Summer in the City

 We met at Saara's on a perfect summer day. The sky was cloudless and the view reached to Lake Ontario and beyond.  Everyone expected a marvelous meal but Saara exceeded expectations with a very special shrimp salad and her scrumptious summer fruit pie (recipes are below). Besides basking in the hospitality, we also spent some time talking about our book, The Paris Express by Emma Donoghue.  

Our next book will be Say Nothing by Patrick Radden Keefe. The date is Wednesday, August 27th and we will meet at noon at Wanda's house. Watch the video version of Say Nothing on Disney+.

On Tuesday, September 23rd the meeting will be at my house (Marian) at noon again. The book will be Theft by Abdulrazak Gurnah.  

We also planned for October - Wednesday the 22nd, at noon. We will meet at Jane's and our book will be The Relatives by Camilla Gibb.  

Books of Note 

• H is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald
• Sweetness in the Belly by Camilla Gibb
• Empire of Pain by Patrick Radden Keefe
• Kairos by Jenny Erpenbeck
• Hope is a Woman's Name by Amal Elsana Alh'jooj
• The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson
• Caste by Isabel Wilkerson
   

 

 

 

Hot Day in Port Hope

Since our last meeting, a few of us had the opportunity to visit the bench that Tom arranged to put up in memory of Maureen. It is in a lovely location, along the Waterfront Trail near their condominium (2267 Lakeshore Blvd West). Its precise placement is shown on google maps at this link, which also shows photos of the bench, the view of the lake and snaps of people who have visited it. Liam is going to post one of the  photos that were taken when we visited.

In contrast to the unseasonably cool temperatures we had for the May meeting at Jo's, the weather for our June meeting was hot and steamy. We were very happy to escape from Toronto and meet in Port Hope, where Jan and Jane graciously co-hosted us. We were treated to delicious snacks and lunch at Jan's house, and then to a scrumptious Eton Mess dessert at Jane's. Our book for June was The Mighty Red which we agreed was a very interesting read, because of its cross-section of quirky, plucky characters and the challenges they faced, as well as its reference to an array of environmental, historical and economic issues. Many thanks to Jane and Jan for working in the midst of the heatwave to make our day so enjoyable!

We will be meeting at Saara's in July--likely July 23rd but this will be confirmed. We will be reading The Paris Express by Emma Donoghue.

In August we will be reading Say Nothing by Patrick Radden Keefe. We will be meeting at Wanda's on August 27th.

Books we discussed:

• The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson
•  Fire Weather: a True Story from a Hotter World by John Vaillant
•  The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak
•  The Thing Around Your Neck by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Some things we are watching:

• The Lesser Blessed on Gem
•  Outrageous on BritBox: 

Rain and more rain

What a wet week! And so cold for May! We met at Jo's but we were forced indoors, missing out on her  garden paradise. Still, thanks to Jo's hospitality we had a perfect afternoon together talking about this and that as well as our book, The Trembling of a Leaf.  Written a century ago, the stories were an interesting counterpoint to The House of Doors which we read last month. A big thanks to Jo for hosting the gathering. 

Our next afternoon will be at Janice's house on Monday, June 21.  Because of the distance, we will meet at 11:30, have lunch, and be on the road before the traffic becomes too heavy.  The book we chose is The Mighty Red by Louise Erdrich. 

It was announced today that Michael Crummey won the Dublin Literary Award for his book The Adversary so why not mention it here?  

Books: 

• Black House by Stephen King and Peter Straub
• Death at the Sign of the Rook by Kate Atkinson
• The Mighty Red by Louise Erdrich
• The Ninth Hour by Alice McDermott
• The Moon of the Crusted Snow by Waubgeshig Rice
• The Knowing by Tanya Talaga
• The Echoes by Evie Wyld
• After the Fire, a Still Small Voice by Evie Wyld 

Film:

• Heretic - Paramount
• The Knowing - Gem 

 

The House of Doors

 

We met at Jane's to share our thoughts about The House of Doors. It was a perfect afternoon to spend together and Jane welcomed us with her usual "just right" hospitality - so relaxing in our hectic world. The world of our novel was something else again - steamy, languid and lush with multiple layers of intrigue, all set in a time when casual racism and conventional expectations went unquestioned. 

Our next book will be a followup, The Trembling of a Leaf by W. Somerset Maugham. (Project Gutenberg provides this book from 1921 online).  We will be at Jo's to talk about it on Wednesday, May 21 at 1 pm.

Books:

• The Ninth Hour by Alice McDermott
• The Razor's Edge by W. Somerset Maugham
• The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham
• The Mighty Red by Louise Erdrich
• The Paris Express by Emma Donoghue
• Honour by Alif Shafak  
• The Island of Missing Trees by Alif Shafak
• Real Ones by Katherena Vermette

 Video:

• The Pitt - series (Crave)
• iHostage (Netflix)

 

 

Spring! Happy Nowruz!!

Nowruz, Persian New Year has been celebrated for more than 3000 years. It falls on the first day of spring. Traditions involve arranging a display of seven symbolic items: sprouts for rebirth, wheat pudding for strength, olives for love, berries for the sunrise, vinegar for patience, apples for beauty, and garlic for health. Happy Nowruz!

We spent a lovely afternoon at Susan's house on the first day of spring, or Nowruz for those celebrating, talking about The Wren, The Wren by Ann Enright, a  book that seemed appropriate to the season. Susan provided some elegant snacking and a special birthday surprise. The recipe for her delicious grated apple tart is below. 

We have a plan for next month. The book is The House of Doors by Tan Twan Eng. We will meet at Jane's on Thursday, April 24th at 1 pm.  

Books 

• The Shortest History of Israel and Palestine by Michael Scott-Baumann
• One Day, Everyone Will All have been Against This by Omar El Akkad 
• Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton
• Not Even the Sound of the River by Hélène Dorion
• Caledonian Road by Andrew O'Hagan 
• Tell Me Everything by Elizabeth Strout 
• On the Ravine by Vincent Lam
• The House of Doors by Tan Twan Eng
• The Ninth Hour by Alice McDermott

Film

• No Other Land  

Audio 

• Ideas - Here Lived Chava Rosenfarb (ex-wife of Henry Morgenthaler)  

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Susan’s Grated Apple Tart

Base

• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 cup butter
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1 tbsp white vinegar

In a food processor pulse first 3 ingredients until well blended. While food processor is running, add vinegar and pulse briefly. Dump into an 8” springform pan and pat into the bottom and sides.

Filling

• 3 cups grated apple (Cortland, Macintosh)
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1 tsp cinnamon

Grate apples and mix with the other ingredients. Pour into shell and smooth top. Bake at 400 degrees for 45 minutes or until crust is lightly browned. Let cool and turn out onto plate.

 

Before the storm

Yesterday we met at Lynda's, and the weather kindly assisted by holding back the storm for the afternoon. Today everything is white and white as the world is snowed in or shovelling. Lynda provided us with delicious treats and quiet background music while we talked about Passionate Mothers, Powerful Sons, the lives of Sara Roosevelt and Jenny Churchill and how they influenced the illustrious careers of their famous sons. In our current world of disquiet, book club afternoons are a particularly welcome respite - thank you so much Lynda. 

Next month the book will be The Wren, The Wren by Ann Enright and we will meet at Susan's on Thursday, March 20 at 1 pm. 

Election day in Ontario is fast approaching. Here is some advice from the pollsters if you want to vote strategically to defeat our current government. VoteWell.ca

Books of Note: 

• Not Even the Sound of a River by Hélène Dorion
• At a Loss for Words by Carol Off
  
• Health for All by Jane Philpott
• The Maid by Nita Prose
  
• Trespasses by Louise Kennedy
• Long Island by Colm Tóibín
• The End of Men by Christina Sweeney-Baird 

What to Watch: 

• Emilia Perez (Netflix)
• Wicked
• Anora
• The Brutalist
• Inside
  
• Say Nothing (Disney +)
  
• Bad Sisters (Apple TV+)
  
• Press
• Night Agent (Netflix)
  
• Recruit
• Ru (Crave)
  

It's a new year!

It was a brisk January day when we met to talk about In Winter I Get Up at Night by Jane Urquhart. We met at Wanda's with Janice acting as host. Not only did Janice spoil us with tasty treats but she brought along the other Jane who has been missed in recent years. It was pretty special to be together and we marked the occasion by taking pictures. See below. Thank you to both Janice and Wanda for making this happen. Also, what a great book!

We firmed up a plan for the next few months.  In February we will meet at Lynda's to talk about Passionate Mothers, Powerful Sons by Charlotte Gray.  This will be on Wednesday, February 12 at 1 pm.

The following book club date will be Thursday, March 20 and we will meet at Susan's house at 1 pm. The book we have chosen is The Wren, The Wren by Ann Enright. 

What to Read:

• The Colony by Audrey Magee
• The Ninth Hour by Alice McDermott
• On the Ravine by Vincent Lam 
• Every Note Played by Lisa Genova
• Call Them by Their True Names by  Rebecca Solnit
• Disorientation: Being Black in the World by Ian Williams
• Real Ones by Katherena Vermette
• Care Of by Ivan Coyote
• The Wren, the Wren by Ann Enright 
  

What to Watch: 

• The Pradeeps of Pittsburgh - Prime
  
• A Man on the Inside - Netflix
  
• Missing You - Netflix
  
• A Complete Unknown
  
• One Hundred Years of Solitude - Netflix
  
• Slow Horses - Apple TV+
  
• Disclaimer - Apple TV+
  
• My Brilliant Friend - HBO