I LOVE our new book selection!!

I finished it on the plane home from the Bahamas and I loved every, single story. I may even read it again before our next meeting. I do kind of have an affection for all things India since my trip (well, almost all things, right Miss Whimsy).

Mostly what I loved was her frank look at the sadness and disappointment that everyday events can cause. I am also a sucker for all things melancolic and these stories were certainly that. *sigh*

We all need a little woe to make us go.

"Mrs. Sen's" and "A Real Durwan" were my favorites with "A Temporary Matter" and "Sexy" running a close second.

As for our fluffy selection, The Witching Hour, I have read this one before. I love it and it's right up my alley because it super paranormal. woooo-ooo...

Anyone up for a scary movie?

July Meeting

Hello Broads,

At the end of the last meeting we agreed to check in closer to the date to see when we were going to meet this month (I think). So I am writing to find out where everyone is at re: meeting this Sunday. I know some people will not be able to make it if we meet this Sunday and others not if we meet next Sunday.

Please send a quick email or post a response here to let us know when you'd prefer to meet and we'll just make an executive decision.

Thanks ladies.

June Club Meeting

Book club this month will be at Douglas Park (Heather
and 20th). We'll be at the north side of the park
under the trees just east of the path that divides it
in two. 3pm as usual. My house is just a couple of
blocks away, so if the weather takes a turn for the
worse we can go there. I'll bring tea and cookies or
something, but if you want anything else (alcoholic or
otherwise) bring it along. Bring a blanket if it's
not a hassle, else we can all squeeze onto mine.

Sorry for the last minute email. My organizational
skills are seriously lacking.

See you soon,
Gina.

Incestuous ballerinas, here I come!

I just received notice that the library is holding "Flowers in the Attic" for me.

Oh dear, I've had this problem before.

I am committed to the respectability and reputation of Madame Bovary...but I am now going to be tempted by the salacious indulgence of Flowers.

I'm not very good at avoiding salacious indulgences.

Favourite Books

At one of our book club meetings, we discussed posting our favourite books. Here are a few of mine. I noticed that some of the books I chose ended up as movies. Thank god I read the book first.

1. White Oleander - Janet Fitch
2. The Good Earth - Pearl S. Buck
3. Eleven Minutes - Paulo Coelho
4. Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
5. The Hours - Michael Cunningham
6. She's Come Undone - Wally Lamb
7. Amy and Isabelle - Elizabeth Strout
8. Geek Love - Katherine Dunn
9. Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
10. Hotel Honolulu - Paul Theroux
11. The Reader - Bernhard Schlink
12. Girl with the Pearl Earring - Tracy Chevalier

Absurd Fancies

Argh. Madame Bovary. I hate this book. Not because it's bad. Not because it's terribly written. Because it isn't — it's one of the best.

But because it's one draggingly long story about a repressed woman who is negotiating an opressed life and a supressed orgasm. It's depressing — at least, that was my opinion ten years ago. Maybe this childish opinion will change upon reading it a second time.

My understanding of choice has changed. Unlike in my younger, more earnest days, I no longer determined my choice by "right over wrong". Choice now — sometimes right, sometimes wrong — is a decision that I make based on the paths open to me. It's nebulous. It's tinged with a hint of wrong, though it feels right for me.

Madame Bovary is the story of the ruin of a woman consumed in her own absurd fancies.

What are yours?

B3 (BiblioBroads Blog) Challenge!

Recently, while strolling the seawall with my tender hunk of manflesh, he and I spied a sailboat named Jet Lag. Lame, non? We began discussing the trials of naming a sailing vessel.

Naming a boat is not a matter to be undertaken lightly. Our current author touches on this topic briefly. Some of the sailors call the ship the Willamena rather than William (because ships are supposed to be female?) or sometimes just The Will.

What would you name your boat?



Before you answer here are some things to keep in mind...

The Explanation Test: How often do you want to explain what the name means? Bizarre Greek gods, in-jokes and Latin phrases (Carpe Diem doesn’t count) usually fail this test. The non-cute test. How sappy is the name? Puns, childhood nicknames and in-jokes usually fail.

The Brevity Test: Imagine repeating your boat name three times, especially if calling “mayday.” Are you hoarse yet? .

The Hubris Test: If you’re racing, try not to pick names like Magic Bullet unless, of course, you have that one-in-a-million boat that actually wins every time.

The “Been There, Done That” Test: There are a lot of Obsessions and Odysseys out there already.

The Omen Test: Naming your boat the Money Pit one day may mean you need a new engine the next.

The Radio Test: Lots of words that look good — Slithery, for example — sound pretty funny on channel 16..


Mine would be Marlow (after the protagonist in Heart of Darkness).