Agawam Pageturners Book Club's Discussion of To Kill a Mockingbird

The group had a controversial discussion of To Kill a Mockingbird. Some people loved the book, and thought Atticus was a hero. One person discussed it with her granddaughter, who was reading it the same time she was. One person had a hard time getting through it. She then watched the movie and understood it better. Others thought Atticus was a reluctant hero, or not a hero at all. In the book, set in the 1930's Alabama, Atticus defends an African American, Tom Robinson, accused of raping a white woman. Some thought Atticus defended him to the best of his ability. Others thought the defense he gave was not enough, and the portrayal of African Americans in the novel was poor. One person said, "what would it be like to be black and read this book?" One person thought the book was a morality play. The group also discussed Scout, the daughter of Atticus, and the narrator of the book. People did like that Atticus explained everything to his children. People thought Scout was mature for her age. (She is between the ages of 6-8 throughout the book). Jem, her brother ran free, probably because he lost his mother at a young age. Scout lost her mother, too, but she had Calpurnia, the African American housekeeper, who mothered her. Overall, a very lively discussion.

New Books Purchased in March

Here are the new books purchased in March: Adult, Children's, Teens.

Night Bookers Book Club's Discussion of The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver

The group was divided on their impressions of the Poisonwood Bible. Some loved the book, while others disliked it. Some of the people who disliked the book found it too, wordy, and some were unable to finish it. People who liked the book liked the characters and description of life in Africa, as well as the African people. The book is set in 1959 Congo (later renamed Zaire), and tells the story of an American Baptist missionary family, a father, mother, and their four daughters, Rachel, Leah, Adah, and Ruth May. People liked the development of the mother and daughters and their voices. The father is not given a voice. Everybody disliked the father for his arrogance, his abusive treatment of his children and wife, and his mission to convert the African people. The father held back baptizing his own child Ruth May, because he wanted her baptized with the African children. He cannot deal with the fact later on when his own child dies unbaptized when she is killed by a snake. The group believed the father was doomed to failure because of his own ego. One person suggested he was a representation of the United States. People felt sorry for the mother. She raising these four daughters with no help from an abusive husband. When the person who helped her around her hut quit, she tried to cook and provide for her family, much more difficult in Africa than in the United States. Someone loved Barbara Kingsolver's style as a writer. Someone else thought some of the writing in the book was beautiful. An example is the scene where Ruth May died and the mother washed the body; Ruth May's sister Rachel has a flashback when her mother washed Ruth May as a baby. The group thought one of the purposes of the book was to expose the harm the United States has had on Africa, politically, socially, and economically. Also, how the U. S. tries to change this area, it does not change what is going on at a local, village level. A very lively, thought provoking discussion.