At our May meeting we discussed Frog Music by Emma Donoghue, author of the best-selling Novel, The Room. San Francisco in the summer of 1876 sweltering in a record-breaking heat wave and a smallpox epidemic is the scene of the story. Two apparently very different women meet and become friends, Jenny Bonnet, frog catcher and wearer of men’s clothing and Blanche Beunon, exotic dancer, prostitute and landlady. The story bounces back and forth between time periods and many readers found that confusing. For some members it was difficult to identify with the main characters, but there was plenty of discussion about the book. Most would not recommend it to friends.
And here are recommended reads available from the Hamilton Public Library. Visit the Bookmobile at Bennetto Recreation Centre on Tuesday (2:30 to 4:30) and Thursday (6:00 to 8:00) or go online at hpl.ca to reserve a copy.
River Thieves by Michael Crummey. The stark landscape of early 1800 Newfoundland is the setting for this intriguing novel that is both passionate & suspenseful. British naval officer David Buchanan has orders to establish contact with the aboriginal inhabitants who are facing extinction. What unfolds is an unsettling story of love, loss, politics, & racial conflict.
Paige Turner
Trumpocracy – The Corruption of the American Republic by David Frum. “Fascism rose not because it was strong but rather because Democracy was weak.” The importance of that sentence cannot be overstated as the author explains in this keenly analyzed and thoroughly researched book. In an easily readable style, Frum chronicles how quietly and steadily Trump has contaminated thousands of careers and millions of minds and imperiled Democracy.
Paige Turner
Have you read any of our recommendations? Liked any of the same books we talked about or disagreed totally? Let us know at bayareabookclub@bell.net .
