Back to Book Club

Book Club is one of the highlights of my month, just as it was in Cape Town.  Not only do I get to chat to a wonderfully diverse group of women, eat great food that I didn't have to cook, and drink wine I didn't have to shop for - I also get to choose books that I haven't read, at a fraction of the price I would have had to pay for them.

It's like Christmas every month. I can't wait to savour my presents.

My choices for July were:

Queen Camilla (Sue Townsend of Adrian Mole fame). If you don't have an understanding of the English psyche, you probably won't enjoy this.  And even if you do, it becomes a bit much at times.

The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared (Jonas Jonasson) What a fabulous book!  It's in the same mould as The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, which I thoroughly enjoyed.  I see they've just released the movie.  I hope it does the book justice.

The Lacuna (Barbara Kingsolver)  Interesting, but rather long-winded.  An amusing coincidence is that there are historical similarities with 'The Hundred Year-Old Man...', but on very different levels.

Sycamore Row (John Grisham)  This was my favourite for the month.  Especially as I had the luxury of starting it at dawn, and finishing it before sunset on the same day. Just couldn't help myself.

On to August:

In the time since I joined this Book Club in June, three new members have joined, so I'm no longer a newbie. I think there are about 18 members now, which would normally be quite cumbersome. But, because of other commitments (aka Real Life), I still haven't met everybody. There have been about ten members at each meeting, which is ideal for getting a chance to chat to everyone.  I met one of the founding members this month (the club has been going since the 70s), for the first time.  She lives in Grahamstown (a 5-hour drive), but she tries to make a plan to come to book club in Mthatha each month.  How's that for commitment? (In Cape Town, one of our members used to go home to Paarl each month, and that was impressive enough!)

August book choice:

The Son (Jo Nesbo) I almost started hyperventilating when I saw this one.  Published in May this year, it's Brand New.  And it was another fabulous day-waster...accompanied by copious amounts of popcorn and Savanna while Bob was Doing Important Stuff in Pretoria.

The Little Old Lady Who Broke All the Rules (Catharina Ingelman-Sundberg) This genre seems to be the latest fad. I was really looking forward to this, but it is a pale imitation of  'The Hundred Year-Old Man...'.  Even though the story was amusing, I found the writing to be inconsistent and stilted in places.  I thought perhaps it was because of the translation, but Rod Bradbury also translated 'The Hundred Year-Old Man...', which was a very easy and enjoyable read. 

Talking of translations, I see that I have a definite leaning towards the Nordic.  Translations are becoming more popular, and it seems as if a whole new world is opening up for fiction readers.  Yippee!

The Secret Daughter (Shilpi Somaya Gowda) I'm usually hesitant to read Chick Lit, but this one went a long way towards changing my mind. Powerful stuff.

And finally, The Language of Flowers (Vanessa Diffenbaugh) More Chick Lit.  But I woke up at 03:00 this morning (Mthatha mozzies don't know it's winter) and started reading it.  I'm absolutely loving it - so refeshingly different, yet very real.

I'm hosting Book Club in November, and have no idea what books to buy.  Food is easy - Vegetarian and Banting (Yes, it's reached Mthatha).  The closest Exclusive Books is 220km away, and the ONLY bookshop in town is in a shopping centre I have been told that it's only safe to go into with an armed chaperone (Bob's got arms, two in fact - so we're going there on Sunday morning). 

But...I'm lucky enough to be visiting Cape Town next month, so would be most grateful for any book ideas.

And now, if you'll excuse me, I'm being called by my book - I really need to find out more about The Language of Flowers.