May 2020 Host:  Stephanie 

Reader's Choice (plus zoom meeting)

June 2020 Host:  Stephanie

Reader's Choice plus watch movie based on book (plus zoom meeting)

 

April 2020 Host:  Megan

Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

Summary

Persepolis is the story of Satrapi's unforgettable childhood and coming of age within a large and loving family in Tehran during the Islamic Revolution; of the contradictions between private life and public life in a country plagued by political upheaval; of her high school years in Vienna facing the trials of adolescence far from her family; of her homecoming--both sweet and terrible; and, finally, of her self-imposed exile from her beloved homeland. It is the chronicle of a girlhood and adolescence at once outrageous and familiar, a young life entwined with the history of her country yet filled with the universal trials and joys of growing up.
Edgy, searingly observant, and candid, often heartbreaking but threaded throughout with raw humor and hard-earned wisdom--Persepolis is a stunning work from one of the most highly regarded, singularly talented graphic artists at work today. This review is posted on Amazon.com and I borrowed it as I have not yet read the book and most of us were unable to get it in time for our book club zoom meeting.

 

 

February 2020 Host:  Stephanie

The Museum of Extraordinary Things by Alice Hoffman

Summary

The author tells the story of the textile factory fire that occurred in 1911 in New York in which over 140 young people, mostly women and girls were killed either by the fire, smoke inhalation, or jumping from the burning building. Her narrators are two people, one a lost soul who becomes a photographer who is greatly affected by the images he captures as a witness to the horrible blaze. The other is a young woman who is captured in a prison of her adoptive father's making in his museum that features oddities, human, plant or animal. The two meet through unusual circumstances and fall in love, which gives them each the impetus to escape the struggles of getting through life individually. They form a bond that carries them through some very difficult times. The author weaves the story masterfully from start to finish and keeps the reader riveted with her description of 1900's New York City.  We met at Rio Grande restaurant but I forgot to take a picture.  This is a picture of us at the same restaurant in 2016.