Last decade filled with great reads

We realized at the last meeting that our book club has been reading and meeting together for almost a decade. We began in spring 2011, so we’re beginning our tenth year together. After we discussed this month’s book, “Disappearing Earth” by Julia Phillips, we talked about many of the books we’ve read together and which ones were the best.

There’s not enough room here to list all of the good reads we’ve shared. So I’ll discuss briefly the best of the best.

Two of our early books were “The Tiger’s Wife” by Tea Obreht and “Cutting for Stone” by Abraham Verghese. “The Tiger’s Wife” was kind of a departure for me personally, and also for some in our club. The magical realism of it and Obreht’s second novel, “Inland,” which also made it to the Best of the Best list, is spellbinding. These are masterpieces of literature, AND they have ghosts. What more could a reader ask for? Few of my reading-pals liked “Inland” as much as they liked “The Tiger’s Wife.” However, this is my list, and I loved it.

“Cutting for Stone” presents a sweeping story of two generations sustained by love and tormented by betrayal. It kept me up nights, turning pages. I think the longevity of our book club is due not only to our long-standing friendships, but also the quality of the books that began this endeavor with. We often rate a recently read book to the first few great ones we read. We’re always looking for the next great one.

Another saga is Barbara Kingsolver’s “The Lacuna,” the story of a boy’s difficult and chaotic youth and his life among luminaries such as Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo, and Leon Trotsky. Its critique of McCarthyism and xenophobia is sadly relevant in 2020. This one and “The Poisonwood Bible” are, I think, Kingsolver’s best novels.

We also read several classics, including “Rebecca” by Daphne du Maurier. I have read “Rebecca” several times, since it is one of my all-time favorites, but it was fun and rewarding to read it again with friends and talk it over. If you haven’t had the pleasure, “Rebecca” is a modern gothic tale of ghosts, secrets, and love set in wild and beautiful Cornwall.

Among the Pulitzer Prize winners we read is “Less” by Andrew Sean Greer. An unconventional love story, “Less” is hilarious from beginning to end. Arthur Less is a turning-50, failed novelist whose ex is about to marry Arthur’s rival. To avoid attending the wedding, he goes on a world-circling book tour of half-baked literary events. This slap-stick dark comedy rewards with a sweet ending.

Although our list is obviously fiction-heavy, we did read some great non-fiction. “The Boys in the Boat” by Daniel James Brown tells the story of the underdog American crew team at the 1936 Olympics. We read this one just before the 2016 Summer Olympics. The games had just finished as school started, and one of my students asked me what my favorite Olympic team was. Without hesitating, I replied “The 1936 eight-man crew team.” The student was a little taken aback, and responded, “Wow, miss. That’s oddly specific.”

Going over this list, I look forward to another decade of great reads, starting with “The Night Tiger” by Yangsze Choo, a tale of murder, romance, and superstition.