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Original poster

what book should I pick for my book group?

56 replies

EmmaGrundyForPM · 12/10/2022 22:57

It's my turn to pick the next book and I'm stuck. We're an all-female book group, most of us in our 50s. Recent books we've enjoyed include Uncommon Ground, Small Pleasures and Still Life. Lessons in Chemistry got a mixed reception. We all hated Crawdads.

We like books that we can analyse and which raise lots of themes/questions.

Any suggestions?

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SirChenjins · 16/10/2022 08:08

Yes, that’s the one - based on the true story of the last woman to be executed in Iceland.

Original poster
EmmaGrundyForPM · 16/10/2022 03:04

Is Burial Rites the one set in Iceland, about the female murderer? In which case we did it a few years ago. It was very good.

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SwayingInTime · 14/10/2022 08:41

Burial Rites was one I was trying to remember, really good book Club book.

Middlesex (by Jeffrey Eugenides?) would be good too.

Like how we are all doing the same books 😄

Givemestrengthorvodka · 14/10/2022 06:49

A Little Life by hanya yanagihara is a brilliant read and would certainly give you plenty to discuss.

Original poster
EmmaGrundyForPM · 14/10/2022 06:33

Thanks @Cotswoldmama I do have a Good Reads account so will look you up on there.

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Original poster
EmmaGrundyForPM · 14/10/2022 06:32

Thanks @hanahsaunt. We did Ten Minutes a couple of months ago so The Island of Missing Trees is a bit too soon.

I'll add Station 11 to the possibles list

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Original poster
EmmaGrundyForPM · 14/10/2022 06:30

SirChenjins · 13/10/2022 18:21

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
Burial Rites by Hannah Kent (don’t be put off by the topic, it’s written in a very sensitive, as opposed to gratuitous way)
Currently reading The Lincoln Highway, Towles’ latest, which is brilliant, but appreciate you probably want a different author

3 brilliant books (and yes, Crawdads is utter tripe)

I chose All The Light We Cannot See a few years ago, everyone loved it. Then my husband chose it for his (all male) book group and they reckon its the best book they've ever read as a group.

We've also read The Poisonwood Bible which was another big hit.

I've got The Lincoln Highway on my "to read" list. We've read 2 Amor Towles novels in the last 3 years so I'll probably steer clear, but thanks for the suggestion. We clearly have the same taste in books!

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hanahsaunt · 14/10/2022 06:28

I would second Station Eleven.

The Island of Missing Trees was an all round success at our BG.

If you do non fiction then House of Glass by Hadley Freeman is fascinating.

Original poster
EmmaGrundyForPM · 14/10/2022 06:24

@FloorCushion I really want to read that. We read Hamnet quite recently, also a big hit, so not sure if I should do another Maggie O'Farrel so quickly, but worth considering. Thank you

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Original poster
EmmaGrundyForPM · 14/10/2022 06:20

@beetlebrain funnily enough I did consider By Grand Central Station... I absolutely love thatbbook, but I think it might be a step too far for a couple of people in my Book Group. Have you read "By Heart"? It's the biography of Elizabeth Smart.

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Riverlee · 14/10/2022 06:20

Anyone else stealing this thread for their own bookclub?

Original poster
EmmaGrundyForPM · 14/10/2022 06:17

@Stereolab on Amazon.

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Stereolab · 13/10/2022 19:25

Where did you find the bad reviews of Sorrow and Bliss? I can only find good ones . . .

amp.theguardian.com/books/2020/oct/09/sorrow-and-bliss-by-meg-mason-review-an-incredibly-funny-and-devastating-debut

I checked because I’ve read it and thought it was very good. Definitely has lots of discussion points for a book group. For what it’s worth I also found Crawdads dire and didn’t finish it.

notputtingtheheatingon · 13/10/2022 19:12

Oops, sent before I finished! Small great things by Jodi Picoult. Without giving any spoilers it tells the same story from two different perspectives - a woman who faced racism and the man (a neo Nazi) who was the perpetrator. Great story, a little along the lines of the Colour Purple but it really made me think about unconscious bias and lots of other things too.

notputtingtheheatingon · 13/10/2022 19:10

Small great things by Jodi Picoult remains one of the best (most challenging) books I've

FloorCushion · 13/10/2022 19:10

We just read The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell which was a big hit. Very rare that we get an across the board winner.
I had the biggest book hangover after finishing it.

beetlebrain · 13/10/2022 19:05

Lolly Willowes - Sylvia Townsend Warner.

By Grand Central Station I Sat Down and Wept. - Elizabeth Smart.

Cotswoldmama · 13/10/2022 19:03

I'm also in a family book club and the last book we all have 5 stars to was October October by Katya Balen it's a YA but there's so many things to discuss and it will definitely make everyone cry!

viques · 13/10/2022 19:00

Station 11.

what is worth saving when everything has gone?

Cotswoldmama · 13/10/2022 18:58

I've just finished I who have never known men by Jacqueline Harpman it was amazing I couldn't put it down. Do you have a good reads account? It's a good way of reading reviews about books before buying. I'm on my 59th book of the year! You can see a list of the books I've read at www.goodreads.com/cotswoldmama for some inspiration or if there's a book you like it suggests other like it. There's also some good accounts on Instagram where I find inspiration like the bibliofilles

Philandbill · 13/10/2022 18:48

I am, I am, I am by Maggie O'Farrell.

Hotpinkflamingo · 13/10/2022 18:47

The Collective - Alison Gaylin
What She Left Behind - Emily Freud

I read both recently and really enjoyed them!

Guardup · 13/10/2022 18:42

The invisible life of Addie LaRue - V E Schwab

Lots to get your teeth into - a great book and I feel the same about all you listed

NorthFaceofthelaundrypile · 13/10/2022 18:36

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

bravotango · 13/10/2022 18:31

Lullaby
Homegoing
Convenience Store Woman

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