2010-11 Reading List

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AAUW BOOK CLUB Reading List for Sept. 2010 to June 2011

Sept.21  The Yiddish Policemen’s Union by Michael Chabon.. This takes place in Sitka Alaska where a fictitious Jewish community has been established after WW2 to welcome survivors of the Holocaust.

Oct. 19  Peace Like a River by Leif Enger. A young asthmatic boy named Rueben Land narrates the story of his family after his brother Davy kills two bullies who had targeted him and their family. When  Davy escapes prison Rueben and family follow Davy to the Badlands with many adventures.


Nov. 16 Howard’s End by E.M. Foster. This was first published in 1910 and is about class struggle in turn-of-century England. The motto of the book is “only connect”.


Dec 14  We will read and discuss poetry selections assembled by Vivi Hlvasa. Please note we are meeting on the 2^nd Tuesday to accommodate the Holiday Schedule.


Jan. 18,2011 Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks. Once again into the trenches of WW1, a long term illicit love affair and a hero who finds hope and meaning despite the anguish.


Feb. 15  The Help by Katherine Stockett. A Southern woman writes about the connections between black maids and their white women employers in the 1960’s in a small Georgia town.

March 15  Frances Perkins: The Woman Behind the President by Kirsten Downey.  Frances Perkins was the first woman to serve in an American  Presidential Cabinet . She was instrumental in securing “New Deal” legislation and served 12 years as FDR’s Secretary of Labor.

April 19 Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackery. This was first published in 1847-48. It satirizes early 19^th century British society. The title comes from Paul Bunyan’s allegory, Pilgrim’s Progress. Vanity Fair refers to a stop along pilgrim’s progress: a never ending fair in a town called Vanity.

May 17  Portrait of a Lady by Henry James. This fiction published in 1881 is considered one of James’ finest. The Lady is Isabel Archer, a young American heiress victimized by two American Machiavellian expatriates.

June The Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse by Louise Erdrich. The author with a German, American, French, Ojibwa background, writes from an Indian reservation perspective. This is a story of passion and compassion about a priest who meets an Indian Elder who possesses love medicine.
 

Happily compiled by Marjorie Regan with a little help from Wikipedia and other online sources.