Bryn Mawr Club of Washington, D.C.
Book Club
Coffee, cookies and conversation at 7:30 pm; book discussion starts at 8. Please contact Mike Niccolls (tel. 703-765-5853) for more information about meetings.
Book Club discussions are for Bryn Mawr alums and guests only.
March 2009
Middlemarch by George Elliott
Wednesday, March 18, 2009. Some critics have called George Elliott a philosophical novelist. By others she is called a
tolerant observer and a thoughtful moralist. However she is described, there is general agreement that she is one of the great
Victorian novelists and invites comparison with Jane Austen. Whether you agree or not with these assessments, come for a lively
discussion led by Mike Niccolls. Location: Home of Ashley Doherty, 3548 Appleton Street, N.W.
(From the Van Ness metro stop, go 3 blocks or 0.45 miles north on Connecticut Avenue, and then turn left onto Appleton. Ashley’s
home is half a block in from Connecticut.
April 2009
The Private Patient, by P.D. James (2008)
Monday, April 20, 7:30
Adam Dalgliesh, the charismatic police commander, investigates the case of Rhoda Gradwyn,
a 47-year-old journalist murdered soon after undergoing the removal of an old disfiguring scar at a private plastic surgery clinic in Dorset.
In addition to a mystery, the story touches problems like aging, the government's education policy, and our dying earth, but finally grants Dalgleish
love, sufficient to reinvigorate hope and faith so rare in both fiction and reality today.
We will meet at the home of Karin Thornton, 5064 Sedgwick St. NW, Washington, DC 20016. Please RSVP to Mike Niccolls at 703-765-5853 or Jennie Boyd at Jnnbyd@aol.com.
Books read in 2009:
Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy
Bathsheba, a beautiful, intelligent, and strong willed woman, has the means that
allow her to be independent. The first of Thomas Hardy's Wessex novels, it is set in the period when the industrial
revolution was challenging the rural life style.
A Passage to India by E. M. Forster
One of the Modern Library's 100 great works of English literature, the story depicts India as it was under British rule in the 1920s.
The events surrounding an accusation of attempted rape reveal deeper issues of race, prejudice, and national independence.
Books read in 2008:
Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell
This gentle and witty novel of life in a 19th century English village on the edge of major social change has been a classic
since its 1854 publication.
The Flame Trees of Thika by Elspeth Huxley
The realities of pioneer life in early 20th century Kenya are told through a child's eyes. The tale is fresh,
alive and humorous. On her parent's coffee plantation Elspeth Huxley experienced adventure in a beautiful land
known for its contrasts and its diverse cultures. When reading this book one cannot help making comparisons with
current news reports from Kenya.
Suite Francaise by Irene Nemirovsky
Set during the year that France fell to the Nazis, this novel consists of two parts. In the first part,
Nemirovsky depicts a group of Parisians as they flee the Nazi invasion. In the second part, she follows the
inhabitants of a small rural community under occupation. This book has received rave reviews. One of the things
that many reviewers have commented on is Nemirovksy's vivid portrayal of the moods, foibles, selflessness and
vanities of the people in this book.
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens (1843)
It's Christmas in June -- like Ebenezer Scrooge, you can keep the spirit of Christmas alive all year round! This
Dickens classic has inspired countless movies, but the novel itself goes deeper. Entertaining and engaging, the
book also offers a meaningful examination of social injustice and poverty in Victorian England, compassion and
redemption. Dickens shows us that each of us has the ability at every single moment, to choose to change the
course of her entire life.
Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Winner of the Nobel Prize. A love story of astonishing power. In their youth, Florentino Ariza and Fermina Daza
fall passionately in love. Fifty-one years, nine months and four days after he first declared his love for Fermina,
he will do so again.
At Home in Tokyo by Gwen G. Robinson
For the non-Japanese speaking Robinsons, a daunting culture shock began when they first explored their home for a
year, a bewilderingly high-tech Tokyo townhouse set in a maze of no-name streets. How intrepid scholar Gwen Groves
Robinson (Bryn Mawr 1950, wife, mother and grandmother) met challenges and made friends forms this charming,
informative and often hilarious story.
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
The second novel by the author of The Kite Runner examines the place of women in Afghan society.
Emma by Jane Austen
"Emma Woodhouse, handsome, clever and rich, with a comfortable home and happy disposition, seemed to unite some of the best blessings of existence; and had lived nearly twenty-one years in the world with very little to distress or
vex her." But this opening sentence is misleading--Emma still has a lot to learn about people, class distinction, match-making and love, and she's in for a bumpy ride. Revisit this classic to learn why, two hundred years after Austen
published it, Emma is still one of the most critically acclaimed and filmed works in English literature.
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruens
Parade Magazine called this novel "gritty, sensual and charged with dark secrets involving love, murder and a majestic, mute heroine."
This is a well-paced tale of the circus during the Depression.
Books read in 2007:
The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregor
Two sisters compete for the love of a king in this novel evoking the glory and ruthlessness of Tudor England.
The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards
In this New York Times bestseller, a doctor regrets deceiving his wife about their twins' birth.
The Night Watch by Sarah Waters
This novel about wartime Britain (WW II) was short-listed for the Booker Prize, and has been lauded for its attention to historical detail.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
When we discussed this book last August, only three of us were in town and able to come to the meeting. However, we liked the book and felt it so important that we decided to repeat it. The novel, as seen through the eyes of an autistic boy, is charming, informative, amusing and sad at the same time. Moreover, it is extremely topical, with autism undergoing an unprecedented and unexplained upsurge. In 2002, the U.S. Department of Health reported that nationwide, autism rates had jumped 556% in just a decade, and this rate is growing.
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
A great story, vivid characters, dark secrets in an eerie old English mansion, and the hand of God smiting wrongdoers � all this plus fine writing and intriguing literary themes! It's a classic for all reasons!
Marley and Me by John Grogan
This New York Times bestseller depicts life and love with the world's worst dog. It is the heartwarming and unforgettable story of a family in the making, and the wondrously neurotic dog who taught them what really matters in life. Expect to laugh, cry and shake your head as you read this book!
The Cruel Sea by Nicholas Monsarrat
This exciting WW II novel came out in 1951, and is still a good read. It is the story of a British ship and her crew convoying in the North Atlantic, and is a tale of endurance, patience, courage and terror. The families on the home front are not left out, adding a note of pathos and tenderness.
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Revisit this American classic set in the Roaring Twenties. "Reading it now for the seventh or eighth time," according to Washington Post critic Jonathan Yardley, "I am more convinced than ever not merely that it is Fitzgerald's masterwork, but that it is THE American masterwork, the finest work of fiction by any of this country's writers."
The Portrait by Iain Pears.
The life of a Scottish impressionist at the turn of the century is recounted as a conversation between the artist and his long-time friend and critic. Set against the landscape of Brittany, the novel is rich in atmosphere, suggestion, psychological complexity, and marvelous detail.
The Old Silent by Martha Grimes
In this pensive mystery set on the wintry English moors, engaging characters are caught at crossroads in their lives. Sheep dogs, murders, scandal and the London music scene - all come together for a good read.
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
This novel, according to one critic, is "a testament to the transforming power of our dreams and the importance of listening to our hearts." Translated into 60 languages, the book has sold more than 20 million copies.
Books read in 2006:
Echo House by Ward Just.
An epic chronicle of three generations of Washington power brokers and the women who love them (except when they don't).
Saturday by Ian McEwan.
The novel, written after 9/11, reflects the unease that prevails in the early 21st century. The story takes place on the day of London's huge demonstration against America's impending invasion of Iraq. The reader follows protagonist Henry Prowne, observing his actions and listening to his thoughts as he considers matters of family, politics, profession, and aging.
Green Grass, Running Water by Thomas King.
Professor Bethany Schneider of the Bryn Mawr English Department visits Washington to discuss her favorite book. Dr. Schneider, who writes and teaches about Native American and Anglo-American colonial and antebellum literatures of the United States, believes that this comic novel by King, a Cherokee author, is as good as Twain, Shakespeare or the Bible. Impossible? Read the book and see if you agree.
Guns, Germs and Steel by Jared Diamond.
Why didn't the Australian Aborigines colonize Britain? Why didn't the Aztecs "discover" Spain? If mankind began in Africa, why isn't that now the most developed place in the world? Is geography destiny? Explore these questions as we discuss this fascinating, Pulitzer prize-winning bestseller of geography, culture, and history.
House of Sand and Fog by Andre Dubus III.
This novel that follows the rules of Greek tragedy and tells the tale of what happens when the American dream goes awry. Dubus illuminates one of the great issues of the end of the century -- the collision of cultures -- in this novel of extraordinary narrative power and stylistic beauty.
Coyote Waits by Tony Hillerman.
The New York Times has called Hillerman's mysteries "some of the best and some of the most unusual mystery novels of the last two decades." Following Prof. Schneider's discussion of Green Grass, Running Water, we offer Hillerman's book, "a mixture of Indian myth, lore and language...a compelling, cautionary tale about coyote, the amoral opportunist that inhabits each soul."
Beautiful Swimmers by William Warner.
Warner's book explores the ecosystem of the Chesapeake Bay, the lifestyle of its famous blue crabs, and of the watermen who harvest them.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon.
Join us for perfect summer reading in this popular novel about the adventures of an autistic young math genius trying to navigate the incomprehensible world of "normal" people to solve a mystery and prove his own innocence.
The Mermaid Chair by Sue Monk Kidd.
Following the best-selling The Secret Life of Bees, Monk Kidd has written a vividly imagined novel set amidst South Carolina's marshlands, tidal creeks and majestic egrets. The story grapples with the tension of desire and the struggle to deny it, and the immutable force of home and marriage.
Snow by Orhan Pamuk.
Pamuk is a Turkish author who, in this novel, writes about love and politics.