July 2010 The Big Short

The July 2010 book is Michael Lewis' The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine (New York and London: WW Norton, 2010.  266 pages.).

80 pages in and I go as easily be reading Greek.  I know so little about finance that it is embarrassing.  Somebody please: elucidate.

June 2010 - Everything is Illuminated

You can't really make this out on the photo, but the sign on top of the station wagon says "Heritage Tours," which for readers of the book needs no explanation.

We read Jonathan Safer Foer's Everything is Illuminated for June's book club.  If anything, I though the group was non-plussed.  Some were so uninspired that they hadn't finished the book, and those who had - well, we didn't seem to have much to say about it, which is strange.  Whether one likes the book or not, there is plenty going on: Jewish-Americans searching for their roots; Eastern Europeans confronting their complicity with the Nazis; Ukranians making a living guiding tourists to places of tremendous tragedy; the sites of holocaust and anti-semitic violence being turned into tourist destinations; and so on.  It's definitely a partial list. 

Photograph
ruxielulu
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Fun discussion last night! Look forward to seeing you all at my house on April 6th.
If you want to read a review of the book:
http://www.randomhouse.com/kvpa/cormacmccarthy/

The Blog is Now Public

Gentlemen, I have changed the settings so that the blog is now public and no longer private.  As we agreed, don't post any home addresses or telephone numbers. 

The next book is Cormac McCarthy's The Road, and we meet Tuesday, April 6, at Arnie's. 

The image is for Steve, certainly, but also to provide a context for a portion of our conversation:)  If you are interested in the Tour de Ski footage, I have embedded the link to a short 31/2 minute video montage of Kalla's race to the top.  She is, as my daughter would say, a beast. 

                                                                         

 Charlotte Kalla, Olympic Gold Medalist expressen.se (Google images)

Finally, Mike mentioned BookTV.org.  Follow the link; it's great stuff.

Faulkner Link to Plantation Diary

Based on the high level of enjoyment and my impulse to nurture that joy, for your reading pleasure, here is an article from the New York Times from Wednesday, 10 February. 

March Book

I'm sorry for the delay on the March book. I hope you all enjoy the read.

"Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer (332 pages)

It received a very high rating.

Mike Ferlic

May 2010 - Ethan Brown's Shake the Devil Off

7:00 pm, Tuesday, May 4, at Ira's home.

Image by Andrew Disley
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April 2010 - Cormac McCarthy's The Road

7:00 pm, Tuesday, 6 April, at Arnie's home.


Image by traviswalton
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Movies We've Seen (and some that we'd even recommend)

Photo by Benja1

Flickr Creative Commons

Since we talked for some time about movies that we'd seen recently, I thought we should include a posting for this topic.

(BTW, I'll be seeing Avatar in 3D tomorrow.)

Barbara Kingsolver's The Poisonwood Bible

Photo by Kaitlan
Flickr Creative Commons



We will meet at Michael Kuhne's home at 7:00 pm on Tuesday, February 2. 

I deeply offended both my spouse and my eldest daughter when I suggested that I couldn't get into the novel.  Good God, what is wrong with me? 

We'll dissect that question and tackle more important ones when next we meet.

If you are interested in a couple of video clips as well as the full 60 minute audio of Barbara Kingsolver visiting with Kerri Miller on November 2009 edition of Talking Volumes, follow this link.