Next Book Club Meeting

The next meeting will be held on February 10th at 6pm at Bob's house. The book is "The Kindness of Color" by Janice Munemitsu.

The rotation is Bill, Bob, John S, Dave M, David J, Stanley, and John H.

Book Ratings - 300 and counting

The following is the link to the complete list for your entry: Compete book list. Please click on the link and input your ratings on a scale of 1-5.

We are in our 26th year and have read over 300 books. We have read a lot of very good books with an average rating of 3.64 on a scale of 1-5. 90% of our books received a rating of 3.0 or greater with the top 10 4.5 or more. Stanley and Dr. J are the toughest critics with and average of 3.41 with everyone else averaging between 3.68 and 3.73. On the low end we have just a few that fall below the Mendoza line established by Who Moved My Cheese at 2.86. This includes the third book chosen overall (by me) of "A Pirate Looks at 50" and Bill's "There is no Toilet Paper on the Road Less Traveled"(which also holds distinction of the longest title). We still have only read one book twice, "The Limits of Power", in 2009 and 2014 and I still can't remember it even though it rated very well at 4.13 and 4.25.

The book list covers a wide variety of books consisting of roughly 2/3rds non-fiction. Topics include the classics, politics, business, adventure, history, science, environment, humor, and morality. Multiple authors include Thomas Friedman (4), Malcolm Gladwell (4), Bill Bryson (5), Phillip Roth (3), Dan Brown (3), Sam Harris (3), Michael Lewis (3) and 2 from Russell Banks, TC Boyle, Tom Brokaw, David Brooks, David Guterson, Laura Hillenbrand, Hope Jahren, Jon Krakauer, Krueger, Eric Larson, Annie Proulx, Alan Weisman, Eric Weiner and Irvin Yalom. We have branched out over the years to include a wide variety of authors and topics.

The Kindness of Color

Bob's selection is a sweet memoir by a Japanese woman and her Hispanic friend. Their lives were intertwined by a shared family farm in Westminster. Each woman endured the racism of their time, one through internment and the other from school segregation. Both overcame their challenges with the aid of their families and friends. There are many stories of random acts of kindness that are emphasized by a hand with a plant and "kindness is..." The reader leans about the Japanese internment, and the inmates calm and stoic coping with the injustice. You also learn of the desegregation of the Orange County schools for Hispanic children 7 years before the federal desegregation laws were enacted. It is a lovely book about normal people making a difference through acts of kindness. Very Zen.

Project Hail Mary

Andy Weir's latest Sci-Fi adventure is an imaginary Earth saving tale with science lessons. We learn about interstellar space travel, rocket ships, robots, nutrition, comma induced sleep, gravity, EVA suits, and Tau Ceti. We also learn about Astrophage, Eridians, xenonite, and Tauomeoba. Dr. Grace is an unwilling high school science teacher who saves Earth (with help from the Beetles) and his friend Rocky, who saves his own planet Erid. Between his scientific knowledge and problem solving, and Rocky's superior engineering knowhow, they somehow accomplish the impossible. 

The book is long, but a page turner. I thought there was a little too much time dedicated to the prep time on earth and the reluctance of the hero to sacrifice himself for the mission. Nonetheless, I did enjoy the ending despite the improbability. Overall, an enjoyable read.