November 2012: Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis

What is Mere Christianity?

“There has been a great deal of soft soap talked about God for the last hundred years. That is not
what I am offering.” What, in your opinion, is Lewis offering us in Mere Christianity?

Enemy territory

What did you make of Lewis’ analogy of Christians as “living in enemy territory”? Is this a
biblical principle? In what other ways might the analogy be applicable to our lives?

A great moral teacher

Despite Lewis’ famous words about the foolishness of accepting Christ simply as “a great
moral teacher,” it seems that many people today still take that attitude towards Jesus. Why?

Pride

“The essential vice, the utmost evil, is pride.” Why does Lewis say so? Do you agree? How do we recognize pride in (a) others, (b) ourselves?
What should our reaction be?

Faith

“Faith is the art of holding on to things your reason has once accepted in spite of your changing
moods.” Would you agree with this definition of faith?

outside view

Do you find Lewis’ picture of God as outside time, viewing the whole of it at once, helpful?

fear

Lewis says that we are “naturally afraid” of the spiritual world. Should we be scared of it? If so,
why? If not, is our fear due to a wrong understanding of the spiritual world or a wrong reaction
to it?

The lesser of two evils

“The devil… sends errors into the world in pairs – pairs of opposites. And he always encourages
us to spend a lot of time thinking which is the worse… He relies on your extra dislike of the one
error to draw you gradually into the opposite one.” Can you think of any particular errors
Christians might be tempted to make out of a frantic desire to avoid their opposites?

humans

“Never, never pin your whole faith on any human being.” Is Lewis telling us never to trust
anybody?

Perfection

Is it possible to be perfect, as Christ told us to be? In what way(s)?

Niceness

“A world of nice people, content in their own niceness, looking no further, turned away from
God, would be just as desperately in need of salvation as a miserable world – and might even be
more difficult to save.” Do you agree that “niceness” can make people more difficult to save?
How?

Gaining by losing

It’s one of Lewis’ main premises that in turning to Christ we become real personalities, and more
ourselves. Do you agree that in order to gain your life you must lose it? What does the losing
involve?

Your view

Did reading this book make you view what it means to be a Christian in a new light?
Specifically, how?

October 2012: The Hobbit or There and Back Again by JRR Tolkien

Overall

What were your thoughts in general? Are you planning on seeing the movie?

Trolls

Why is it important that Gandalf is not present when the expedition
meets the trolls?

Goblins

What does Tolkien tell us about Goblins?

Bilbo and Gollum

How are Bilbo and Gollum alike? What skills does Bilbo show in dealing
with Gollum?

The ring

Why doesn't Bilbo tell the dwarves about his ring?

Beorn

Discuss Beorn's character. Is he virtuous? Vicious?

Gandalf

Why is it necessary that Gandalf leave the expedition ?

Arkenstone

Why does Bilbo give up the Arkenstone? Why does he return to the Mountain?

Home again

What does Bilbo gain from his adventure? How does he feel about home upon his return?

September 2012: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

Start of the journey

At the start of his journey, when Santiago asks a Gypsy woman to interpret his dream about a treasure in the Egyptian pyramids, she asks for one-tenth of the treasure in return. When Santiago asks the old man to show him the path to the treasure, the old man request one-tenth of his flock as "payment". Both payments represent a different price we have to pay to fulfill a dream; however, only one will yield a true result. Which payment represents false hope? Can you think of examples from your own life when you had to give up something to meet a goal and found the price too high?

Personal Legend

Paulo Coelho once said that alchemy is all about pursuing our spiritual quest in the physical world as it was given to us. It is the art of transmuting the reality into something sacred, of mixing the sacred and the profane. With this in mind, can you define your Personal Legend? At what time in your life were you first able to act on it? What was your "beginner's luck"? Did anything prevent you from following it to conclusion? Having read The Alchemist, do you know what inner resources you need to continue the journey?

Diversion

One of the first major diversions from Santiago's journey was the theft of his money in Tangier, which forced him into taking a menial job with the crystal merchant. There, Santiago learned many lessons on everything from the art of business to the art of patience. Of all these, which lessons were the most crucial to the pursuit of his Personal Legend?

The Crystal Merchant

When he talked about the pilgrimage to Mecca, the crystal merchant argued that having a dream is more important than fulfilling it, which is what Santaigo was trying to do. Do you agree with Santiago's rationale or the crystal merchant's?

The Englishman

The Englishman, whom Santiago meets when he joins the caravan to the Egyptian pyramids, is searching for "a universal language, understood by everybody." What is that language? According to the Englishman, what are the parallels between reading and alchemy? How does the Englishman's search for the alchemist compare to Santiago's search for a treasure? How did the Englishman and Santiago feel about each other?

The alchemist

The alchemist tells Santiago "you don't even have to understand the desert: all you have to do is to contemplate a simple grain of sand, and you will see in it all the marvels of creation". With this in mind, why do you think the alchemist chose to befriend Santiago, though he knew that the Englishman was the one looking for him? What is the meaning of two dead hawks and the falcon in the oasis? At one point the alchemist explains to Santiago the secret of successfully turning metal into gold. How does this process compare to finding a Personal Legend?

Why?

Why did Santiago have to go through the dangers of tribal wars on the outskirts of the oasis in order to reach the Pyramids? At the very end of the journey, why did the alchemist leave Santiago alone to complete it?

Treasures

Earlier in the story, the alchemist told Santiago "when you possess great treasures within you, and try to tell others of them, seldom are you believed." At the end of the story, how did this simple lesson save Santiago's life? How did it lead him back to the treasure he was looking for?

August 2012: The Gable Faces East by Anita Stansfield

overall thoughts

What are your thoughts of the book?

Love triangle

How did you feel about the love triangle? Did you feel that Jess and Alexis were fair to Richard? Or that he was really okay with it? Thoughts???

Convenient Deaths

I have said before that some of her books have convenient deaths- so the person can be with the other person they are meant to be with. Did you feel like it was natural?

Ending

How did you feel about the way the book ended?

July 2012: The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins

Opinion

In her Introduction to this Modern Library edition, Anne Perry asks, “What is there in The Woman in White that transcends the change in culture from 1860 to the present, and beyond?” How would you answer this question?

Laura

 Laura is presented as an ideal of Victorian womanhood, obedient, respectful of social conventions, and willing to sacrifice her own wishes for others. How does her double, Anne Catherick, illuminate the dark side of that ideal?

Marian and Fosco

Why is Marian so mesmerized by Fosco, who she says "has interested me, has attracted me, has forced me to like him"? Why is Fosco able to see Marian, despite her physical unattractiveness, as a "magnificent creature"?

Narratives

The use of multiple narrators was one of Collins's favorite storytelling techniques. What qualities does each narrator bring to the story? How does each change our view of the characters? Could the story have been told from a single viewpoint, and if so, whose?

Genre

Wilkie Collins has been hailed as the creator of the “sensation novel”. Citing examples from The Woman in White, how would you define this Victorian literary genre?

Experiments

In his preface to the 1860 edition of The Woman in White, Collins wrote, “An experiment is attempted in this novel, which has not (so far as I know) been hitherto tried in fiction. The story…is told throughout by the characters of the book.” Was the experiment a success? What is gained and what is lost in telling the story exclusively through first person narratives?

Vivid portraits

Collins has been widely praised for his fully drawn portraits. Which characters stand out as the most vivid, and why?

Foreshadowing

Throughout the novel, how does Collins use premonitions, coincidences and dreams to foreshadow key events?

Mrs. Catherick

Why does Mrs. Catherick allow her own daughter to be placed in an insane asylum, and how does she justify her actions?

Weakness

In his concluding narrative, Count Fosco describes “thefirst and last weakness” of his life. What is the nature of Fosco’s self-described “deplorable and uncharacteristic fault”?

June 2012: The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne

The Puritan World

Hawthorne came from a long line of Puritans (one of his fore-fathers was a judge during the Salem witch trials), and Puritan beliefs about subjects like guilt, repression, original sin, and discipline inform the book on every level. What is your impression of how the Puritan worldview is taken up and treated by Hawthorne in The Scarlet Letter?

the intro

Kathryn Harrison, in her introduction to this volume, asserts that Hester Prynne can be seen in many ways as the first great modern heroine in American literature. Do you agree?

Dimmesdale

Dimmesdale is in many ways as central a character as Hester in the novel; for you as a reader, is he equally important to the story?

A

The highly charged symbolism of The Scarlet Letter is one of its most distinctive features. Discuss the central symbol of the story- the scarlet letter itself. What does it signify? How does it function in the novel? How does its meaning change over time?

Adultery

Critics have sometimes disagreed about whether Hawthorne condones or condemns the adultery of Hester and Dimmesdale in the novel. Can either view be supported? Which do you feel is the case?

Roger

Describe and discuss the character of Roger Chillingworth in the novel. What does he represent in terms of the larger themes explored by the book?

Hester

How does Hester change over time in the novel- and how does she change in the eyes of the society around her?

The scaffold

The final scaffold scene brings the various themes, characters, and plot lines woven throughout the novel to a powerful conclusion. Describe your response to the scene.

May 2012: The Host by Stephenie Meyer

Your thoughts?

What do you think of the Host? Especially after reading the Twilight books, how do you think it compares to them?

Wanderer

Given Wanderer's reputation as a very experienced, brave, and strong soul, was it surprising to you how easily she gave in to Melanie?

Seeker

As the story was unfolding, did you have any guesses as to why Wanderer's Seeker was so persistent, or what Wanderer's big secret was?

Human's reactions

Were the humans' initial reactions to Wanderer/Melanie believable to you? Jeb's kindness? Jared's animosity? Jamie's quick love?

Mel and Jared

Mel insists that she would have loved Jared back when she first met him even if he were the hard, cynical person she and Wanda re-encounters in the cave. Do you agree?

Motherhood

From a soul's perspective, was it selfish of Wanda to not consider Motherhood? Why doesn't she consider it?

Ian and Wanda

What are your thoughts on the relationship between Ian and Wanda? Did it feel natural or strange to you?

The ending

What did you think about the happy ending? If the story had continued on, how would you like it to play out? Would the souls eventually realize they had done something wrong in taking over the human race and leave? Would life go back to normal on planet Earth? Would some stay? Could souls and humans co-exist, intermarry, and have children? Would some humans not be able to forgive the souls and would it cause racial tension? Could souls deal with that?

A world of souls

The souls are kind, considerate, and peaceful but they lack the range of emotion felt by humans. Does a world inhabited by the souls appeal to you? Why or why not?

Genocide?

Are the Souls morally culpable for what they do to so many species in the universe? What reason do they give for taking over others' minds, and is that justifiable -- or does it essentially amount to genocide?

Do you plan on seeing The Host movie next year?

 Here are the main actors:

 Diane Kruger as The Seeker: (you may know her from National Treasure)

Jake Abel as Ian O'Shea

Max Irons (Red Riding Hood) as Jared Howe

Saoirse Ronan (City of Ember, Lovely Bones, Hanna...) as Melanie

April 2012: Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift

Your thoughts

Did you know that Gulliver's Travels was written as a political satire? Did you enjoy it?  What are your thoughts?

Real title

The real title of Gulliver's Travels is Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World. Knowing that this is a satire, why do you think Swift uses the word "Remote"?

Gulliver's background

Why do you think Swift begins his story with so many mundane details about Gulliver's background and in so matter-of-fact a tone?

Size

Why do you think Swift made the Lilliputians physically small?

The farmer's family

What kind of man is the farmer who finds Gulliver? 

What might Swift be criticizing through the actions of farmer in regard to Gulliver? (pp. 91-94)

How would you describe Glumdalclitch's (the girl who takes care of Gulliver) personality?

King's evaluation

After Gulliver gives a "historical Account" of Europe the King ends his response with one of the most famous passages from Gulliver's Travels:

But by what I have gathered from your own Relation, and the Answers I have with much pains wringed and extorted from you, I cannot but conclude the Bulk of your Natives to be the most pernicious Race of little odious Vermin that Nature ever suffered to crawl upon the Surface of the Earth.

Is the King's evaluation valid? Why or why not?

Grossness

Just as in Lilliput, Gulliver takes time to explain his "natural Necessities" and the "one Thing, which another could not do for me." Gulliver says this to us in his defense for "dwelling" on the "Necessities of Nature":

I hope the gentle reader will excuse me for dwelling on these and the like particulars, which however insignificant they may appear to groveling vulgar minds, yet will certainly help a philosopher to enlarge his thoughts and imagination … which was my sole design in presenting this and other accounts of my travels to the world

What do think is Swift's purpose in mentioning the common bodily functions of defecating and urinating?

Laputians

How does the absence of "Imagination, Fancy, and Invention" contribute to the kind of people the Laputians are?

Immortality

Why does Gulliver change his mind about wanting immortality?

Houyhnhnm

Thoughts on Gulliver's time with the Houyhnhnm?

Yahoo

Why is Gulliver so horrified to see "a perfect human Figure" in that of a Yahoo? (p. 213)

Why does Gulliver work so hard not to be associated with the Yahoos?

Lawyers

What is Swift saying when he criticizes Lawyers by saying they use "Words multiplied" for the purpose of proving that "White is Black" and "Black is White"?

Reason

The Houyhnhnms' Maxim is, "to cultivate Reason, and to be wholly governed by it." What does this mean

Yahoo sails

Notice how matter-of-fact Gulliver is in describing that his sails are made of the skins of Yahoos: "I made use of the youngest I could get, the older being too tough and thick . . ." What does this say about Gulliver? What is Swift trying to say?

What have we been taught?

Gulliver says, ". . . my principal Design was to inform, and not to amuse thee." If we take this as Swift, telling us as readers what his intent was, of what have then been informed?

Humanity

Is humanity as bad as Gulliver thinks it is at the end of the novel?

SORRY!!

I am so sorry for the delay in getting the questions up for Austenland. For some reason I thought I had done it already! So, now Austenland questions are up and I will get the Gullivers Travels questions on later today!

March 2012: Austenland by Shannon Hale

Miss CHarming

thoughts on Miss Charming......

13 boyfrien

Austenland, besides chronicling Janes' stay at Pembrook Park, lists all thirteen "boyfriends" she's had in her lifetime. How well does the reader get to know Jane's past? How much has she changed from her first relationship at age twelve to the one that is now just beginning?

I&I

Jane calls herself and Mr. Nobley "Impertinence and Inflexibility" How do these nicknames originate? How do these traits compare to the pride and prejudice of Darcy and Elizabeth in Austen's novel?

Great Aunt Carolyn

Jane's Great Aunt Carolyn set the whole Pembrook Park adventure into motion. What do you think Carolyn's intentions were in sending Jane to this Austenland? Do you think Jane fulfilled those expectations?

Jane Austen romance

Jane comes to wonder what kind of fantasy world Jane Austen might have created for herself: "Did Austen herself feel this way? Was she hopeful? Jane wondered if the unmarried writer had lived inside Austenland with close to Jane's own sensibility- amused, horrified, but in very real danger of being swept away". Is it possible to guess at Austen's attitude toward romance by reading her work? Why or why not?

Tally Ho

Jane walks away from Nobley and Martin at the airport with the parting words, "Tell Mrs. Wattlesbrook I said tallyho". Why does Jane enjoy her last line so much? What does she mean by tallyho?

Ending

Did you like the ending? Thoughts?

Jane Austen

What might Jane Austen think of Austenland, if she were alive today? Could she have possibly anticipated how influential her novels would become, even for twenty-first-century audiences? Could she ever have imagined a fan like Jane Hayes?

austenland: the movie

Do you plan on seeing the movie? Some casting shown in picture below:

top row: J.J Feild as Mr. Nobley, Keri Russel as Jane, and Bret McKenzie as Martin
bottom row: James Callis as Colonel Andrews, Jennifer Coolidge as Miss Charming, Jane Seymour as Mrs. Wattlesbrook, and Rupert Vansittart as Mr. Wattlesbrook.

A New Member!

I am so excited to have a new member to our club! 

Meet Holly...

Holly goes to church with Julie and I . 

Her favorite books include Emma, the Harry Potter series, The Little Prince, Taming of the Shrew, Ender's Game, To Kill a Mockingbird, the Twilight Series, A Christmas Carol, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Help, The Hunger Games, The Screwtape Letters, OPJB, and all of Bill Peet's children's books.

January and February 2012: East of Eden by John Steinbeck

The people

Did you find the characters to be realistic? True to life? Which were your favorites? Which, if any, did you dislike the most?

Quotes

This novel is full of beautiful prose and descriptions. What are some of your favorite excerpts?

What do you think?

Please discuss here any topics I didn't cover that you feel are important to this novel.

the opening chapter

There is an epic scope to the opening chapter, as if Steinbeck is announcing to the reader the
grandness of his theme. Comment on how he suggests the grandness of his conception.

Aron and Adam

How is Aron's imagination of Abra similar to Adam's inability to see nothing but what he
wants to see in Cathy? What does their infatuation suggest about a state of innocence and purity?

Fathers rejection

What is the nature of the despair that makes both Charles (in Part One) and Cal (in Part Four)
restless, drawn to borders of respectability? If Charles and Cal—as opposed to Adam and
Aron—are the sons who love their fathers, why do their fathers reject them?

American novel

Steinbeck has a character refer to Americans as a "breed," and near the end of the book Lee says to a conflicted Cal that "We are all descended from the restless, the nervous, the criminals, the arguers and brawlers, but also the brave and independent and generous. If our ancestors had not been that, they would have stayed in their home plots in the other world and starved over the squeezed-out soil." What makes this a quintessentially American book? Can you identify archetypically American qualities—perhaps some of those listed above—in the characters?

Sam Hamilton

Sam Hamilton—called a "shining man"—and his children are an immigrant family in the classic American model. What comes with Sam and his wife Liza from the "old country"? How does living in America change them and their children? What opportunities does America provide for the clan, and what challenges?

Adam

Adam Trask struggles to overcome the actions of others—his father, brother, and wife—and make his own life. What is the lesson that he learns that frees him from Kate and allows him to love his sons? He says to Cal near the end that "if you want to give me a present—give me a good life. That would be something I could value." Does Adam have a good life? What hinders him? Would you characterize his life as successful in the end?
 

Lee

Lee is one of the most remarkable characters in American literature, a philosopher trapped by the racial expectations of his time. He is the essence of compassion, erudition, and calm, serving the Trasks while retaining a complex interior and emotional life. Do you understand why he speaks in pidgin, as he explains it to Sam Hamilton? How does his character change—in dress, speech, and action—over the course of the book? And why do you think Lee stays with the Trasks, instead of living on his own in San Francisco and pursuing his dream?

Women

Women in the novel are not always as fully realized as the main male characters. The great exception is Adam Trask's wife, Cathy, later Kate the brothel owner. Clearly Kate's evil is meant to be of biblical proportions. Can you understand what motivates her? Is she truly evil or does Steinbeck allow some traces of humanity in his characterization of her? What does her final act, for Aron Trask, indicate about her (well-hidden) emotions?

Sibling Rivalry

Sibling rivalry is a crushing reoccurrence in East of Eden. First Adam and his brother Charles, then Adam's sons Cal and Aron, act out a drama of jealousy and competition that seems fated: Lee calls the story of Cain and Abel the "symbol story of the human soul." Why do you think this is so, or do you disagree? Have you ever experienced or witnessed such a rivalry? Do all of the siblings in the book act out this drama or do some escape it? If so, how? If all of the "C" characters seem initially to embody evil and all the "A" characters good—in this novel that charts the course of good and evil in human experience—is it true that good and evil are truly separate? Are the C characters also good, the A characters capable of evil?

Race

Some of Steinbeck's ethnic and racial characterizations are loaded with stereotype. Yet he also makes extremely prescient comments about the role that many races played in the building of America, and he takes the time to give dignity to all types of persons. Lee is one example of a character that constantly subverts expectations. Can you think of other scenes or characters that might have challenged conventional notions in Steinbeck's time? In ours? How unusual do you think it might have been to write about America as a multicultural haven in the 1950s? And do you agree that that is what Steinbeck does, or do you think he reveals a darker side to American diversity?

Wealth

What constitutes true wealth in the book? The Hamiltons and the Trasks are most explicitly differentiated by their relationship to money: though Sam Hamilton works hard he accumulates little, while Adam Trask moons and mourns and lives off the money acquired by his father. Think of different times that money is sought after or rejected by characters (such as Will Hamilton and Cal Trask) and the role that it plays to help and hinder them in realizing their dreams. Does the quest for money ever obscure deeper desires?

Timshel

During the naming of the twins, Lee, Sam, and Adam have a long conversation about a sentence from Genesis, disagreeing over whether God has said an act is ordered or predetermined. Lee continues to think about this conversation and enlists the help of a group of Chinese philosophers to come to a conclusion: that God has given humans choice by saying that they may (the Hebrew word for "may," timshel, becomes a key trope in the novel), that people can choose for themselves. What is Steinbeck trying to say about guilt and forgiveness? About family inheritance versus free will? Think of instances where this distinction is important in the novel, and in your own life.

Cal and the end

The end of the novel and the future of the Trasks seems to rest with Cal, the son least liked and least understood by his father and the town. What does Cal come to understand about his relationship to his past and to each member of his family? The last scene between Adam and Cal is momentous; what exactly happens between them, and how hopeful a note is this profound ending? Why is Lee trying to force Cal to overturn the assumption that lives are "all inherited"? What do you think Cal's future will be?

December 2011: Promise Me by Richard Paul Evans

Marc

Marc claims that Beth is the only woman he’s ever loved, yet he’s cheated on her for many years. Do you believe he really loves Beth? Do you think he ever loved her? What do you think his true motives are for finally confessing to Beth?

The clues

If Matthew hadn’t confessed the truth, it’s likely Beth would never have discovered that he is her future son-in-law. When did you first suspect that Matthew might be from the future? Identify the clues the author gives along the way

Trust

In Promise Me Beth experiences a number of hardships and heartbreaks. She believes that she has brought these on herself, because she allowed herself to trust people. How can trust get you into trouble? What do you give up if you won’t, or can’t, trust others?

The money

Roxanne thinks Beth is a fool for sending Matthew away after he gives her a two million dollar check—the winnings from the bet he placed using her home equity loan. While it doesn’t change the fact that he stole, Roxanne notes that he could have easily skipped town with the winnings. What if he’d lost? Do you think the ends justify the means? What do you think of Beth’s decision to put him down as a co-signer on the loan after knowing him for such a short time?

Who Matthew is

Matthew’s revelation—that he is in fact Charlotte’s future husband—stuns Beth. But in Beth’s timeline, Charlotte is still a child. She’ll never be hurt if Matthew chooses to stay with her mother instead of returning to his own present to be with her. So why doesn’t Beth ask him to stay? What would you do?

10 months

What would you do if you had only ten months with someone you loved and money was no object? If you suddenly had only a limited time left with someone you loved, would you wish you’d never met them at all rather than suffer the pain of losing them? Why or why not?

Hindsight is 20/20

Beth suggests that if she’d known Marc would cheat on her, she’d never have married him. But Matthew argues she would have, because otherwise she wouldn’t have had Charlotte. Every choice we make in life has consequences. If you could relive your life knowing what you know now, what would you do differently? What wouldn’t you change?

A Younger self

At one point, Beth and Matthew discuss what would happen if they ran into his parents, or his ten-year-old self, in Capri. Would you want to see yourself as a child if you could? What, if anything, would you say?

Matthew

To Beth, Matthew seems like the perfect guy—an angel sent to save Beth from a life of loneliness. . Beth writes in her diary, “I have wondered if those who say ‘it is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all’ have ever lost their loved.” (p. 286) How do you feel about this observation? Do you think Beth would ultimately agree or disagree that it’s better to have loved and lost? What does Matthew do for Beth besides give her another lost love to grieve?

The ending

The author leads Matthew—and us—to believe that Matthew will return to 2008 only to lose Charlotte. We don’t even know if he’ll remember his extraordinary journey to the past. How did you feel about the ending? Were you satisfied? Why or why not?