Between the Pages

Welcome back to Virtual Book Club! Thank you for reading this post. While I had actual Zoom meetings with some of the students and faculty from my school, this is an overview of the novel ( The Great Gatsby ) and the topics we enjoyed discussing in depth. If you are a physical member of the club, and you missed a meeting or two, this is the perfect place to catch up on some of the topics we talked about that you may have missed. Please know, if I continue the book club, I will make sure to post the meeting links on this blog so that I can involve more people through this outlet. First, an introduction to the novel and its author, F. Scott Fitzgerald. Nick Carraway As a Narrator Nick Carraway establishes his accepting and non-judging personality on page one. He says, "In my younger and more vulnerable years my father gave me some advice that I've been turning over in my mind ever since. 'Whenever you feel like criticizing any one,' he told me, 'just remember that al...

About a week and a half ago, I visited Bound Booksellers in Franklin, TN. A quaint shop, the store was bursting of vibrancy and life even during a difficult time for brick and mortar shops. While it was the end of the day when I went in and there were not many customers, my sister had been in the store earlier and said there were more people visiting. (Whew!) Children, adult, teen, tween, senior, Bound Booksellers has something for everyone! During the COVID-19 pandemic, a lot of independent booksellers have shut their doors because of the severe drop in patronage. Order books from local bookstores instead of Amazon! Support independents! Independent booksellers provide services Amazon does not like virtual events, qualified salespeople, and in-person recommendations and contact.  Here are some pictures of Bound Booksellers and links to their website and social medias. If you live in the Franklin area, consider supporting this shop! Bound Booksellers Official Website:  https:/...

The Strand Book Store in New York City, New York hosted a virtual event (on both Zoom and Facebook Live) to celebrate Hannah Orenstein's new novel: Head over Heels . Becca Freeman asked Hannah Orenstein questions about her writing process, the new novel, and her previous experience with writing. After Freeman finished her questions, virtual audience members were able to send in questions. Freeman asked and Orenstien answered beautifully. If you were able to attend the event, please comment about your experience. If you were unable to come, please read the summary of questions and responses, but first, a little about the women and book of the event.  The People Hannah Orenstein is the author of three novels: Head over Heels, Love at First Like, and Playing with Matches . By day, Orenstein is the senior dating editor at Elite Daily magazine. By night, her experience editing aids her in writing novels about romance, sports, comedy, and even jewelry...? She has written for a number of...

I know, I am going CrAzY with The Great Gatsby ! It is because I am currently doing a book club with this novel, writing my own review, and now studying architecture's narrating position. It's just on the brain a lot because of these posts all going at once. I hope you are enjoying reading my posts about F. Scott Fitzgerald's work as much as I am writing them. I'm not sure what order the previously mentioned posts will go live in, but just know they are all coming at some point!  Architecture is the greatest characterization of the main characters in The Great Gatsby. Each person's dwelling reveals their personality, marital struggles, hopes, and romantic interests through architectural style, era, and interior design.  Gatsby Mansion The Gatsby Mansion, home of Jay Gatsby (the man's name that this book received), is Chateauesque and truly a Gilded Age mansion. The mansion is a "factual imitation of some Hotel de Ville in Normandy". The house is design...

    The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is regarded as one of the "great American novels" and one of the best pieces of literature to embody the 1920s, post-war society, and aristocratic hypocrisy.  Summary 29 year old, Nick Carraway is a WWI veteran moving from a midwestern childhood to an east-coast adulthood. He moves to Long Island's up-and-coming neighborhood for the young and rich. His bungalow is smashed between West Egg, the new money neighborhood on the Sound, mansions. One of his neighbors is the glamorous Jay Gatsby who has loved Nick's married cousin, Daisy Buchanan, for five years. Daisy is married to Nick's Yale classmate, Tom Buchanan, who is a physically large man with a macho personality that entertains a love affair with Myrtle Wilson in New York. The Buchanans marriage is not necessarily a happy one, but neither East Egg resident will spring for divorce.  Carraway starts attending Jay's frequent parties and befriends Gatsby. Throughout t...

The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick is regarded as one of the eeriest novels of the 20th century. Dick's novel explores how different the world can be with the winning of a war.  Summary It's 1962 in the continental United States, except the US was divided between the axis victors of World War II fifteen years earlier: Germany and Japan. Slavery is once again legal. FDR was assassinated and replaced. Africa is being stripped for its natural resources and human bodies by Germany. The Japanese occupy the Pacific states and the Reich (Germany) occupies the western territories called "The South". All searching for the truth in their individual lives, Dick introduces A LOT of characters into the readers realm.  Robert "Bob" Childan owns an antique store filled with "American" artifacts and attempts to put the pieces of the American story back together on the Pacific side. Childan is contacted by Mr. Tagomi, a powerful Japanese business associat...

Calling all Austen lovers! I've got Jane Austen novel retellings and plenty of them. From Pride and Prejudice to Persuasion  there is something for everyone! I either linked a description or wrote one.  Jane Austen in Scarsdale Retelling of: Persuasion Darcy's Story Retelling of: Pride and Prejudice Ordinary Girls Retelling of: Sense and Sensibility Jane on the Brain: Exploring the Science of Social Intelligence with Jane Austen Exploration/Literary and Stylistic Analysis of Jane Austen (Not a retelling, but really good.) This book is a wonderful, deep dive into the genius of Jane Austen's style, characters, and plots. It explores her rich characters and their actions that ultimately lead the reader to understand his/her life, and explains how the actions lead the character to their fate at the end of their respective novels. It is a stylistic analysis of the intriguing style of the true master of British romance: Jane Austen.  These are just my favorites! Linked below ar...

During summer, especially a quarantine summer, it can be easy to stay continually bored. Even if you recognize your boredom, you will stay in that state because thinking of something to do is even more boring. This post will present a couple of ideas about how to stay on a literary path during your summer and beyond.  Routine Reading  Set a time of day for you to read. Whether you read 10 pages or 100 pages, getting in the practice of reading at a specific time is great habit to form not only for learning and broadening perspective but also for personal mindfulness.  Read First/Last  Instead of carving out time in the middle of a busy day, read right after you wake up or just before going to sleep. Reading can start your day off right or get you off of your screen before going to sleep.  Write it Down/Put Reading on Your Calendar  If you write something down with a check box next to it or on your list of to-dos, you are more likely to hold yourself accounta...

While 13 Little Blue Envelopes  is a bit cheesy, it makes a great summer read if you are looking to travel to Europe from your couch.  Summary Ginny Blackstone's Aunt Peg took off to Europe three years ago without a word. Aunt Peg brought humor and intrigue to Ginny's otherwise boring, run-of-the-mill life. Besides a few measly postcards, Ginny hasn't received anything from her otherwise booming, outgoing Aunt. Ginny gets a phone call that changes her life, and shortly after, receives the first little blue envelope. The envelope contains $1,000 and a set of instructions. Just when Ginny thought she lost the person who made her life interesting and worthwhile, she is sent on an amazing adventure through Europe, following her Aunt's footsteps. After she picks up the package with the 12 other letters, she commences her crazy journey. The once shy, timid Ginny has now broken out of her shell. One month ago, she couldn't envision herself leaving New Jersey much less runn...

     Agatha Christie's The A.B.C. Murders  is a suspenseful chase complete with Hercule Poirot's wit and wisdom.  Summary A lice A scher is beaten to death in her small newspaper and cigar shop in A ndover. Just as Poirot and his earnest sidekick Captain Hastings dip their toes in, Elizabeth " B etty" B arnard is murdered on the beach in B exhill, strangled with her own b elt. Poirot only begins to gather witnesses and people involved in any way when Sir C armichael C larke's skull is c rushed on a walk in C hurston. At the scene of each crime, an A.B.C. railway guide is left as an omen, a warning, a mark of A.B.C.'s (the murder's) territory. Before a crime an anonymous, tantalizing, mocking note is sent to Poirot and Captain Hastings. As the letters of the alphabet fly by, A.B.C. starts making fatal mistakes and Poirot and his crew get closer and closer to unmasking the letter-obsessed killer.  Review I love mystery, suspense, and murder when I read books...