We met this past Saturday to discuss The Witch of Portobello, by Paulo Coelho. Despite a couple of notable absences (feel better, Judi!), we had a very nice turnout, including a new face to the group. The coffee was delicious, the pastries were divine, the sandwiches were enormous, and the book discussion was... well... short. Most folks didn't finish the book, and it wasn't entirely due to busy schedules. Books have to earn our attention, and justify our time spent with them, don't they? This one clearly didn't.
To begin with, there are the proclamations on the cover. Anytime a book is too impressed with its own contents, I tend to be suspicious. This book claims to "transform the way readers think about love, passion, joy, and sacrifice." It's interesting that joy is one of the things I'm supposed to see differently, because it is one thing I found completely lacking from this book. One word that came up repeatedly in our discussion on Saturday was "pretentious." Intentionally or not, the book suffers from a pervasively condescending tone. I choose to give Mr. Coelho the benefit of the doubt to some degree, and blame some of the book's problems on the translation. You have to really look to find the name of the translator, and somehow that makes me suspicious of her qualifications. Maybe it was a rush job so the book could be released around the world at one time? I don't know; it's just a guess.
I hope others will share their thoughts and reactions below. If you didn't finish (or begin) this book, do you intend to now? Have you read other books by the same author, and did you enjoy them? Were you drawn to Athena, the main character, the way all the other characters in the book were? (Did you even like her?)
Monday, January 26, 2009
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
The Witch of Portobello
Our selection for January is The Witch of Portobello, by Paulo Coelho. We'll meet to discuss it on January 24th and post some of our thoughts after the discussion... This book (like all our selections) is available for purchase at Left Bank Books in the Central West End or online, at a discount of 20% leading up to and during the month of discussion. Click on the title to link to the book description on Left Bank's site, and you may purchase from there if you wish.
A Look Back...
I considered doing a posting for each previous book we've read, but that seems so daunting right now. Instead, I'll just list them for now, with the possibility of returning to share some thoughts on them in the future (and an invitation for other members to do so as well).
June 2005 If Grace is True Philip Gulley and James Mulholland
July 2005 Betsy Brown Ntozake Shange
August 2005 Prodigal Summer Barbara Kingsolver
September 2005 Three Junes Julia Glass
October 2005 The Namesake Jhumpa Lahiri
November 2005 A Great Deliverance Elizabeth George
December 2005 Skipping Christmas John Grisham
January 2006 The Kite Runner Khaled Hosseini
February 2006 Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim David Sedaris
March 2006 Gilead Marilynne Robinson
April 2006 Reading Lolita in Tehran Azar Nafisi
May 2006 Leaving Atlanta Tayari Jones
June 2006 Never Let Me Go Kazuo Ishiguro
July 2006 How to Be Good Nick Hornby
August 2006 The Tortilla Curtain T. Coraghessan Boyle
September 2006 Truth and Beauty Ann Patchett
October 2006 A Year in Provence Peter Mayle
November 2006 The History of Love Nicole Krauss
December 2006 Mixed: My Life in Black and White Angela Nissel
January 2007 The Memory Keeper's Daughter Kim Edwards
February 2007 Saving Fish from Drowning Amy Tan
March 2007 The Brief History of the Dead Kevin Brockmeier
April 2007 The Glass Castle Jeanette Walls
May 2007 Nickel and Dimed Barbara Ehrenreich
June 2007 Girl with Curious Hair David Foster Wallace
July 2007 A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius Dave Eggers
August 2007 Sufficient Grace Darnell Arnaut
September 2007 The Whole World Over Julia Glass
October 2007 Love Walked In Marisa de los Santos
November 2007 Water for Elephants Sara Gruen
December 2007 Housekeeping Marilynne Robinson
January 2008 The Places in Between Rory Stewart
February 2008 Ishmael Daniel Quinn
March 2008 The Accidental Tourist Anne Tyler
April 2008 The Omnivore's Dilemma Michael Pollan
May 2008 Grace (Eventually) Anne Lamott
June 2008 Tales Out of School Benjamin Taylor
July 2008 The Book of Chameleons Jose Eduardo Agualusa
August 2008 A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Lovers Xiaolu Guo
September 2008 Julie & Julia Julie Powell
October 2008 Daughter Asha Bandele
November 2008 Broken Daniel Clay
December 2008 Stuff White People Like Christian Lander
June 2005 If Grace is True Philip Gulley and James Mulholland
July 2005 Betsy Brown Ntozake Shange
August 2005 Prodigal Summer Barbara Kingsolver
September 2005 Three Junes Julia Glass
October 2005 The Namesake Jhumpa Lahiri
November 2005 A Great Deliverance Elizabeth George
December 2005 Skipping Christmas John Grisham
January 2006 The Kite Runner Khaled Hosseini
February 2006 Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim David Sedaris
March 2006 Gilead Marilynne Robinson
April 2006 Reading Lolita in Tehran Azar Nafisi
May 2006 Leaving Atlanta Tayari Jones
June 2006 Never Let Me Go Kazuo Ishiguro
July 2006 How to Be Good Nick Hornby
August 2006 The Tortilla Curtain T. Coraghessan Boyle
September 2006 Truth and Beauty Ann Patchett
October 2006 A Year in Provence Peter Mayle
November 2006 The History of Love Nicole Krauss
December 2006 Mixed: My Life in Black and White Angela Nissel
January 2007 The Memory Keeper's Daughter Kim Edwards
February 2007 Saving Fish from Drowning Amy Tan
March 2007 The Brief History of the Dead Kevin Brockmeier
April 2007 The Glass Castle Jeanette Walls
May 2007 Nickel and Dimed Barbara Ehrenreich
June 2007 Girl with Curious Hair David Foster Wallace
July 2007 A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius Dave Eggers
August 2007 Sufficient Grace Darnell Arnaut
September 2007 The Whole World Over Julia Glass
October 2007 Love Walked In Marisa de los Santos
November 2007 Water for Elephants Sara Gruen
December 2007 Housekeeping Marilynne Robinson
January 2008 The Places in Between Rory Stewart
February 2008 Ishmael Daniel Quinn
March 2008 The Accidental Tourist Anne Tyler
April 2008 The Omnivore's Dilemma Michael Pollan
May 2008 Grace (Eventually) Anne Lamott
June 2008 Tales Out of School Benjamin Taylor
July 2008 The Book of Chameleons Jose Eduardo Agualusa
August 2008 A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Lovers Xiaolu Guo
September 2008 Julie & Julia Julie Powell
October 2008 Daughter Asha Bandele
November 2008 Broken Daniel Clay
December 2008 Stuff White People Like Christian Lander
An Introduction
So, we've been talking about starting a blog for our reading group for a while now, and the baby is (well, was) sleeping, so I'm going to venture out here and do it. Hope that's alright with everyone.
First of all, welcome! Whether you found us on purpose or by accident, you've arrived at the blog for the Compton Heights Reading Circle. We're a relatively small but dedicated bunch of readers who have been meeting since June of 2005, when our beloved Norma Santhoff first came up with the idea. She recently passed away, but we continue reading, discussing, and laughing in her honor. We began as a group of Compton Heights Christian Church members, but have grown over the years to include friends and the occasional stranger (who quickly becomes a friend). Our readers vary widely in taste, age, and occupation (as well as many other demographics), and we try to keep our book selections diverse as well. We've had some hits and many misses, but we're always open to suggestions and new ideas!
First of all, welcome! Whether you found us on purpose or by accident, you've arrived at the blog for the Compton Heights Reading Circle. We're a relatively small but dedicated bunch of readers who have been meeting since June of 2005, when our beloved Norma Santhoff first came up with the idea. She recently passed away, but we continue reading, discussing, and laughing in her honor. We began as a group of Compton Heights Christian Church members, but have grown over the years to include friends and the occasional stranger (who quickly becomes a friend). Our readers vary widely in taste, age, and occupation (as well as many other demographics), and we try to keep our book selections diverse as well. We've had some hits and many misses, but we're always open to suggestions and new ideas!
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