One of my favorite things about book clubs is being introduced to books I’d never pull off the shelf on my own. Through the recommendations and suggestions of others, I read books of all different genres. Shoving my once go-to bent towards soapy beach reads aside, I delight in unique finds that blow the doors on my literary scope wide open. Reading with others is such a cool way to grow, learn more (don’t we always learn something from each book we read?) and connect. Yup, those book clubs are a sweet, sweet thing!
Because we love book clubs so much, Carrie of Normal Level of Crazy and I are tickled to share this monthly online virtual book club with YOU. Read along with us whenever you can (we know sometimes those kids require things like attention and being fed and whatnot) and please share any thoughts you have on anything we’ve read–we want to hear from you! As we are book nerds in the truest sense, we could talk our books up for hours on end.
Check out our thoughts on September’s pick, The Book of Speculation by Erika Swyler below, and make sure to leave a comment on this post to be entered to win a copy of next month’s selection!
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The Book of Speculation by Erika Swyler. This is the tale of Simon Watson, a young librarian, who lives alone in a house that is slowly crumbling toward the Long Island Sound. He makes a very unusual discovery about his family’s past through an old book that is sent to him by a stranger and is now scrambling hard to keep history from repeating itself.
Simultaneous to Simon’s discovery, the story of the characters, a traveling carnival troupe, in the old book is shared, complete with a recounting of many strange and magical things. The Book of Speculation alternates back and forth between these two story lines.
This book was not my favorite read, as I have difficulty moving past the haphazard, incognizant manner in which Simon lived his life. He remained largely unconcerned by the condition of his home, nor did he vacate it, even while the walls were cracking apart and the floor was caving in. Simon was also ambivalent as to whether he would move states away for a new job, join the circus, or stay with the woman who was the love of his life (but whom he only started dating last week). His character was a tough swallow for me.
What did you think of Simon? Were there any other characters you had a strong reaction to or related to–positively or negatively?
I was surprised, however, by how much I enjoyed the mystical part of the novel, especially as told through the characters of the old book Simon was given. It was fascinating to read about how the carnival people were so wholly guided and changed by their beliefs in magical forces. Using the common thread of the supernatural world allowed Swyler to artfully switching back and forth between the two story lines while maintaining an easy flow.
Were you at all familiar with carnival/circus lifestyle before reading this book? Do you think the complete reliance on magic is common to our modern culture?
Did the switching between story lines read smoothly for you, or do you feel it disrupted the flow of the novel? It seems like many books today are written in this alternating format, moving between plots and voices. What are your thoughts about this literary trend?
Finally, reviews of this book liken it to Sara Gruen’s Water for Elephants, Erin Morgenstern’s The Night Circus, and Elizabeth Kostova’s The Historian. If you’ve read any of these books, do you agree? Of these, I’ve only read Water for Elephants, and aside from the obvious parallel of circus life, I would agree that these two books share similar pacing and themes.
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Grab your copy HERE!
For October, we’re excited to announce that we’ve chosen The Martian by Andy Weir. Partially because we were so intrigued after including it in our Fall Must-Read List and partially because we want to get the scoop before watching Matt Damon rock out the character in the theater!
Here’s the scoop from Amazon on the book:
Six days ago, astronaut Mark Watney became one of the first people to walk on Mars.
Now, he’s sure he’ll be the first person to die there.
After a dust storm nearly kills him and forces his crew to evacuate while thinking him dead, Mark finds himself stranded and completely alone with no way to even signal Earth that he’s alive—and even if he could get word out, his supplies would be gone long before a rescue could arrive.
Chances are, though, he won’t have time to starve to death. The damaged machinery, unforgiving environment, or plain-old “human error” are much more likely to kill him first.
But Mark isn’t ready to give up yet. Drawing on his ingenuity, his engineering skills—and a relentless, dogged refusal to quit—he steadfastly confronts one seemingly insurmountable obstacle after the next. Will his resourcefulness be enough to overcome the impossible odds against him?
As always, we’re giving away a free copy to one of YOU! As long as you are 18 or older and live in the continental U.S., you are eligible to win! Just leave a comment on this post by 10/9/15 at 5:30am ET to enter.
True story on this pick: Carrie has read ahead a bit and reports that it’s very science and math-oriented, but that she’s loving it anyway. Won’t lie, hearing the word “math” in relation to my books makes a bit nervous, but hey, I’m game for anything. That’s what book clubs are all about, right? Stretching our horizons!
Read on, friends!
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Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for providing us with a copy of The Book of Speculation to review for this post. Our opinions are 100% our own!
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Janine Huldie says
Still can’t thank you enough for turning me onto this book when I won it here last month. I pretty much agreed with you though on the story itself and yet as much as the main character wasn’t my favorite of all time by any means, the book kept me on my toes and couldn’t put it down that I finished it in about 3 days here in total. Thanks again and truly am glad I got to read this book 😉
Meredith says
See, that’s a win, Janine! Any story that can sweep me away works for me! Glad you enjoyed and thanks for always reading with us 🙂
Meredith says
I would gladly sell my only daughter for a copy of The Martian, I’ve been dying to read it but I’m entrenched in a 1443 page novel right now (Fiery Cross).
Meredith says
Oh gosh! That is a commitment 😉 I want to read it too and I’m so glad to have you read it with us. Finish that book and let’s dig in together!