The Winter of Our Discontent, by John Steinbeck

“You don’t have to sell your soul to the devil, just to the highest bidder”
From an Alice Walker work

Persons attempting to find a motive in this narrative will be prosecuted; persons attempting to find a moral in it will be banished; persons attempting to find a plot in it will be shot.
By Order of the Author
Mark Twain from “Huckleberry Finn”

Meeting:  May 2015

Questions provided by Dr. James Harold:

1. Give your overall opinion of this novel. How does it compare to other Steinbeck works you have read? How does “east coast Steinbeck” compare to “west coast Steinbeck”?

2. Explain the significance of the title.

3. This novel takes place between Easter and the Fourth of July weekends. Discuss the metaphorical significance of this.

4. Ethan Hawley’s beliefs and character have many influences. Discuss the influence of those from the past such as Aunt Deborah, the Hawley Family ancestors, the military, and any others.

5. Discuss his more current influences-Mary and his kids, Margie, money, Marullo, and others.

6. Critics and reviewers feel Steinbeck is addressing the moral issues of mid 20th century America. Are these issues present in modern day America? The world?


7. The story is told from the point of view of Ethan’s thoughts. Does this work? As Steinbeck’s editor, what suggestions would you have made before publication?

Space, In Chains, by Laura Kasischke

"Even when poetry has a meaning, as it usually has, it may be

inadvisable to draw it out...Perfect understanding will sometimes almost extinguish pleasure."~ A.E. Housman from The Name and Nature of Poetry


"No poet has joined the chasm of ontological despair to the pathos of household frustration so well as Kasischke at her best, and she is - though eerie, though willing to let threads dangle, though looser in the poems' weave than she has been - at her best often in Space, In Chains."

~ Stephen Burt, writing in The New York Times

"Poems clotted with wonder, terrifying as Rilkean angels, fertile and corrosive as volcanic ash. A poetry of grand pronouncements in a minor key, like Charles Wright with a more overt sense of humor and better rhythm. What can you say about riddles that remain recondite?"

~ Dave Bonta, writing for Via Negativa

"Poetry is the expression of the experience of poetry."

~ Wallace Stevens

Howdy,

The poet that I chose for our annual observance of National Poetry Month, is a writer who came to

Laura Kasischke

my notice (on Public Radio upon the publication of her novel, Suspicious River) chiefly through numerous glowing endorsements of her prose. 

Laura Kasischke is as prolific a poet as a novelist, and her reputation as an author who was not shy about telling her tales in, shall we say, "a minor key," put her on my radar as someone to read as soon as humanly possible. As to her novels, three of which have been made into films, I've not yet had the pleasure. It is perhaps telling about me that I decided to approach this intriguing writer first through her verse. I can tell you that as a result not only will I delve deeper into her poems again (including this book), I will also be reading several editions of her novels now adorning our shelves.

A phrase that comes up from time to time about poetry that was most notably employed by John Keats is "Negative Capability." That is a phrase that came easily to mind as I read Space, In Chains. And I feel certain that it will come up again in our discussion on Tuesday night, April 28. At the time that I chose Kasischke's book, I was not aware that it had won the 2012 National Book Critics Circle Award. This fact, coupled with many praiseworthy critical essays on the book would seem to acquit my selection.

That, of course, remains to be seen. I always look forward to the April meeting as one of those that tends to be most unpredictable and somehow transformative. So many have been the times when through some mystical combination of libations, the evening air, sights, and sounds (poetry read aloud and birdsong) experienced on Tom and Trudy's porch, minds were changed, spirits were expanded. I expect no less in the meeting to come. On Tuesdaynight, let's read lyrical poetry out loud to one another. And though some of the lyrics be dark, light may yet come out of them. See you then.

Durren

Discussion Questions

1. As you read Kasischke's poetry, did you do so silently or out loud? Did reading aloud add in any way to your enjoyment or your understanding of the poems?

2. Read for us your favorite poem (Assuming, of course, that you have one). Tell us how or why it spoke to you.

3. When asked in interview about the process of writing the poems in Space, In Chains Kasischke says the following:

"A few years ago I read an interview with the fiction writer Dan Chaon in which he was asked about his fiction-writing process. He said that he starts out by writing a scene, or maybe a character sketch, puts it in a folder, and puts it away. Then at some point he writes another, and then maybe another, and puts those in the folder, closes the drawer, and hopes that they will mate. I loved that. I couldn’t have possibly articulated it, but that was a little like what I was doing at that point myself, but the interview freed me up to do it full-tilt.

I started writing ‘bits.’ Collecting images, etc., closing the notebook, in my case, and hoping they would mate. Sometimes they did! And I found that somehow I was able to say things I’d be working toward so much better (in my own humble opinion) than whenever I’d tried to go at it straight on.

In the past I’d made association my process, but if you sit down to free associate, there’s only so far you’ll get at any one time from the place you started, I find. You’re writing in one breath, under the same ceiling, in the same landscape. Writing a poem over the course of weeks or months and putting its pieces together was really exciting for me. Now, I’m doing something else, though. I guess you use the tools you have at the time, and maybe use them up?

As a reader of these poems, does the above shed useful light on this work in particular?

4. Does Kasischke's poetry create any interest for you in her novels?

5. If many (most?) of the poems proved impenetrable to you, to what would you ascribe this; insufficient time with the work, a tendency in the author to be overly self-referential, the structure of the poems, or something else altogether?

Carry Me Like Water, by Edward Saenz

"She understood, as women often do more easily than men, that the declared meaning of a spoken sentence is only its overcoat, and the real meaning lies underneath its scarves and buttons."~ Peter Carey


"Often what a poet doesn't say is as important as what he does."~Miroslav Holub


"A novelist must preserve a childlike belief in the importance of things which common sense considers of no great consequence."~ W. Somerset Maugham


Howdy!

Donna Reardon's selection for our reading and conversational pleasure proves yet again that we don't always have to go outside the state to find our literature or our authors. In what marks Donna's maiden voyage as discussion leader, we explore the work of another writer based in our great state.

CARRY ME LIKEWATER by Benjamin Alire Saenz may be one of the most interesting literary renderings of the phrase "Six Degrees of Separation" that we've come upon in a while. In it's lyrical, even sentimental depiction of the tenuous, yet profound ties that bind individuals as well as whole families, it claims a place among the most rewarding works we've read as a group.

In breadth of character, scenes and locations, this novel makes an ambitious and legitimate claim to be considered among some of the best mainstream fiction being produced today. Of course, that will be the question at hand on Tuesday, and I for one am looking forward to our return to literary fiction with great anticipation.

Donna graciously provided the questions below. So please join us at the appointed place and hour to do what readers love doing almost as much as reading, talking about what they are reading! See you all then.

Durren

Discussion Question


Characters:
~Which did you find most realistic/authentic?
~Were the main characters fully “drawn”? Did you “care” about them?

Plot:
~At what point did you realize the connection between the various main characters? Did you anticipate the “new family” that was formed by the decision to move to El Paso?
~What was your reaction to the inclusion of the magic realism? Was it believable to you or did it seem contrived? Was it necessary to the plot?

Settings:
~In what ways, if any, did the settings (desert, mountains, river, ocean, cities, etc.,) contribute to the plot?

Symbols:
What symbols does Saenz use? Are they effective?

Theme(s):
What message(s) does Saenz have for his readers? Are they subtly presented or does the writer “hammer” them into the readers' heads?

The1910 Slocum Massacre by E.R. Bills

NOTE: The author will be joining us for this book club meeting; the meeting will be held on Saturday, February 21, 2014.

References:
News cast produced Aug. 2014, CBS19

Zinn Education Project

Facebook Page for Slocum Massacre

Girls, by Frederick Busch (1998)

"Nothing fixes a thing so intensely in the memory as the wish to forget it."~Montaigne

"Man needs difficulties; they are necessary for health."~Carl Jung

"Lonely people talking to each other can make each other lonelier."~Lillian Hellman

"Life begins on the other side of despair."Jean Paul Sartre

Hello Book Mavens,
Next Tuesday evening marks the beginning of a new year of reading and conversing about literature in this most excellent of book clubs. I'm excited to kick things off with a work by a writer I came to admire after reading his novel "Closing Arguments." The anti-hero protagonist in that book has much in common with the central character in this month's "Girls." Busch seems to excel in limning the strange shadow world of characters who gleefully defy our conventional notions of what a protagonist should look like and how he or she should behave. 

To my mind, it is the characters who inhabit the shadier environs of the psyche who often have the most profound things to say about the human condition. Such protagonists are the type I habitually seek out in the writings of Pynchon, Gass, Homes, Coover, Charlie Smith and others, and more often than not, they deliver.

And so once again I ask for your good company, indulgence and forbearance as I peer into the bleakness of a cold time and place as well as the frailty and brittleness of human beings under duress.

I hope all will brave the chill of a winter night (which can only add to the effect of this particular novel). Of course as always good food and drink will be appreciated as a means of providing some warmth amidst all the frostiness. The discussion questions that follow have been chosen from among those which appear in the trade paperback edition of "Girls" published by Ballantine Books 2006. See you all at 7:00 on Tuesday!


Discussion Questions


1. The weather in Girls is severe and relentless. What role does this weather play in the novel, and why?

2. Do you think this book fits into the typical detective novel genre? Why or why not? Why do you think readers like to categorize types of novels? Do you think Girls belongs to any distinct category or genre?

3. In recent years there unfortunately have been many high publicized cases of missing girls like Janice Tanner. Do you think these cases have always occurred and are just being played up by the media today? Or do you think something has shifted in our society that is causing an interest in such tragedies?

4. Jack lives in a world of extreme coldness, bleakness, and silence. It seems that the only lightness in his world is his nameless dog. Why do you think this is so? What function does the dog serve in the novel as a whole? In Jack's life? What do you think the author had in mind when he chose to include the dog in this story?

5. When did you as a reader think you knew who was responsible for Janice Tanner's disappearance? Who did you think did it, and why? Were you right?

6. Jack and Fanny's marriage is a paradox: two people who love and are bound to each other, and yet cannot seem to live together. Discuss this paradox and why it exists.

Book Club List: FHBC 2015

Book Club List: FHBC 2015

JAN

GIRLS by Frederick Busch - Durren

FEB

THE 1910 SLOCUM MASSACRE by E.R. Bills - Jonna

NOTE: The author will be joining us for this book club meeting, and can't make it to Longview on a Tuesday evening, so the meeting will be held on Saturday, February 21, 2014! We may meet at our house instead of at UUFL, but that's yet to be decided.

MARCH

CARRY ME LIKE WATER by Edward Saenz - Donna

APRIL

SPACE, IN CHAINS poetry by Laura Kasischke - Durren

MAY

THE WINTER OF OUR DISCONTENT by John Steinbeck - James

JUNE

THE RAILWAY MAN by Eric Lomax - Dick

JULY

UNNATURAL CREATURES stories selected by Neil Gaiman - Trudy

AUG

LAMB by Christopher Moore - Brad

SEP

I AM CHINA by Xaiolu Guo - Paul

OCT

ALAN TURING: THE ENIGMA by Andrew Hodges - Huey

NOV

WILD by Cheryl Strayed - Sky

Books from the Fredonia Book Club December Meeting

Books from 2014
A Year in Review

Tom -

1493, by Charles Murray,

The story is about the early heisory of the post colonial, post Columbus in Mexico City.

World issues are integrated such as malaria that infected ihe native Inedians - the perspecives that we really didn’t hear about in our histyr.  

Forgotten Fires, based on a paper by Omar Stuart

This book was neglected for long time.  The content features how fire affected lives all over the world.  The burn cycle - controlled burns -  prove to be healthy for the land.

The Forest Unseen, by

He stakes out a portion of land - and calls it his mandala.  He visits throughout the year, and records and reports a great deal of information from this one meter square of land, a micro-universe under scrutiny.  

Durren -

A Heart Blown Open, Dennis Kelly, biography

The transition of Buddha from the east to the west.  Koan - Zen riddles - what is the sound of one hand clapping?  These answers come from unattachment. This zen masters uses Koans in a way that intrigues Durren.  The story is a narrative - about a person who travels a challenging life of crime and drugs, but lands in the life of a zen master.  The shape of the book is unique.

Flavia De Luce novels, by Alan Bradley

Light and entertaining fun with deep topics sure to tantalize.  Seven novels in total are well written and fun.  It is set in a village in England.  

Brad -

The complete series of Game of Thrones, by George R.R. Martin

If you read all five of the books - you are still not through.  There are 2 additional books coming out.  Well written and compelling - dark but fascinating.  Tolkein was more alegory, and you knew how it was probably going to end - but not so in the Game of Thrones.  The details of everyting is bright  - the descriptions are incredible.

Vickie -

Carol Dweck who has written the book, Mindset, provides the proposal that people choose to use a fixed or growth mindset.  The chapters focus on how this perspective effects education, business, sports and relationships.  Several YouTube videos feature her work, but the book is highly recommended.  

Jonna-

Such a Long Journey, by Rohinton Mistry

Religion and culture of India is depicted in a story centered around a man who is politically conservative.  Gustav comes from a very cultured background with wealth, but ends up in a tenement building. The story covers a variety of experiences - explicit descriptions and compelling storyline.

Paul -

How to be Both, by Ali Smith

A painter is living as an immortal being - telling a story about a boy who is looking at her painting - from the future. 

Jonna -  

The Meaning of Darkness, and The Glass of Time (sequal) by Michael Cox, which centers on a man who lost his birthright in England.  It is almost fantasy (nothing supernatural) - but it more an aristocratic thriller.  

Trudy - 

Rabid, by Bill Wasick and Monica Murphy, is about the disease, which affects humanity massively.  2/3rds of the book takes place before the vaccine for rabies, and then how people get a grip on the disease.  It pits the relationship between humans and disease - fascinating read.

Sky -

Dog Songs, by Mary Oliver is a celebration of poetry about the relationships between human and dogs.  Drawings are included.  An essay is also included.  Skye lost her dog this year, and when she read these poems found an honesty in the meaning of life in our relationship with dogs.  

Our World, by the same author, is a great book with photography by her partner, Molly.  She describes how she learned to see her dogs through new eyes.