Our new memeber of the group (Layla) was lucky enough to be picked out of the hat at random at the end of Mike's meeting. She decided to chose The Black Dahlia by James Ellroy.
This book is very different to any of the books that we had read before and it did have a mixed response. The book was based on a true unsolved murder in 1947 of a girl called Elizabeth Short. The main characters in the book were the policemen that were working on the crime and you could say that they both had unhealthy obsessive/relationships with the victim.
The style of writing was very different to what we were used to and consisted of a lot of police terminology and jargon which we all agreed took along time to get used to. It was also very graffic and what some might say; a bit too descriptive in parts. Some members of the group felt that they would have nightmares on completing the book but this was not the case.
Overall a good book, a bit sickening (in the words of Amy)but definately a page turner.
Sunday, 18 July 2010
Such a long time.......
I apologise to anybody that regularly looks at this blog as it has been some time since I updated it. It has been that long that we have had two meetings a read one book in the mean time. Its about time that I let all you bloggers now what we have been up to.
Well lets begin back in May when Mr Beech chose to read Oscar Wilde's, A picture of Dorian Gray. The meeting was held in Mike's sunny back garden surrounded by his lovely rabbits running around enjoying themselves as much as we were. He put on a lovely spread and we immediately got down to business. Not forgetting that at this meeting we was introduced to a new member of the book club called Layla who is friends with Loli. (Welcome Layla)
Mike had prepared a lot of questions that were specific to the book we had read so that was a good start as recently we have had questions that arn't that specific which I feel can sometimes restrict the discussion. It was nice to see that everybody had managed to complete this book even if it was last minute such as myself. Again I have to apologise that as it has been so long since this meeting I feel that I cannot remember what was said. (Note to self; take notes at meetings!)
We all enjoyed this book however I personally felt that I would have enjoyed the book a lot more if it described more things that Dorian Gray did that made his portrait change and wither.
We had a live feed broadcast straight from Dartmouth as Sarah was on holiday at the time of the meeting but felt that she would like to view her opinions on the book. Overall a good book which scored 7/10
Well lets begin back in May when Mr Beech chose to read Oscar Wilde's, A picture of Dorian Gray. The meeting was held in Mike's sunny back garden surrounded by his lovely rabbits running around enjoying themselves as much as we were. He put on a lovely spread and we immediately got down to business. Not forgetting that at this meeting we was introduced to a new member of the book club called Layla who is friends with Loli. (Welcome Layla)
Mike had prepared a lot of questions that were specific to the book we had read so that was a good start as recently we have had questions that arn't that specific which I feel can sometimes restrict the discussion. It was nice to see that everybody had managed to complete this book even if it was last minute such as myself. Again I have to apologise that as it has been so long since this meeting I feel that I cannot remember what was said. (Note to self; take notes at meetings!)
We all enjoyed this book however I personally felt that I would have enjoyed the book a lot more if it described more things that Dorian Gray did that made his portrait change and wither.
We had a live feed broadcast straight from Dartmouth as Sarah was on holiday at the time of the meeting but felt that she would like to view her opinions on the book. Overall a good book which scored 7/10
Wednesday, 19 May 2010
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
Upon seeing his own striking portrait Dorian Gray is bewitched and offers his soul if only the painting will age while he remains eternally youthful. Believing himself incorruptible, Dorian indulges in a life of pleasure and excess. But what has become of his portrait?
Chapter 7 - The Picture of Dorian Gray
The lucky person to be picked to choose the new book was Mike. He was ecstatic to have been picked it was like he had won the lottery. He decided to pick The Picture Of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde.
Chapter 5 - Book Club Review
It has been some time since I last updated the book club blog but is because I have been so busy reading. The last book that we read was picked by Loli who chose war horse as it was always a book that she had wanted to read but had never had; and if you ask me that's what book club is about only the advantage is that you get to share it with your friends and family as well.
Warhorse was only a small book of 182 pages so we pretty much finished it quite quickly however there was a delay in arranging a meeting as it is difficult for us all to get together. Sarah started and finished the book within 5 hours which is probably a record of some sort, there are a few slow readers in the group which it took them a little bit longer but at least we all finished this one.
Loli arranged the meeting which took place in a very funky pub in Moseley, unfortunately Sarah and Val were absent (which has been marked down on the register ha ha) It was a lovely venue an the food we ordered was very nice even if Mike did get freaked out by the Calamari.
Loli was very organised and had even wrote down some book club questions for us to work through.
I wont go into too much detail about the book in case you would like to read it but we all decided that it was a nice book but was targeted at children as the book was small, very fast moving and did not go into much detail when there were times that you would of liked the author to be a bit more descriptive. It is quite an emotional book and highlights some key aspects of the 1st World War. We gave the book a average score of 6/10.
Personally I am glad I read the book as it was different to what I would normally read. I don't particularly think I would recommend the book to another adult but may recommend it to a child or teenager. Overall good choice Loli.
Warhorse was only a small book of 182 pages so we pretty much finished it quite quickly however there was a delay in arranging a meeting as it is difficult for us all to get together. Sarah started and finished the book within 5 hours which is probably a record of some sort, there are a few slow readers in the group which it took them a little bit longer but at least we all finished this one.
Loli arranged the meeting which took place in a very funky pub in Moseley, unfortunately Sarah and Val were absent (which has been marked down on the register ha ha) It was a lovely venue an the food we ordered was very nice even if Mike did get freaked out by the Calamari.
Loli was very organised and had even wrote down some book club questions for us to work through.
I wont go into too much detail about the book in case you would like to read it but we all decided that it was a nice book but was targeted at children as the book was small, very fast moving and did not go into much detail when there were times that you would of liked the author to be a bit more descriptive. It is quite an emotional book and highlights some key aspects of the 1st World War. We gave the book a average score of 6/10.
Personally I am glad I read the book as it was different to what I would normally read. I don't particularly think I would recommend the book to another adult but may recommend it to a child or teenager. Overall good choice Loli.
Tuesday, 30 March 2010
Chapter 4 - War Horse
From master storyteller, Michael Morpurgo comes an incredibly moving story about one horse's experience in the deadly chaos of the first world war. In 1914, Joey, a young farm horse, is sold to the army and thrust into the midst of the war on the Western Front. With his officer, he charges towards the enemy, witnessing the horror of the frontline. But even in the desolation of the trenches, Joey's courage touches the soldiers around him.
Saturday, 27 March 2010
Chapter 3 - Book Club Review
Having printed off a set of questions to aid our discussion we all got together over a nice buffet to discuss the book. It was a mixed review as not everybody had finished the book. Some found the book by Thomas Hardy quite heavy and hard going and we decided that it wasn't until Tess had met Angel Clare at the dairy and the chapter of their wedding was it any good and got interesting. We all decided that there was far too much description of the surroundings which made it difficult to read. One member of the group enjoyed the book so much she now has it on DVD and audio book. We all sympothised with Tess and her struggles through life and one member said that if she was Tess she would have stabbed Alec D'Urberville along time ago. Ha Ha. There were a lot of symbolic moments within the book and alot of well written extracts that made big impressions. I am particularly glad that I have read the book as I had only ever seen the BBC adaptation. Overall we scored the book 40/70, however one member declined to score as he had not yet completed it so the score may improve when he finishes it. If you have read the book please comment to let us know what you think.
Chapter 2 - Tess of the D'Urbervilles
When the Durbeyfields send their daughter Tess to pursue a tenuous family connection with te wealthy D'Urbervilles in the hope of improving their fortunes, Tess's life is changed irrevocably. A manipulative friendship with her "cousin" ends in a shocking act of betrayal, and Tess is forced to return home shamed and outcast.
Hope of real love arrives when Tess meets kind parson's son Angel Clare and it seems happiness is finally within her reach. Yet, in a society of twisted morality and in ever-looming shadow of Tess's past will Angel Clare accept her?
Chapter 1 - The book club and its members.
After receiving a lot of book for presents at Christmas I decided to start a book club as I thought it would be nice to get together with my family and friends who all enjoy reading and discuss the books that we have read. There are currently seven members of the book club at present all diferent ages with all different tastes which is interesting. We have decided that each month one member of the club will pick the book to read and they will host the meeting which will take place in a months time. The person who is choosing the book will be picked at random to make it fair. The members are.......
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