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ReadingGroupGuides.com Newsletter |
January 2008
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Here's to a Great 2008!
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I love that "great" and "eight" rhyme; anyone else noticed that? It makes for such a nice greeting. I am poised for the start of the year with a calendar where the spine has not yet been cracked. For all my electronic devices --- cell phone, BlackBerry, iPod, laptop, desktop, swim headphones --- I still carry a paper calendar and scrawl notes in it for advance planning. By the end of the year it's stuffed with notes, receipts and papers. I keep the old calendars in a stack at the house; they tell their own story of me and where I was these past years.
We're excited about the new year at ReadingGroupGuides.com. We took a moment to look back and pulled together three "Best of" Lists that list the books that we thought were the "best" for discussions in 2007 in three categories: New Favorites, Ongoing Favorites and Enduring Favorites. Take a look and see how they rank with your own --- and your group's --- picks for each category.
This weekend I am headed to the American Library Association's Midwinter Meeting in Philadelphia. Monday morning I am moderating a panel about book clubs. My panelists are Shireen Dodson, who wrote The Mother-Daughter Book Club; Elizabeth Noble, the author of The Reading Group, Alphabet Weekends and The Friendship Test, whose new book, Things I Want My Daughters to Know, will be in stores on April 8th; Victoria Lustbader, the author of Hidden, whose new book, Stone Creek, will be in stores in May; and Jennifer Hart, whose Book Club Girl blog has become a must-read for me. This event is a great way to jumpstart the year. If any of you are librarians who are attending this convention, drop me a note at [email protected]. I would love to meet up with you!
Our January update has four terrific contests that give you the opportunity to win books for your groups. The books are Song Yet Sung by James McBride, The Serpent's Tale by Ariana Franklin, And Sometimes Why by Rebecca Johnson and Soldier's Heart by Elizabeth D. Samet. Read on for more details.
Two books that I enjoyed are now out in paperback --- Kabul Beauty School by Deborah Rodriguez and The Friday Night Knitting Club by Kate Jacobs. For groups who only read paperbacks here are two selections that I enjoyed, which will be terrific discussion titles. The Friday Night Knitting Club is also our newsletter contest book this month. Those who are subscribed to this newsletter are automatically eligible to win.
Our Registered Book Club offer is When the Morning Comes by Cindy Woodsmall --- 10 groups who are registered with us by January 14th will have the opportunity to chat with Cindy Woodsmall and receive 12 copies of the book. If your group is not registered yet, you can sign up here.
We have interviews with Regina Sinclair about her book club, Books R Us, and Karen LeClerc, a book club facilitator for The Read and Feed Tome-Head Society in Troy, IL.
In the next few weeks we will be working with our bloggers pulling together that feature, which we plan to launch in February. We also are launching our "Themed Reads" feature, where we will be suggesting titles in four themed categories --- Women's Fiction, Books About Other Places, Memoirs and Books Into Movies. We look forward to sharing that with you.
Here's wishing you all a great week of reading with your group. I am off to pull together some last-minute things before I leave for Philadelphia.
Carol Fitzgerald ([email protected])
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Special Contest: Win SONG YET SUNG by James McBride for Your Group
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100 readers will have the opportunity to each win one advance reading copy of Song Yet Sung by James McBride, which will be in stores on February 5th, for their group. Enter between now and Monday, January 21st by filling out the form found here.
More about Song Yet Sung:
Liz Spocott, a young runaway who has odd dreams about the future of the colored race, mistakenly inspires a breakout from the prison attic of a notorious slave thief named Patty Cannon. As Cannon stokes revenge, Liz flees into the nefarious world of the Underground Railroad.
Filled with rich history --- much of the story is drawn from historical events --- and told in McBride's signature lyrical storytelling style, Song Yet Sung brings into full view a world long misunderstood in American fiction: how slavery worked, and the haunting, moral choices that lived beneath the surface.
-Click here to read the guide for Song Yet Sung.
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Click here to read all the contest details.
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Special Contest: Win THE SERPENT'S TALE by Ariana Franklin for Your Group
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100 readers will have the opportunity to each win one advance reading copy of The Serpent’s Tale by Ariana Franklin, which will be in stores on January 31st, for their group. Enter between now and Monday, January 21st by filling out the form found here.
More about The Serpent’s Tale:
Rosamund Clifford, the mistress of King Henry II, has died an agonizing death by poison --- and the king's estranged queen, Eleanor of Aquitaine, is the prime suspect. Henry suspects that Rosamund's murder is probably the first move in Eleanor's long-simmering plot to overthrow him. If Eleanor is guilty, the result could be civil war. The king must once again summon Adelia Aguilar, mistress of the art of death, to uncover the truth.
-Click here to read the guide for The Serpent's Tale.
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Click here to read all the contest details.
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Special Contest: Win AND SOMETIMES WHY by Rebecca Johnson for Your Group
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100 readers will have the opportunity to each win one advance reading copy of And Sometimes Why by Rebecca Johnson, which will be in stores on February 14th, for their group. Enter between now and Monday, January 21st by filling out the form found here.
More about And Sometimes Why:
When Sophia and Darius say good-bye to their teenage daughters one unremarkable morning, they have no idea how permanently their family will be affected by a decision made around the breakfast table. One of the daughters will have a terrible accident, the other will meet a boy. Both events will change their lives forever. Profoundly honest and rendered with a deft lightness of touch, And Sometimes Why is a novel about how quickly life can change and how we must learn to change with it.
-Click here to read the guide for And Sometimes Why.
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Click here to read all the contest details.
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Special Contest: Win SOLDIER'S HEART: Reading Literature Through Peace and War at West Point by Elizabeth D. Samet for Your Group
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15 readers will have the opportunity to each win one copy of Soldier’s Heart: Reading Literature Through Peace and War at West Point by Elizabeth D. Samet, which is now in stores, for their group. Enter between now and Monday, February 4th by filling out the form found here.
More about Soldier’s Heart:
Taking its name from a World War I–era term for a condition akin to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), Elizabeth D. Samet’s memoir offers insights into America’s newest generation of cadets. In each chapter she reflects on a rich trove of literature, from Homer’s ancient epics to the work of modern and contemporary authors. For many of her students, reading brings solace and inspiration. For others, it sparks an examination of doubts or fears. In all cases, Samet’s courses provide exhilarating arenas for the young men and women of West Point to explore life and language.
-Click here to read the guide for Soldier's Heart.
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Click here to read all the contest details.
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HOMECOMING by Bernhard Schlink
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A child of World War II, Peter Debauer grew up in Germany without a father. As an adult, Peter embarks on a search for the truth surrounding his father, supposedly killed during the war. This search takes him across Europe and to the United States and back, finding witnesses, falling in and out of love, chasing fragments of a story and a person who may or may not exist. This is a story about fathers and sons, men and women, war and peace.
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Click here to read the guide for Homecoming.
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THE SENATOR'S WIFE by Sue Miller
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Newly married and newly pregnant Meri is standing on the cusp of her life as a wife and mother. Delia, her neighbor in the adjoining New England town house, is twice Meri’s age, the wife of Tom Naughton, a venerated former U.S. senator --- a man whose habitual infidelities are an open secret in Washington. As dissimilar as they may appear, these two women find themselves leading strangely parallel lives, reckoning with the contours and mysteries of marriage, one refined and abraded by years of complicated intimacy, the other barely begun.
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Click here to read the guide for The Senator's Wife.
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A VERSION OF THE TRUTH by Jennifer Kaufman and Karen Mack
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In the wilds of Topanga Canyon, Cassie Shaw has always felt right at home in the midst of nature, but everywhere else, life seems to be a little harder. At the age of 30, newly single and without a college degree, Cassie is in serious need of a paycheck. So in a desperate move, she lies on her resume when applying for an office job at an elite university. When she finds herself employed by two eccentric professors, Cassie begins to reinvent herself --- and soon encounters some very unexpected consequences.
-Click here to see our One to Watch feature for Jennifer Kaufman, Karen Mack and A Version of the Truth on Bookreporter.com. |
Click here to read the guide for A Version of the Truth.
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THEY DID IT WITH LOVE by Kate Morgenroth
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Sofie and her husband have decided to trade their Manhattan apartment for a house in Greenwich, Connecticut. But the oak-shaded streets are not the tranquil retreat that Sofie expected. When Julia, a member of Sofie’s new neighborhood book club, turns up dead, things get messy. Sofie discovers that everybody has something to hide, including her own husband...
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Click here to read the guide for They Did it With Love.
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Now in Paperback: KABUL BEAUTY SCHOOL by Deborah Rodriguez
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Deborah Rodriguez went to Afghanistan with nothing but a desire to help and a degree in cosmetology. Once there, she joined the recently established Kabul Beauty School, where she not only empowered her students with a new sense of autonomy but also made some of the closest friends of her life. All of these women bring their stories to the Kabul Beauty School, where, along with Rodriguez herself, they learn the art of perms, of friendship, and freedom.
-Click here to read the guide for Kabul Beauty School.
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Click here to visit the official website for Kabul Beauty School.
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Registered Book Club Offer
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For January we have a very special opportunity for Registered Book Groups. Our featured title this month is When the Morning Comes: Sisters of the Quilt, Book Two by Cindy Woodsmall. Groups who have registered with us by January 14th have the chance to win author chats and free books. If your group is not registered, click here to register.
When the Morning Comes by Cindy Woodsmall --- Author Chat and Book Giveaway: 10 groups will have the opportunity to chat with Cindy Woodsmall and receive 12 copies of the book.
More About When the Morning Comes:
Her relationship with fiancé Paul Waddell in tatters, Hannah Lapp has fled her secluded Old Order Amish community in hopes of finding a new home in Ohio with her shunned aunt. Hampered by limited education and hiding her true identity, Hannah struggles to navigate the confusing world of the Englischers.
Back in Owl’s Perch, Pennsylvania, Paul is wracked with regret over his treatment of Hannah. Fearing for her safety, he tries to convince Hannah’s remaining allies --- brother Luke, best friend Mary and loyal Matthew Esh --- to help search for his love. Hannah’s father, however, remains steadfastly convinced of her sinful behavior. His blindness to his family’s pain extends to her sister, Sarah, who shows signs of increasing instability.
Convinced her former life is irreparably destroyed, Hannah finds purpose and solace in life with her aunt and in a growing friendship with Englischer Martin Palmer. Will the countless opportunities in her new life persuade Hannah that her place is amongst the Englischers --- or will she give in to her heart’s call to return home and face her past?
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Click here to register your group.
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This Month's Book Club Interviews
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Every month, Regina Sinclair and the members of her book club, Books R Us, congregate in the food court of a mall in St. Louis, MO. In this interview, Regina explains how a bad reading experience led to the creation of their "Dynamic Reading List" --- a list of books containing pertinent details such as summaries and number of pages --- and how it quickly became the preferred method by which the group's members make their reading choices.
Karen LeClerc is a facilitator of The Read and Feed Tome-Head Society in Troy, IL. In this interview, Karen describes how her group has developed in terms of membership and organization over the past six years. She believes that with all the different book clubs out there, every reader can find a niche in a group that works well for them. The Read and Feed Tome-Head Society does not overemphasize structure, and keeping things "simple," explains Karen, has been both an attraction and a deterrent to members over the years.
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Click here to see all our interviews with book clubs.
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This Month's Poll and Tip
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Poll:
Outside of the book that your group is reading each month, how many books do you read?
1
2-3
4 or more
Tip for January:
Empower yourself for the new year by reading a biography of someone you admire and then share something you never knew about that person with your group.
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Click here to answer the poll.
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This Month's Contest Book: THE FRIDAY NIGHT KNITTING CLUB by Kate Jacobs
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Win a copy of The Friday Night Knitting Club by Kate Jacobs for your reading group!
To be a group to win 20 free copies of this book, all you have to do is sign up for the ReadingGroupGuides.com newsletter by February 1, 2008. If you are receiving this newsletter in your mailbox, you already are signed up!
More about The Friday Night Knitting Club:
Walker and Daughter is Georgia Walker’s little yarn shop is tucked into a quiet storefront on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. The Friday Night Knitting Club was improvised by some of Georgia’s regulars who had strolled into the yarn shop looking for tips on knitting and end up finding much, much more. Once a week they gather to work on their latest projects and chat --- and occasionally clash --- over their stories of love, life and everything else.
Suddenly the shop’s comfortable world is shaken up: James, Georgia’s ex, wants to play a larger role in their life --- and possibly Georgia’s as well. Kat, a former friend from high school, returns to New York as a rich Park Avenue wife, and uneasily renews her old bond with Georgia. Meanwhile, Anita must confront her growing (and reciprocated) feelings for Marty, the kind neighborhood deli owner. The women’s lives gradually weave together stitch by stitch, and when the unthinkable happens, they are forced to realize what they’ve created: not just a knitting club, but a sisterhood.
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Click here to read contest details and rules.
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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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