The most exclusive book club ever

Linda Sappenfield — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 16:31:00 GMT

If and when I write my novel (did you know that November is National Novel Writing Month?) I'll be thrilled if even one person deems it a "page-turner". Speed reading, however, isn't the sole indicator of reader involvement. Call me eccentric, but I can suggest a more significant benchmark.

Here's what happens: you've already passed the "continue or abandon in favor of next book" stage; the story has earned your approval. Then, you know you are truly committed when you imagine a friend or acquaintance reading along and enjoying, commenting upon, or even disdaining the book. The point is, you're already sharing the book and prompting a response to it--and you haven't even finished it. Notice how I attribute all this to "you" in the hopes that I'm not the only person who does this?

This very process played out during preparation for yesterday's Baca Center book discussion. The particularly vibrant Great Conversations selection was "Hekabe" by Euripides, a dramatist who can condense more pathos and ethical dilemmas into a few dozen pages than anyone else you could name. As Hekabe (Hecuba) grieved, argued, and plotted her way through the multi-layered tragedy, some of her assertions evoked speculation: what would group members say about that? By "say", I mean not merely comment but also document opinions with passages brought along or reviewed in advance of the meeting. Yes, it's that kind of group.

Nothing like that occurred during my perusal of a title I couldn't resist: Target Underwear and a Vera Wang Gown. Adena Halpern's contemporary dilemmas, e.g., whether to ditch her stylist, registered as so much less compelling than Hekabe's ancient but ageless ones. Without relating myself, it's no surprise that I couldn't channel anyone else's participation.

Already sold my on my current read, Cristina Garcia's wonderful The Lady Matador's Hotel, I found a particularly sensual passage provoking this vividly imagined scenario: my mom has chosen this book for a a group of her contemporaries. They're sitting in her living room, reading it aloud. Suddenly, eyes widen, lips purse, the room goes silent. Finally, one ventures, "Well, I guess we don't know Jean as well as we thought we did!"

You'll find The Lady Matador's Hotel among the titles offered as Book Club Carryouts. All Carryout selections will delight some book clubs, and overall they represent a range of reading tastes. I hope you'll share them, whether your fellow readers are actual or imaginary!

How green was my novel

Linda Sappenfield — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 18:58:00 GMT

Those of you waiting for a library copy of Jonathan Franzen's new Freedom should know that I finished and returned it early. Nice though it would be to attribute this haste to virtue/consideration, credit goes to the author. As with The Corrections, Franzen's contemporary family epic delivers both astute prose inviting one to linger on the page and a compelling story that spurs the reader forward. The library purchased multiple copies, so chances are excellent that your turn will happen sooner than anticipated.

Walter Berglund is my favorite character (though not the one I understood best, so what does that say about me?) He is ultra-dependable, amazingly well read, and--most importantly--ecologically minded. Whatever else Walter may be doing, his brain continually registers rates of deforestation, overpopulation, and so forth. Examples from Walter's calculating but green thoughts:

Page 545: "...low-end estimate of songbirds daily murdered by cats in the United States was one million, i.e., 365,000,000 per year."
Page 313: "in the two and a half weeks since his meeting in Manhattan with Richard, the world population had increased by 7,000,000. "

Walter would approve of the reusable shopping bags I now carry around, but my internal calculator tallies other sorts of things. Examples from my less green but still life-enriching totals:

0: Number of months until Genealogy After Hours. It's coming up on October 22.
2: Number of service desks on second floor. During most hours the library is open, patrons can get guest passes, library cards, and circulation help at the large counter; reference librarians provide assistance at the new temporary reference desk (which looks exactly like two folding tables). A real counter is on order.
22: Titles available for book clubs in the forthcoming (later this month) Book Club Carryout program. RRPL cardholders will be able to check out a snazzy Ikea tote bag containing 10 copies of a highly discuss-able title. Both fiction and nonfiction titles are offered; many are just-released hardcover editions. Freedom is among them!

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The most exclusive book club ever

How green was my novel