Eat Pray Love

Thursday, August 4th, 7:00 pm

Eat Pray Love

by

Elizabeth Gilbert

       

How liberating it would be to just cast off the reins of your current life and go on a year-long trip to three far flung countries of the world? Elizabeth Gilbert does that in Eat Pray Love, by embarking on her journey with specific purposes – one country for pleasure of the senses, another for spiritual enlightenment and the third to restore balance in her life. The resultant travelogue is a warm and lively read. The movie was released in 2010 and stars Julia Roberts and Javier Bardem.

Julie and Julia

Thursday, July 8, 7:00 pm

Julie and Julia

by

Julie Powell

Julie and Julia: 365 Days, 524 recipes, 1 tiny apartment kitchen, chronicles a year in the life of Julie Powell as she struggles through the recipes of chef Julia Childs. What started off as a blog turned into a best-selling novel with a movie starring Meryl Streep and Amy Adams. 

Lovely Bones

Thursday, July 7, 7:00 pm

Lovely Bones

by

Alice Sebold

 

A powerful first novel, narrated by Susie Salmon, in heaven. Brutally raped and murdered by a deceptively mild-mannered neighbor, Susie begins with a compelling description of her death. During the next ten years, she watches over her family and friends as they struggle to cope with her murder. She observes their disintegrating lives with compassion and occasionally attempts, sometimes successfully, to communicate her love to them. Although the lives of all who knew her well are shaped by her tragic death, eventually her family and friends survive their pain and grief. In Sebold's heaven, Susie continues to grow emotionally. She learns that human existence is "the helplessness of being alive, the dark bright pity of being human feeling as you went, groping in corners and opening your arms to light all of it part of navigating the unknown." The 2009 film adaptation stars Susan Sarandon, Rachel Weisz and Mark Wahlberg.

Close Range and Brokeback Mountain

Thursday, June 2, 7:00 pm

Close Range and Brokeback Mountain

by 

Annie Proulx

A raw, powerful story of two young men, a Wyoming ranch hand and a rodeo cowboy, who meet in the summer of 1963 sheepherding in the harsh, high grasslands of contemporary Wyoming and form an unorthodox yet life-long bond. The 2005 motion picture won multiple Academy Awards and nominations.

Dear John

Thursday, May 5, 7:00 pm

Dear John

by

Nicholas Sparks

An angry rebel, John dropped out of school and enlisted in the Army, not knowing what else to do with his life—until he meets the girl of his dreams, Savannah. Their mutual attraction quickly grows into the kind of love that leaves Savannah waiting for John to finish his tour of duty, and John wanting to settle down with the woman who captured his heart. But 9/11 changes everything. John feels it is his duty to re-enlist. And sadly, the long separation finds Savannah falling in love with someone else. The film adaptation is directed by Lasse Hallstrom, director of book club favorites such as Shipping News, Chocolate and An Unfinished Life.

My Sister's Keeper

Thursday, April 7, 7:00 pm

My Sister's Keeper

by

Jodi Picoult

This is the story of Anna Fitzgerald who was conceived so that she could be a genetically compatible donor for her older sister, Kate, who suffers from leukemia. When Kate is 16 and Anna is 13, Kate needs a kidney transplant and Anna balks at giving up one of hers. She hires a lawyer to petition for medical emancipation from her parents, so that she alone can make decisions about her body. Picoult's novel examines the inner workings of a family struggling to find their way in the most complex of situations. The 2009 film adaptation stars Alec Baldwin and Cameron Diaz. 

Cold Mountain

Thursday, March 3, 7:00 pm

Cold Mountain 

by

Charles Frazier

Cold Mountain is a 1997 historical fiction novel by Charles Frazier. It tells the story of W.P. Inman, a wounded deserter from the Confederate army near the end of the American Civil War who walks for months to return to Ada Monroe, the love of his life. The novel alternates chapter-by-chapter between Inman's and Ada's stories. The movie was released in 2003 and stars Jude Law, Nicole Kidman, and Renee Zellweger.