I now pronounce you ....

If you see a certain member of the book club around town beaming and smiling, congratulate him! Today at 3:00PM is a really big day for him.

No Meeting In December

Best Books of 2005

Mary Ann Gwinn, the Seattle Times book editor, has an interesting article with her list of the ten best books for 2005. Here are some of the titles:

The March by E.L. Doctorow (Random House)
Teacher Man by Frank McCourt (Scribner)
1776 by David McCullough (Simon & Schuster)
Shalimar the Clown by Salman Rushdie (Random House)

Two of the books on Gwinn's list are also on James McGowan's list:

The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion
On Beauty by Zadie Smith

James Mcgowan of the Ottawa Citizen made his recommendations in an article titled, Ten Books That Can't Miss , published December 4,2005. Also on Mc Gowan's list is The Tender Bar by J. R. Moehringer
READ MORE

Hmmm lots of books to read so little time to get to them.

Do you remember Slave by Mende Nazer?

In November 2004 we read a fascinating yet shocking book called, Slave by Mende Nazer and Damien Lewis. CLICK HERE for more information on what is happening in Darfur today. If you are moved to take action, here are somepractical things you can do.

Golfing with God by Roland Merullo

Suzanne Beecher has an email bookclub with over 30,000 members. Once you sign up, she sends out emails with 5 minute samples of a book. The idea is to get you hooked on the first two or three chapters so that you will go out and borrow the book from a library or purchase the book yourself.

Suzanne has some suggestions on her blog in case you want to give books for Christmas gifts. Golfing with God by Roland Merullo sounds like a very interesting title.

Thirteen Steps

We have never chosen a book by British murder mystery writer Ruth Rendell. She has a new book out titled, Thirteen Steps Down. Publisher's Weekly calls it the best novel she has written in years. I found an interesting article about the 75 year old Ruth Rendell. She says in the article that the traditional detective story is dying - killed off, in part, by DNA technology and CSI-style forensics.
FULL STORY

Stiff Dead

Roberta is recommending a book called Stiff:The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers. by Mary Roach. It is about cadaver research. I know, I know, it sounds morbid but it is supposed to be a really funny book. Roach is a journalist who writes a humor column regularly for Reader's Digest. She has also written for Outside, GQ, Vogue, and The New York Times Magazine. What compelled her to write this book?" READ ON.

Guess what her latest book title is? Spook:Science tackles the afterlife.

It's December 5 Y'all!

Remember today is the day to meet the writer,Claire Hamnet Matturo, at the public library at 6:00PM.

Take a look at the gorgeous Christmas trees on display in the public library. I am sure you will agree with me that the most creative one there is the Waycross College library's tree featuring the work of talented book club member, Charlotte. The trees will be donated to needy families just before Christmas.

I think next year Charlotte will have to conduct a class called, Creating Your Own Christmas Ornaments. I will be her financial manager.

Christian Allegory or Not?

Lewis always insisted that his seven Narnia books were not a point-by-point Christian allegory. Much of The Lion, the Witch owes more to English folktales or Norse and classical myth than to the New Testament. READ MORE by David Van Biema

Narnia News on ChristianityTodayMovies.com

Narnia Comes to Life
Douglas Gresham has dreamed of seeing Aslan on the big screen since he was a little boy. Now that his dream is about to become reality, C. S. Lewis's stepson talks about the new movie, and his role in it.
by Mark Moring | posted 11/01/05
READ MORE

The Man Behind the Wardrobe
C. S. Lewis, author of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe—a feature film coming to theaters soon—was "the best Christian I've ever known," says Douglas Gresham, stepson to the famous writer.
by Mark Moring | posted 10/31/05 READ MORE

Into the Wardrobe and Straight to Hollywood
Narnia makes a splash in Newsweek, while author C.S. Lewis is honored in Hollywood.
by Josh Hurst | posted 11/07/05READ MORE

The Book vs. The Movie Version

Which is better, the book (plus your imagination) or the hollywood version of the book? Hmmm. These writers in an article published in the Time online edition have come up with an answer. They discuss 6 books and the movies based on those books. Read the article to see what they think about the book and the movie version of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.