Twice as Nice

Two more months have passed for the ladies of the Paige Turner book club, and those two months gave us very different literary experiences.

For December, we read Blood Done Sign my Name by Timothy B. Tyson. It’s a memoir of the son of a white pastor who lived in the south during the height of the civil rights movement. Needless to say, it’s a book that gives great insight to a pivotal and important part of our American history…and from a unique point of view. Our meeting discussion touched on all sorts of issues: from black/white tensions to the struggles of Irish immigrants and indentured servants. One of the lasting thoughts of the night: it is important to remember the past, but the cycle of hurt doesn’t have to continue. By living color- and status- blind, and by loving and respecting everyone equally, we can break negative cycles and paradigms. It was a night of great discussion and as a group, we would highly recommend that you read this book. (Thanks for picking it Susanne!)

Our January book was Once Upon a Winter’s Night by Dennis McKiernan. It’s a retelling and embellishment of the Norse fairy tale East of the Sun and West of the Moon. McKiernan took the original story and expanded it to try and capture the type of story a wandering bard would tell. It’s an enjoyable ride through the “land of faery,” and a classic high fantasy story: Love, a curse, several riddles, an evil mother, a dragon, a sparrow sidekick, and an adventure to reunite those who have been separated. How can you go wrong? Though if I re-read this book, I will keep a running tally of the following words: ire, dire, peril and twilight. Seriously. They’re everywhere. We enjoyed the book though. It was a welcome break from some of the heavier books we’ve read recently. Thanks Amanda!

Now we’re looking forward to February. We’re tackling Inkheart by Cornelia Funke. Unsurprisingly, the movie comes out this Friday, so I sense a book club outing in our future. (Take a look at our list of books. We have a habit of picking books that are made into movies. Most of the time we don’t realize it until much later. – for example, The Secret Life of Bees. In fact, I even discovered an old English film retelling East of the Sun and West of the Moon – It’s a very fun phenomenon to live out.)

Till next month...happy reading!