Books we have read and discussed over the years since we started meeting.
The Hare with Amber Eyes: A Hidden Inheritance by Edmund de Waal Non-Fiction suggested by Lynnie Waal is a world-famous ceramicist who inherits 264 pieces of Japanese netsuke carvings. He uncovers their history and also his family’s five generation history. From Amazon – Edmund de Waal is a world-famous ceramicist. Having spent thirty years making […]
The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood Fiction suggested by Shirley In this classic story, what once was the United States reacts to social unrest and a sharply declining birthrate by creating a society where women are strictly controlled. From Amazon – Set in the near future, it describes life in what was once the United […]
Horse by Geraldine Brooks Fiction suggested by Jackie From Amazon – Based on the remarkable true story of the record-breaking thoroughbred Lexington, Horse is a novel of art and science, love and obsession, and our unfinished reckoning with racism. … a heart-pounding American epic that gallops backward and forward in time to tell a story about […]
Mrs. Lincoln’s Dressmaker: A Novel by Jennifer Chiaverini Fiction suggested by Verna Based on a true story, a real person, see – https://www.whitehousehistory.org/from-slavery-to-the-white-house-the-extraordinary-life-of-elizabeth-keckly From Amazon — revealing the private lives of President Abraham Lincoln and his wife, Mary Todd Lincoln, through the eyes of the First Lady’s most trusted confidante and friend in this compelling […]
Trust by Hernan Diaz Fiction suggested by Barbara From Amazon – An unparalleled novel about money, power, intimacy, and perception. It engages the reader in a quest for the truth while confronting the deceptions that often live at the heart of personal relationships, the reality-warping force of capital, and the ease with which power can […]
Whole Earth: The Many Lives of Stewart Brand by John Markoff Non-Fiction suggested by Sharon The definitive biography of iconic serial visionary Stewart Brand from the Merry Pranksters to the “Whole Earth Catalog” and environmental consciousness. From Amazon – Told by one of our greatest chroniclers of technology and society, the definitive biography of iconic […]
The Daughter of Time by Josephine Tey Fiction suggested by Romie Inspector Grant of Scotland Yard investigates Richard III. Did he really kill his brother’s children to secure the crown for himself? Who killed the Little Princes? From Amazon – “One of the best mysteries of all time” (The New York Times)—Josephine Tey recreates one […]
The Island of Sea Women: A Novel by Lisa See Fiction suggested by Janet Spanning decades on the Korean island of Jeju, two girls work with their village’s all-female diving collective, a life of excitement and responsibility but also danger. From Amazon – about female friendship and family secrets on a small Korean island. Mi-ja […]
(1) Sufism: The Journey of the Lovers by Nahid Angha PhD, and(2) The Light of the Heart: An Introduction to the Principles and Practices of Sufism by Halima JoAnn Haymaker Non-Fiction suggested by Joann We can read these as a set – two short books on Sufism recommended by Joann. The first “Sufism: The Journey […]
Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer Non-Fiction suggested by Romie An indigenous scientist and member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation shows us that the awakening of ecological consciousness requires the acknowledgment and celebration of our reciprocal relationship with the rest of the living world. from Amazon […]