Standing in the Rainbow by Fannie Flagg discussed at Joppa book group

The Joppa Book Discussion Group met on November 20 to discuss Fannie Flagg's book, Standing in the Rainbow. There were 8 attendees.

Everyone seemed to enjoy this book. Some had read it before. When asked what they would like to discuss about the book, most participants responded they would like to talk about the book's depiction of how things used to be in the years after World War II: things were far simpler, safer, people were much friendlier to strangers, and life was slower. Book group members shared stories that they remembered from those times or had happened to their families. One person talked about the milkman delivering milk when she was young in the 60's and placing it in the refrigerator when her family wasn't home. Another talked about her family's German shepherd dog meeting the milkman at his first stop in her town and riding with the milkman to each stop, getting off the truck and then getting back on and riding to the next stop. The German shepherd would get off the truck when it reached the last stop which was their house. The milkman said that he was the best paid milkman, because people were afraid of the dog! Participants felt the book was very believable and indicative of the time period it covered.

This is the synopsis of the book in our catalog:

"Good news! Fannie's back in town--and the town is among the leading characters in her new novel. Along with Neighbor Dorothy, the lady with the smile in her voice, whose daily radio broadcasts keep us delightfully informed on all the local news, we also meet Bobby, her ten-year-old son, destined to live a thousand lives, most of them in his imagination; Norma and Macky Warren and their ninety-eight-year-old Aunt Elner; the oddly sexy and charismatic Hamm Sparks, who starts off in life as a tractor salesman and ends up selling himself to the whole state and almost the entire country; and the two women who love him as differently as night and day. Then there is Tot Whooten, the beautician whose luck is as bad as her hairdressing skills; Beatrice Woods, the Little Blind Songbird; Cecil Figgs, the Funeral King; and the fabulous Minnie Oatman, lead vocalist of the Oatman Family Gospel Singers. The time is 1946 until the present. The town is Elmwood Springs, Missouri, right in the middle of the country, in the midst of the mostly joyous transition from war to peace, aiming toward a dizzyingly bright future. Once again, Fannie Flagg gives us a story of richly human characters, the saving graces of the once-maligned middle classes and small-town life, and the daily contest between laughter and tears. Fannie truly writes from the heartland, and her storytelling is, to quote Time, "utterly irresistible." From the Hardcover edition." Find this book in our catalog

Still Life with Elephant By Judy Reene Singer

Well the summer is upon us and many of us are going to the beach. So here is a light beach read from the author Judy Reene Singer. This is her second novel after Horseplay. Still Life with Elephant is by turns humorous & sad.
Here's what Publisher's Weekly said of it.

From Publishers Weekly
Divorce is the elephant in the room for Singer's second novel, following Horseplay. When social worker turned horse trainer Cornelia "Neelie" Sterling finds out her vet husband, Matt, is cheating on her, she throws him out, but can't bear to make it legal. Faced with losing her house and barn, Neelie jumps aboard Matt's mission to Zimbabwe to rescue two wounded elephants, thinking the transatlantic journey will convince him to recommit to the marriage. There, she finds behemoths in need of care—and the philanthropist who's funding the trip. The secondaries lack texture, but Neelie's misguided struggle rings true. (July)

This was the Abingdon book group selection for June. In general we found it entertaining. It was not as humorous as we had thought, but was quite poignant in places, with some reflections on the terrible treatment of elephants by poachers in Africa. The descriptions of Africa were very nicely done and helped the reader appreciate why Neelie would want to return there. The novel deals with her husband's infidelity, horse training, elephant rescue, and the impact of a past tragedy on Neelie's present life. The humor comes mainly from her inability to hear or comprehend a lot of what is said to her, causing many misunderstandings. Her husband tells her he is getting a collie to help with the lions - or so Neelie hears, but really he is getting a colleague to help with the clients. The colleague turns out to be the one who also helps him with his love life, and so the story begins.

See Ms. Singer's website for her biography & other content.
http://www.judyreenesinger.com/

Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler

Someone drew my attention today to an article in the English newspaper, The Guardian about a locket, containing what is believed to be Jane Austen's hair, which is expected to reach more than five thousand pounds (or US$9,812) at auction. Click here for the article.

This snippet of trivia reminded me that my book club has just finished reading The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler. What a great summer read this book would be! And of course, it is perfect for a book club. My group was looking for something lighter now the evenings are getting longer but our reading time is getting shorter. At first glance The Jane Austen Book Club appears almost like chick lit. Six people, five women and one man, meet each month in the hot California summer to discuss all the books of Jane Austen in turn. They meet in each other's homes, and there is a lot of attention paid to interior decoration, clothes, and snacks. When we got into it, however, my group found lots more to discuss.

I got an awful lot out of it, though I didn't express my opinions very vocally, because I was not sure if everything I saw was really there. The book's a bit like that, it creeps up on you and keeps you off balance. One reviewer talks of Fowler's "sly wit." I thought all of the book was a bit sly. Maybe Fowler just did it for her own amusement to see if she could write a 21st century book like Austen? If so, she certainly manages the irony, the bons mots, and the almost unnoticed put-downs very well. We saw lots of sentences we wanted for sheer delight to quote during our discussion.

The plot also keeps you off balance. On the face of it is a story of how the six meet every month and how their relationships grow. Jocelyn is a key figure in the book, and it is she who invites the members of the club. I was a bit puzzled in the beginning as to why she invited whom she did. Obviously she had a purpose, and you think you know what it is, and then the plot twists and you are no longer so sure. The members meet together and use the stories of Jane Austen to help them work through their own problems of life and love. Each book is seen through the eyes of one of the participants, but the focus soon wanders off the book to the hidden lives, desires and motives of the characters. Will each character have a happy ending, and will the happy ending be the one you think it will be? You must check this book out to find out!

Other similar suggestions:
Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood by Rebecca Wells
Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistlestop Cafe by Fannie Flagg