An Evening Up River

Thank you Debbie D for hosting our April meeting.  It was nice to travel up river to see you and Terry too!  Our group was small due to spring break vacations, among other things, but it is always pleasant to get together and share friendship, a delicious meal and our book discussion.  We also enjoyed that Terry joined us for dinner.  Keying on events in our book, Debbie served ice cream sandwiches for dessert and Kris B wore her red shoes.

We had mixed reactions to this novel, from a bit tedious to thought provoking.  The story was constructed around random people's lives and how they intersected.  Events included a divorce, a shooting and trying to adjust to life back home after deployment in the Middle East.  The story was sad but hopeful.  Nika commented, via an email report, "Once I got into it, the story hit home to me in how the world can be such a small place.  What you do and say can impact more people than you know".

Here are some quotes from the novel:

"...something small changes everything.  Where the tiniest act, the smallest space of time, the most inconsequential of decisions, changes a life."

"...things happen to us that are more than we can take.  And we break, We break for a moment, for a while.  But that break is not who we are.  It's not the sum total of who we are.

"We never know how high we are
'Til we are called to rise;
And then, if we are true to plan
Our statures touch the skies."
 -Emily Dickenson