The January book selection is These Ghosts Are Family by Maisy Card.  

Stanford Solomon's shocking, thirty-year-old secret is about to change the lives of everyone around him.  Stanford has done something no one could ever imagine.  He is a man who faked his own death and stole the identity of his best friend.  Stanford Solomon is actually Abel Paisley.  And now, nearing the end of his life, Stanford is about to meet his firstborn daughter, Irene Paisley, a home health aide who has unwittingly shown up for her first day of work to tend to the father she thought was dead.  These Ghosts Are Family revolves around the consequences of Abel's decision and tells the story of the Paisley family from colonial Jamaica to present-day Harlem.

This “rich and layered story” (Kirkus Reviews) explores the ways each character wrestles with their ghosts and struggles to forge independent identities outside of the family and their trauma. The result is a “beguiling…vividly drawn, and compelling” (BookPage, starred review) portrait of a family and individuals caught in the sweep of history, slavery, migration, and the more personal dramas of infidelity, lost love, and regret.

 

Consider the title of the book.  Why do you think the author chose it?  Who--or what--do you think are the ghosts that the title refers to?

 

The book flips between life in Jamaica and New York, with a short stint in London.  How important is place and that place's history to the experiences of its characters?  Why do Irene and Victor move to New York?  Why does Debbie decide to visit Jamaica?  What binds these places together--the people currently living?  Or the painful history that connects the three places?

 

What do the Rastafarians represent in the context of the book?  

 

While Abel is the patriarch of the two modern families in the book, the early family history is traced through its mothers.  Discuss how this shaped the storytelling.  What does the book have to say about the role that women play in a family?  What brings women in these families together?  What drives them apart?

 

Louise grows up thinking that she's white, and is shocked when she learns that her mother, Florence, was a slave.  How does this knowledge change how she sees herself?  How does it change how others see her?

 

There's a dramatic scene in the middle of the book, where Debbie decides to destroy the journal of her ancestor, Harold Fowler, in order to drown out his voice in her head.  What did you make of Debbie's decision?

 

Why do you think the novel ends with the story of the three girls who were kidnapped at Vera's funeral?  What are these girls hungry for?  How does this fit into the other themes throughout the novel?

 

Let us know what you think of These Ghosts Are Family.

The Kilbourn Public Library Book Discussion Group is reading an assortment of Holiday Books for our December book discussion. We have a selection of Holiday Books available at the library or read one of your favorites! Let us know if you enjoyed the Holiday Book you read and why. Was this a book you had read before or did you read it for the first time? What did you like about the book? Were there things that you did not like? Did the book end the way you wanted it to? Why or why not? Would you recommend this book to others? Happy Holidays!

The book selection for November for the Kilbourn Public Library Book Discussion Group is Queen Bee by Dorothea Benton Frank.

Beekeeper Holly McNee Jensen quietly lives in a world of her own on Sullivan's Island, tending her hives and working at the local island library.  Holly calls her mother The Queen Bee because she's a demanding hulk of a woman.  Her mother, a devoted hypochondriac, might be unaware that she's quite ill but that doesn't stop her from tormenting Holly.  Holly's escape is to submerge herself in the lives of the two young boys next door and their widowed father, Archie.

Queen Bee is a classic Lowcountry Tale--warm, wise and hilarious, it roars with humanity and a dropperful of whodunit added for good measure by an unseen hand.  In her twentieth novel, Dorothea Benton Frank brings us back to her beloved island with an unforgettable story where the Lowcountry magic of the natural world collides with the beat of the human heart.

What is it about bees and their ways that is so appealing to Holly?

To what (or whom) does the title refer?  Who is the "Queen Bee" in your life?

What is at the heart of Charlie and Leslie's marital strife?  Do they both try their best to make it work?

Is Archie a good father?  Why does Holly have such a natural maternal way with Tyler and Hunter?

In your opinion, did Archie really love Sharon, or was he just lonely and needed a wife?  Did he have genuine feelings for Holly?

Were you surprised that Suzanne (aka Buster) and Momma got together?  Which character in Queen Bee do you think changed the most?

Have you ever been to the Lowcountry in South Carolina?  If not, has reading Queen Bee made you curious about this beautiful part of the country?

Let us know what you thought of Queen Bee!

 

 

The October book selection for the Kilbourn Public Library Book Discussion Group is Parkland by Dave Cullen.  Parkland is this year's Go Big Read book selection. Go Big Read started 11 years ago and has grown to be one of the largest college common reading programs.  It has united UW-Madison and local communities in reading and discussing timely topics, all with a goal of gaining a better understanding of each other and the issues.  Taking on the different voices and perspectives of the March for Our Lives Movement's key participants, Parkland is an in-depth examination of a pivotal moment in American culture.  Cullen guides us into the hearts of the Douglas students as they cope with the common concerns of students everywhere.  As a celebration of the passion exhibited by these astonishing students, who channeled their anger into a movement, this book explores hope after tragedy and is an inspiring call to action.

The Kilbourn Public Library is partnering with UW-Madison and the Madison Public Library to bring you online book discussions about this year's Go Big Read book, Parkland, by Dave Cullen.  These discussions will be happening on Wednesday, October 21 at 7 pm, Thursday, October 29 at 1 pm,  Tuesday, November 10 at 7 pm, and Wednesday, November 18 at 1 pm.  We will have the link to sign up for book discussions available on the Kilbourn Public Library website.

 

Who do you think is the intended audience of Parkland, and why? 

How do you think the book would be different if it had been written by the students themselves, rather than a third party?

Throughout the book, Cullen explores the different ways that Parkland students responded to the trauma they experienced.  How did their responses vary?  

Cullen also discusses the "weird hierarchy of victimhood " (92) among both students and parents.  Why do you think this happens?

Though Parkland focuses primarily on the activism of students, Cullen also draws attention to adult activism targeted towards gun safety.  How do the adult approaches to activism in the book differ from the way that the Parkland students approach activism?  How did the parents support their children's activism? 

The students of Parkland used social media extensively to spread their message, from the first time Cameron used #neveragain (42) through regularly posting tweets that drew millions of impressions(176).  What made their use of social media so successful, and what were the drawbacks?

Let us know what you think of Parkland by David Cullen.

 

 

The September book selection for the Kilbourn Public Library Book Discussion Group is The Dinner List by Rebecca Serle. At one point or another, we've all been asked to name five people, living or dead, with whom we'd like to have dinner. How do we choose the people we do? And what if that dinner was to actually happen? These are questions Rebecca Serle contends with in her utterly captivating novel.


When Sabrina arrives at her 30th birthday dinner she finds at the table not just her best friend, but also three significant people from her past, and well, Audrey Hepburn. As the appetizers are served, wine poured, and dinner table conversation begins, it becomes clear that there's a reason these six people have been gathered together. Delicious but never indulgent, sweet with just the right amount of bitter, The Dinner List is a romance for our times. Bon Appetit. (From the publisher.)


Who is on your own dinner list? And why?

What do you make of Sabrina and Tobias's relationship, or attempt at one? Why can't they seem to make each other happy?

What do we learn of Sabrina's difficult connection with her father?

What does Professor Conrad add to the party?

Same for Audrey Hepburn? What role does she play? How does she connect the different chapters in Sabrina's life?

One of the themes of The Dinner List is the way in which a tiny incident, one particular decision, which at first seems incidental, can end up having a large impact on our lives. How do you see this play out in The Dinner List--especially in Sabrina's life?

In what ways does the dinner party end up changing Sabrina, her perspective and her relationships, especially with Tobias and her father?

(Questions by LitLovers.)

Let us know what you think of The Dinner List!

    The Kilbourn Public Library Book Discussion Group book selection for August is All We Ever Wanted  by Emily Giffin.  In this thought-provoking novel a woman is forced to choose between her family and her most deeply held values.

Nina Browning is living the good life after marrying into Nashville's elite.  Her husband's tech business is booming, and her adored son, Finch, is bound for Princeton. 

Tom Volpe is a single dad working multiple jobs.  His adored daughter, Lyla, attends Nashville's most prestigious private high school on a scholarship.  But amid the wealth and privilege, Lyla doesn't always fit in.

Then one devastating photo changes everything.

Finch snaps a picture of Lyla passed out at a party, adds a provocative caption, and sends it to a few friends.  The photo spreads like wildfire, and before long an already divided community is buzzing with scandal and assigning blame. 

In the middle of it all, Nina finds herself relating more to Tom's reaction than to her own husband's--and facing an impossible choice.  (From the publisher.)

Think about the title, All We Ever Wanted.  How do you think it relates to the overall story?  How does it apply to each of the characters in the book?

Both Nina and Kirk have different ideas about what the "right path" is for Finch.  How do you think each parent justifies their actions?

Tom is furious about the transgression against his daughter, and believes she deserves justice.  How do Tom's responsibilities as a parent come into conflict with the ethics of respecting Lyla's wishes?

As the book progresses, Nina finds herself siding with Tom's values rather than her husband's.  Do you feel that Nina is betraying her family by aligning with Tom?  Is she betraying herself if she does not stick to her beliefs?  Whom does she owe her loyalty to more?

In chapter eleven, Melanie tells Nina that it's a mother's responsibility to stand by her child "no matter what."  Do you agree with this assertion?

Why do you think Lyla is so willing to trust and even begin dating Finch?  As you were reading, did you believe Finch's claim that Polly stole his phone and took the picture of Lyla?  If so, was there a point at which you began to doubt Finch?

This book poses the question of what lengths one should go to in order to protect one's family versus preserve one's values.  What would you have done in Nina's position?  In Tom's?

In the epilogue, Lyla tells Finch that Nina "saved" them both.  What do you think she means?  Do you think this is an accurate statement?
(Questions issued by the publishers.)

Let us know what you think of All We Ever Wanted.

The Kilbourn Public Library Book Discussion Group is reading Pay It Forward by Catherine Ryan Hyde for the July selection.  Pay It Forward is a wondrous and moving story about Trevor McKinney, a twelve-year-old boy in a small California town who accepts the challenge that his teacher gives his class, a chance to earn extra credit by coming up with a plan to change the world for the better--and to put that plan into action. 

The plan that Trevor comes up with is so simple--and so naive--that when others learn of it they are dismissive.  What is his idea? Trevor chooses three people for whom he will do a favor, and then when those people thank him and ask how they might pay him back, he will tell them that instead of paying him back they should each pay it forward by choosing three people for whom they can do favors, and in turn telling those people to pay it forward.  It's nothing less than a human chain letter of kindness and good will.  But will it work?

In the end, Pay It Forward is the story of seemingly ordinary people made extraordinary by the simple faith of a child. (From the publisher.)

When Trevor first presents his Pay-It-Forward plan many dismiss it.  Why?  Would you have dismissed Pay-It-Forward?

Eventually, Pay-It-Forward begins to work, creating a chain reaction and becoming a Movement.  Why does the concept take hold?  What is it about the plan that inspires people?

The story is told through various point-of-view devices:  first-and third-person narrators, book excerpts, interview transcripts, journal entries, and central character shifts.  Do Hyde's narrative techniques work?  Do they enhance the story or make it confusing?  Why might she have chosen to structure the novel in the way she did?

What about the book's ending?  Sad, yes, but satisfying?  Does Trevor become a martyr?  Would you have preferred a different ending?

Do you personally follow the Pay-It-Forward philosophy?  Does this book inspire you--make you more aware of what you, individually, or all of us, collectively, could do --to improve the world?

Is this a religious book?

Let us know what you think of Pay It Forward.

Our June book selection for the Kilbourn Public Library Book Discussion Group is The Nest by Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney.  The Nest is a warm, funny and acutely perceptive debut novel abour four adult siblings and the fate of the shared inheritance that has shaped their choices and their lives.

Every family has its problems.  But even among the most troubled, the Plumb family stands out as spectacularly dysfunctional.  Years of simmering tensions finally reach a breaking point on an unseasonably cold afternoon in New York City as Melody, Beatrice, and Jack Plumb gather to confront their charismatic and reckless older brother, Leo, freshly released from rehab. 

Brought together as never before, Leo, Melody, Jack, and Beatrice must grapple with old resentments, present-day truths, and the significant emotional and financial toll of Leo's accident, as well as finally acknowledge the choices they have made in their own lives.

This is a story about the power of family, the possibilities of friendship, the ways we depend upon one another and the ways we let one another down.  In this tender, entertaining, and deftly written debut, Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney brings a remarkable cast of characters to life to illuminate what money does to relationships, what happens to our ambitions over the course of time, and the fraught yet unbreakable ties we share with those we love.  (From the publisher.)

Just how dysfunctional is the Plumb family...and why?  Why do the siblings allow Leo to have such power over them? 

Melody, Beatrice, Jack and Leo all have behaved somewhat (or very) irresponsibly.  Is there one of them with whom you sympathize more than the others?  Or are they all caught up in a sense of their own entitlement?

How would you live your life if you knew you were to receive a fair amount of money down the line?

How did you feel about the novel's end, regarding Leo's fate?  Did the epilogue satisfy enough of your desire for a "happy ending," or was it more melancholy than expected?

Do you feel that the bond of family trumps all including behavior?  Do you think it's possible to rebuild trust once it has been broken?  Why or why not?  And are there some bonds that can become stronger than those of family?

Let us know what you think of The Nest!

The March book selection for the Kilbourn Public Library Book Discussion Group is Furious Hours:  Murder, Fraud, and the Last Trial of Harper Lee by Casey Cep.  A true-crime book that delves into a dramatic murder trial in 1970s  Alabama, Furious Hours goes in depth into the trial, the key participants, and Harper Lee, the writer who spent years of her life after her success with To Kill a Mockingbird attempting to write her own true-crime book about the sensational trial. 

Casey Cep brings this story to life, from the shocking murders to the courtroom drama to the racial politics of the Deep South. At the same time, she offers a deeply moving portrait of one of the country’s most beloved writers and her struggle with fame, success, and the mystery of artistic creativity.

How did you experience the book? Were you engaged immediately, or did it take you a while to
"get into it"?

How did you like the writing style of the author?

Did you like the way the book was structured?  Why or why not?

What specific passages or sections of the book were most memorable for you?

Let us know how you liked Furious Hours: Murder, Fraud, and the Last Trial of Harper Lee.

The Kilbourn Public Library Book Discussion Group read The Gown:  A Novel of the Royal Wedding by Jennifer Robson for the February book selection.  This book is an enthralling historical novel about one of the most famous wedding dresses of the twentieth century--Queen Elizabeth's wedding gown--and the fascinating women who made it.

With The Gown, Jennifer Robson takes us inside the workrooms where one of the most famous wedding gowns in history was created.   Alternating time lines between 1947 Britain and 2016 Canada, Robson vividly brings to life three women's struggles.

Were you surprised by the frenzy surrounding the secrecy of the gown? Does it remind you of today's obsessive celebrity watching? Why was absolute secrecy important? Would you have been able to withstand the pressures of maintaining silence?

Ann and Miriam Dassin become friends as the two work on the gown together. What do the women have in common, and in what ways are they different from one another? What forms the basis of their friendship—why are they drawn to one another?

 Was Ann right never to have revealed her past over the decades to her family? Would you have done likewise?

Do you find Heather Mackenzie's 2016 storyline as engaging as the historical part of the novel? Why or why not?

Let us know what you think of The Gown.

The Kilbourn Public Library Book Discussion Group will be reading books by New York Times and USA Today bestselling novelist Joshilyn Jackson for the January book discussion.  Jackson writes page-turners that revolve around women's issues, faith and justice issues.  Jackson serves on the board of Reforming Arts, a nonprofit that runs education-in-prison and reentry programs.  Through this organization, Joshilyn has taught creative writing, composition, and literature inside Georgia's maximum security facility for women. 

Joshilyn is well known for writing fiction, contemporary, chick lit, romance, women’s fiction, mystery, Southern, suspense, psychological thriller, and adult fiction novels. All her books are standalone novels and have done very well throughout the United States and overseas. So far, Joshilyn has penned ten novels and all of them have been translated into over a dozen foreign languages. Joshilyn’s books have won many prestigious literary awards & prizes and have received nominations for numerous others.

We have copies of Joshilyn Jackson's books available at the library.  Pick up a copy and let us know which book you read and what you thought about it!

The book selection for November for the Kilbourn Public Library Book Discussion Group is The Poison Squad by Deborah Blum. The Poison Squad is the 2019-2020 UW-Madison Go Big Read selection.

By the end of the nineteenth century, food was dangerous.  Lethal, even.  "Milk" might contain formaldehyde, most often used to embalm corpses.  Decaying meat was preserved with both salicylic acid, a pharmaceutical chemical, and borax, a compound first identified as a cleaning product.  This was not by accident:  food manufacturers had rushed to embrace the rise of industrial chemistry, and were knowingly selling harmful products.  Unchecked by government regulation, basic safey, or even labeling requirements, they put profit before the health of their customers. 

Over the next thirty years, a titanic struggle took place, with the courageous and fascinating Dr. Wiley campaigning indefatigably for food safety and consumer protection.  When the landmark 1906 Food and Drug Act was finally passed, it was known across the land, as "Dr. Wiley's Law."

Deborah Blum brings to life this timeless and hugely satisfying "David and Goliath" tale with righteous verve and style.

While the experiments on the Poison Squad were groundbreaking, they would likely not be possible today due to the risks posed to the human subjects.  Wiley also did not follow best practices such as maintaining a control group.  How could the Poison Squad experiments be improved scientifically and ethically?

Even with scientific evidence of the dangers of ingesting certain chemical additives, the fight to institute government oversight was an uphill battle.  Aside from business concerns, what other factors come into play when making regulations in the food industry?  Are there examples of this struggle in recent food legislation?

Wiley predicted the negative health effects of certain chemical preservatives, dyes, and even tobacco, but those in industry attempted to discredit his concerns, labeling them as mistrust and fear of the future of food in the modern age.  Today, chemophobia has led to negative consumer impacts, such as vaccine avoidance.  Can you think of other examples where the mistrust of chemicals by the public has led to controversy?

Let us know what you think of The Poison Squad, the dramatic true story of how food was made safe in the United State and the heroes, led by Dr. Harvey Washington Wiley, who fought for change.

For October the Kilbourn Public Library Book Discussion Group read An American Marriage by Tayari Jones.  Newlyweds Celestial and Roy are the embodiment of both the American Dream and the New South.  He is a young executive, and she is an artist on the brink of an exciting career.  But as they settle into the routine of their life together, they are ripped apart by circumstances neither could have imagined. 

This stirring love story is a profoundly insightful look into the hearts and minds of three people who are at once bound and separated by forces beyond their control.  An American Marriage is a masterpiece of storytelling, an intimate look deep into the souls of people who must reckon with the past while moving forward--with hope and pain--into the future. (From the publisher.)

Let us know what you thought of An American Marriage.

For September the Kilbourn Public Library Book Discussion Group is reading A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole. 

Ignatius J. Reilly is a flatulent frustrated scholar deeply learned in Medieval philosophy and American junk food, a brainy mammoth misfit imprisoned in a trashy world of Greyhound Buses and Doris Day movies. Set in New Orleans, the novel bursts into life on Canal Street under the clock at D. H. Holmes department store.

A Confederacy of Dunces is an American comic masterpiece.  Toole's comic classic is filled with unforgettable characters and unbelievable plot twists, shimmering with intelligence, and dazzling in its originality. 

The first chapter of A Confederacy of Dunces  is generally thought to be among the funniest in American literature.  Do you agree?  What other comic novels remind you of A Confederacy of Dunces and why?

The city of New Orleans plays a central role in the novel, seeming to be a character in and of itself.  Could this novel have been set in another American city?

Project Ignatius and Myrna into the future.  They are supposed to be in love, but find themselves fighting before ever leaving the city.  Will they make it to New York?  Can New York survive Ignatius?  What possibilities do you see for them?

Is Ignatius purely lazy or does his attitude toward work reflect his disdain for the modern world of commerce? 

The book is elaborately plotted, but does it work?  What do you find unbelievable or improbable?

In the twenty-plus years since its publication A Confederacy of Dunces has become a cult novel.  What does that mean to you? 

Let us know what you think of A Confederacy of Dunces!

Our book selection for August is The Library Book by Susan Orlean. 

On the morning of April 28, 1986, a fire alarm sounded in the Los Angeles Public Library.  The fire was disastrous:  it reached 2000 degrees and burned for more than seven hours.  By the time it was extinguished, it had consumed four hundred thousand books and damaged seven hundred thousand more. 

Weaving her lifelong love of books and reading into an investigation of the fire, award-winning author Susan Orlean delivers a mesmerizing and uniquely compelling book that manages to tell the broader story of libraries and librarians in a way that has never been done before.

What has your relationship with libraries been throughout your life?

Were you at all familiar with the Los Angeles library fire?

How would you describe the fire's impact on the community?

Libraries today are more than just a building filled with books.  How has your local library evolved?

The Library Book confronts the issue of street people patronizing the library.  Is this an issue in your hometown?  How do you feel about the L.A. library's involvement, handling of the issue and the notion of inclusion?

What was you initial impression of Harry Peak?  Did it change throughout the investigation?

The Library Book chronicles the history of the Los Angeles Public Library from its origins to the present day. How were the library's ups and downs reflective of the city's ups and downs?  Are libraries a fair barometer to judge the mood of a city or a town?

Let us know what you think of The Library Book!

The Kilbourn Public Library Book Discussion Group is reading Circe by Madeline Miller for the July book selection.

In the house of Helios, god of the sun and mightiest of the Titans, a daughter is born. But Circe is a strange child--not powerful, like her father, nor viciously alluring like her mother. Turning to the world of mortals for companionship, she discovers that she does possess power--the power of witchcraft, which can transform rivals into monsters and menace the gods themselves.

Threatened, Zeus banishes her to a deserted island, where she hones her occult craft, tames wild beasts and crosses paths with many of the most famous figures in all of mythology, including the Minotaur, Daedalus and his doomed son Icarus, the murderous Medea, and, of course, wily Odysseus.

But there is danger, too, for a woman who stands alone, and Circe unwittingly draws the wrath of both men and gods, ultimately finding herself pitted against one of the most terrifying and vengeful of the Olympians. To protect what she loves most, Circe must summon all her strength and choose, once and for all, whether she belongs with the gods she is born from, or the mortals she has come to love.

With unforgettably vivid characters, mesmerizing language and page-turning suspense, Circe is a triumph of storytelling, an intoxicating epic of family rivalry, palace intrigue, love and loss, as well as a celebration of indomitable female strength in a man's world.

Circe struggles to find a place for herself as a woman in a man's world.  What parts of her experience resonate with modern day challenges that women face?

Throughout the novel Circe draws distinctions between gods and mortals.  How does Glaucus change when he becomes a god?

How does her time with Daedalus affect Circe?

What is the significance of Circe's meeting with Trygon?  How does it impact her emotional journey?

Were you surprised when Telemachus refused Athena?  Why or why not?

Circe encounters several famous figures from Greek myth.  Were any of their portrayals surprising?

Circe's gift is transformation.  How does she transform from the beginning of the novel to the end?  Why does she ultimately choose the path she does?

Let us know how you liked Circe by Madeline Miller.

The book selection for June for the Kilbourn Public Library Book Discussion Group is The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai.  The Great Believers is a novel of friendship and redemption in the face of tragedy and loss set in 1980s Chicago and contemporary Paris.  The story follows art director, Yale Tishman's career as it flourishes while around him the AIDS epidemic grows.

Yale's group of friends is very close.  In a sense, they are his "chosen family."  How is this explored in the book?  How does each character relate to their family, biological and chosen?  Do you have a "chosen family," and if so, what brings you all together?

Chicago is such a powerful presence in this novel that it is almost a character in itself.  Have you ever been to or lived in a place that exerted a strong influence on you?

How has the culture changed regarding LGBTQ voices and stories since the 1980s?

Fiona has suffered many losses in her life.  How do you think that affected her as a mother?  What are the ways in which trauma and loss are passed down through generations?

Do you empathize more with Fiona or Claire?

Do you see any parallels between the state of healthcare during the 1980s and now?

Is the creation of artwork always a collaborative effort?  How do you feel about the relationship between artist and muse?

What has been you knowledge of--or experience with, if any--AIDS or those affected by the disease?  Has reading this novel changed any ideas you have previously had about the subject?

Let us know what you think of The Great Believers!

The May book selection for the Kilbourn Public Library Book Discussion Group is The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah. 

Ernt Allbright, a former POW, comes home from the Vietnam war a changed and volatile man. When he loses yet another job, he makes an impulsive decision:  he will  move his family north, to Alaska, where they will live off the grid in America's last true frontier.

In this unforgettable portrait of human frailty and resilience, Kristin Hannah reveals the indomitable character of the modern American pioneer and the spirit of a vanishing Alaska--a place of incomparable beauty and danger.  The Great Alone is a daring, beautiful, stay-up-all-night story about love and loss, the fight for survival, and the wildness that lives in both man and nature. 

Alaska is definitely a character in this novel.  The author clearly wants you to understand both the grandeur and the danger that are present every day in the Last Frontier.  How did the landscape create and shape this story?  Is this a story that could have taken place anywhere?  Or was the solitude of Alaska part of the fabric of the novel?

What aspects of the Alaska/homesteader lifestyle would you find the most challenging in the wild?  How would you handle the isolation, the interdependence among neighbors, the climate?  Would you have what it takes to survive?

The Great Alone is set in the turbulent world of America in the 1970's.  Why do you think the author chose this time period?  How did the world at that time, with the political unrest and kidnappings and plane hijackings, factor into the plot? 

Ernt was a POW for several years.  Do you believe, as Cora tells Leni, that he was "changed" when he came home?  Did the war and PTSD "make" Ernt violent, or do you believe he was violent before?

Why do you think Cora stayed with Ernt all those years?  Was it love?  Fear?  In general, why do you think women stay with abusive men?

Would you say Leni is a survivor?  Is Cora?

In many ways, The Great Alone, is a mother-daughter love story, but one with a broken spine.  How did Cora let Leni down in life?  How did she save her?  Do you think Cora was a good mother?

How did the building of Ernt's wall affect you as a reader?  As he was building it, what did you think was going to happen?

At the end of the story, Leni ends up back in Alaska--do you think there's an ultimate place where people belong?  How would you know if you got there?

Let us know what you think of The Great Alone!

The April book selection for the Kilbourn Public Library Book Discussion Group is The Sun Does Shine:  How I Found Life and Freedom on Death Row by Anthony Ray Hinton. 

Anthony Ray Hinton was poor and black when he was convicted of two murders he hadn't committed.  For the next three decades he was trapped in solitary confinement in a tiny cell on death row, having to watch as--one by one--his fellow prisoners were taken past him to the execution room.  Eventually his case was taken up by the award-winning lawyer, Bryan Stevenson, who managed to have him exonerated, though it took 15 years for this to happen. 

How did Hinton cope with the mental and emotional torture of his situation, and emerge full of compassion and forgiveness?  The Sun Does Shine throws light not only on his remarkable personality but also on social deprivation and miscarriages of justice.  Ultimately, though, it's a triumphant story of the resilience of the human spirit.

Before being wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death, Anthony Ray Hinton was in trouble with the law for stealing a car.  Does this in any way make you less sympathetic to his plight?

Think about the friendship of Ray and Lester.  Can you imagine a friend who would visit you every visiting day for 30 years?  What does their relationship teach us about friendship?

Do you think the death penalty system is broken?  How would you like to see it changed?

The State of Alabama has not apologized or compensated Ray Hinton for his wrongful imprisonment.  Do you think he should be paid?  Some say he shouldn't be paid because he was never proven innocent.  What do you say to this argument?

Ray and Bryan Stevenson, his lawyer, both say that nobody is defined by the worst thing they have ever done.  Do you agree?  Does this help you have more compassion for those incarcerated or on death row?

What was the turning point for Ray in how he would survive in prison?  What does this teach you?

Does The Sun Does Shine make you feel angry or hopeful?

Let us know what you think!

The Kilbourn Public Library Book Discussion Group read Boar Island by Nevada Barr for the March book selection.  In Boar Island Nevada Barr brings National Park Ranger Anna Pigeon to the wild beauty of Acadia National Park. 

Anna Pigeon has had to deal with all manner of crimes and misdemeanors, but cyber-bullying and stalking is a new one.  The target is Elizabeth, the adopted teenage daughter of her friend Heath Jarrod.  Elizabeth is driven to despair by the disgusting rumors spreading online and bullying texts.  Until, one day, Heath finds her daughter Elizabeth in the midst of an unsuccessful suicide attempt.  And then she calls in the cavalry--her aunt Gwen and her friend Anna Pigeon.

While they try to deal with the fragile state of affairs--and find the person behind the harassment--the three adults decide the best thing to do is to remove Elizabeth from the situation.  Since Anna is about to start her new post as Acting Chief Ranger at Acadia National Park in Maine, the three will join her and stay at a house on the cliff of a small island near the park, Boar Island.

Let us know what you think of Boar Island.