Booklist Online: Book Reviews from the American Library Association

I’ve been thinking about memoirs again while reading Rosalind Reisner’s new book, Read On… Life Stories. It’s a superb addition to the Read On… series, providing annotated lists of books selected from the best of memoir and biography, with each list focusing on a particular storyline, character type, setting, writing and language style, or mood. Reisner’s book is a strong entry on the shelf of books that groups can consult to find wonderful discussion titles.

Reisner’s book isn’t the only new contribution to discussion of memoirs. University of Delaware journalism professor Ben Yagoda is receiving attention in the blogosphere (for instance here at Salon) for his new book Memoir: A History. Yagoda takes the long view, mixing literary criticism with cultural history. As he shows, claims that memoirs are narcissistic, stretch truth, or in some cases are outright lies are as old as the format itself. But these claims have not slowed the rise of the memoir, Yagoda argues, and may be somewhat motivated by a need in some quarters to defend the novel’s supremacy.

The issues that Yagoda raises have interesting implications for book groups. Memoirs get lots of love in our circles. In addition to the book’s actual content, it’s always interesting to discuss questions like how much the author re-created from memory, where reality might have been embellished, how the memoir reflects on its author’s character, or how it might have been received by the people it mentions. Yagoda’s book itself is full of interesting tidbits for discussion. It would pair well in consecutive book group meetings with a free choice of memoirs.

At the end of the day, and despite all the controversy about the veracity of recent memoirs, the form continues to sell well and seems to be the testing ground of choice for many new writers, who choose to employ it instead of literary fiction, historical nonfiction, and other literary forms and genres. While it is a stretch to say that the memoir has replaced the novel’s primacy, it’s certainly taking a growing share of the market. Armed with Reisner and Yagoda’s books, you’ll be ready to ride the wave of the form’s popularity.

True life adventure stories are popular selections for book groups and usually get selected as “guy reader” bait. These adrenaline-rush narrative quests appeal to some male readers for the action and to some women readers for the soul-searching introspection.

Last week I led a book group for Kansas City’s Junior League. They had chosen A Pearl in the Storm by Tori Murden McClure and all were delighted to read such a thrilling and inspiring story. Although no men were present (Junior League members only), about half of the attending women said their husbands or boyfriends had picked up the book and started browsing through it. One woman was on her way to see her boyfriend after the meeting and give it to him.

While the author’s harrowing battle with the hurricane was a highlight of the book, the attendees preferred to talk about what made this book different from other adventure stories. One reader immediately pointed out that a big difference for her was the fact that the protagonist was a woman. She said this book was more interesting for her with a female lead, but also noticed how differently the author was treated by other people in the story because of her gender.

One attendee said that at first she was angry with the author for purposely putting herself in a position of helplessness. The group had just finished discussing the author’s constant life struggle against he feeling of helplessness and her admirable aefforts to conquer it. But, as this reader pointed out, “why do this seemingly impossible thing when it onl produced more helplessness?”

As we discussed the book further, the other readers decided that this was not a foolhardy journey for the author to take. They liked how the author balanced the physical challenges with the personal ones.

One of the most interesting topics we mulled over was the character of Tori. All noted how genuine she was. She was someone everyone knew they could talk to at a dinner, a meeting, or on the subway. They liked her honesty and approachability. One reader mentioned that most adventure stories, and she admitted she was referring to the ones written by men, presented the protagonist as a human being with superlative physical gifts, “someone who is really not like anyone you’ve ever met or known” said a reader. Tori’s gift, one participant noted, was her determination and sheer force of will. “She’s like anyone you might meet anywhere. You wouldn’t be limited to just talking about her book.”

These are Junior Leaguers and they can talk to anyone about anything.

Those of us who can’t get enough Jane Austen in whatever form can look forward to a new production of Emma on Masterpiece Theatre. The three-part adaptation starts on January 24.

Over at Points of Reference, Jessica is getting ready to start a mystery book group at her public library in January. She’s going to be using Read ‘em Their Writes as a source and is wondering if there are any other good selections tools out there.

Funny you should ask, Jess. I recently put together a list of titles for a local mystery discussion group and used Gary’s great book and these others.

Read On…Crime Fiction by Barry Trott is divided into multiple sections Story, Character, Setting, Mood, and Language and broken down further into lists with catchy titles. I looked in the Story, Character, and Language sections for the best titles for book groups.

I also used 100 Favorite Mysteries of the Century and They Died in Vain: Overlooked, Underappreciated and Forgotten Mystery Novels, both edited by Jim Huang. Mystery experts from across the nation submitted their favorites and other titles they felt deserved to be re-appreciated. Each contributor sent in a good synopsis of a title with appeal factors and some topics for discussion.

Any of these resources should offer up plenty of killer good reading.

• Book a meeting room. Book a meeting room for successive months. Have a positive self help kind of attitude that says “I know lots of people are going to enjoy attending my short story reading group, so I’m going to book the room for the same time each month for an entire year, right out of the gate, just like that!”
• Pick a time. My group meets the first Friday of each month at 10:30 in the morning. This time has worked out for us. On average 15 people attend each session which is about right, I’d say. A few times the group has been over 20 and that seemed to change the dynamic - people were less willing to speak up. On the rare occasion when fewer than 10 people attended, a similar phenomenon transpired. What does this say about human nature? I don’t know.
• Pick stories. I’ve relied on the Norton Anthology of Short Fiction, The Best American Short Stories of the Century, and the annual Best American Short Stories collections. But I’ve also dipped into Best American Mystery Stories, 50 Great Short Stories, and various themed anthologies. I’ve tried to group stories to read that offered opportunities for discussion. So, at times I’ve picked authors whose work gets lumped together by critics – such as Edith Wharton and Henry James. At other times I’ve picked authors by country of origin, such as Chekhov and Turgenev. I chose many contemporary authors, and many woman authors because these are often, but not always, popular with the group. The first two stories I chose were “Guest s of the Nation,” by Frank O’Connor and “A Good Man Is Hard To Find,” by Flannery O’Connor. Frank O’Connor was a pen name of the Irish author Michael O’Donovan, and Flannery O’Connor was an Irish-American author from Savannah, Georgia. Is that enough of a connection? Sure, because the stories are really great works of art about which there is lots to say, and lots to ponder, and lots to try to figure out. So be creative, mix and match, pick stories you’ve loved, pick authors you’ve heard a lot about, pick a wide variety and figure it out as you go.
• Find and print out some information about the author. Start the discussion, after saying hi, and “did you find a place to park?” by reading a short introduction about the author’s life.
• Read about the story, if you can. Read what others have said about it so you can put together some questions to help get the conversation rolling. Some good standby questions include: What is the significance of the title? Is the setting of the story important? Why does the main character get shot at the end of the story? (Well, this applies to “A Good Man Is Hard To Find,” but you get the idea.) Most questions arise as the discussion progresses. It’s worth noting that keeping the conversation going is your primary role, so pick up on what people are saying and go from there. Do not say the following, even if you are thinking it: “Are you sure you read the same story the rest of us read?” Remember what your grade school teacher said – there are no stupid questions, or, in this case, comments.
• Publicize the reading group. Write a press release and send it out. Make a flyer and hang it up. Tell literary types you know. Get the information on the library Web site, etc. Repeat.
• Make copies of the stories and a cover sheet with the time and place available for people to pick up. I leave the stories at the Circulation Desk.
• Have fun.

Even if you haven’t read books by Cory Doctorow, you probably know the name. His blogs, essays, and opinions seem to be everywhere, particularly in regards to digital culture, intellectual property, or technology. Doctorow almost always has an opinion, and whether or not one agrees with him, (like me, you’ll probably find yourself siding with him on one issue, against him on the next) it’s hard not to respect his passionate and eloquent arguments.

Because it takes on contemporary and near-future issues, Doctorow’s brand of science fiction will be relevant to readers who don’t normally read that genre. If you are interested in where technology is taking us, in the creative life, or in questions of intellectual property, you will find him worth your time.

My introduction to Doctorow came with Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom, a light, fast look at a future where a kind of eternal life is available, where ad-hoc work groups of like-minded folk control the workplace, and collective public opinion is translated into the main kind of currency. Protagonist Julius joins an ad hoc at Disney World but is promptly assassinated. Ported into a new body but still wracked with a variety of personal problems, Julius must try to solve his murder, keep his ad hoc afloat, and navigate a love triangle.

Doctorow’s press reached new heights with last year’s Little Brother, a young adult novel about a tech-loving Bay Area teen in the near future. He and his friends are first captured, then released under heavy surveillance by the government after they are in the vicinity when a terrorist’s bomb destroys the Bay Bridge. While the protagonist, Marcus, may be a bit off-putting to some older readers, one can’t help but sympathize with his dilemmas. Shadow forces within the government use the terrorist act as an excuse for new levels of technological privacy invasion and control of citizens. Marcus chooses to fight back through a variety of digital means. The the resulting cat-and-mouse game between his youthful following and the homeland security folks is fascinating, scary, sometimes just too plausible.

Doctorow’s newest book is Makers. If put on a timeline, it would occur sometime between Little Brother and Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom, still in the near future, but set in a world where the economy has really bottomed out and many Americans are reduced to squatting in emptied malls. The book follows a group of close friends–business people, journalists, and most of all inventors–as they try to turn the shell of a dying Fortune 500 monolith into a nimble network of grass roots collectives who rapidly turn new ideas into marketable products. In particular, the book follows Suzanne Church, a middle-aged journalist turned blogger who decides to follow one of the best of the new collectives for a year. That decision begins her lifetime relationship with Perry and Lester, two creative geniuses. Events related to their first inventions in Florida tie the group to a local shantytown and an ongoing battle with the Disney corporation. Doctorow explores future battles between small and large companies, the impact of digital culture, the effects of future health supplements, the joys and defects of all things Disney, and myriad other subjects. Most exciting to me, Doctorow is learning to create more complex characters. Even if you don’t care much about the issues he explores, you’ll care about Perry, Lester, Suzanne, Kettlewell, Tjan, Francis, and Hilda. Like many driven, creative people, these characters are torn between committing to their latest pursuits and to long-term relationships. Along the way, I found many celebrations, many heartaches.

Give Doctorow a look. These books and his others are all quick to read. Even readers who don’t like them will find plenty of worthwhile ideas to engage them.

Book Group Buzz has a new blogger, Rebecca Vnuk.

Among her other achievements, Rebecca is the author of two readers’ advisory nonfiction titles for Libraries Unlimited/Greenwood Press, Read On…Women’s Fiction, and Women’s Fiction Authors: A Research Guide.  She was named Library Journal’s Fiction Reviewer of the Year in 2008. The rest of us Book Group Buzzers are thrilled to have Rebecca join us, and are looking forward to reading her posts.

One of the things I like to do with my book discussion group is reserve the last meeting of the year for our annual “Book Chat”.  This is an unstructured discussion that is open to anyone, where the participants come ready to talk about their favortite books of the year.  There are many pluses to hosting a book chat versus a regular title-specific discussion:

• Anyone can come, whether they consider themselves a “member” or not
• It takes the pressure off of people at the end of the year/holiday time
• Participants leave with a list of book recommendations
• People LOVE to talk about what they are reading
• It often gives several ideas of books that might make a good discussion for the next year.

The Oak Park (Illinois) Public Library takes this idea one step further, with their Oak Park Readers, a “book lovers’ appreciation society”.  Every few months, they hold a Book Chat, or “party”.  For libraries without a structured book club, perhaps this might be a good way to gauge interest, or, simply some easy book-centered programming.

I’ve been browsing my way through Sarah Johnson’s Historical Fiction II: A Guide to the Genre, one of the latest entries in the Genreflecting Advisory series from Libraries Unlimited. These big books are a browser’s paradise and ought to become familiar reference tools for in-the-know book group leaders as they seek out good group selections.

Historical fiction is almost always a good choice for groups. Strong settings and characters make these titles easy to discuss. Comparison of the book with the actual events of history never fails to draw out opinions and interesting stories.

Johnson’s book makes selection of historical fiction easy, as it highlights hundreds of great books published since 2004 (her first volume, still available, covers earlier titles). I particularly like that Johnson doesn’t limit herself to books marketed as historical fiction. She understands that historical fiction blends with almost every other genre: mysteries, romances, time travel science fiction, westerns, inspirational fiction, alternate world fantasy, and many “literary” novels as well. All of those genres get attention in her coverage.

I’ve added dozens of books to my to-read list while browsing Historical Fiction II. I’m sure your book group can find plenty to keep it busy here as well.

I just walked out of our monthly staff readers advisory session. Our category this month was Historicals and our choice was the very challenging novel by Joanne Harris, Five Quarters of the Orange (Morrow, 2001).

I love this type of novel. Its structure is such that you jump from the present into the past. Veiled hints eventually become fully blown scenes while foreshadowed consequences are explained if you wait patiently.

The characters in this novel are all monsters of one sort or another. Each holds a secret for a tragedy and each is culpable in one way or another. The main character, Framboise Simon, returns to the small French village where she lived during WWII anonymously because she wants to resuscitate her mother’s old farm and open a restaurant. The fact that Framboise has to disguise herself because of an incident in WWII should be a reason to stay away. Instead, it leads to the question of why a character would place herself in such danger of having her long lost role in a massacre revealed.

That may be one of the main themes of the book but other themes include the role of family in a person’s life, the loyalty a person should show to friends and family and the nature of accountability in a world where it is just too easy to cut and run.

This book is magnificently written and incorporates food into almost every page. It reminds me of The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood or The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield with the way it incorporates an older woman relating a tragic story. I would recommend this book to your book group if you want a fictional memoir that will disturb your sense of order.  You can get some suggested questions at Reading Group Guides.

My wife and I have been reading Shadowlands aloud the last few nights. Many of you know this work from the film featuring Anthony Hopkins and Deborah Winger, but William Nicholson’s play is about events late in the life of C. S. Lewis.

Lewis never liked “Clive Staples.” When he lost a beloved dog as a boy, he declared that henceforth he would be “Jacksie” (after the dog). That evolved into Jack, the name by which his friends knew him.

Most of us know Lewis for his Narnia adventures. In junior high school, I started a society of “Narnian Believers,” distinguished from the mundane masses who couldn’t believe in something like Narnia. At the time I hadn’t an inkling (wink wink, nudge nudge) of Lewis’s beliefs and how they were lurking in my favorite series, but I guess something was sinking through, because I demanded strict faith from my gang of NBs. (Yeah, I was that kind of geeky kid… imagine that).

To many, Lewis is most notable for the Christian apologetic theological works he penned. Shadowlands explores those beliefs, adding midlife romance and heartbreaking tragedy to the mix. In middle years, Lewis returned to Christianity and became famous for lectures and essays on his beliefs, particularly his acceptance of suffering in this world as a necessary herald of God’s larger plan.

Those beliefs faced a test when Lewis became involved, first through correspondence, with a married American, Joy Gresham (nee Davidson). Gresham came to England with her sons (only Douglas appears in Shadowlands, but there was a second son, David) while avoiding her abusive alcoholic husband. After Joy divorced, Joy and Jack married, at first to enable Gresham’s stay in England, then later, as their intellectual match bloomed, for love.

Unfortunately, Joy contracted cancer. After a bedside hospital marriage, Joy had a remission that allowed them a few years, but the disease returned. Shadowlands tells their beautiful but tragic tale, turning complex moral questions into a concrete story that’s easy to enter, hard to forget. The disease’s terrible toll tested Lewis, both the limits of his escape to fantasy worlds and his belief in the higher purpose of earthly suffering.

Small book groups could read Shadowlands aloud in a longer meeting, but many good books would also pair well in discussion of this quick read. Groups should consider a C. S. Lewis theme. Either the first of the Narnia books, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, or The Magician’s Nephew (which figures in the play and features a character who is a kind of stand-in for Lewis) would make fine choices.

Lewis’s autobiography Surprised by Joy, or his exploration of his loss, A Grief Observed, are also apt. Both were written after Joy’s death in the four years that Lewis had left before a heart attack claimed his life. Or try Brian Sibley’s nonfiction account of the relationship in Through the Shadowlands or Lyle Dorsett’s biography of Joy Davidson called And God Came In. 

 There are many good Lewis biographies to choose from as well. Among the best are Douglas Gresham’s account of his father figure, Jack’s Life; George Sayer’s account of his long-time friend, Jack: A Life of C. S. Lewis; or Alan Jacobs’ The Narnian, which is probably the most balanced of the Lewis biographies. 

Whichever path your group takes through the Shadowlands, you should enjoy pondering the life and work of Lewis. It’s fascinating for those with religious beliefs, but shouldn’t be uncomfortable for the firmest of nonbelievers.

But I still expect you to believe in Narnia.

I facilitate three book groups, but I’m also a facilitator for hire, except I don’t charge for it. Occasionally I’m participating in as many as six or seven book groups in a month.

The groups are all different, but they share some similarities. They are all made up of women, they want to read a mix of contemporary fiction and nonfiction, and many of them have been friends for a long time.

Whenever I receive an invitation to visit an area book group, I ask a few questions about the participants. This helps me structure the discussion topics and supplementary material I want to share with the readers. The hostess always begins by telling me how proud she is of her group and their strong ties to each other, the interesting titles they share with each other, the number of years the readers have been gathering faithfully.

And then she lowers her voice conspiratorially to let me know that lately, the group doesn’t seem to be talking about the books much and some of the members are a little troubled by that fact. Some readers are not finishing the book, some readers aren’t even bothering to obtain a copy, and one or two readers have a tendency to steer conversation away from the book, although the hostess is certain they don’t mean to do so.

With these small warnings in my ears, I attend the meeting and find that most of the readers have finished the book, the one woman who hasn’t is almost finished. After introductions, I lay down the minor ground rules. With apologies to the reader who didn’t finish, I announce that anyone who wants to talk about the ending may do so. As we start the discussion, I find that I usually don’t have to do much steering to keep the conversation focused on the reading. After the meeting I’m told this is one of the best discussions the group has ever had.

This is the typical pattern of the book groups at which I’m a visiting guest. When I ponder what the hostess has told me about her group and what I observed, it’s easy to credit the readers with “company behavior.” Of course, they all want to put on a good face for a guest. These are intelligent, considerate, educated, civic-minded women. But they also need a break from their busy lives and that’s why they keep this monthly meeting in their calendars.

It’s the addition of a new person that refreshes the group and keeps them focused on the book. I always advocate for guest facilitators for book groups. The regular leaders deserve a break, and the guest leader will inject some fresh chatter into the conversation.

For those book groups that like each other too much to disband, and feel themselves sliding off the track just  a wee bit, invite a visitor to the group to lead the discussion. Consider asking at the local library or a local college for a guest facilitator. Don’t leave out members of neighboring book groups, either. Just bring in a new voice to lead discussion and the group will find its footing again.

A few days ago, I put forth my miserly opinion that Christmas literature, for the most part, is ho, ho, horrible. I even asked you to convince me otherwise, and in response, fair readers, not one of you was stirring, not even a mouse.

But I know book groups, and you will not yield to my well-meaning advice. As in every group I’ve ever been in, some sickly Tiny Tim will pipe up at your November meeting with “we should read a Christmas book next month” and god**** us everyone, others will strike that harp, join that chorus, and you’ll be stuck looking for something decent to read. I don’t want to leave you hung out like a stocking waiting for a lump of coal: Here are the best Christmas reads I can find.

Stay far away from famous contemporary authors. They’re just paying for their Christmas with “seasonal offerings.” This is especially true for authors that put out a Christmas book every year. I’ll let Santa list the names and deal the karma, but you know who they are. Don’t. Be. Tempted.

If you must read a Christmas book, listen to that inner cynic. Instead of warming your heart, warm your spleen with dark humor from twisted folks like David Sedaris (Holidays on Ice, which contains my all-time favorite Xmas tale “The Santaland Diaries” ), Christopher Moore (The Stupidest Angel), or Augusten Burroughs (You Better Not Cry).

If you insist on something nice, indulge your inner child. Kid’s holiday stories are better on the whole than those for adults. You won’t go wrong with classics like Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Barbara Robinson’s The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, J.R.R. Tolkien’s Letters from Father Christmas, Rumer Godden’s The Story of Holly and Ivy, or Lemony Snicket’s The Latke Who Couldn’t Stop Screaming.

If you’ve got to be nice and mature, you’ll probably get what you deserve, but you might still find something readable. Stick to the classics. The Christmas Carol by Dickens, A Christmas Memory by Truman Capote, Christmas Day in the Morning by Pearl S. Buck, or A Christmas Story by Jean Shepherd won’t stick in your gullet any worse than figgy pudding will.

Finally, if all that fails, at least keep it short. Schmaltz and sentiment are more palatable in small doses. Nobody has EVER written a decent long book about Christmas: too bad we can’t apply that lesson to the people who keep making the holiday season longer every year. I can recommend the short stories and anecdotes in the compilations Christmas at the New Yorker and The Greatest Christmas Stories of All Time, or those in Connie Willis’s Miracle and Other Christmas Stories.

There you go, enjoy your book group. As for me, I’ll be dreaming of some white pages.

Christmas goods have replaced the Halloween gear in the stores, and so I suppose the season is officially upon us. I feel compelled to issue a word of warning. You’re going to be very tempted in December to assign holiday theme reading to your book group: a nice little book in the spirit of the season. Joy to the world, noel, noel, and fa la la. My advice: think twice. Santa’s book bag is full of dreck.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not generally against Christmas (at least not on my good days.) I love the gatherings of friends and family, the familiar songs, the decorations, even giving and receiving a few thoughtful gifts. I’m even secretly hoping you will pass along dozens of wonderful titles that will force me to reconsider this opinion, but from what I’ve encountered, Christmas books are a sorry lot. Choice titles are more scarce than Rudolph’s childhood friends.

One learns early in a library career to avoid the temptation to put up the holiday fiction display. Sure, it sounds like a good idea, an obvious choice, but then one starts assembling the books–Oh! the pitiful books. They circulate once a year, saved from the no-use reports by our own misguided displays, eating up shelf space for the other eleven months, saved from withdrawal by our own sorry attempt at merry-making.

For every gem like A Christmas Carol, A Christmas Memory, or A Child’s Christmas in Wales, there are twenty blatant cash ins, those dreadful little books by the most commercially-oriented of writers. Even if you like these writers, for the most part a falsely sentimental and repetitive choir, you’ll do better reading their regular output. It would be easier to indulge their homilies about the deeper meaning of Christmas if they weren’t so obviously writing them to make bucks off our holiday feeling. Let’s say no, let’s say no, let’s say no.

Think I’m wrong? By all means play the Ghost of Christmas Literature: share good holiday reading in the comments. If you must go gentle into that silent night, I’ll try to round up a few of the worthwhile holiday reads in my next posting.

I know I’ve been on a kick lately pairing books for discussions. I  like having all the related reading in one place. Also, I want to give readers a choice in titles if the topic is going to be difficult for some to handle.

Possibly no subject is more harrowing than the tragedy at Columbine High School in April, 1999. Many nonfiction books have been published about this bedroom community outside of Denver, Colorado. Many novels have explored this story from numerous angles; embellishing, suppressing, tweaking, details to create a narrative that makes sense of a senseless act.

As horrific as this event was, people will still be reading about it and especially this year, the tenth anniversary of the Columbine High School shooting. Two books that present balanced, thoughtful accounts, and offer new insights are The Hate List by Jennifer Brown and Columbine by Dave Cullen.

Brown’s young adult novel tells the story of Valerie, the girlfriend of Nick, the junior who tired of the bullying and name calling, and brought a gun to school one day. Even though Valerie tried to stop Nick by throwing herself in front of a student who regularly tormented both of them, she is deemed an active participant in this heinous act. Authorities found the “hate list” she had started one day out of frustration and had loaned to Nick. After spending the summer in seclusion, Valerie makes the courageous decision to go back to high school to graduate. Many of her classmates have changed, some for the better, some for worse, and don’t know how to view Valerie. Is she to be lauded or blamed for her part in this piece of school history?

Brown’s novel will appeal to adults as well as teens and the author carefully crafts a character both frustrating and sympathetic to tell the story of one’s school’s brush with death.

Dave Cullen, an award-winning journalist who has been researching the Columbine tragedy for almost ten years, also offers a powerful, truthful account of what led up to that violent spring day and the terrible aftermath. He debunks a few myths that have sprung from this event.

Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris were not sullen, friendless, outsiders as portrayed by the media. Cassie Bernall did not have a chance to speak before she died, but survivor Valeen Schnurr did. There were reports and files that were kept hidden and some interviews that will not be revealed to the public until 2016.

Readers will have no trouble comparing Columbine to another classic in the true crime genre, In Cold Blood. The research and narrative are unparalleled and much as readers will want to look away, Cullen writes in a manner that keeps eyes riveted to the text.

If these two books are too raw, consider presenting a third selection from an author who is a book group favorite, Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult. Picoult’s novel provides multiple viewpoints of a high school shooting with a twist ending. It’s much lighter in tone than The Hate List or Columbine, but readers will find connections between all three.

If asked to name authors who more people should be reading, Adam Langer would be one of the first names from my mouth. He’s a Chicago-born author and playwright, now living in New York City, a marvelous choice for book groups.

Books with interesting characters in varied relationships are the easiest for groups to discuss, and Langer’s pen spins out fascinating characters with seeming ease. His first novel, Crossing California, follows three families, the Wasserstroms, Wills, and Rovners in late 70s Chicago. These characters jump right off the page and Langer captures the time and place with great facility as well. His second novel, The Washington Story, (named for Chicago mayor Harold Washington) follows the same characters through the mid 1980s. By the time you finish the second novel, they’ll feel like old acquaintances. In particular, Langer is good at capturing the volatile world of young people: he’s both funny and poignant, sometimes in the same sentence.

If you prefer New York to Chicago, try Ellington Boulevard, which follows a clarinetist and his dog through eviction from an Upper West Side apartment, but mixes in out-of-work actors, a broker, an editor, and graduate students. There are even lyrics to a musical, supposedly written by two of the characters, at the end of the book.

Or if you prefer nonfiction, Langer’s new book is a memoir, My Father’s Bonus March, that chronicles his physician father’s fascination with the Bonus March of 1932, when WWI veterans came to Washington in pursuit of better compensation for their sacrifices.

No matter which of these tickles your fancy, give Langer a try. His work is easy to access, full of laughter, but worthy of careful examination as well.

Dreamers of the Day, by Mary Doria Russell, was chosen as the book to be explored at the most recent meeting of the Adult Reading Round Table Quarterly Literary Fiction Book Discussion Group.  I didn’t lead the discussion this time, but enjoyed sitting on the other side of the table as a participant.

Russell’s novel is her fourth and most recent work.  Many readers of this blog will be familiar with her first book, The Sparrow, which has been used by numerous book discussion groups.  Dreamers of the Day couldn’t be more different from The Sparrow — it doesn’t wear the same cloak of science fiction and spirituality as the earlier novel, but wraps itself in a brilliant historical tapestry, as its intrepid heroine, a reserved spinster from the Midwest named Agnes Shanklin, charges uncharacteristically off on a journey to the Middle East and becomes embroiled with all sorts of famous figures from the early part of the 20th century, ranging from Winston Churchill to Gertrude Bell to Lawrence of Arabia.

Before I forget to mention it, Agnes narrates this tale from the grave, which is only one of the unusual aspects of the book.  Our leader admitted that she not only read the book, but she also listened to it on CD, which she claimed gave her new insights about the story and really offered two distinctly different approaches to the book.

Russell’s novel is well researched and definitely appeals to readers who enjoy learning about history through reading fiction.  If you’re interested in discovering  how the configuration of countries in the Middle East was created following World War I and the dissatisfaction stemming from the Versailles Treaty, read this book.  The tone of the novel is sometimes lighthearted and whimsical, but it deals with many serious issues, including the great influenza pandemic, and the exotic settings are well drawn.  It even offers a bit of a love story, and for dog lovers, there’s a wonderful dachshund named Rosie who travels everywhere with Agnes and really functions as an important character in the book.

Our discussion leader brought many related books and DVDs to the meeting to stimulate further exploration of the topics raised in the novel.  Several participants said they planned to dig deeper and learn more about the people and ideas they encountered in their reading of this book.  One of the best compliments an author can receive, I think, is when readers express a desire to travel further down the road on which the book has carried them.  Congratulations to Mary Doria Russell!

I love adding to my shelf of book group resources. My latest addition is The Book Club Bible, a book that offers over 200 titles for book group facilitators to choose from.

The Book Club Bible

The subtitle is “The Definitive Guide That Every Book Club Member Needs.” That may be pushing it a tad. The BCB is a balanced mix of classic and contemporary fiction and nonfiction selected by Richard & Judy, British television personalities with their own book club a la Oprah. Misha wrote about them some posts ago.

This book collects some of Richard & Judy’s favorite reads. Each entry includes a synopsis of the book, a reader or critic opinion, a short list of discussion points, and companion titles for further reading.

I’m reminded of Victoria Golden McMain’s The Readers’ Choice: 200 Book Club Favorites, another one of my go-to resources. I’ve been waiting for an update of that book, and this new collection is a serviceable companion. I would have liked to see a little more to the synopsis, a website or two for further information on the author, and a couple of sentences that evaluate the book’s potential as a selection.

The Book Club Bible is going to sit on my shelf next to The Readers’ Choice and David Rubel’s The Reading List, and Nancy Pearl’s Book Lust. It’s great to pull down one of these little gems and browse for possible selections, and I’m always willing to add to the tool box. But like all good working stiffs, I want one tool to do everything.

Can you talk about a book in 140 characters? You’ll have to if you join The Book Studio’s Twitter Book Club. Now six months old, the Twitter Book Club meets online once a month to talk about a recent book. Picks for the past few months have been Elizabeth Strout’s Olive Kitteridge, Lorrie Moore’s  A Gate at the Stairs, and Zoe Heller’s The Believers. Coming up in November is Amy McKinnon’s Tethered.  The discussions are archived,  and authors often join in, which adds to the twitterliciousness.

In addition to the Twitter Book Club, The Book Studio offers book reviews, author interviews, videos, and other stuff that book groups might find useful. The Book Studio is an online project of WETA, the Washington, D.C. public television station.

Last week, I discussed a meeting where odd digressions by readers contributed to success, but going off subject can just as easily derail a meeting. When is a side discussion useful and when is it just an interruption? How can group leaders tell the difference?

First, know your group. Groups that use themes often welcome digressions, groups that read a common book may be less amenable to wandering. Groups that acknowledge a social purpose to meetings expect time for other subjects, while groups that want serious book talk will frown on interruptions. If your group has never discussed its goals and intentions, and members are pulling in different directions, perhaps it is time for a friendly discussion of your collective expectations.

Second, factor in the tone of the particular meeting. Were several readers unable to finish or vocal about frustrations with the book before the meeting? In these cases, digressions may be preferable to an unhappy discussion. Did life provide more than its usual share of distractions this month? Was the time between meetings short? Again, your group may need distractions. On the other hand, they might be digressing because they can’t find the right approach to discussing a book they found challenging, interesting or controversial. Measure the tone in the room: If the latter is the case, you’ll need to focus, regroup, and find the right questions to unlock the book.

My last advice is to look at who is leading the digressions and judge whether or not these interruptions seem welcome. If the digressions are divided between readers and cover a variety of subjects, don’t worry: Enjoy the give and take. But if the same person or two constantly sidetracks conversation, those are interruptions, not pleasant meanderings. If the digressions are always on the same subjects, they will annoy other readers and create friction. If that’s the case, consider some previous posts about how to battle the interruptions.