Earlier this week, the Atlanta chapter of the Midtown Review Book Club had the pleasure of hosting author Karen White and hearing all about her current and future work. It was a lot of fun and everyone really seemed to enjoy it. Coincidentally, one of Karen’s favorite authors is Diana Gabaldon, which sparked a conversation among the faithful in which we decided we needed to go back 20 some years and read the first in the Outlander series, OUTLANDER! Some of us read it a long time ago, and others have had it on their list but just hadn’t gotten around to it. So… it’s a long book for a short month, but we’re going for it.
For the details on the Atlanta gatherings (in Sandy Springs), join our Meetup group at http://www.meetup.com/MidtownReview/. (To start a Midtown Review meetup near you – click here: http://www.meetup.com/Midtown-Review-Book-Club/)
If you’re nearby, we’d love to have you join us in person – but if you can’t feel free to comment here or on our Facebook page!
– Dana Barrett, Managing Editor
January is all about author Karen White. I know, I know, it’s only December 1st and we’re already talking about January. Well, that’s because we’re giving our members (and followers) a month off to enjoy the holidays, but then we’re back strong in January with Karen White’s latest book – THE STRANGERS ON MONTAGUE STREET. The book is the third in the Tradd Street series and Atlanta members will get the chance to meet Karen live at our meeting. Get all the details and RSVP on Meetup.com.
In other news… we’ll be doing two non-traditional book club get togethers in the next month or so; a post holiday drink and book swap, and a movie outing to see THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO. If you’re not in Atlanta think about doing something similar with your own book club!
Happy Holidays to All and Happy Reading!
– Dana Barrett, Managing Editor
Earlier this week, the Atlanta chapter of the Midtown Review Book Club got together to discuss BEL CANTO by Ann Patchett. Most of the group liked the book though a few were not so happy with the ending. We had differing opinions on some of the characters and their motivations and somehow we ended up having some heated political debates. You gotta love book club – get a bunch of intelligent, talkative people around a table with wine and you never know what you’re going to get!
This month, purposefully timed with the upcoming movie release, we have chosen THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO by Stieg Larsson. If you’ve already read it, great! You are ahead of the game. If not, now’s the time!! In addition to our usual book club discussion we’re planning a movie night too! For the details on the Atlanta gatherings, join our Meetup group at http://www.meetup.com/MidtownReview/. (To start a Midtown Review meetup near you – click here: http://www.meetup.com/Midtown-Review-Book-Club/)
Here’s a brief synopsis of the book (in case you’ve been living in a cave!):
Stieg Larsson’s #1 bestselling mystery featuring Lisbeth Salander is now a major motion Read More
The Atlanta chapter of the Midtown Review Book Club met earlier this week to discuss SWAMPLANDIA! to mixed reviews. We had a couple of full on haters in the group and a couple of people who weren’t sure what to think, but were glad they had read it. If I’m being fair SWAMPLANDIA! wasn’t my favorite book of all time, but I do give author Karen Russell credit for taking us on an unexpected journey with some wholly original characters.
For October we’re going back about 10 years to read a book I have been meaning to read for… well… 10 years! I’m pleased to announce our October Book Club Pick is BEL CANTO by Ann Patchett. (If you read it when it first came out, now is the perfect time for a re-read!)
Here’s a brief synopsis:
Somewhere in South America, at the home of the country’s vice president, a lavish birthday party is being held in honor of Mr. Hosokawa, a powerful Japanese businessman. Roxanne Coss, opera’s most revered soprano, has mesmerized the international guests with her singing. It is a perfect evening — until a band of gun-wielding terrorists breaks in through the air-conditioning vents and takes the entire party hostage. But what begins as a panicked, life-threatening scenario slowly evolves into something quite Read More
It already seems like a long time ago that the Atlanta chapter of the Midtown Review Book Club met with author Joshilyn Jackson to discuss BACKSEAT SAINTS, but the truth is it was just last week! I usually like to post our next pick right away, but I have to admit the joy and book nerd fabulousness that is The Decatur Book Festival distracted me this month!
So, without further ado, I am happy to announce that our September Book Club Pick is SWAMPLANDIA! by Karen Russell.
Here’s a brief synopsis:
Thirteen-year-old Ava Bigtree has lived her entire life at Swamplandia!, her family’s island home and gator-wrestling theme park in the Florida Everglades. But when illness fells Ava’s mother, the park’s indomitable headliner, the family is plunged into chaos; her father withdraws, her sister falls in love with a spooky character known as the Dredgeman, and her brilliant big brother, Kiwi, defects to a rival Read More
The local Atlanta chapter of the Midtown Review Book Club met earlier this week to discuss ROOM by Emma Donoghue. Interesting discussion. Some were disturbed by the dark nature of the book and didn’t love it, but all agreed it was a page turner.
We’re looking for another page turner this month and hope we’ll find it in our August Pick: BACKSEAT SAINTS by Joshilyn Jackson.
Here’s a brief synopsis:
Ro Grandee is the perfect Texas housewife. She’s determined to be nothing like her long-missing mother, the one who left her with only a heap of old novels and her father’s fists for company, so Ro keeps quiet and takes her husband’s punches like a lady. But Ro wasn’t always this way. Underneath her pastel skirts and hidden bruises lies Rose Mae Lolley, teenaged spitfire, Alabama heartbreaker, and a crack shot with a pistol. Rose Mae is resurrected when a gypsy’s tarot Read More
We had a great meeting to discuss THE HUNGER GAMES earlier this week, with a bigger group than ever! A few in the group weren’t loving how dark the book was – what with the kids killing each other and all – but overall the reaction was very positive and many members have already gone on to finish the trilogy.
Staying with our kinda darkish mood – I’m pleased to announce our July pick: ROOM by Emma Donoghue.
Here’s a brief synopsis:
To five-year-old-Jack, Room is the world. . . . It’s where he was born, it’s where he and his Ma eat and sleep and play and learn. At night, his Ma shuts him safely in the wardrobe, where he is meant to be asleep when Old Nick visits.
Room is home to Jack, but to Ma it’s the prison where she has been held for seven years. Through her fierce love for her son, she has created a life for him in this eleven-by-eleven-foot space. But with Jack’s curiosity building alongside her own desperation, she knows that Room cannot contain either much longer.
Room is a tale at once shocking, riveting, exhilarating–a story of unconquerable love in harrowing circumstances, and of the diamond-hard bond between a mother and her child.
Have your book club read along with us – or start a Midtown Review book club of your own!
If you live in the Atlanta area you can join us to discuss the book. Go to http://www.meetup.com/MidtownReview/ for all the details and to register!
– Dana Barrett, Managing Editor
If you’re like me, you have to read the book before you see the movie. For me it’s not so much about which one is better – it’s more about making the movie experience more robust. This sentiment led to my selection of THE HUNGER GAMES by Suzanne Collins for this month’s Midtown Review Book Club pick. The movie is slated for March 2012 so we should have plenty of time to read the whole trilogy up front if we get really into it!
Here’s a brief synopsis:
In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV. Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister, regards it as a death sentence when she is forced to represent her district in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before – and survived.
Have your book club read along with us – or start a Midtown Review book club of your own!
If you live in the Atlanta area you can join us to discuss the book AND MEET THE AUTHOR! Go to http://www.meetup.com/MidtownReview/ for all the details and to register!
– Dana Barrett, Managing Editor
It’s almost summer and that means it’s time to hit the beach… Or think about hitting the beach… Or just read a great new book with that takes place at a beach. (And has “beach” in the title!)
Without further ado, I am proud to announce our book club selection for May: TEN BEACH ROAD by Wendy Wax.
Here’s a brief synopsis:
Another perfect beach read from the author of The Accidental Bestseller.
Madeline, Avery, and Nikki are strangers to each other, but they have one thing in common. They each wake up one morning to discover their life savings have vanished, along with their trusted financial manager- leaving them with nothing but co-ownership of a ramshackle beachfront house.
Throwing their lots in together, they take on the challenge of restoring the historic property. But just as they begin to reinvent themselves and discover the power of friendship, secrets threaten to tear down their trust-and destroy their lives a second time.
Have your book club read along with us – or start a Midtown Review book club of your own!
If you live in the Atlanta area you can join us to discuss the book AND MEET THE AUTHOR! Go to http://www.meetup.com/MidtownReview/ for all the details and to register!
– Dana Barrett, Managing Editor
Last night several of us got together to discuss the March Book Club Pick: THE LACUNA. Great conversation as always – I think my favorite comment was when Faith mentioned that Harrison Shepard – the main character – was a lot like Forrest Gump. He just seemed to end up in the middle of important historical events. Totally true. Overall we felt the book was tough to get into but worth the read in the end.
This month a lot of other great titles were discussed as possible future picks such as WOLF HALL by Hilary Mantel, SIN IN THE SECOND CITY by Karen Abbott, ONE THOUSAND WHITE WOMEN by Jim Fergus and THE THOUSAND AUTUMNS OF JACOB DE ZOET by David Mitchell. And though I may seem like an evil dictator when it comes to the book club selection, I am actually happy to have your suggestions – so please, keep them coming! In the mean time – and without further ado – I am happy to announce that Jamie Ford’s HOTEL ON THE CORNER OF BITTER AND SWEET is officially our pick for April!
I’m super excited about this pick because I absolutely love this book. I’ve actually read it twice now – which is very rare for me – and it held up equally well on the second reading.
Here’s a brief synopsis:
In the opening pages of Jamie Ford’s stunning debut novel, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, Henry Lee comes upon a crowd Read More
