Left to Tell

[December 2007]

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Left to Tell
Immaculee Ilibagiza

number of voters: 6
percentage of voters who finished the book: 100%
highest rating: 9
lowest rating: 6.25
average rating: 7.42

percentage of readers who said Left to Tell was one of the best books they’ve ever read: 50

First Monday Reading Group liked this book better than Mere Christianity, by C.S. Lewis (7.4) but not quite as much as Watership Down, by Richard Adams (7.45)




***

A straightforward story deserves a straightforward review. 

As a group, we were split down the middle about Left to Tell. While half of us thought it was one of the best books we’d ever read, the other half was left wanting more.

But let’s start with what we all agreed on. We all agreed that Immaculée Ilibagiza has an incredible story to tell. Her experiences were devastating. Her survival is astonishing. Her faith is inspiring. Her ability to forgive is nearly incomprehensible. She tells her story in a simple, “here’s what happened” way.

And that, maybe, is the main distinction for those of us who didn’t love the book. It was an amazing story, but it could have been told in a more impressive way. Not much of a complaint, perhaps, but we are a literary group, after all.

Above all, however, Left to Tell raised our awareness about an African culture that is more like our own than we realized (modern housing, clothing, etc.) and yet at the same time more unlike our own than we realized (brazenly hateful and violent). This book taught us a history lesson about a recent genocide that, even a mere 13 years ago, many of us are too young to remember. And lastly, this book inspired us through one woman who, facing unimaginable horrors, trusted God for her life and was left to tell.

Cane River

[November 2007]

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Cane RiverLalita Tademy

number of voters: 6
percentage of voters who finished the book: 100%
highest rating: 8
lowest rating: 6
average rating: 6.67

percentage of readers who are women: 100
percentage of readers who are white: 100
percentage of readers who have any firsthand knowledge or understanding of slavery: 0
percentage of readers who, through reading this book, learned something knew about the history of slavery in America: 100

I am compelled to write.

The forewomen of First Monday Reading Group are standing behind me, reading over my shoulder, willing my fingers to type.

It isn’t that Cane River is the best book we’ve ever read. The writing is scattered, the dates muddled, the facts uneven. But something in the story of these women pulled us in, pushed us forward.

That’s how it is with Cane River, Lalita Tademy’s very personal tale of her ancestor’s generational passage from slave to free.

It’s a novel—not quite historical fiction, not quite personal memoir—but the line between fact and fiction is blurred as much as the line between blacks and whites. It’s a narrative about slavery, but it is unlike any story of slavery we’ve ever read.  It’s a picture of the strength of women who labored under the burdens of injustice yet who could still hold their heads high.

The story is in turns fascinating, frustrating, maddening, moving. It is not quite the portrait of good and evil to which we are accustomed; one might, in fleeting moments, sympathize with a plantation owner who is facing bankruptcy, or perhaps, surprisingly, understand the unenviable position of a white man who loves a black woman. And yet, no amount of sympathy outweighs the simple, incomprehensible fact that human beings—mothers, daughters, fathers, sons, brothers, sisters, babies—were bought and sold, as though they were nothing more than cattle.

This is the history of America. It may be flawed, but it is what our nation is made of. Cane River offers an honest glimpse of one important thread of this American tapestry.

The Kite Runner

[October 2007]
 

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The Kite Runner
Khaled Hosseini

number of voters: 6
percentage of voters who finished the book: 100%
highest rating: 8.75
lowest rating: 7
average rating: 7.92
percentage of readers who speak farsi: 0

number of book recappers who spent entirely too much time googling farsi words for this recap: 1



The First Monday Reading Group became what it is today in the year 2003, with a cool autumn read of the well-received The Secret Life of Bees.

Four years and forty-some books later, we start another year, another cool fall with another well-received ketaab (that is, book): Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner.

Hosseini’s vivid descriptions of his homeland of Afghanistan seep from the pages like dripping honey. One can almost see the kites dancing in the sky, smell the dusty air, and taste the ripe, juicy pomegranates.

The story is richly told with both broad strokes and tiny detail. Its well-drawn characters are both amiable and despicable, and sometimes at the same vaqt (time). The author weaves many colorful threads into a beautiful, devastating tapestry, and just as we begin to expect an ending in which all these threads are tied up neatly, the conclusion does nearly the ruberu (opposite), leaving a frayed and raw edge.

It is sometimes surprising to love a book that is so difficult to read, a book that is agonizing and heartbreaking but still manages to be lovely, a book that is so far removed from the life that we know. Truly, good literature can be measured by how well it conveys a time and place completely unknown to us and by how subtly it teaches us so much about another culture and its history.

And that brings us to this: In the novel, it is Rahim Kahn who says that there is a chance to be good again; Khaled Hosseini has found a way for literature to be good again as well.

Sammy’s Hill

[July 2007]

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Sammy’s Hill
Kristin Gore

number of voters: 6
percentage of voters who finished the book: 100%
highest rating: 9
lowest rating: 7.5
average rating: 8.167

percentage of readers who have accidentally emailed an embarrassing email to the wrong address: undisclosed

***

From : angie
To : Sammy’s Hill
Cc: ANGIE’s LIST of high-ranking book club officials
Subject : last night

Hey hot stuff! I know we were together just moments ago, but I couldn’t wait another moment to tell you how great you were last night (and every night before that… and some mornings too… and that one time in the restaurant). It makes me blush just thinking of some of the crazy situations you got me into! You were such a good read that I even took you into the bathroom. Sure, there were some lulls here and there, but for the most part you held my attention and even made me laugh out loud. Your stories are so well-written. I loved all the insider tidbits about working on Capitol Hill… doesn’t it make you feel so grown up and so childish at the same time? I can totally relate to that! And I had so much fun with you… especially when you stayed up late working on briefs… or boxers… or… But there I go blushing again! Looking forward to seeing you (or any sequels) again.
Your secret email lover

P.S. Wouldn’t it just be awful if I accidentally mailed this to like the President or something?!!

Confessions of a Shopaholic

[June 2007]

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Confessions of a Shopaholic
Sophie Kinsella

number of voters: 4
percentage of voters who finished the book: 100%
highest rating: 7.5
lowest rating: 6
average rating: 6.75



Dear Ms. Kinsella,

Thank you for your novel Confessions of a Shopaholic. We are greatly relieved to inform you that we found it to be an easy, light, summer read.

However, due to the discerning tastes of our book club, we are unable at this time to give you any rating greater than a 7.5. Though we enjoyed the book as “chick lit,” we could not grant it status as “literature.” And even in the chick lit genre, we had to admit that it wasn’t the best we had read.

On a positive note, there were no ratings lower than a 6, which is something to be proud of indeed. Your keen British humor (or shall I say “humour”?) kept us chuckling throughout, and although some of us may have liked to see your main character transform herself, we settled for the realism that sometimes people don’t change but instead find circumstances under which they can survive.

In closing, we hope you will continue to pursue your passion for writing, but don’t expect this book club to hold its breath for your next offering.

Sincerely,
First Monday Reading Group

Running with Scissors

[May 2007]

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Running with Scissors
Augusten Burroughs

number of voters: 3
percentage of voters who finished the book: 100%
highest rating: 5
lowest rating: 3
average rating: 3.667

percentage of readers who question the authenticity of the stories in this book: 100

fun fact: Running with Scissors is our new lowest-rated book!


Let’s be honest and to the point: Running with Scissors, the “memoir” by Augusten Burroughs, is about as enjoyable as cutting off your toe with rusty hacksaw—that is to say, disgusting, cringe-inducing, and (under the majority of circumstances) pointless. Just as we would not recommend running with scissors, we do not recommend Running with Scissors.

The Ultimate Gift

[April 2007]

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The Ultimate Gift
Jim Stovall

number of voters: 7
percentage of voters who finished the book: 100%
highest rating: 9
lowest rating: 4
average rating: 5.64

number of readers who read the book aloud to their fifth-grade classroom: 1

We were in the fourth year of our book group, when into our midst walked this young book, all full of pomp and purpose. The Ultimate Gift was hoping to inherit our highly desired praise, but little did this swaggering book know that it was about to be put through a series of rigorous tests.

The Test of Story
Things started off well for “Gift.” The story sounded interesting, and we devoured it easily in its bite-size chunks. But it quickly became apparent that this story, while appealing, was nothing more than an undeveloped story idea. Unsatisfactory marks in this category.

The Test of Writing
Again, “Gift” failed to impress. The writing was pedantic and overly simplistic. While it worked well in a classroom setting (Good idea, Stephanie!), as a book for adults the author shoots for the moon and air balls. Lowest marks.

The Test of Content
This was “Gift’s” greatest success. The message was important and thought-provoking. Each chapter had enough content to be a book in and of itself. Highest marks.

The Test of Entertainment
“Gift” was so easy to read and contained such a simple message that we were easily entertained by it. Decent marks in this category.

The Test of Literature
Unfortunately for “Gift,” the lack of quality writing or story pacing ruins its chances to share a shelf with the classics of literature. It may perhaps be better suited to a doctor’s office waiting room.

Summary: A good idea poorly executed. While not a waste of time, The Ultimate Gift leaves a lot to be desired. In the end, does “Gift” receive the inheritance? You’ll have to read it for yourself to find out.

Till We Have Faces

[March 2007]

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Till We Have Faces
C.S. Lewis

number of voters: 5
percentage of voters who finished the book: 100%
highest rating: 9
lowest rating: 3
average rating: 5.6

percentage of readers who expected more from the likes of C.S. Lewis: 100

I am old now, after having attempted to read Till We Have Faces. I have nothing to fear from those who have read and enjoyed this book, so I will speak my mind. I will write what those who worship C.S. Lewis could never write.

Till We Have Faces is, according to its own subtitle, a myth retold; that is to say, the story is based on an ancient myth, that of Cupid and Psyche. Thus, Lewis, that old fox of an author who enjoyed the quality company of such writers as J.R.R. Tolkein, did not actually invent the plotline or the characters; he merely reimagined the setting.

Ordinarily, this would be a fine task to undertake and could result in an exquisite work of literature (After all, are not all stories, since the beginning of time, somehow the same story retold with new faces and places?). However, in Lewis’s somewhat clumsy hands, this retelling is more of a butchering, a dissection from which little can be learned and with few, if any, redeeming qualities (and, we might add, too many parentheticals, such as this one).

And so I will say what some may consider sacrilege: C.S. Lewis, in this case, illustrates his shortcomings as an author. Any compliments we might pay to the story must be given to the originators of the myth and not to Lewis himself; that is to say, those who enjoyed the book enjoyed it only on the basis of the original plotline—the myth—and not on Lewis’s retelling.

Lewis may have been brilliant in the field of apologetics, but he should have left the retelling of Greek myths to his more accomplished companions.

Pride and Prejudice

[February 2007]

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Pride and Prejudice
Jane Austen

number of voters: 3
percentage of voters who finished the book: 66.67%
highest rating: 9
lowest rating: 8.5
average rating: 8.667

number of book group members who claim Jane Austen modeled this book after said book group member’s own love life: 1

All agreed to meet at Barbadosfield, the home of Mr. and Mrs. Fuller of East Eugene. But when the time arrived, Mrs. Fuller hosted only Mrs. Gulka, Mrs. Poetzl, and Mrs. Renich. It was a lively crowd, however, as all the ladies were eager for a respite from the chaos of their own estates.

Mrs. Fuller was a most gracious hostess, and all were impressed with her skills in the kitchen. (Though they are quite capable of retaining a cook, the Fullers have a long history of priding themselves in their own baking abilities).

After tea and scones were served, the ladies all settled in for a discussion of the latest literary subjects of the day. It was universally acknowledged (even from those who knew not of what they were speaking) that Miss Austen’s book was both stimulating and entertaining. There was even some speculation that the plotline itself could have been garnered from their very own lives, and thus followed a lengthy tell-all of the ladies’ younger days, the days between their official comings out and their marriages. Vast are the similarities between twenty-first and nineteenth-century pursuits and conquers in love.

When it seemed that nearly all conversation on the subject had been exhausted (as indeed the ladies themselves had become), the carriages were called for. It took scarcely ten minutes for the footmen to arrive, and the ladies retired to their own estates.

It is said that, after returning home, each of the ladies retrieved a copy of the most modern of Greek myths (Till We Have Faces, by C.S. Lewis) and settled in for a long night of burning the library candle. Though this fact cannot be confirmed, one thing is certain: All are looking forward to the first Monday of April (April the Second) when they will have reconvene for another evening of respite from the chaos of their own elaborate estates.

Slapstick or Lonesome No More!

[January 2007]

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Slapstick or Lonesome No More!
Kurt Vonnegut



The ratings and recap for this book are missing.