Book Club Girl

Reminder! Our Book Club Chat with Debra Dean is this Thursday 8/21 at 7 pm EST!

Just a reminder that this Thursday, August 21st at 7pm EST we are talking with Debra Dean about her novel The Madonnas of Leningrad on my online radio show, Book Club Girl on Air. I hope that you've all been enjoying the book, I've already heard from some of you who are looking forward to the talk. Check out the great review that Darlene has already posted on her blog Peeking Between the Pages!

The night of the show, you can listen live on your computer here at 7 pm EST. (You can also listen at that same link after the show). You can call in to the show to ask ask a question at this number: (347) 945-6149. As people call in, I'll identify them by the last four digits of their phone number. If I say your phone number, remember to turn down the volume on your computer when you ask your question. If you can't call in, but have questions for Debra, please put them in the comments to this post (before midday Thursday), or you can send in questions while you're listening to the show via the Chat function on the show's page. But if you plan to do this, I recommend you register on the site beforehand. Make sure you enter your questions via "Chat" and not "Comments" so that I'll see them during the live show.

If you're not sure what to ask, but want to participate, learn more about Debra Dean here, and check out the reading group guide, as well as the P.S. section in the back of the book. I hope to hear from some of you on Thursday night!

Nicholas Sparks' Nights in Rodanthe Comes to the Big Screen Next Month -- Watch the Trailer and Enter the Giveaway!

I have to say, I've seen this trailer a few times and each time I get choked up. And c'mon, who doesn't want to see Richard Gere and Diane Lane in love? Check out the trailer for Nights in Rodanthe, based on Nicholas Sparks' betselling book, which is opening nationwide on September 26th. Tell me what you think and you could win one of ten copies of the book that I have to give away! Win one and read it in your book group, here's the reading group guide. Visit the official movie website here.

Wife in the North Hits the States -- and I've Got Some to Give Away!

Wife in the North, Judith O'Reilly's funny and acutely observed memoir of being uprooted from the London she loves to live in the country among sheep shearers and a lot of mud, and which sprouted out of her blog of the same name, is already a bestseller in the UK. Today it's available in the US and while I could describe the book in more detail here, I think the below video pretty much sums it up, quite hilariously as well. Watch it. Then read an excerpt and check out the reading group guide.

I also have ten copies to give away! But it comes with a challenge: what's your "Wife in the North" story? While you may not have been asked to pull a full-on Green Acres like O'Reilly was, many of us have made changes in our lives since and because of marriage. Tell us about a change you've made and how it changed you -- be it funny or serious.

Diane Rehm's New Reader's Review Title is Hemingway's A Farewell to Arms

Tune in to Diane Rehm on August 20th for a discussion of Ernest Hemingway's classic A Farewell to Arms. Read an excerpt, listen to a clip, and check out the reading group guide beforehand.

Ann Patchett's Run is On Sale in Paperback Today!

Run, the acclaimed and bestselling new book by Ann Patchett, whose Bel Canto and Magician's Assistant have been top reading group choices for years is now in paperback! In Run, Patchett tells the story of the Doyle family, headed by Bernard Doyle, a former mayor of Boston. He has been raising their adopted sons Teddy and Tip Doyle on his own since the death of wife years earlier and hoping that they too will enter a life of politics, a dream that neither of the boys shares. But when an argument in a blinding New England snowstorm inadvertently causes an accident that involves a stranger and her child, all Bernard cares about is his ability to keep his children—all his children—safe. You can browse inside Run here and be sure to check out the P.S. section exclusive to the paperback, in which Patchett talks about writing the book while the presidential election was gearing up and how that effected her thinking of setting and time.

Book Club Resources for Run:
Ann's Book Tour
Interview with Ann
Reading Group Guide
Visit Ann's Website

Read an Early Excerpt of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society

When not hearing buzz about The Lace Reader, the other book everyone is talking about (and I am about to get my hands on) is The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society. This epistolary novel tells the story of a group of people who begin to call themselves "The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society" because they need an excuse for breaking the curfew set by the Germans occupying their island during WWII. Juliet Ashton is living in England as the war ends when she receives a letter from a member of the society who has found her address in one of her old books that has made its way to Guernsey. As their correspondence progresses, Juliet is drawn into an eccentric world of charming and funny people, from pig farmers to phrenologists, who are all lovers of literature.

I love epistolary novels, and whenever I hear about Guernsey I think of another novel of letters that I devoured, Helene Hanff's 84 Charing Cross Road. This one sounds wonderful and I can't wait to read it. It goes on sale next Tuesday, July 29th, and you can read an early excerpt here. Here is the reading group guide and here is what others (including book club favorite Elizabeth Gilbert) are saying about it.

Reminder! Our Book Club Chat with Victoria Lustbader, author of Stone Creek is this Wednesday, July 23rd at 7 PM EST

Those of you who signed on to participate will have already received an email reminder about our book club conversation this Wednesday night with Victoria, but the call is open to anyone who has read Stone Creek or is interested in discussing this compelling novel!

Set your reminder for the show here and return to that same link to listen to the show live on Wed at 7 pm EST. You can call in to the show to ask ask a question at this number: (347) 835-6149. As people call in, I'll identify them by the last four digits of your phone number. If I say your phone number, remember to turn down the volume on your computer when you ask your question. If you can't call in, but have questions for Victoria, please put them in the comments to this post, or you can send in questions while you're listening to the show via the Chat function on the show's page. But if you plan to do this, I recommend you register on the site beforehand. Make sure you enter your questions via "Chat" and not "Comments" so that I'll see them during the live show.

If you're not sure what to ask, but want to participate, check out the reading group guide to the book as well as a Q&A with Victoria from the back of the book, for inspiration. Hope to hear from some of you on Wednesday night!

My Book Group Met the Other Night to Discuss Jhumpa Lahiri's Unaccustomed Earth

As many of you know, from your fabulous response to my hosting stress-out, I hosted my book group this week. Thank you all for the food and drink suggestions you sent in, they inspired me to serve the following: a large punch bowl of lemonade (Country Time, but tricked out with lemon slices and spearmint leaves so it looked like I'd been slaving all day squeezing lemons); Prosecco, naan bread with hummus; olives and cheese sticks, cheese and crackers; a fruit salad of blueberries, raspberries, strawberries and blackberries; ginger cookies and lemon cake. I believe everyone was pleased with the nosh.

We had a great discussion of Jhumpa Lahiri's Unaccustomed Earth, which all of us really liked and the fact that it was stories didn't slow us down as I had feared.(For more on how to discuss short stories, read this thoughtful piece from short story author Christopher Meeks over on the blog SheisTooFondofBooks). We remarked on how Lahiri's stories and depictions of human interaction reflect such universal feelings and relationships. While she's writing specifically about Indians and their immigration experience, when it comes down to each story, all of us found so much to identify with. We have some members who are not native to the US and it's always so interesting to hear their reaction to stories like Lahiri's about people who move to America and keep so much of their cultural identity and traditions intact.

We voted for our next selection and I offered up 6 choices rather than our usual 5. We had to go through a few rounds of voting to finally narrow it down to our winner. The contestants were (and forgive me, I know they're all from one particular house, but work was crazy this week and my husband was out of town and it was all I could do to remember to have books on hand):
Marisa de los Santos' Belong to Me
Delaune Michel's The Safety of Secrets
Debra Dean's The Madonnas of Leningrad
Barbara Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle
Dalia Sofer's The Septembers of Shiraz
Masha Hamilton's The Camel Bookmobile

The winner was The Septembers of Shiraz and I'm so excited to read Sofer's debut novel set in Iran after the revolution. You may recall that there's an online discussion of Shiraz going on right now at EverydayIWritetheBook so we'll be sure to check out those comments as well before we meet in August.

Here are resources for The Septembers of Shiraz:
The PS section in which Sofer talks about writing Shiraz
Browse inside the book
Reading Group Guide

Laurie Viera Rigler Recommends Keeping the House -- and Your Book Club Could Win Cookies to Enjoy With It!

Those of you who listened to my book club show with Laurie Viera Rigler, author of Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict, may remember that when she was asked which authors and books she enjoyed, she mentioned Ellen Baker's Keeping the House. Says Rigler "I loved Keeping the House. It's a beautiful, moving novel that is tremendously relevant for our times. It's a multi-generational story that spans two World Wars and post-WWII, and it's about family secrets and what war does to us. I found myself completely engaged in the lives of the various characters." That recommendation is good enough for me and Keeping the House is out in paperback today.

And as if that weren't enough enticement, Baker is currently offering book clubs who adopt Keeping the House in August, September or October the chance to win two dozen Lacy Raisin Wafers to be shipped to your house in time for your meeting! Cookie details here. Baker is also available to call in to reading groups, time permitting, and you can make that request when you enter the cookie contest.

Read the first chapter of Keeping the House here, find discussion questions here and learn more about Baker's inspiration for the story here.

Wendy Lee's Happy Family is a Moving Exploration of Love and Loss

I first met Lily and her mother in late winter, about three months after I had arrived in America. So begin's Wendy Lee's moving debut novel Happy Family, about Hua, a young Chinese immigrant who is hired as a nanny to an adopted 2-year-old Chinese girl named Lily. Hua becomes deeply attached to the new family she works for, and ever closer to Lily, who reminds her of her own childhood, even as she feels foreign in an environment so different from her homeland. But when she starts noticing cracks in the facade of Lily's parent's marriage, Hua worries about what will happen to Lily and to the family she's come to love. Happy Family is an entrancing exploration of love and loss, the familiar and the foreign, and the ties that bind strangers together. Read an excerpt here, what reviewers are saying here, read an interview with Lee, and here is the reading group guide.

Debut Novelist Available to Call In to Book Clubs!

Meri Weiss' debut novel Closer to Fine is just out and looks like  it a wonderful one for book club discussions. Four years after the death of her brother, and her own depression and suicide attempt, Alex is trying to get her life together when she meets a man who might be the missing key to her happiness, or not. Simon Van Booy, author of The Secret Lives of People in Love (is that not one of the best book titles ever?)says that Closer to Fine has "characters so beautifully crafted and realistic, you'll spend the rest of your life looking for them on the streets of Manhattan. This brilliant first novel is a comic masterpiece which bravely deals with the stark emptiness of tragedy and the ultimate redemption through friendship and the power of trust."

Weiss is available to call in to book groups and there's a reading guide in the back of the book. You can read the first chapter here and visit Weiss' website to contact her to speak to your book group. She also has a great blog and is making some appearances in the tri-state area. Check it out!

Happy Fourth of July!

I hope everyone has a great day filled with fireworks, barbecues and relaxation. We'll be hitting our main park to see the old time-y circus that comes to town each year and of course going to the fireworks at night. (Though this is my son's first real cognizant year, so fireworks might start to get scary. We'll see.) The circus is pretty great -- filled with death defying acts (without a net), funny clowns, and some very talented dogs -- so in honor of Big Tops everywhere, I wanted to remind readers of Katherine Dunn's wonderful novel from several years ago, Geek Love. For those who haven't read it, I recommend it highly. Dunn tells the story of a family of freaks, geeks and other aberrancies of the human conditon, who travel together as a circus. Geek Love was a finalist for the National Book Award and the Chicago Tribune called it "“unrelentingly bizarre . . . perverse but riveting. . . . Will keep you turning the pages.” There is also much to discuss so it makes a great book club selection. Here's the reading group guide.

Diane Rehm's New Reader's Review Book is Anne of Green Gables

Diane Rehm's new reader's review title is L.M. Montgomery's children's classic about a young girl who is sent to live with a lonely middle aged brother and sister on Prince Edward Island, Anne of Green Gables. I will now confess that while I am a lover of children's literature, I have not read Anne. I think this is because my sister was really into the books, and while that certainly didn't dissuade me from falling in love with Betsy, Tacy and co, my need to be different somehow kept me from reading Anne. We even visited the Green Gables House on Prince Edward Island on a family vacation. What can I say, I was a stubborn child. So perhaps now is the time. The discussion will take place on Diane Rehm's show on July 23rd (the day of my next show!).

Announcing My Next Blog Talk Radio Show with Victoria Lustbader, author of Stone Creek

As those of you who listened to my most recent book club show with Laurie Viera Rigler know, my next show, scheduled for July 23rd at 7 pm EST is with Victoria Lustbader. Lustbader is the author of Stone Creek, a novel many of you had the opportunity to read a bit of and commented on last month. In Stone Creek, Lustbader tells the story of two wounded people searching for love, and finding it in an unexpected place. Lily is happily married but finds herself newly unhappy with the decision she and her husband made years earlier to not have children. Danny is grieving for the sudden tragic death of his wife while caring for his 4-year old son. When Lily and Danny meet, the connection between them is palpable. Stone Creek is a moving meditation on love and loss and how love can be found with more than one person. As such, there is a lot to discuss! I look forward to talking with Victoria and with many of you about the book. To find out more, visit Victoria's website, check out the reading group guide and browse inside the book.

Set your reminder for the show here. The first 10 people to comment on this post that they'd like to participate in the show will receive a copy of Stone Creek.

UPDATED POST! Book Club Favorite Jennifer Haigh's New Novel is On Sale Today!

VIDEO NOW INCLUDED BELOW!

The new novel from Jennifer Haigh, author of book club favorites Baker Towers and Mrs. Kimble, is on sale today and is just wonderful. In The Condition, Haigh tells the story of the McKotch family who have all gone their separate ways as their parents have divorced and the children have grown up. The novel is told from the perspectives of each member of the family, each wounded in their own way. Haigh's insights into family will make you reflect on your own. I've read all of her novels and found this one to be on a completely new level, I just loved it. So did BCG reader Julie -- you can read her review over on her great blog Booking Mama. Here is a video of Jennifer talking about the book, which you can browse inside here.

Here are more resources:
Interview with Jennifer Haigh
Reading Group Guide
Catch Jennifer on Tour
Jennifer's Website

My Book Group's Next Selection is Jhumpa Lahiri's Unaccustomed Earth

I'm so excited that my book group decided our next book is Jhumpa Lahiri's acclaimed new book of stories, Unaccustomed Earth. I've heard such great things from friends who have already read and loved the book. I'm interested to see how a discussion of short stories goes, as in my last book group we had a hard time discussing stories, but I'm game. You can read an excerpt here, download the reading group guide here, read more about Lahiri here and watch a video of Lahiri on Barnes & Noble's Meet the Writers series.

Live from ALA, An Interview with Masha Hamilton, author of The Camel Bookmobile

Today at ALA, Stephanie had the opportunity to interview Masha Hamilton, author of The Camel Bookmobile, who is in Anaheim this weekend promoting her book and mobile libraries (that's the bookmobile to you and me). It is such an interesting interview in which we learn, among many other things, how Masha came to write the book as a novel, about her trip to Africa as well as her experiences with libraries and book groups here in the states, many of whom, as we know from her post on the blog at ReadingGroupGuides.com, have rallied to raise money for the Camel Book Drive.

Browse inside the book here and if you would like more information on how you can help, the website that Masha set up to donate is www.camelbookdrive.wordpress.com. You can learn more at her site as well. Thank you Masha for speaking with Stephanie and thank you Stephanie for such an insightful interview! The first 5 commenters on this post will receive a copy of The Camel Bookmobile.

First Trailer for Book Club Favorite The Secret Life of Bees Movie!

The big-screen adaptation of Sue Monk Kidd's bestselling The Secret Life of Bees opens nationwide in October of this year and you can watch an exclusive trailer for the film on the Borders site now. The movie stars Jennifer Hudson, Dakota Fanning, Alicia Keys, and Queen Latifah. You can also watch Sue Monk Kidd talking about the book and movie, also on Border's site, here!

Jodi Picoult's The Tenth Circle Comes to Lifetime This Weekend

Jodi Picoult's bestselling book club favorite The Tenth Circle gets its tv debut this Saturday, June 28th, with the Lifetime film adaptation. Kelly Preston, Ron Eldard and Britt Robertson star in the story of the Stone family, whose seemingly idyllic life is torn apart when their daughter Trixie is date raped. And when holes appear in Trixie's story, and the rapist is linked to another violent crime, the Stones themselves come under suspicion in this gripping page turner that is sure to be just as compelling on the small screen. Get more info at Lifetime.com, including an exclusive sneak peek at Picoult's next novel, Handle with Care, as well as a chance to win a signed library of all of Picoult's books. Read an excerpt of The Tenth Circle here and get the reading group guide here.

Reminder! Our Book Club Chat with Laurie Viera Rigler, author of Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict is this Wednesday Night!

Those of you who received copies of Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict for this Wednesday's Blog Talk Radio show with author Laurie Viera Rigler will have just received a reminder via email. But the show and conversation are not limited to the people who received books. Anyone who has already read Confessions or is simply interested in the fabulous story of a modern-day thirty-something woman suddenly transplanted into 1813 England is welcome to participate!

Set a reminder for the show here and that night you can call in at this number --(347) 945-6149. I'll identify callers by the last four digits of their phone number. You can also send questions for Laurie by commenting on this post prior to Wednesday night or while you're listening to the show live via the Chat section of the show's page (be sure to register on the website first if you want to use Chat and be sure to enter questions in "Chat," and not in "Comments").

If you're not sure what to ask, you might get some ideas with the reading group guide to the book. We hope to hear from some of you on Wednesday night at 7 pm EST! And stay tuned till the end of the show to hear which author we'll be talking with in July!

Book Club Favorite Brick Lane Comes to the Big Screen

Monica Ali's bestselling novel Brick Lane, which has been read by and discussed in many a book group, including my own, gets its big screen debut this Friday when the film adaptation opens in select theaters.The trailer looks fabulous. Read an excerpt of the book here, an essay by Ali here and check out the reading guide here.

Calling All NYC Book Club Girls - and Guys

If you're in the area, come out tonight to celebrate the publication of Jessica Anya Blau's debut novel about growing up in the '70s with hippie parents -- The Summer of Naked Swim Parties. If you were a teen in the 70s, or even a preteen, you will find much to identify with in this engaging novel. It's the perfect summer beach read. Join us, if you can, at McNally Robinson tonight at 7pm, 52 Prince Street between Lafayette and Mulberry. Not in NY? See if you can catch Blau on tour near you. Read a bit of the book here, here's the reading group guide and below is a great promotional video for the book.

Don't Miss the Book the New York Times Calls "The Most Enchanting Debut of the Summer"

In her rave review in today's New York Times, Janet Maslin calls The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, by David Wroblewski, the "most enchanting debut of the summer." In the novel, Wroblewski tells the story of Edgar Sawtelle, born mute, speaking only in sign, he lives an idyllic life on his family's farm in northern Wisconsin raising dogs. When his uncle Claude returns to the family and his father dies unexpectedly, Claude's intrusion into their lives, and his mother's affections, sets off a chain of events and Edgar finds himself on his own, struggling to come to terms with what has happened as he comes of age. Browse inside the book here, and look for Wroblewksi on tour here. Visit his website for the reading guide and more.

DailyLit Launches a Reading Group with Twitter

DailyLit, the website that offers online serialization of books and sends out portions of them daily, has launched a reading group on the social networking site Twitter. I confess I don't twitter (but look for me on Facebook!), but it sounds like a pretty cool venture if you want a daily dose of a book (sent to your cell phone or via instant messenger) and the ability to talk about it with others reading right along with you on Twitter forums.

The first three titles are Cory Doctorow's Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom, Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice and Tom Peters' 100 Ways to Succeed/Make Money. The free snippets start going out on Monday, June 16th. For more information about how to sign up, go here.

If any of you already get DailyLit, I'd love to hear about your experience, and if you participate in one of the reading groups, please let us know!

Loving Frank Author Nancy Horan Speaks at Fallingwater

Here's a really interesting article that ran just prior to Nancy Horan's appearance and talk at Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater this past Sunday and at the Oakmont Pulic Library today. Horan said she's heard from book clubs who have scheduled visits to Wright's architectural masterpiece after reading the book and she's also been gratified that fans of Wright have responded so positively to Loving Frank. I know many are reading the book in their book clubs so check out the article for some background on how Horan wrote the book.
More resources for Loving Frank:
Reading Group Guide
Author Interview
Author Tour
Excerpt

A New Memoir I Know We Can All Relate To

Whether you grew up with a weight problem, or thinking you had one (which I think pretty much covers every adolescent girl at one time or another) you will find much to relate to in Stephanie Klein's raw and remarkably honest memoir Moose. "Moose" is what Stephanie was labelled at school as an overweight teen and in this, her second memoir, she recounts the summer she was sent to fat camp and how it shaped her body and her life. You can browse inside the book here, check out Stephanie's blog here and watch a video of her here. On her site she's also running a contest -- for a limited time, buy two copies and get a free print of one of her artistic photographs--which are currently on view at the Hotel Gansevoort in NYC. Enter the contest here. Find Stephanie on tour near you here, and here is the reading group guide.

Great New Site for Book Clubs

I've just been told about a fantastic online resource for book club members and all book lovers: LitLovers.com. The site, run by a former college English instructor, features reading group guides which in addition to the traditional questions have in-depth features on the author, details on what the critics had to say as well as little-known facts about each book. The site offers short courses to sharpen your literary skills, a shop in which you can buy lovely gifts for your book club host (or yourself) and Lit Fun -- a potpourri of other things book people will enjoy like great literary film adaptations, ideas for mothers and children, recipes for foods to enjoy at your book club and more. Check it out!

Book Club Panel Held Today at NY Public Library

I had the pleasure of speaking on a panel today at the NY Public Library discussing book clubs with librarians from Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn and the Bronx and it was such a terrific experience. The panel was moderated by Carol Fitzgerald, creator of ReadingGroupGuides.com, the absolute go-to resource for reading groups. On the panel with me were Victoria Lustbader, author of the newly released Stone Creek, which many of you commented on here, as well as Elizabeth Noble, whose most recent novel is Things I Want My Daughters to Know.

We had a wonderful time discussing the strength of women's fiction published this year, like the two books above, and also about all the great books we've read in our book clubs and how we've responded to different titles. We learned so much from the librarians in the audience--they were one of the most informative, enlightened and energized group of readers I've been around in a while!

Elizabeth, who is also the author of course, of The Reading Group, so she's heard a lot of book group stories, had a great way of describing the different types that one finds in a book group -- they either, she said, read to learn, to think or to feel. I thought this was such an interesting comment and it made me think about which type of reader I am. The learner will often nominate a nonfiction book or something that when she reads it, is going to teach her a lot, she wants to spend her time reading also learning. The feeler wants to read about emotions and people's lives and wants to care deeply about the people she's reading about. And the thinker wants to ponder higher more complex issues and in a way, is a bit of an amalgam of both the learner and the feeler. Victoria insightfully commented that the reason that historical fiction is so popular is that it allows us to both learn and feel. (Check out Victoria's first novel,