Wednesday night book club - the Clockhouse at 7.30 to 8.00

[Chick]

Laura, we meet once a month. Keep an eye on this thread and just come along to the next meeting. If you pm me an email address I'll put you on the list.

Laura1981 Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Hi All!

>

> I've been in the are for nearly 2 years, but I'm

> really keen to join a book club. I was just

> wondering how often you meet? I've got plans for

> this Wednesday but I'd be really keen to come

> along to the next meeting if you'd be happy for me

> to join the club?

>

> Thanks, Laura

[Chick]

Greetings book clubbers,

A big welcome to Nicky & Susan, hope you enjoyed your first meeting. A big thanks again to everyone who came along, a very good night and a very interesting discussion.

The next meeting is on 19th June in the Clockhouse at 8.00pm. Our next book is ?Tender is the Night? by F. Scott Fitzgerald. A brief summary:

Rosemary Hoyt, a beautiful eighteen-year-old movie starlet, on vacation with her mother, arrives at a rather deserted portion of the French Riviera. There, Rosemary meets Dick Diver, a handsome American psychologist in his thirties with whom she instantly falls in love. Dick and his wife, Nicole, are exemplars of grace and sophistication, and move among a social set of similarly extraordinary people. Rosemary becomes part of this world, and in the gay times that follow, Dick begins to reciprocate Rosemary's feelings for him. Everything goes splendidly until, after an alcoholic friend of the Divers accidentally kills a man, Rosemary discovers Dick comforting Nicole, who has had a mental breakdown.

The story shifts back in time to relate the events that led up to the marriage of Dick and Nicole. Dick attended Yale, was a Rhodes scholar, and then moved to Vienna to study clinical psychology. Once, as Dick was leaving a clinic on the Zurichsee, he met the sixteen-year-old Nicole Warren, who was being checked in. The Chicago heiress had been sexually abused by her father and, as a result, had developed an acute fear of men. The two fall in love, and Dick becomes both her doctor and her husband. They travel extensively, are happy, and have two children together.

Partially on account of Nicole's relapse, the Divers decide to invest in a clinic in Switzerland. Things begin to unravel. Dick is accused of infidelity by a former patient, and Nicole, in anger, runs their car off the road. Dick learns his father has passed away and heads to America for the funeral. Upon his return, Dick meets Rosemary in a hotel, and the two consummate the aborted romance they had begun several years earlier. In the aftermath, Dick realizes his world is falling apart. He goes out carousing, gets beat up and imprisoned, and must be rescued by Nicole's sister, Baby Warren. As Dick continues to drink, he jeopardizes his position at the clinic and is asked to leave.

The Divers return to the Riviera, and Dick continues to drink and unravel, insulting old friends. Nicole has an affair with Tommy Barban and asks Dick for a divorce in order to marry Tommy. Dick readily agrees, realizing that Nicole's finally overcome her psychological condition. Dick then disappears to America, never settling down.

I am going to organize a ?public transport trip? to take in the new Jubilee line stations, the cable car across the Thames, DLR and then back to our beloved Peckham with maybe one or two beers en route. Topping the event of will be a cheep & cheerful meal either here or in town, anyone interested?? Haggis & hiccups, Chick.

[Chick]

Greetings book clubbers, I suggest we go for the public transport trip this Saturday, the 1st June. We would meet outside Westminster tube at 1.00pm, take the tube to North Greenwich and stopping at the interesting ones, Canary Wharf & North Greenwich. From North Greenwich we take the cable car across the Thames. At that point we may feel like a beer, then decide whether to take DLR to Woolwich Arsenal then BR into London Bridge then back to ED for a cheep Chinese or Indian. You can use an Oyster card on the cable car.

Let me know what you think!

[Chick]

Dear Book clubbers,

Well no one but me could make the trip this week end so I am cancelling this one and propose to go ahead on 15th or 22nd of June. Can you let me know which suits you best and we will go with the majority.

Chick

[Chick]

Hi every body,

So far I have had more votes for 22nd June so will go for the public transport trip then as it also gives people more time.

Also wee Sarah has been unwell but is back on track to recover. We all wish her well.

Please let me know about 22nd?

Cheers

Chick

[Chick]

Hi every body,

Bad news, my wife asked me to go away with her on the weekend of the 22nd which I agreed to not thinking about our trip.

So I am going to suggest we go on the 6th July which again gives us more time. My apologies.

Could you please let me know if you can attend?

Cheers,

Chick

[Chick]

Greetings book clubbers,

Just to remind you of our meeting next Wednesday at the Clockhouse at 8.00 pm upstairs.

Also sadly Ian Banks died last week and I have had a request to choose one of his books as the next book group reading. I am quiet happy to do so and would recommend either The Wasp Factory or The Bridge.

A brief synopsos:

The Bridge:

The three main characters represent different elements of the protagonist. Alex (full name hinted to be Alexander Lennox, but never explicitly named), John Orr and The Barbarian are one.

Alex is a real person, born in Glasgow, who studied geology and engineering at the University of Edinburgh, fell in love with Andrea Cramond while there, and has continued their (open) relationship ever since. He is embittered by his betrayal of his working class roots (he has become a manager and partner in his engineering firm), the Cold War, successive Thatcher governments, and the failure of his relationship under the pressure of Andrea's French lover's terminal illness. While returning from a sentimental reunion with an old friend in Fife, during which alcohol and cannabis are consumed, he becomes distracted by the power and beauty of the Forth Railway Bridge while driving on the neighbouring Forth Road Bridge and crashes his car. While in a coma in hospital, he relives his life up to the crash.

"He glanced back at the roadway of the bridge as it rose slowly to its gentle, suspended summit. The surface was a little damp, but nothing to worry about. No problems. He wasn?t going all that fast anyway, staying in the nearside lane, looking over at the rail bridge downstream. A light winked at the far end of the island under the rail bridge?s middle-section. One day, though, even you?ll be gone. Nothing lasts. Maybe that?s what I want to tell her. Maybe I want to say, No, of course I don?t mind; you must go. I can?t grudge the man that; you?d have done the same for me and I would for you. Just a pity, that?s all. Go; we?ll all survive. Maybe some good-

He was aware of the truck in front pulling out suddenly. He looked round to see a car in front of him. It was stopped, abandoned in the nearside lane. He sucked his breath in, stamped on the brakes, tried to swerve; but it was too late."

John Orr is an amnesiac living on the Bridge, a massive simulacrum of the rail bridge, but hundreds of miles long and packed with people. The crash which precipitated his arrival on the bridge was semi-deliberate; as such, he is reluctant to return to the real world. That part of himself who wishes to wake is represented by Dr Joyce, Orr's psychoanalyst. Given Orr/Alex's desire to remain within the world of the Bridge, a world where he is well treated and lives a fairly pampered life, his attempts to stonewall and block the doctor's attempts to cure him are understandable. Eventually, he stows away on a train and leaves the Bridge. He finds that, in stark contrast to the very orderly, indeed totalitarian, life on The Bridge, the countryside beyond exists in militaristic chaos and warfare.

The Barbarian is an id-ish warrior with a superego-esque familiar in tow (phallic symbolism is referenced by the familiar within a few pages of their first appearance) whose hack-and slash antics through various parodies of Greek legends and fairy tales are phonetically rendered in Scots dialect (seven years before Irvine Welsh used the technique in Trainspotting). The Barbarian (along with his loquacious familiar) are a deep expression of Alex's character; when Orr's dreams are not themed around threat and opposition he dreams he is the Barbarian.

The Barbarian appears to be an expression of Alex's deepest feelings. A woman is his enemy in their first appearance (Metaphormosis, Four), showing how Andrea Cramond has made her influence felt in Alex's very core, and how his love for her has been eroded and has transmuted into anger and contempt through the rift that has opened in their relationship.

In their second appearance (Metamorpheus, Four), a female character is mentioned in passing, with a certain level of affection.

The third appearance of the Barbarian and familiar (Metamorphosis, Pliocene) sees them old, decrepit, bed-bound and heading inevitably towards death. In each successive chapter the Barbarian's Scottish accent becomes less and less pronounced, another indication of how far Alex has gone from his Glaswegian roots. The Barbarian talks of his grief over his dead wife and his memories of their life together. While comparisons have been drawn between Sigmund Freud's structural theory of personality, this is the only point where the Barbarian, Familiar and another individual get together in a three-way arrangement. If the Barbarian's wife represents Andrea Cramond, it is another example of how deeply she has penetrated his being. In a move mirroring Alex's suicide drive and anticipating the end of the book, he is placed in a situation likely to kill him, but triumphs and emerges (literally) rejuvenated and reinvigorated. His Glasgow accent also returns.

The Bridge is an unconventional love story; the characters eschew fidelity and barely see each other for years at a time, but they keep returning to each other. There is no marriage, no ring, no happy ever after, just the knowledge that their lives are so deeply entwined it would be difficult or impossible for them to break away from each other.

?You don't belong to her and she doesn't belong to you, but you're both part of each other; if she got up and left now and walked away and you never saw each other again for the rest of your lives, and you lived an ordinary waking life for another fifty years, even so on your deathbed you would know she was part of you.

The Wasp Factory:

It is written from a first person perspective, told by sixteen-year-old Frank Cauldhame, describing his childhood and all that remains of it. Frank observes many shamanistic rituals of his own invention, and it is soon revealed that Frank was the perpetrator of three deaths of children within his family before he reached the age of ten himself. As the novel develops, his brother's escape from a mental hospital and impending return lead on to a violent ending and a twist that undermines all that Frank believed about himself.

The 'Wasp Factory' of the title is a huge clock face encased in a glass box and salvaged from the local dump. Behind each of the 12 numerals is a trap which leads to a different ritual death (for example burning, crushing, or drowning in Frank's urine) for the wasp that Frank puts into the hole at the center within tubes. Frank believes the death 'chosen' by the wasp predicts something about the future.

There are also Sacrifice Poles, upon which hang the bodies and heads of larger animals, such as seagulls, that Frank has killed and other sacred items. They define and 'protect' the borders of Frank's territory - the island upon which he lives with his father.

Frank occupies himself with his rituals and maintaining an array of weapons (from his catapult, to pipe bombs and a crude flame thrower) to control the island. Frank is haunted by an accident which resulted in the loss of his genitalia, and resents others for his impotence, particularly women. He goes for long walks and runs patrolling the island, and occasionally gets drunk with his dwarf friend Jamie in the local pub. Other than that, Frank has almost no contact with the outside world and admits that he is afraid of it due to what it did to his brother, Eric.

Frank's older brother Eric is in an insane asylum after being arrested for brutalizing the town's dogs. He escapes at the start of the novel and throughout the book rings Frank from phone boxes to inform Frank of his progress back to the island. Their conversations invariably end badly, with Eric exploding in fits of rage. Frank is confused as to whether or not he is looking forward to seeing Eric, but it is clear Frank loves his brother dearly.

Frank remembers his older brother as being extremely sensitive before "the incident" that drove him mad: a tragic case of neglect in a hospital where Eric was a volunteer. While attempting to feed a smiling brain-damaged child with acalvaria, Eric realizes that the patient is unresponsive and only smiling off into space. He checks the usually-alert patient's head dressings to find the child's exposed brain tissue infested with day-old maggots.

We also get a listing on The Clockhouse website:

http://clockhousepub.com/

[Chick]

Greetings book clubbers,

Thanks to everyone who came along last night and a big welcome to Laura.

Our next book is The Wasp Factory by Ian Banks. The next meeting is on 24th July and the transport trip is on the 6th July. I?ll post more details soon.

Och Aye.

Chick

[Chick]

Dear Bookclubbers,

Rye books have ordered three copies of the Wasp Factory for those who wanted them. Alasdair has had to order them from America as there was a bit of a run with Mr Banks dying and is unable to give us a discount this month. They should be in by Friday.

The public transport trip is set for Saturday 6th July. We will meet at Westminster underground at 2.00pm then travel to North Greenwich stopping at Canary Wharf on the way. Then we take the cable car across the Thames and lots of pictures. Then we can take DLR to Woolwich and over ground back to London Bridge. Or we can cut short depending on how people feel. Can you let me know if you intend to join us please. After maybe a beer we can take in a cheep meal in Lordship Lane, Indian or Chinese or what ever the group wants.

All welcome.

Cheers,

Chick

[Chick]

Greetings book clubbers,

The Wasp Factory is in Rye books for those of you who ordered. The trip is going ahead next Saturday 6th July. We meet at Westminster tube station at 2.00pm, under ground to North Greenwich, cable car across the river, DLR to Woolwich which goes via the docks. Beer in Woolwich and possibly food then train back to London Bridge. Oyster cards can be used on the cable car. Can you let me know if you are coming? I think the max cost is ?12.00. Good photo opportunity.

Chick

[numbers]

hoots Chick,

Thought the book club may be interested to know. Local author, Evie Wyld, who came along to one of the bookclub meetings to discuss our book choice 'After the Fire', has received excellent reviews for her latest novel, 'All the Birds, Singing'.

Evie was interviewed on R4's Open Book this week: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b0367c3d/Open_Book_Evie_Wyld_on_her_latest_novel_All_the_Birds_Singing/

One of the new book reviews: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2013/jun/27/all-birds-singing-wyld-review

I'll be picking up a copy of this book for def when am next in the area.

K xx

[Chick]

Greetings book clubbers,

A big thanks to everyone who came on the transport trip, a great day and the cable car was wonderful.

Our next meeting is in the Clockhouse on 24th July at 8.00pm. Some one got the booking for our room upstairs in before me so if it?s still booked we will be in the ?snug? area downstairs.

Hope you are enjoying the weather and the Wasp Factory. I had forgotten how funny it is, Pathos being the fourth musketeer etc.

Och Aye

Chick

[Lilly Potes]

Can I join the book club even if I have not read any book in the past. I would love to be part of the club for a bit of motivation.

[Chick]

Lilly,

yes of course, just come along on the 24th. See ya.

[Chick]

Greetings book clubbers,

Just to remind you the book group meets this Wednesday in the Clockhouse at 8.00pm this time in the snug mezzanine downstairs. Someone has booked the Blake room every Wednesday for the next five weeks so we have to choose another night for August. Hope you enjoyed the book and look forward to seeing you.

Cheers

Chick

[Chick]

See you tonight.

[Chick]

Greetings and a big thanks to everyone who came to another very good meeting. Thanks to Sarah for making it and a big welcome to Sissel. The next meeting is on Wednesday 21st August at 8.00pm again in the snug downstairs at the Clockhouse. The next book is Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole;

A Confederacy of Dunces is a picaresque novel by American novelist John Kennedy Toole which appeared in 1980, eleven years after Toole's suicide. Published through the efforts of writer Walker Percy (who also contributed a foreword) and Toole's mother, the book became first a cult classic, then a mainstream success; it earned Toole a posthumous Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1981, and is now considered a canonical work of modern literature of the Southern United States.[1]

The book's title refers to an epigraph from Jonathan Swift's essay, Thoughts on Various Subjects, Moral and Diverting: "When a true genius appears in the world, you may know him by this sign, that the dunces are all in confederacy against him". Its central character, Ignatius J. Reilly, is an educated but slothful 30-year-old man living with his mother in the Uptown neighborhood of early-1960s New Orleans who, in his quest for employment, has various adventures with colorful French Quarter characters. Toole wrote the novel in 1963 during his last few months in Puerto Rico.

Alaistair in Rye books, hope you get well and can we order four copies for Chick, Sissel, Susan & Bianca please.

See you all in August!

Chick

[Chick]

Greetings book clubbers.

I have registered an interest in this:

http://readinggroups.org/news/p-g-wodehouse/join-the-p-g-wodehouse-reading-group-project.html

I am not sure if PG Wodehouse is my cup of tea and not sure I want the book group to be tied down to Wodehouse for any length of time but thought it might be interesting.

Please let me know what you think.

Also Alec from Tuesday Tipplers, another book group, has lent me a book which they have read with a view to us reading it at some time:

http://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/jun/03/the-aftermath-rhidian-brook-review

If we read it the author will come and see us one night, sounds good to me.

Again let me know what you think by email pls.

Have a good weekend whilst I work away. I am going to harvest some honey at last, after four years.

Best wishes & hope for more sunshine,

Chick

[Chick]

PS pls collect your book from Rye Books!

[Chick]

Just to remind you we meet next week at the Clockhouse at 8.00pm in the snug downstairs. Look forward to seeing you all.

[HL_shaw]

Hi,

I'm new to the area and looking to get involved with a book club. Is anyone free to join?

[Chick]

You are very welcome. Just come along next Wednesday. PM me an email adress if you want to go on the list.

[Chick]

See you all tomorrow at 8.00pm in the Snug bar of the Clockhouse

[Chick]

Greetings book clubbers,

Thanks again to everyone for a great meeting and to Sarah for the cakes. The next meeting is on September 18th again at the Clockhouse at 8.00pm. The next book is NW by Zadie Smith.

A review:

http://www.lrb.co.uk/v34/n21/christian-lorentzen/why-am-i-so-fucked-up

[EmED]

Hello! I'd love to come along too if that's ok? Can I just turn up having read the book?

Looking forward to it, I love The Clockhouse!