This month's discussion features one of the major works of Texas writer Elmer Kelton. It's Gem's pick, and accordingly she will preside over our conversation on Tuesday. Gem seems to be putting us through our paces on Texas born writers, witness our wonderful meeting with East Texas native, Joe R. Lansdale. This time around we explore the people and places on the opposite side of the state, West Texas, in Kelton's THE TIME IT NEVER RAINED.
Let's get together on a chilly night and warm our spirits with literature and literary talk.
In related news, the list for 2015 is shaping up nicely! More on that later. But if you're considering picking a title, we need a few more titles by female authors. We have a selection for Black History Month, I will choose a poet for April, Paul has chosen a work by a Chinese dissident writer (banned), and Trudy has chosen a book of short fiction. That leaves the field clear for whatever you might like to choose. More suggestions?
2. We all bring a personal history to our reading which determines if a book “speaks” to us. Did this book speak to you? If so, what did it say?
3. A host of diverse characters inhabit Rio Seco. Are they believable in their identities and in their relationships to each other?
4. The Texas drought of the 1950s lasted seven years. In 2011, East Texas along with the entire state was in severe drought. How did it affect you? Or did it? Here are two websites that speak about drought in Texas.
http://twri.tamu.edu/publications/txh2o/fall-2011/the-time-it-never-rained/http://waterdatafortexas.org
5. Colloquialisms are sprinkled liberally throughout the narrative. Did they enhance or detract from the story? Did you have any favorites?
6. Charlie endures. Does “The Time It Never Rained” resonate Faulkner’s comments?http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/literature/laureates/1949/faulkner-speech.html
Discussion Questions
1. Borrowing from Paul’s question about Alice Munro’s Canada, is there anything that makes this book specifically Texan? Conversely, does it transcend regionalism or speak to greater truths?2. We all bring a personal history to our reading which determines if a book “speaks” to us. Did this book speak to you? If so, what did it say?
3. A host of diverse characters inhabit Rio Seco. Are they believable in their identities and in their relationships to each other?
4. The Texas drought of the 1950s lasted seven years. In 2011, East Texas along with the entire state was in severe drought. How did it affect you? Or did it? Here are two websites that speak about drought in Texas.
http://twri.tamu.edu/publications/txh2o/fall-2011/the-time-it-never-rained/http://waterdatafortexas.org
5. Colloquialisms are sprinkled liberally throughout the narrative. Did they enhance or detract from the story? Did you have any favorites?
6. Charlie endures. Does “The Time It Never Rained” resonate Faulkner’s comments?http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/literature/laureates/1949/faulkner-speech.html
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