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ReadingGroupGuides.com Newsletter |
July 2005
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Summer Reading
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A couple of weeks ago I went to Chicago for the American Library Association Conference. It was a terrific opportunity to meet with librarians and think about ways that we can work better with them with ReadingGroupGuides.com. The librarians I met were enthusiastic about their readers and I felt I was talking to kindred spirits when we met in the aisles and on the convention busses. While some were aware of our websites, many were not. May I ask you to print a copy of this newsletter and share it with your local librarians?
During this convention I also had the pleasure of hearing Nancy Pearl talk about her new book MORE BOOK LUST, which yes, is a follow up to her first book, BOOK LUST. Once again she talks about more than 120 reading lists of books, by category. She was like a cheerleader for readers and books. I wish I remembered one-tenth of the books I read as well as she does those she was quoting from. I found myself scribbling notes about what she said, making a new reading list. We will have an interview with Pearl here soon with her thoughts on what makes a great reading group selection.
During this trip, I read SNOW FLOWER AND THE SECRET FAN by Lisa See. A friend at the publisher sent it to me and said, "You have to read this!" I am so glad I did. It's a novel of the friendship between two women in 19th-Century China that reads absolutely beautifully. I learned so much about this period, which I will confess I was not that interested in before I started reading. See's writing drew me in and kept me excited from the first page. I encourage this as a great book club title. One challenge here: I dare you to not google "foot binding" after you are done. Once you read about this, I am betting you will be as drawn to see photos as I was. It's truly scary how torturous this treatment was for young girls.
Books can spur hobbies. I started knitting again after reading Debbie Macomber's THE SHOP ON BLOSSOM STREET last year, which she followed up with A GOOD YARN this year. I am working on a scarf while I am on this trip, which has been fun. Emilie Richards' book, ENDLESS CHAIN, is inspiring me to think about quilting. We have heard that many knitting and quilting groups are enjoying reading these titles and discussing them. It's a thought for those of you who like to combine reading and crafts with your discussions.
We have two new staffers at The Book Report Network, which brings our total staff up from six to eight. Jennifer Krieger joined us last month as Traffic Coordinator, after graduating from NYU. She's taking on the role of coordinating all our features and projects, as well as doing the setup on our weekly and monthly newsletters. Marisa Emralino is our Editorial Assistant. She is working with Tom Donadio, our Editorial Manager, on features for all our websites. Marisa is a graduate of Fordham University, my alma mater. She had been interning with us for the past year. It's a pleasure to have both Jen and Marisa on board. You can read their bios in our About Us section.
Know a teen? If so, I would love them to answer our Teenreads.com Reader Survey. We have some great prizes we are giving away to the teens who answer. You point them to the survey here. Teens only, please.
While many groups do not meet over the summer, we know you all are always on the prowl for books to read with your club. We have some new selections this month that you may want to explore.
Have a great July. I am writing this note from a pool at the base of Beaver Creek mountain. I have been eyeing up a trail to hike for the last couple of hours as I have been working. It's time to get going. By the way, THE WILD GIRL by Jim Fergus --- and a chance to chat with him --- is our offering to our registered book clubs this month. See details about registering your group later in this newsletter. I just read that at the local bookstore here, The Bookworm of Edwards, Colorado, THE WILD GIRL is on their top 10 list. It's fun seeing lists from all over the country like this.
Hope you find some adventures in books --- and beyond --- this summer.
Carol Fitzgerald ([email protected])
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Special Feature and Contest: SARAH by Marek Halter
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Marek Halter's first book in his Canaan Series, SARAH, was already an international bestseller before it hit American bookstores in April, 2004. The book's unique blend of biblical mysticism and feminist overtones drew comparisons to Anita Diamant's THE RED TENT. But Halter's novel stands alone in its spellbinding depiction of the lives of the women of The Old Testament, and specifically, that of Sarah, the wife of Abraham and the mother of the Israelite nation.
Thought-provoking and engrossing, SARAH brings us into the mind of an elusive biblical figure, a woman shrouded in mystery and shadowed by myth; Halter renders her human, complex and fascinating, flawed and ultimately real.
This summer dip into an ancient world and immerse yourself in this riveting novel. In our special contest, enter to win 12 copies of SARAH for your group. To enter send your name and mailing address to [email protected] by July 31st, 2005. The winner will be chosen by a random drawing.
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Read more about the contest and see the guide for SARAH here.
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SNOW FLOWER AND THE SECRET FAN by Lisa See
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Lily is haunted by memories of who she once was, and of a person, long gone, who defined her existence. She has nothing but time now, as she recounts the tale of Snow Flower, and asks the gods for forgiveness. SNOW FLOWER AND THE SECRET FAN is a brilliantly realistic journey back to an era of Chinese history that is as deeply moving as it is sorrowful. With the period detail and deep resonance of MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA, this lyrical and emotionally charged novel delves into one of the most mysterious of human relationships: female friendship.
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Read the guide for SNOW FLOWER AND THE SECRET FAN here.
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REPRODUCTION IS THE FLAW OF LOVE by Lauren Grodstein
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It's a Saturday morning in Brooklyn. Joel Miller, age twenty-eight, stands outside his locked bathroom door. Behind it are his girlfriend Lisa, a Dixie cup, and a pregnancy test. Thus begins Lauren Grodstein's beguiling debut novel, a wise, wonderfully assured journey deep into the heart of the commitmentphobic male. REPRODUCTION IS THE FLAW OF LOVE fearlessly charts the romantic odyssey of one endearing New York bachelor, and in so doing illuminates some universal truths about family, loyalty, devotion, and love.
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Read the guide for REPRODUCTION IS THE FLAW OF LOVE here.
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ALMOST FRENCH: Love and a New Life in Paris by Sarah Turnbull
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A delightful, fresh twist on the travel memoir, ALMOST FRENCH takes us on a tour that is fraught with culture clashes but rife with deadpan humor. Sarah Turnbull's stint in Paris was only supposed to last a week. Chance had brought Sarah and Frederic together in Bucharest, and on impulse she decides to take him up on his offer to visit him in the world's most romantic city. Sacrificing Vegemite for vichyssoise, the feisty journalist does her best to fit in, although her conversation, her laugh, and even her wardrobe advertise her foreign status.
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Click here to read the guide for ALMOST FRENCH: Love and a New Life in Paris.
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JOURNEY FROM THE LAND OF NO by Roya Hakakian
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In JOURNEY FROM THE LAND OF NO Roya Hakakian recalls her childhood and adolescence in prerevolutionary Iran with candor and verve. The result is a beautifully written coming-of-age story about one deeply intelligent and perceptive girl's attempt to find an authentic voice of her own at a time of cultural closing and repression. Remarkably, she manages to re-create a time and place dominated by religious fanaticism, violence, and fear with an open heart and often with great humor.
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Read the guide for JOURNEY FROM THE LAND OF NO here.
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KINGSTON BY STARLIGHT by Christopher John Farley
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Irish-born Anne Bonny is only a teenager when she is left destitute by her mother's death. Abandoned by her father, she seems destined to be forgotten by the world. But Anne chooses to seek her fortune in the lush tropics of the colonial West Indies, where she passes herself off as a young man named Bonn. Gorgeously written and full of mystery, intrigue, and startling revelations about gender, race, history, and the human heart, KINGSTON BY STARLIGHT is a once-in-a-lifetime read.
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Read the guide for KINGSTON BY STARLIGHT here.
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WHATEVER MAKES YOU HAPPY by Lisa Grunwald
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What does it take to be happy? How happy is happy enough? And what does "happy" mean, anyway? So asks Sally Farber -- wife, mother, daughter, friend, working woman, and lover -- in this wise and funny novel about a woman's search for happiness in some of the right, and a few of the wrong, places.
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Click here to read the guide for WHATEVER MAKES YOU HAPPY.
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For Registered Readers: THE WILD GIRL by Jim Fergus
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This July ReadingGroupGuides.com is giving three Registered Book Clubs the opportunity to win a chance to chat with Jim Fergus and win 12 copies of THE WILD GIRL for their group. Fergus is the author of the bestselling book and book club favorite, ONE THOUSAND WHITE WOMEN.
THE WILD GIRL is a novel in the tradition of Little Big Man, tracing one man's search for adventure and the wild Apache girl who invites him into her world.
ONE THOUSAND WHITE WOMEN is the story of May Dodd's 1875 journey west into the unknown, her involvement in a government program that brought women west as brides for the Cheyenne, and her conflict of being caught between two worlds, loving two men and living two lives.
Groups must be registered by Friday, July 15th to be eligible to receive this offer.
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To register your reading group click here.
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This Month's Poll: Asking A Member to Leave
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Have you ever had to ask a member to leave your book group?
Yes
No
No, but we should.
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Answer our poll here.
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Thinking Ahead: Here's a tip for August
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Each month have each member bring a book that he or she has read beyond the group's book club selection. Tell other club members about it in a couple of lines. Once you go around the room sharing your selections think how many books you will have learned about.
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This Month's Contest: SNOW FLOWER AND THE SECRET FAN by Lisa See |
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A subscription to our newsletter is all you need to be entered in our monthly contest.
Click here to learn more about SNOW FLOWER AND THE SECRET FAN.
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Read contest details here.
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Do you like what you see here, and want to forward it to a friend? Then click our link on the bottom of the page to do just that!
Happy reading. We'll see you next month.
Don't forget to visit our other websites from TheBookReportNetwork.com: Bookreporter.com, AuthorsOnTheWeb.com, FaithfulReader.com, AuthorYellowPages.com, Teenreads.com, and Kidsreads.com.
Carol Fitzgerald ([email protected])
The Book Report Network
250 W. 57th Street - Suite 1228
New York, New York 10107 |
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