We had a superb evening at Wanda's. Our original plan was to talk about Blackwater Lightship but the book had proved difficult to find. So we had a sharing session instead and talked about what we have been reading recently. We also went ahead with some plans for the next few months. Thank you so much to Wanda for hosting another lovely evening.
In January we will follow our new tradition of starting the year by meeting for dinner at a restaurant instead of holding book club. It was easy to choose Mai Bistro again, and we'll meet there at 6 pm on January 23, 2020.
The following month we'll get back to Blackwater Lightship by Colm Tóibín again when we hope that more people will have had a chance to read it. This will be at Susan's place on February 27th.
We were small in number (3) but mighty in opinions when we met at Maureen's to discuss Ali Smith's Autumn. The book was well-received; a story about time, it was timely, having been published shortly after the Brexit vote. Post-Brexit, when "all across the country, there was misery and rejoicing..." was the setting for Elisabeth and Daniel's friendship. We agreed that the story was well-told and filled with memorable characters. There are more books that make up part of this seasonal quartet and Jo has read Winter and Spring; Summer has yet to be published.
The next meeting will take place on Thursday, Dec. 5 at Wanda's home. We'll talk about Colm Toibin's book Blackwater Lightship.
The crowd (!) enjoyed the appetizer I made: endive with smoked trout and herbed cream cheese. I changed the recipe by using smoked trout pate instead of smoked trout fillets with the herbed cream cheese. Yummy and easy.
There were only positive reactions to the stories in Madame Victoria. You could say that the themes resonated with us even if the meaning of some recurring motifs was a mystery. Possibly, in view of the unresolved nature of Madame Victoria’s death, the ambiguity was intentional?
We met at Saara's home since Maureen was away. Sincere thanks to Saara for providing us with such a relaxing and pleasant evening after switching with Maureen.
Although there were a few people missing, we had no choice but to make some (tentative) plans for the next few months. After some back-and-forth it now seems that our next book club will be on Tuesday, November 5th. The book in November will be Autumn by Ali Smith.
On Thursday, December 5th we plan to meet at Wanda's to talk about The Blackwater Lightship by Colm Tóibín.
Please note that these dates are not confirmed. If anyone would like to suggest a change, please do so in a group email and if necessary I'll edit this posting.
Other Books:
The Seasonal Quartet (Autumn, Winter,Spring, Summer) by Ali Smith
Book Launch - Rogene (mom) brought the amazing cake
Having Zalika join us last night was a departure for our book club, and particularly thrilling since she had just found out this week that she was on the long list for the Giller prize. We had many questions, and Zalika was patient in explaining all about the creative process, and the politics of publishing. She wasn't feeling 100%, which makes it more remarkable that she gave us so much of her time and energy. Thank you so much Zalika!!
Morning-after regrets hit me though, as soon as I sat down to blog: we forgot to take selfies with Zalika! Arghhh!
A reminder that we are meeting next on Thursday, October 3rd at Maureen's to talk about Madame Victoria by Catherine Leroux.
I don't recall discussing any other books last night.
Maureen let us know about the documentary New Homelandwhich is available to view now on Crave TV.
Thanks to Jo we had the perfect location for a warm summer evening, lots of tasty snacks and warm hospitality. As a bonus, the mosquitoes stayed away. Thank you Jo!
This was the book club evening that we had set aside just to share what we've been reading, etc. The list is below.
Zalika Reid-Benta
credit: The Toronto Star
Remember that next month we'll be at my place on Thursday, September 5th to talk about Frying Plantain by Zalika Reid-Benta, who has agreed to join us for this evening!!
After that the next book club will be on Thursday, October 3rd when we'll meet at Maureen's to talk about Madame Victoria by Catherine Leroux.
The rain never let up all evening, contributing to the cozy atmosphere on Janice's porch. We were able to enjoy another book club with nobody missing - always a happy bonus on book club evenings. Thank you to Janice for being such a gracious hostess. And here is the sun this morning.
We will meet next on Thursday, August 1st at Jo's house. No book has been assigned. We'll share with each other what we have been reading.
Following that will be a discussion of Frying Plantain by Zalika Reid-Benta. This will be at my house (Marian) on Thursday, September 5th.
We also set aside Thursday, October 3rd when we'll meet at Maureen's to talk about Madame Victoria by Catherine Leroux.
"Become educated. But do not let your education putrify into arrogance".
We met at Jane's house, inside for a change, and also for a change everyone was able to be present. That was special. As usual Jane provided everything for a pleasant evening, and as usual we asked her to share an exceptional recipe. See below. Thank you Jane!
A reminder that our next book club will be held at Janice's home on June 20th and the book will be Women Talking by Miriam Toews. After that we won't be meeting until August 1st at Jo's, with no assigned book. It will be a chance to share what we've been reading.
1 lb 10 oz (725 g) ripe plum tomatoes, or any other ripe medium-sized tomato 5 oz (150 g) soft goats’ cheese 4 level teaspoons chopped fresh thyme, plus a few small sprigs 1 x 375 g pack fresh, ready-rolled puff pastry 2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
salt and freshly milled black pepper
To begin the recipe, first of all unwrap the pastry and place it on the baking tray.
Then, using a sharp knife, carefully score a line on the pastry,
about ½ in (1 cm) in from the edge, all the way around, but be careful
not to cut it all the way through. Now tip the goats’ cheese into a
small bowl, add the crushed garlic, chopped thyme and a good seasoning
of salt and freshly milled black pepper. Then give it all a good mixing
and, using a small palette or other round-bladed knife, carefully spread
the cheese mixture evenly all over the surface of the pastry, right up
to the line.
Next, thinly slice all the tomatoes (there is no need to peel them)
and arrange them on top of the goats’ cheese in overlapping lines
lengthways; overlap one line one way and the one next to it the other
way. After that, season the tomatoes and then drizzle the olive oil and
scatter the sprigs of thyme all over them.
Bake in the pre-heated oven on the middle shelf for 55 minutes or
until the pastry is golden-brown and the tomatoes are roasted and
slightly charred at the edges.
If you are going to serve the tart warm, leave it to settle for about 10 minutes before cutting into squares.
We had a great evening at Saara's with yummy food and enthusiastic conversation. A big thanks to Saara for graciously hosting and for sharing her recipe for Sweet Potato and Feta Patties (see below).
There will be a General Strike against Doug Ford on Wednesday May 1st. See you there!!
Next month we will read Educated by Tara Westover. We'll be at Jane's on Wednesday, May 22nd.
We picked two other future dates. On Thursday, June 20th we'll be at Janice's and the book will be Women Talking by Miriam Toews.
Skipping past July we'll meet again at Jo's place on Thursday, August 1st. We decided to make this a time to share with each other what we've all been reading.
2 and ½ cups sweet potatoes peeled and grated
1 cup feta cheese crumbled
5 eggs lightly beaten
½ cup flour
2 green onions finely chopped
¼ cup cilantro extremely finely chopped ( I used more)
½ tsp ground coriander
pinch of cayenne
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 F
2. In large bowl combine all ingredients
3. Lightly season with salt and pepper ( I did not)
4. In large non-stick frying pan with some vegetable oil cook a few patties at a time
flattening them as they cook. Brown on both sides…it takes a few minutes only.
5. Bake on a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper for 10 minutes.
Serve with tzatziki
"All children are really orphans. At heart, a child
has nothing to do with its parents, its background, its last name, its
gender, its family trade. It is a brand-new person, and it is born with
the only legacy that each individual inherits when they open their eyes
in this world: the inalienable right to be free."
Heather O'Neill has an exceptional sensibility and voice. Her book provoked some lively conversation. Thank you to Wanda for hosting. It was such a pleasant evening.
To learn more about the history of Montreal, Maureen recommended reading a book by William Weintraub. I think the title is City Unique: Montreal Days and Nights in the 1940s and '50s.
We are heading to Saara's next month to talk about Less by Andrew Sean Greer. The date is April 25th which is another Thursday. In the video below Andrew Sean Greer talks about his book.
Books that we mentioned:
Best Canadian Stories of 2018 compiled by Russell Smith
"I think that many Vietnam vets believed that no matter what they did, they would never have any control over their lives. Powerful, faceless men would always pull the strings, so why should the powerless non-string-pullers give a fuck? Playing the puppet while high became easier than cleaning up enough to cut strings and kill puppet masters."
This book was a hard look into the minds of the angry old men whose voices have become so loud in recent years. It gave us plenty to talk about. Thank you to Susan for being a gracious hostess as always. It was a perfect evening.
Our next book is The Lonely Hearts Hotel by Heather O'Neill. We'll meet at Wanda's (note that this is a change, as is the location for April's meeting) on March 21st for this.
We chose a new book for April 25th at Saara's (instead of Wanda's) - Less by Andrew Sean Greer.
