearts by Sarah Dunant
• The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield
• The Children's Book by A. S. Byatt
• The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
• Sleep, Pale Sister by Joanne Harris

We chose 'The Thirteenth Tale' by Diane Setterfield.  The next meeting will be on Thursday 11th March, this meeting will be our 1 year anniversary so we're planning a special meeting at Lisa's house, details to follow on email to our regular members.

10th December - Mary's House

Merry Christmas! And what a lovely Christmas party we had at Mary's. Everyone brought a dish and we had some lovely grub.

We discussed 'Sum' by David Eagleman, a collection of short stories about what the afterlife might be like. It was a little different to our usual books, there was no story line or characters we could talk about but the little ideas it planted gave us a good opportunity to discuss our ideas of the afterlife. Everyone liked the book, it was ideal for reading in short bursts.

Result: 6 of us liked this book.

We chose our book after next from the following:

• Generation X by Douglas Coupland
• The Memory Garden by Rachel Hore
• The Behavious of Moths by Poppy Adams

We chose 'The Behaviour of Moths' by Poppy Adams, although votes were tied with 'Generation X' but a toss of a coin decided for us.

The next meeting will be back at the Warwick Arms on Thursday 14th January 2010 (!)

Don't forget our Christmas (Oscar Wilde themed) walk on Sunday, lets hope the snow doesn't hamper our progress too much.

Have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.