YC Reading

 

The Yeovil College Book Club now features on The Reading Agency website under 'Reading Groups' check it out at http://readingagency.org.uk  

I have just started reading 'What Dreams May Come' by Richard Matheson, our current book club read and it immediately reminded me of a book which is quite possibly my favourite read, 'For One More Day' by Mitch Albom: I found this beautiful book captivating and devoured it in two sittings.   “And one day spent with someone you love can. . .”   'For One More Day' is about a broken man, Charley, who tries hard to take his life one day. However, the result is one more day with his dead mother. He gets to spend one more day with a mother who to a degree, he thought he had recklessly lost forever. It is based around the concept of spending one more day with that person, you can't. So simple and yet so clever. We can all relate to this book as we all have at least one person who we'd like to spend that extra day or chance with. For Charley, this is possible –as Albom suggests that the dead may be carried in our hearts and when we think of th...

Book Club member Sam went along to see Rachel Joyce at the Yeovil Literary Festival held at the Octagon Theatre. A future book club read will be 'The Unlikely Pilgramage of Harold Fry' so it was fantastic that Joyce was at the festival and members could pop along to hear her thoughts:   I have yet to meet anybody who has read 'The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry' who was disappointed. I've already read this future book club read and loved it. This book could quite possibly fall in my top ten or so reads ever. In my journal, I summed it up as a lovely, beautiful read that makes you think, laugh and cry. That's all I'll give you now, I'll save my actual review for Jan/Feb of next year but obviously when I heard the author, Rachel Joyce, was participating in Yeovil Literacy Festival, I was there!!     Joyce was here promoting the companion novel to Harold Fry, ‘ The Love Song of Queenie Hennessy ’, a book I'm now desperate to read! ...

There are novels where you quite happily fall in love with the characters, and then there are ones where if you met them you would ask them what on earth were they thinking, and shake your head and sigh. And that would be a polite response. There were many times when reading “The Paying Guests”, the latest novel by bestselling author, Sarah Waters, when I felt thoroughly aggravated by its reluctant heroine. Set in the aftermath of the First World War, a shabbily genteel widow and her daughter Frances are in reduced circumstances and are forced to rent out rooms to a young, ambitious working class couple, Lilian and Leonard – the “paying guests” whose presence is necessary but undesired. Frances, who has previously sacrificed her independence and her lover out of duty to her family, finds herself irresistibly drawn to Lilian, and their tentative friendship soon becomes a passionate love affair with unforeseen – and catastrophic – consequences. Frances herself is a difficult cha...

I have always loved Donna Tartt’s debut novel, “The Secret History”, with its bleakly nostalgic and dark tale of a group of college students who, mesmerised with the ancient world and their own golden youth and privilege, commit murder. I loved how, reading it as a student, it spoke of both the allure of the clique and its suffocating, corrupting grasp. It was pure tragedy – unrequited love, fatal flaws, a plot hinged on coincidence and fate and human error. So I approached “The Goldfinch”, Tartt’s award winning third novel, with high expectations. The novel begins with its young teenage protagonist, Theo, who is caught up in a terrorist bombing at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. This catastrophic event, vividly rendered, drastically alters the entire course of Theo’s life – and thus sets in motion the key themes and plots of the novel. His mother is tragically killed, which precipitates Theo into a troubled, rootless existence, exploring how fractured and difficult ...

There has been a slight change to the running order of the books for the Book Club. Please find below the new and final list of dates and books attached. All meetings will be held at Yeovil College in the Quiet Study Area (formerly the ARC).     Tuesday January 6 th 4pm: Discussing ‘What dreams May come’ and issuing ‘The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry’ Tuesday 10 th Feb 4pm: Discussing ‘The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry’ and issuing ‘A farewell to Arms’ Tuesday 7 th April 4pm: Discussing ‘A farewell to Arms’ and issuing ‘The Husbands secret’ Tuesday 2 nd June 4pm: Discussing ‘The Husbands secret’ and issuing ‘Will Grayson, Will Grayson’ Tuesday 4 th August : Last meet of the academic year- discussing ‘Will Grayson, Will Grayson’ My last date as the formal manager will be Tuesday 10 th February before I go on my Maternity leave-although I intend on being an active member throughout the rest of the year. Sharon Smith will ...

David: Although I haven’t yet finished ‘The Goldfinch’ I am enjoying   the story and the way it is heading. However I am finding it a struggle to get through as it is so descriptive- almost journal like. I was disappointed when Theodore’s dad came onto the scene as I was hoping he would stay in NYC. I will keep an open mind and endeavour to finish- however long that may take! Ann: I downloaded this book onto my Kindle as the thought of reading and holding such a massive hard copy was too much! I have to say after finishing it, I was very disappointed. While I think the story is a great idea and beautifully written it is far too long and descriptive. Theodore’s lifestyle in parts just didn’t ring true- the drug use didn’t quite match his character. The ending I found was also flat- I had read over 800 pages and expected something fantastic! All this being said I would read Tartt’s other pieces- if they weren’t as long but I definitely wouldn’t recommend ‘The Goldfin...

In contrast to we were liars, I really liked the characters in the book and I guess, that is why it was such a heart-wrenching read. The prose moves between the presence where Mia has been in a car crash and lost those she dearly loves and her memories of the past, where we see exactly why she loved these people and others so much. She is trying to choose as to whether to still live a life she has loved but without so much dear to her or dying. Obviously this is a tearful read but being yet another teen title ( seems to be my new favourite genre), it is bearable and actually quite uplifting. A special mention has to go to the grandparents portrayed in this book, they're the embodiment of what grandparents should be and I'm proud to say reminded me very much of all my own.

The Yeovil College Book Club has the availability for all members and non-members to read any or all of the previous club’s reads- all we ask is that once you are finished reading to write a short (or long!) review for the blog. - A million Little Pieces- James Frey - The Goldfinch- Donna Tartt - And the Mountain Echoed- Khaled Hosseini - City of Bones- Cassandra Clare - One flew over the Cuckoo's nest- Ken Kesey - The Catcher in the Rye- J D Salinger - Norwegian Wood- Haruki Murakami- - The Cuckoo's Calling and The Silkworm- Robert Galbraith - Atonement- Ian McEwan - The fault in our stars- John Green   This option is perfect for those who cannot attend the termly meetings and like to take their time reading a book- you can borrow the book and read it at your leisure without any pressure to finish it on time for a meeting. If you are interested and would like more information please contact learning.cent...

We had fantastic success last night at the Reading Passport Tour. Adam Nevill and Gareth L Powell presented chapters from their books 'Ack Ack Macaque' and 'No one gets out alive' with great response from the audience.   The Yeovil College and Learning Resource Centre were privileged to host the event, we love to encourage and promote local author's successes and works, and leisurely reading within the community and the students.   Thank you Adam and Gareth!

Our next Book Club meeting is to be held on the following:   Tuesday 11th November 4pm Yeovil College, Quiet Study Area   We will be discussing 'The Goldfinch' by Donna Tartt and issuing 'What dreams May come' by Richard Matheson.   Looking forward to seeing you there!   - Carey