The Book Blab Episode 17: All Things Book Clubs Plus Two of Our Favorite Books for Mother's Day

Well, that was kind of a long hiatus, but Suzanne and I are finally back with another episode of The Book Blab! This one was worth the wait though, I promise.

Long-time readers will know that I have been a dedicated member of my book club (actually, several) for many years. Suzanne, it turns out, is the same, and between the two of us, we have quite the array of experiences. We had fun reminiscing about the various book clubs we've participated in, and we also shared a few tips and tricks for how to make a book club work no matter your situation.

The time flew, as it always does, and so we never got around to actually talking about the kinds of books that work well in a book club, so stay tuned for part two of this discussion!

As always, we'd love to hear about what your experience in a book club has been like, what some of your favorite book club reads have been, and why you think book clubs are so amazing (because you do think they're amazing, right?!).

Enjoy! (Oh, and p.s., please excuse the little technical glitches in this episode. We had a bit of a slow connection.)

1:00 - Life updates
1:50 - Today's topic: book clubs
2:40 - Why would you want to be in a book club?

• 3:20 - A book club lets you discuss those books that beg to be discussed
• 4:08 - A book club helps you see a certain book in a new way
• 4:16 - It's fun to socialize with other readers
• 5:10 - A succinct answer to that question

5:58 - A few descriptions of some of the book clubs we've been in

• 6:17 - Suzanne's traditional book club in Chicago
• 7:50 - Suzanne's casual book club in Houston
• 8:03 - Suzanne's Learning Circle through the Power of Moms organization
• 9:22 - Amy's education group
• 10:15 - Suzanne's brand new book club in Kansas City
• 10:33 - Suzanne's virtual book club with former college roommates
• 11:57 - Amy's neighborhood book club
• 12:58 - Amy's very traditional, very serious book club
• 15:55 - Amy's family reunion book club
• 17:00 - Suzanne's family book club (and surprising confession!)
• 17:53 - Amy's plans for a book club with her kids this summer
• 19:30 - The Book Blab mini-book clubs

20:18 - Helpful tips for making a book club work well
25:36 - A few ideas for how to start a book club
29:26 - Two of our favorite books about motherhood

• 30:05 - Suzanne's recommendation
• 31:20 - Amy's recommendation

33:47 - Conclusion

Books and links talked about during the show:

The Read-Aloud Family by Sarah Mackenzie
Power of Moms Learning Circles
Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis
Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner
The Four Tendencies by Gretchen Rubin
Mini-book clubs on The Book Blab (Episode 6 on A Man Called Ove and Episode 13 on The Girl Who Drank the Moon)
Educated by Tara Westover (Suzanne's review)
The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey (Amy's review // Suzanne's review)
The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio by Terry Ryan (Amy's review)

The Book Blab Episode 13: The Girl Who Drank the Moon Plus Two Other Newbery Favorites

Several months ago, Suzanne and I announced that we would be reading The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill in preparation for an upcoming mini book club. That mini book club finally happened last week when Suzanne was in Utah for a friend's wedding, and I was able to steal her away for an hour so we could discuss the book in person.

There was so much to talk about with this story, and we could have gone on for much longer if we'd had the time (and if we'd thought anyone would actually want to watch a three-hour long episode). In fact, after we wrapped up our conversation and stopped recording, we remembered other things we had wanted to talk about. (And at that time, Suzanne also diagnosed why I loved this book even though it's fantasy. Apparently it's because it's more theme driven instead of plot driven. Who knew?!) Anyway, we hope some of you accepted the invitation to read this book with us and will share your thoughts, questions, or opinions in the comments. Enjoy!

1:23 - There will be spoilers in this episode!
2:00 - Plot summary of The Girl Who Drank the Moon
5:40 - Introduction of characters
8:58 - Sorrow versus hope
14:00 - "A story can tell the truth, but a story can also lie."
17:15 - The power of love

• 19:35 - The relationship between love and magic
• 21:15: "There is no limit to what the heart can carry." 

23:40 - Humanizing the villain leads to complex emotions
27:00 - Did this book deserve the Newbery?

• 28:25 - Amy's thoughts
• 29:50 - Suzanne's thoughts
• 32:20 - Would a child like this book?

34:40 - Two other Newbery recommendations

• 35:00 - Suzanne's recommendation 
• 36:20 - Amy's recommendation

37:50 - Conclusion

Books talked about during the show:

The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill
A House in the Sky by Amanda Lindhout and Sara Corbett
The Giver by Lois Lowry
When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead

The Book Blab Episode 11: Love and Marriage in Books Plus Two of Our Favorite Reads from 2016

Were you wondering if Suzanne and I had abandoned The Book Blab in favor of other pursuits? Well, I guess we did, but only temporarily. Suzanne had her baby girl at the end of December and took a little maternity leave from her blog. But she's back, which means we're back with another episode of The Book Blab! This time, we discussed our favorite literary romances, shared a couple of favorite recommendations from 2016, and announced the book we'll be reading for our upcoming mini-book club. Enjoy, and please let us know your favorite romances in the comments!

0:35 - Suzanne had her baby!
1:42 - Today's topic: Romance novels . . . the tame variety.
3:15 - Regency/Classic romances

• 3:55 - Favorite Jane Austen novels
• 7:15 - Defining the actual regency period
• 9:45 - Contemporary regency romances
• 12:21 - Other favorite classics with love stories

15:47 - Contemporary romances
21:23 - Fantasy/Fairy Tale romances
23:35 - Young Adult romances
26:14 - Love and marriage in nonfiction
29:33 - Two favorite reads from 2016

• 30:10 - Suzanne's recommendation
• 31:00 - Amy's recommendation 

32:55 - Upcoming mini-book club: The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill
35:17 - Conclusion

Books mentioned during the show:

Persuasion by Jane Austen
Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen (Amy's review)
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte (Amy's review // Suzanne's review)
Edenbrooke by Julianne Donaldson (Amy's review // Suzanne's review)
The Grand Sophy by Georgette Heyer (Amy's review // Suzanne's review)
Gone With the Wind by  Margaret Mitchell (Amy's review)
Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier (Amy's review)
North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell (Suzanne's review)
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens (Amy's review)
Dombey and Son by Charles Dickens
David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
Middlemarch by George Eliot (Amy's review)
Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner (Amy's review // Suzanne's review)
What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty (Amy's review)
A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman (Amy and Suzanne's combined review in Episode 6)
Dancing on Broken Glass by Ka Hancock (Amy's review)
Me Before You by Jojo Moyes (Amy's review // Suzanne's review)
The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman (Amy's review // Suzanne's review)
Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine
The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer (Amy's review // Suzanne's review)
Betsy-Tacy series by Maud Hart Lovelace (Betsy in Spite of Herself is #6 in the series)
Anne of Green Gables series by L.M. Montgomery (Suzanne's review)
Emily of New Moon trilogy by L.M. Montgomery (Amy's review)
Happier at Home by Gretchen Rubin (Amy's review)
When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalinithi (Amy's review // Suzanne's review)
The Seven Principles For Making Marriage Work by John M. Gottman (Suzanne's review)
The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman and D. Ross Campbell (Suzanne's review)
A Severe Mercy by Sheldon Vanaukin (Suzanne's review)
A Time to Dance by Padma Venkatramen (Amy's review)

The Book Blab Episode 6: A Man Called Ove Book Discussion, Plus Two Readalikes (with show notes)

Ever since Suzanne and I started The Book Blab, I've been worried about the possibility of technological difficulties. Technology has never been my thing, but at least with a blog, if I have issues, I can get them all sorted out without anyone knowing there even were issues. But the blab is live and we have a set time to go on air, so we can't afford to have problems. But on Thursday, we had problems. I guess I should be grateful that it's taken until episode 6 before we ran into any major difficulties, but it was still really frustrating.

For some reason, my mic wasn't connecting to my computer, so Suzanne couldn't hear me. My technical skills are limited to "find headphones jack; plug in headphones; talk." So when I wasn't being heard, I didn't know what to do. I tried a different set of headphones without success. Finally I switched to our older laptop and got things working, but I had to open a new blab, which was such a bummer because it meant that anyone who wanted to watch the live show and participate didn't get the chance, and I'm so sorry about that!!! I wish I could say it will never happen again, but I don't have that much confidence in myself, especially since I still don't really know what the issue was.

Anyway, even though we can no longer get your real-time responses to the questions, we would still love for you to participate in the comments. Please share your reaction to the story, opinions about the characters, how many times you laughed or cried, etc. Let's keep this discussion going!

0:50 - Suzanne finished her master's degree!
1:54 - This month's topic: A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
3:25 - Spoiler-free plot summary
5:54 - What is your favorite funny moment?

• 6:28 - Saab references
• 8:36 - Ipad scene

10:40 - How did you feel about the structure of the novel? How did it influence the way you thought about Ove?

• 12:00 - Brilliant emotional manipulation
• 13:05 - True to real life

13:45 -  Does Ove's personality change during the course of the story? Is it influenced by Sonja or, later, Parveneh?

• 14:43 - Ove's personality doesn't change, but our perspective of him does.
• 16:08 - His friends learn how to interact with him.

17:45 - There are several interesting marriages in this book. What makes them work?

• 17:55 - Ove and Sonja
• 20:00 - Parveneh and Patrick

22:27 - How did you feel about Parveneh's character? Was she rude and invasive? Or should more people be like her?

• 23:28 - Is their friendship realistic?
• 25:40 - Introverts and extroverts

26:58 - What was your takeaway from the book?

• 27:30 - "We can busy ourselves with living or dying."
• 28:45 - You can't judge people when you don't know the backstory.

30:20 - Two similar recommendations to A Man Called Ove

• 30:46 - Suzanne's recommendation
• 33:00 - Amy's recommendation

36:05 - Conclusion

Links from the show:

Suzanne's review of A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
Suzanne's review of The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce
Amy's review of The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin

Thanks for watching! And again, we'd love for you to chime in with your questions, thoughts, and opinions in the comments! We'll be back in about a month with another fun discussion about books!