Just started.....

I started the book this morning and so far so good! I'm about 50 pages in and I'm already hooked. I feel like I can really picture everything she's writing about.....I can't wait to discuss what we think each person looks like next time. Hope everyone has a good week!

Our 2nd Book!

Erin picked our 2nd book!  The Weight of Silence by Heather Gudenkauf...it is her first novel. 

Synopsis

It happens quietly one August morning. As dawn's shimmering light drenches the humid Iowa air, two families awaken to find their little girls have gone missing in the night.

Seven-year-old Calli Clark is sweet, gentle, a dreamer who suffers from selective mutism brought on by tragedy that pulled her deep into silence as a toddler.
Calli's mother, Antonia, tried to be the best mother she could within the confines of marriage to a mostly absent, often angry husband. Now, though she denies that her husband could be involved in the possible abductions, she fears her decision to stay in her marriage has cost her more than her daughter's voice.
Petra Gregory is Calli's best friend, her soul mate and her voice. But neither Petra nor Calli has been heard from since their disappearance was discovered. Desperate to find his child, Martin Gregory is forced to confront a side of himself he did not know existed beneath his intellectual, professorial demeanor.
Now these families are tied by the question of what happened to their children. And the answer is trapped in the silence of unspoken family secrets.

11/12/09 First Book Club Meeting!

We met @ Salty Iguana in Lawrence to discuss our first selection, The Castaways by Elin Hildebrand.

We all really enjoyed the book, the characters were really complex and interesting.  It was fun to talk about what each of us pictured them looking like...we all pictured different things so it was pretty funny to compare.  Keeping all the couples straight was the hardest part of the book, but it kept your attention!  Great way to start out the club Cathy...loved the pick!!!

Time to Discuss

I've put together some discussion probes for tonight and I thought I would post them here so everyone would maybe have a little time to ponder them. After our meeting everyone can post comments related to our discussion if they want.

Group Dynamics
- How did you perceive the individual’s roles and how they effect the group dynamic (i.e. Greg is the entertainer)? At the end of the book, how do you think individual roles will change now that Greg and Tess are gone?
- Share your thoughts on the role of the group. What does the group mean to the individuals?

Getaways
- How do the group trips strengthen and in many ways weaken their relationships? What do you personally take away with you from a vacation/getaway, with your spouse and/or with friends?

The Castaways: Infidelity, Truth and Lies, and Taking Sides
- Any thoughts?

Welcome to the Group!

Breana Schoenhals Berroth will be joining our Book Club starting in November!!  She lives in Topeka too so we'll be able to ride together to meet the KC girls!  I'm ready to find out what Erin picked as our next book...