The Nevermore Book Club
actually talked about movies to kick off a recent meeting. One member highly recommended “Kind Hearts
and Coronets,” a 1949 movie which starred Alec Guinness in a variety of roles. It’s a dark comedy about a man who decides to
murder his way to a title.
A Sudden Light by Garth Stein is a difficult to classify book. It’s a coming of age tale, a
multi-generational saga, and a ghost story all rolled up into one. Stein wrote the wonderful and highly
acclaimed book The Art of Racing in the Rain, and while our reviewer
didn’t feel this book quite measured up, she did enjoy it.
A Curious Mind: The Secret to a Bigger Life by Brian Grazer is an examination of those who are
“intellectually curious,” people who take time to wonder why. Grazer, a film producer, has found
inspiration for some of his work through such people, and he believes that
curiosity can improve one’s life. Part of the book is devoted to his
conversations with both the famous and the not so famous, while other sections
are memoir and meditation. Our reader
found much of the book to be very interesting—just not Mr. Grazer’s
biographical sections, which she skipped.
Otherwise, she thought the book entertaining and worth her time.
Yellow Fever remained a topic
of interest. This time the book was American
Plague by Molly Caldwell Crosby.
Today Yellow Fever seems to be a footnote in history books, belying its
terrible cost. Like ebola, it’s a
hemorrhagic disease with terrifying symptoms that include bleeding, delirium, and
jaundice. People were terrified, and
with good reason: mortality rates were
very high. In the 1853 outbreak in
Louisiana, over 7000 people died in New
Orleans alone. It took a terrible toll on medical personnel who were trying to
help those infected. Crosby’s book concentrates on an outbreak in Memphis in
1878, vividly portraying the panic from residents. Our reviewer found it as gripping as any
thriller.
White Plague by James Abel is a non-stop action novel that takes
place in the Arctic where a highly advanced submarine, the USS Montana, is in trouble.
There’s been a fire and the many of the crew are ill. The Pentagon
dispatches bioterrorism expert Joe Rush to the rescue, but he may not arrive
before the Chinese do. This is a
fast-paced military thriller that keeps the pages turning. The Arctic setting is a definite plus, and
the twists and turns keep on coming. One
reviewer compared it to the works of both Michael Crichton and Tom Clancy.
Not quite as compelling was Wolf
in White Van by John Darnielle. The
reclusive Sean Phillips develops an online game where players can make choices
between adventures. He becomes quite
involved with some of the players, but only through the internet. Our reviewer said that the book wasn’t
cohesive and added, “If you want to be confused, this is the book to read.”
Several people put in
recommendations for the novels of Karin Fossum.
She’s the author of the Inspector Sejer series, and often called “the
Norwegian Queen of Crime,” but who began her career as a poet. Her books center more on personality and
motive than on strict police procedure.
Inspector Sejer is a calm, patient, polite man, unlike many of the
Nordic Noir detectives who spend their time in existential angst.
Finally, the meeting came
full circle back to film as some members sang the praises of PUSH, downtown’s
Bristol first film festival. They
particularly praised “The Last Pyramid,” a documentary about stained glass
artist Trish Barnes, who raised a million dollars for epilepsy research in
memory of her son. The film was
described as both uplifting and moving, earning a standing ovation from the
audience. They expressed the hope that
PUSH will continue.
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