At the Table by Clare Powell (Mandy 185 Apr)

 To Nicole and Jamie Maguire, their parents seem the ideal couple - a suburban double act, happily married for more than thirty years. So when Linda and Gerry announce that they've decided to separate, the news sends shockwaves through the siblings' lives, forcing them to confront their own expectations and desires. Hardworking - and hard-drinking - Nicole pursues the ex she unceremoniously dumped six years ago, while people-pleasing Jamie fears he's sleepwalking into a marriage he doesn't actually want. But as the siblings grapple with the pressures of thirtysomething life, their parents struggle to protect the fragile façade of their own relationship, and the secrets they've both been keeping. Set in 2018, Claire Powell's beautifully observed debut novel follows each member of the Maguire family over a tumultuous year of lunches, dinners and drinks, as old conflicts arise and relationships are re-evaluated. A gripping yet tender depiction of family dynamics, love and disillusionment, At the Table is about what it means to grow up - both as an individual, and as a family. *From  goodreads.com  Not many of our group finished it, finding it dull and uninteresting.

Marks out of 10 - between 3- 8

Words used to describe it:

Dull, drab, unfinished, absorbing, well observed

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The Picture of Dorian Grey by Oscar Wilde (Rowena 186)

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126 Harbord St

Jean & Pierre by Guy de Monpassant (Carolyn 184)

The story explores sibling rivalry, the effects of unexpected wealth on relationships and the tensions that jealousy creates within a family.  The story begins with a fishing trip where tensions between the brothers are apparent. When a family friend leaves his entire fortune to Jean, Pierre's jealousy and suspicions grow, and he begins to doubt his mother's loyalty and his brother's legitimacy. Pierre's thoughts become consumed by his brother's success, and he roams the seaport alone.

The discussion was wide ranging and interesting. It seemed that no one respected the father. The distructive nature of jealousy and familial relationships.

Marks out of 10 - between 4 - 8

Words used to describe it:

Lugubrious, dry, beautifully written, divisive, predictable, distructive jealousy

 

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At the Table by Clare Powell (Mandy)

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126 Harbord St

I am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes (183 Naila)

 A complex and thrilling read, although long most of us managed to nearly finish by the time of the meeting. With some of us completing shortly afterwards. Intricately plotted, weaving strands of many other stories along with the main plot line this book, about the spy Scott, who is the only person who can stop Saracen from destroying America through the distribution of contaminated vaccines. The descriptions of places, people, torture, casual cruelty and the complex life of the spy underworld was well drawn.

Words used to describe it: 

well exectuted, breathless, rip roaring read, beautifully interworven, compelling interesting, gripping.

Marks out of 10:  between 6 - 8.5

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Jean and Pierre by Guy de Monpassant 

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Wednesday 1st May at Mandy's 117 Harbord St

Gionvanni's Room by James Baldwin (182 Cindy)

The central protagonist of this novel is David, an American and Giovanni an Italian bartender. In the Guardian review, Garth Greenwell says 'the whole novel is a kind of anatomy of shame, of its roots and the myths that perpetuate it, of the damage it can do. And also of its arbitrariness, since as rebuttal to any claim that shame might be some natural accoutrements of queerness – the belief that lies at the heart of David’s malaise – the novel offers the fact of Giovanni, who seems immune to shame, or at least to the shame that plagues David. And it is this freedom that makes him available to the joy and love David finally believes men can’t share with one another.' This shame permeates the whole novel as it passes backwards and forward through time. A classic novel, James Baldwin writes eloquently about the psychological difficulities of being gay in a time when there was no acceptance. It discusses what it is to be white American abroad, and once you've left how you never feel quite so comfortable back in America - as Helga says  “Americans should never come to Europe,” she says. “It means they never can be happy again. What’s the good of an American who isn’t happy? Happiness was all we had.” An interesting book with layers.

Words used to describe it:  tortured, melancholic, nuanced, tragic, painful

Words out of 10: between 6 - 9.5 so a mixed reception

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I am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes

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7th April Brighton Carolyn's

A Spy Alone by Charles Beaumont (181 Emma)

An exciting and interesting spy thriller. Some of the time is spent trying to work out which character most closely represents which politician. The main protagonist, Simon Sharmon - recruited out of Oxford, now a freelancer, finds that the tentacles of spy industry wind their way through his alumni, Russian money, and corruption in high places (nothing new there then). Slow initially as the bones of the story are laid down, the pace picks up. A thriller in the true meaning of the word. This book generated great discussions about politics, how money corrupts and corruption in high places. 

Words used to describe it:  interesting, intriguing, clever, enjoyable, inciteful, compelling read, modern Le Carre

Marks out of 10: between 7 - 9 so highly rated by the group

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Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin (Cindy)

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29th February at Naila's

A Sting in the Tail by David Goulson (180 Olivia)

 A fascinating book full of interesting facts and details about bees; bumble bees, honey bees and the other 26 different variety of Bombus, UK bees. Many of whom are under threat of extinction. It details Professor Goulson interest in these intriguing and astounding insects - without whom our food chains would be completely f##ked. The facts and figures details are all amazing, the calorific intake of a bee - they are only 40 mins from starvation. They burn as much as a man running on Mars for 30 mins in 30 seconds. He writes clearly and concisely of the integral part they play in the pollination of plants, flowers and the general ecosystem.

This book generated an interesting discussion about ecology, conservation and bees. 

Words used to describe it:  inspiring, could have done better, informative, formidable, galvernising, eye opening.

Marks out of 10:  between 6 - 7

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A Spy Alone by Charles Beaumont

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Thursday 25 January at Cindy's