Pigeon Pie Mystery - discussion questions

1. Is Pigeon Pie Mystery a proper murder mystery? Why? or Why not?
2. A Washington Times book review descibes the book as 'enchanting'. Do you agree?
3. What do you think of faithful servant Pooki? Is her relationship with Mink believeable or not?
4. Who is your favorite character?
5. Who is your least favorite character?
6. And who is the most unexpected character?
7. What do you think of the world of the Hampton Court?
8. How are grace-and-favor residents of the appartments at Hampton Court different from everybody else?
9. Do you think that Mink and Dr. Henderson are meant for each other?
10. Who is the ultimate villain in the book?

“The Casual vacancy” review by Dorota Ponikiewska

I don’t know what we were expecting from reading J. K. Rowling’s book “The Casual Vacancy.”

Most readers love the Harry Potter series, can read them over and over and never tire of them.

Maybe it was our mistake, because we were hoping to find in “The Casual vacancy” some magic (even casual or accidental).

But the author warns the readers: this is an adult fiction about small town politics, social manipulations, poverty, narcotics, deviant sexual behaviors, and other obscurity of ordinary life.

Still, we were hoping for one drop of fairy-tale.

Then came the analogy: what about if Thomas Harris (best known for writing “Hannibal”) wrote a love story.  Would we want to read it?  Of course! But even his book was the most beautiful love story ever written, we would anticipate seeing at least one gruesome scene in which the groom-to-be devours bride-to-be.

O well….

What is the premise of “The Casual Vacancy”?  There is no conflict in this book, there is no main storyline. There are just group of ordinary people from the small town.  The story starts out with a bunch of characters and setups. We were bombarded with characters, their descriptions, and stories of their past. It is very difficult to keep up with these people and even if we reread some pages (to remember who is who), next chapter moved to a totally different setup with totally new characters. After fifty pages or so, we are totally confused, and the only reason why we are still reading is the belief that there was a purpose for all this miss-mash. The switching between characters even within a single chapter or page disallow Rowling to create one or more memorable characters.She introduces a new person, writes one or two paragraphs about it and moves to the next person. There are not actual protagonists (to love) or antagonists (to hate). Characters in this book, use each other without any regrets or morals, there are scenes after scenes of physical abuse, drug and alcohol abuse, mental illness, profanity, and rape. 

So, what we liked in this book?

We liked last 50 pages (it is too bad that the author took such a long and painstaking route to get there), and the heartbreaking and painful ending. Even if the ending left us wondering about certain unsolved events.

We liked her writing style: the third person insightful point of view, her wonderful way with words, and the brilliance of her depiction of scenes and dialogs.

Overall, we would recommend “The Casual Vacancy” to any potential reader, but try not to set your expectations too high….

Evening at Kathy's

We had a great discussion of the J K Rowling's latest novel "The Casual Vacancy"

Food was delicious and we enjoyed some chocolate wine for dessert.

Casual Vacancy- discussion questions

1. Before reading, did you have certain expectations for this book based on the Harry Potter series? If so, does The Casual Vacancy meet these expectations?

2. The book has more than 30 main characters. Did you have trouble keeping them and storylines in order?

3. Do you think the profanity, violence and sex is excessive and sensational? Is Rowling trying to prove that she can write for adults or does it enhance the plot?

4. Which storyline with which characters is your favorite and why? Least favorite?

5. Rowling describes the book as a "comic tragedy". What does that mean? Some have talked about the wit, others described the lack of it. Do you find her wit on display in the book?

6. Many reviewers and readers complain that the plot takes is slow to get off the ground and drags in some parts. What do you think? Is The Casual Vacancy too long at 500+ pages?

7. Before the success of Harry Potter, Rowling had experiences with poverty. Does knowing this increase the creditability of the Krystal character?

8. In many interviews, Rowling states that she felt she "had to write" this book and that it's very personal to her. Several characters and experiences can be paralled to her life. For example, Howard Mollinson and Simon Price are her estranged real-life father; Gavin is her first husband; Kay Bawden is a young, single J.K. Do you see any of your own relationships in the book? Does the story cause you to examine any of your relationships?

9. Is the ending satisfying? Does Rowling tie up loose ends or does she leave some things unanswered?

 

 

Catherine The Great - book review

Catherine The Great; Portrait of a Woman by Robert Massie is a biography well worth reading. The book is well researched and full of historical information from Catherine’s childhood in Germany to her many years as a Russian monarch. Catherine was greatly influenced by many individuals in her life. As a young child, Catherine yearned to be accepted and loved by a harsh, distant mother.  Her father, although caring, had little say in Catherine’s upbringing.  This strong desire for acceptance lead Catherine to embrace all things Russian when she went to Russia to marry Peter, heir to the throne.  Her immersion in the Russian culture eventually enabled her to become loved by the Russian people. As monarch, she had numerous lovers throughout her life, a testament to her desire for love. Although Massey described Catherine as enlightened, there were differing opinions about this among the members of our book group. Catherine had strong interests in art and literature, and even desired to free the serfs; however, she was still a monarch who conquered neighboring nations in a quest to broaden her Russian empire.  Although she was a friend of Voltaire and shared many of his views, she was ultimately constrained by the desires of the Russian nobility to maintain the status quo.  While she may have done little to change the day-to-day life of the average Russian, she is still remembered as one of the greatest Russian monarchs.

Our book club meeting on 4/23/2013

Catherine the Great -discussion questions

Discussion Questions for Catherine the Great; Portrait of a Woman

1.      How did Sophia’s/Catherine’s relationship with her mother affect her?

2.     Why do you think Sophia/Catherine embraced all things Russian when she came to court?

3.      Would Catherine’s life have been different if her husband, Peter, had not contracted small pox?

4.     Were you surprised by the Russian court’s blasé attitude toward Catherine’s relationship and pregnancy with Saltykov?

5.     Do you think Catherine was aware of the services the Orlov brothers could give her when she became involved with Gregory Orlov?

6.     Catherine considered herself Enlightened, and was a follower of Voltaire.  Was she successful in any of her attempts to change Russia?

7.     Why was she drawn to Gregory Potemkin?  How did he influence her?  Do you think they really married?

8.     Catherine had three children.   What affect did any of them have on her life?

9.     Based on this book, what is your opinion of Catherine?  Do you like or respect her?   Why, or why not?

10.                         Catherine often said she could not live one day without love.  Did these need for love affect how she ruled Russia?  Did it affect how she was perceived by leaders in Europe?

11.                        Catherine wrote an epitaph for herself, shown on page 573.  Do you believe it Is accurate?

12.                        Does Catherine remind you of any other female monarchs, past or present?

13.                        Would you recommend this book to a friend?