The Two Family House at New City Kosher Deli -- Nov. 13, 2017

I selected this story after reading a short excerpt.  I thoroughly enjoyed the story of brothers Abe and Mort and sisters-in-law Helen and Rose.  As Jill said, “this story can be about any family”.  It transcends cultures. This story is the author’s first.   She based some of the events on her grandmother’s tales about her family.  The one thing that bothered her most about most (if not all) cultures is their desire to have a boy or treating the boys as princes.  Mary Velez shared her own story of her father.  He didn’t want to hold the baby, but was forced to when her mother left him alone with the baby and he needed to comfort her.  His love for her bloomed. I wonder if father’s want boys because they get to “carry” the paternal family name. 0r ________________ fill in the blank.

Whenever, I hear stories of men wanting sons, I’m reminded of this great song, "El 

Gran Varon" by Willie Colon (Google it).   The events portrayed in The Two-Family House gives readers many topics to think about: motherhood, nature vs.. nurture, longing, love, betrayal, regret, and the consequences of buried secrets.  I believe we touched on most of the topics in our discussion. Thank you bookworms for the insightful conversations.

                                          --- Myrna

Necessary Lies at Beni's Trattoria

Twelve of us met at Beni's Trattoria in Garnerville to discuss Necessary Lies by Diane Chamberlain. It was so wonderful to welcome Maureen Degnan as a new bookworm, and welcome back Diana Perez - the returning bookworm. Maria Rego rejoined us too, back from Florida. Thank you Miggy for popping in to visit before your Florida trip! I'm happy that most seemed to really enjoy the book. I loved it for the historical fiction elements, as well as the warm, believable characters and a great story. And, I'm a sucker for a happy ending!

The story was told in the voices of Ivy Hart and Jane Forrester - two seemingly very different women - but as it turned out they shared many things in common. Family values, social economic status, male/female relationships were some of the many topics talked about. We also discussed the surprising facts of forced sterilization - in the U.S. (including California, Pennsylvania and North Carolina), Canada, Puerto Rico, Japan, China, Peru and other places in the United States and around the world. Some of the facts were shocking - In 1968 up to 1/3 of Puerto Rican women were sterilized. What a relief that the book ended on a happy note in so many ways.

We made text to self connections. As we went around the table, we all discussed #metoo. With one exception, we all experienced some kind of sexual advances as young girls or women. Yet none of us told our parents or any adult. Hopefully, the world is different now, than it was for us back then.

If you weren't there we missed you -- hope to see everyone on November 13, when Myrna will lead the discussion on The Two Family House by Lynda Cohen Loigman.

XXOO,
Robin L.

WONDER

Our 2017 school year book club was up to an uplifting start with the novel, WONDER by R. J. Palacio. It was so nice to reconnect with everyone. For those of you unable to attend, we missed you. Hope all enjoyed the discussion, great company, and slow service (haha). Hopefully, after reading about Auggie's life, all of your already overflowing, generous hearts will be filled with even just a little more empathy, love, compassion, and kindness towards others.

It was my pleasure to host September's meeting at Blu Fig --
Irene

For kindness begets kindness evermore -- Sophocles

If you ever feel lost, let your heart be your compass. -- Emily

If plan "A" doesn't work, just remember: the alphabet has 25 more letters. --Unknown

All you need is love. --John Lennon and Paul McCartney

When you come to the end of your rope, tie a knot in it, and hang on.--Thomas Jefferson

The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane

My Dear Friends,

It was so nice to spend another wonderful afternoon with all of you to discuss The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane by Lisa See.  It’s a powerful story about a family, separated by circumstances, culture, and distance. The author does an excellent job at painting a remarkable portrait of a little known region and its people.  She elaborates on the Akha tribe's culture, the important role tea plays in Chinese culture, and the special bond that connects mothers and daughters -- even if they live continents apart.

I think we all enjoyed eating the delicious Chinese food at Ocean Empire, along with drinking tea, and taking in all the Chinese decor. It was extra special for me because it was my last book club meeting as an “active” teacher, I’ll be a teacher until I die! Thank you all for the delicious chocolates and wine, how did you know…ha, and gift card to Hand and Stone Massage, can’t wait! Your generosity, thoughtfulness, and friendship are forever in my heart!

Wishing all of you a wonderful summer filled with good health, relaxation, adventure, and reading!

Love you all!

Maria P.

Angel Falls

Dear Bookworms,

          It was so nice to see everyone on Monday.  Those who didn’t attend, we missed you. Thank you, Lourdes, for coming and joining us, even though you had dinner plans with your friends.  I also would like to welcome our new members Sandra and Dee (hope I spelt it right).  Nice getting to know you both!

          Our discussions ranged from personal to book related. It’s always nice to catch up and get to see how each of us is doing. Our prayers go out to Irene’s husband and Miggy’s daughter for a speedy recovery.  

          I’m glad the book was enjoyed by everyone.   I chose this book because when I read the back cover about Mikaela being in a coma, it made me think of my nephew John. He too was in a coma when I had started to read the book.  Thankfully he is recovering everyday. 
        When Mikaela, beloved wife and mother of two, falls into a coma, it is up to her  husband, Liam, to hold the family together, to care for their grieving, frightened children. Day after day, he sits by her bedside, telling stories of the precious life they have built, hoping, always hoping, that she will wake up. Then he discovers evidence of her first marriage to Julian True. It was said in our group his name was an oxymoron, since he wasn't a true individual.

Liam, on the other hand, was a kind and loving man. He would do anything to wake his wife up, even if it meant losing her to her true love. Some of us thought we too would make that sacrifice if it was to save our spouse. Others thought that would be too difficult to do!
This book kept us on our toes wondering if Mikaela would go back to the life she once had. I think the consensus was she would be foolish to leave a man like Liam.

All the best to you,
Millie

   

Father's Day

I was really delighted to learn that everyone enjoyed reading Father's Day by Simon Van Booy, one of the many books my almost 90 year old mother - in- law has recommended to me! We missed those who were unable to attend our April 3rd get together at City Line Diner.The
sangria and conversations flowed, from our opinions about social media to meaningful quotes from the book. Just as Harvey gave Jason special "Father's Day" gifts, we had a lot of fun opening our "Book Worm" gifts and guessing which of our books it related to.

After six year old Harvey's parents suddenly die in a car accident, a very warm hearted, hard working social worker enrolls Harvey's uncle Jason to raise her. At first it seems highly unlikely that Jason is capable of being a parent. But the transformation of Harvey and Jason was an amazing, positive experience. As Jason states while visiting Harvey in Paris truth is "not what's written on a piece of paper or in blood too small to see --- but the memory of how it felt being together."

Thank you all for the great memories!
Happy Passover!
Happy Easter!
Enjoy our Spring Break!
Jill

Because of Mr. Terupt

Hello Bookworms!

It was truly a pleasure to have you all at my place. You ins pire and bless me. For those who were not able to make it, your presence was missed. Our book for March, because of mr. terupt  by Rob Buyea is a story of a unique teacher told by the perspective of his seven students. I think that it clearly showed that he developed "relationship" with his students. His unique style won the love of his students and their loyalty to him.  He also challenged them to look within themselves and become better people. It was interesting to read that they all had a story of struggle. It gave us insight about their families, and challenges us to do the same with our own students. we shared some of our stories as teachers, and from our own lives. We played "the dollar game" and Irene's name came closest to a dollar, at $1.01, and she won a prize.

We shared a little on the benefits of bringing mindfulness into our classrooms, like: reducing stress, improving focus, helping students to self regulate -- and in turn, their academics improve. We practiced the art of paying attention, with some mindfulness activities: mindful listening with the Tibetan Singing Bowl, mindful eating, and mindful smelling - with some essential oils. We shared some inspirational quotes for teachers to keep reminding us that teaching is an art - and we must try and keep the passion, and recognize our unique gifts. At the end, we blew some bubbles, and had a snowball fight! The ineer child needs to come out from time to time!! I had a lot of fun and hope you realize how special you are!! Next month Jill is hosting -- Be blessed! Mary