The book club's Fit and Flexible Fab Five - Kathy, Ellen,
Drika, Luisa, and I - met for the rescheduled May book club meeting. We were
happy to later be joined by Alice, who came after dinner with her mother,
Dorothy, on their way home from a school piano recital. The menu was simple with
sloppy joes and salad topped off with a host of yummy desserts, thanks to those
who attended.
After the horrific story told in last month's book, everyone seemed relieved to be reading about the quiet life of an 80-year-old widow in Pittsburgh. All of us could see parts of Emily in people we know, even in ourselves at times. We were impressed that the author, a man, wrote so well about the thoughts and day-to-day activities of an old woman. Since we've come to expect sudden crises or plot twists in novels, this story was refreshingly different in that it depicted an ordinary character in an ordinary situation – no big surprises. We agreed that Emily was heroic in a sense. She was able to change her life, become more independent, and discover the hidden strength to accept and endure a world that has moved beyond the memories of her generation.
After the horrific story told in last month's book, everyone seemed relieved to be reading about the quiet life of an 80-year-old widow in Pittsburgh. All of us could see parts of Emily in people we know, even in ourselves at times. We were impressed that the author, a man, wrote so well about the thoughts and day-to-day activities of an old woman. Since we've come to expect sudden crises or plot twists in novels, this story was refreshingly different in that it depicted an ordinary character in an ordinary situation – no big surprises. We agreed that Emily was heroic in a sense. She was able to change her life, become more independent, and discover the hidden strength to accept and endure a world that has moved beyond the memories of her generation.
Ellen says next month’s book, The Quickie, by James
Patterson, is another easy, entertaining read. Looks like we’re on a roll!
Grace, Edna, Pam, and Rosemary – we missed you.
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Sharon Henderson
Sharon Henderson
