“Flight Behavior” by Barbara Kingsolver was the book discussed at my house. First, the group enjoyed (I hope) a dinner representative of the book’s butterflies and their native home: Mexican enchilada pie and cupcakes from Dolly’s bakery festooned with butterflies. Kathy’s homemade peeps were a treat, as well as Ellen’s brownies and Dricka’s cavatelli. We also enjoyed chocolates from the Greenbrier that Louisa brought back from her luxurious stay. The big news was the recent engagement of Rosemary’s son, Frankie. We missed having Grace and Alice in attendance
Before we got too high on sugar and wine, we talked about
the book, which most seemed to like. Edna felt that the title of the book
symbolized Dellarobia’s desire to flee to another life, as well as the flight of
the butterflies. We felt that her future was closely tied to the butterflies
and that she probably would not have sought a different future if the events
caused by their appearance hadn’t happened. Readers commented that they liked
the depth of the characters and their relationships with each other. The focus
on climate change bothered some, but they still appreciated the overall story.
We talked about the poor circumstances of Dellarobia’s family and the culture
that kept them impoverished: “Sports. That’s huge, a kid can shine if he’s good
at football or baseball. Probably get a job later on in the bank or something
like that.” We all had great hopes for Dellarobia and her son in their new
life.
As expected with this group, the evening was spirited and upbeat.
After you left, Al commented, “you girls sure seemed to be having a good time.”
– how true!
Sharon
