Kris Boisen's 4th Grade Book Club

Hi everyone.  Kris B has requested our help.  Her 4th grade class will be reading "Love That Dog" by Sharon Creech.  Kris would like us to assist her by also reading this book and participating in a "book club" discussion of the story with her 4th graders.  This will help the kids learn how to discuss different aspects of a book - learning by the example we will provide.  The tentative dates for this event, which were discussed at our last meeting, are either September 9th or September 12th.  This is not a "required" book club read, but Kris would really appreciate our help for her class.

Wonderful Job Scott!!!!!!!!!

Kris kindly hosted our August meeting to show off the beautiful new patio that Scott recently built with paver stones and complete with a cover (still in process).  It was lovely dining in the back yard enjoying the comfortable summer's eve.  And we had so much to dine on - a delicious heritage pot-luck with Guinness Irish Stew, Irish Soda Bread, Shepard's Pie, Irish Potato Salad, Currant Bread, Kasespatzle, Avocado Salad and Apple Cake.

The Orphan Train was well liked.  Some of us preferred Vivian's character over Molly's.  We all appreciated learning about a large event - 200,000 children over several decades - that is rarely mentioned in our history lessons.  I liked the author's comparison of our journeys through life as a form of a portage.  Two quotes we like from this story:

"Aspects of Vivian’s memory are triggered with each box they open.  The sewing kit wrapped in cheesecloth evokes the Byrnes’ grim home. The mustard colored coat with military buttons the felt lined knit gloves, the brown dress with pearl buttons.  Soon enough Molly is able to keep the cast of characters straight in her head…..as if joining scraps of fabric to make a quilt, Molly puts them in the right sequence and stitches them together, creating a pattern that was impossible to see when each piece was separate.

"Time constricts and flattens, you know. It’s not evenly weighted. Certain moments linger in the mind and others disappear.  The first twenty-three years of my life are the ones that shaped me, and the fact that I’ve lived almost seven decades since then is irrelevant."

Our next meeting will be at the Dalgas retreat "The Pines" on September 7th where we will review "All the Light We Cannot See".  Looking forward to seeing everyone there.

Meeting Schedule

Kris Boisen has generously invited us to meet at her home Wednesday August 3rd at 5:30pm.  Potluck, possibly on the newly completed patio!  Be sure to mark your calendars.  Also, Esther has invited us to meet at The Pines - her get-away up river - in September (date to be decided at the August meeting) and Chris P has invited us to meet at her home in October (date to be decided at the September meeting) to oh and ah over her newly remodeled kitchen.  Boy, won't all the hubbies be busy getting ready for us!

We will discuss our schedule of hosts during a future meeting.  We need to get Barbara back on the schedule after she has fully recovered from her ankle surgery.  Also, Chris M and Nika are coming up to host during our winter months.  We may need to move them out into spring, or we may meet at an alternate location such as the Entiat fire station.

Keep enjoying your summer, and we will see you on August 3rd!

Thank you Kris and Scott

Not wanting to base our meal on those "enjoyed" (endured) by book character John William ("The Other"), we opted for a 1970's themed pot luck.  Delicious with several "family favorites" included!  We enjoyed our time together sharing at the Boisen's lovely home.

Again, mixed reactions to our selection.  The author loved long descriptive sentences, so long you could loose your train of thought.  The book's main characters graduated from Seattle's Roosevelt HS in 1974; the setting and the time-frame prompted many memories.  A few of us did not feel the actions of the story rang true.  It did open discussion on friendships and living with our choices throughout life.

Mark your calendars:

• July 21, Entiat Library, 5:30 - 7pm, come to the film screening "He Named Me Malala".  
• Kris requested volunteers to read a portion of the best-selling children's book "BFG" by Roald Dahl and then participate in a "book club discussion" with her 4th grade class in September.
• I have not updated the info on our next meeting.  I will check with Barbara. Once details are finalized I will post the information, so stay tuned!

Don't forget, we need to give Esther the titles of two books we would like to read.  This will give the book club coordinator options for setting up our on-going reading list.  Once our list is updated, I will bring our list up-to-date on this blog.

Bring your Suggestions July 6

Esther will take suggestions for your second book selection, everyone, at Kris's house or by email. October is Nika's selection then we start a new round.

An Evening Along the River

Thank you Judy for hosting our gathering this month.  After a hot week, we all expected to be out on the deck overlooking the Columbia.  This fickle spring turned on us and the wind rattled the windows, so we gladly enjoyed the view from inside.  We also enjoyed a pot luck for which Judy provided two delicious main entrees.  The sharing of good food and friendship combined with discussions of our book and other topics always makes for a wonderful evening.

"Ancient Places" is a compilation of short essays revolving around subjects related to the history of our Pacific Northwest home.  While we all agreed that the author provided interesting information, we also felt the book would have been more intriguing if there were a stronger link between the chapters.  Most chapters discussed the geology of our area and some revealed daily lives of those who came before us, but a couple chapters felt disjointed from the bulk of the book.

"The climate that created them (fossils) doesn't quite match the weather we think we know.  The habitats they suggest refuse to fit into neat catagories recognised by current ecologists.  Yet the species that pour out of them..continue to provide a flood of tantalizing information: full of names and new directions, contradictions and unsolved mysteries."

An Evening that was Out of This World

Potatoes were the dinner fare for our meeting to discuss "The Martian".  Debbie G laid out a wonderful "stuff your own baked potato" bar - Idaho potatoes, of course, as there were no Martian potatoes available.  Delicious!  Chris P provided dessert - a chocolate cake made with potato.  Bet our astronaut wish he'd had that recipe!

There was a bit of mixed reaction to this book.  Some of us enjoyed the concept of the story and also the humor throughout the book while others found it too hard to get through.  Were all the situations and also the solutions possible?  The author stated that this story was originally published on the web chapter by chapter.  He received comments from experts on the technical aspects of the story; what was and was not probable.  These experts also gave suggestions of what would really work, which Andy Wier incorporated into his story before it was published in book form.  The probability of this situation every happening and resolving as it did in this book are pretty small, and I certainly wouldn't want to eat potatoes as the mainstay of my diet for one and a half years, but it made for an interesting book and also a movie.

It's always a pleasure to gather together and enjoy friends, conversation and good food.  Thank you Debbie G for providing a lovely evening!