Book Club!

I have not been in a book club for twenty years. I’ve heard of friends being part of a club but all were closed with more than enough members. My best friend doesn’t read anything but the news on her iPad or political diatribes on FaceBook, so no help there. My husband loves to read but our taste in books is quite dissimilar. Dilemma. 

I love to read. Almost everything. That should be enough but I often also love to discuss books I have just read. It’s nice to hear differing points of view; to discover things I missed. So quite out of the blue, while on a neighborhood information page, I noticed a woman who, having just moved to town, was interested in starting a book club. I contacted her along with about fifty other people! Obviously there is a need here.

As luck would have it, I was out of town for the first meeting. Disappointing, but I read the first book anyway. For the third meeting, I was able to get a hold of the book, and read A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles (See my Book Blog earlier this month). I had never heard of the book or the author and as I related in my blog, probably would not have picked it up; and if I had, not finish it. I’m so glad I did. A wonderful book and another reason to join a book club. Discovery.

I made it to my first meeting last week through a torrential rainstorm (really). I felt a little behind but was relieved to meet two other first-timers. It was fun. I enjoyed it immensely. New, interesting friends, discovering new books. Two of life’s pleasures.

A GENTLEMAN IN MOSCOW- AUGUST 2018 BOOK SELECTION

It’s a pleasure to tell you about my latest read, A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles. This novel was a surprise to me. I had never heard of the author and probably would never have chosen it on my own. How I came to read it is a story for my next blog, but suffice it to say I did.

A Gentleman in Moscow was a slow burn for me. The writing was lovely. It was pleasant. I was not riveted. In another circumstance I may have put it down in favor of something else. I’ve come to the decision, there are so many books I WANT to read, that I won’t waste time on something I don’t love. In this case, that would have been a big mistake. It took about 100 pages, but I was hooked.

An aristocrat in 1922 Russia, the young, handsome, Count Alexander Ilyich Rostov is sentenced to House Arrest in the Metropol Hotel in Moscow. If he should ever step outside the hotel, he will be put to death. It is the beginning of the Russian Revolution and not only is he an aristocrat, but he has written a poem that is considered suspect by the ruling party.

Ever elegant and refined, Rostov creates as rich a world as is possible within his confinement. He comes to discover not only the secrets of the hotel but of the lives and worlds of people that move in and out as occupants and staff. There is secrecy, mystery, hair-raising schemes, humor and drama. How the Count moves from a man of leisure to the discovery of his purpose is intriguing.

The best description is it is like reading in front of a fire on a cold day, covered by a cashmere blanket. The problem, you don’t want it to end. Don’t miss this one.

Highly recommend.