January 2012

Evening Discussion

Tuesday, January 3, 7:30 p.m.

Program Room B

Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era (Chapter 14 - end)

Filled with fresh interpretations and information, puncturing old myths and challenging new ones, this fast-paced narrative fully integrates the political, social, and military events that crowded the two decades from the outbreak of one war in Mexico to the ending of another at Appomattox. Packed with drama and analytical insight, the book vividly recounts the momentous episodes that preceded the Civil War: the Dred Scott decision: the Lincoln-Douglas debates, John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry. It then moves into a chronicle of the war itself, the battles, the strategic maneuvering on both sides, the politics, and the personalities. Particularly notable are new views on such matters as the slavery expansion issue in the 1850s, the origins of the Republican Party, the causes of secession, internal dissent and anti-war opposition in the North and the South, and the reasons for the Union's victory.The book's title refers to the sentiments that informed both the Northern and Southern views of the conflict: the South seceded in the name of that freedom of self-determination and self-government for which their fathers had fought in 1776, while the North stood fast in defense of the Union founded by those fathers as the bulwark of American liberty. Eventually, the North had to grapple with the underlying cause of the war--slavery--and adopt a policy of emancipation as a second war aim. This "new birth of freedom, " as Lincoln called it, constitutes the proudest legacy of America's bloodiest conflict.This volume makes sense of that vast and confusing "second American Revolution" we call the Civil War, a war that transformed a nation and expanded our heritage of liberty.

Don't miss the December 2011 discussion of the Prologue through Chapter 13!

*********************************************************

Daytime Discussion

Wednesday, January 18, 10:00 a.m.

Conference Room

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Reprints the 1848 third edition text of "Jane Eyre," the story of a plain and penniless orphan who accepts a job as governess at Thornfield Hall and soon finds herself in love with her melancholy employer, Mr. Edward Rochester, a man with a terrible secret. Please note that any edition of this novel is acceptable for discussion.

*********************************************************

Bonus Program

Film and Discussioon: Jane Eyre (2011)

Wednesday, January 25, 10:00 a.m.

Program Room B

Watch the 2011 version of Jane Eyre and discuss it in comparison to the novel and any other versions of the film you may have seen. All are welcome. Although parts of the discussion will center on the novel, patrons are welcome to attend the film screening whether they have read the book or not.

Director: Cary Fukunaga

Starring Mia Wasikowska, Michael Fassbender, and Jamie Bell

Rated PG-13, 120 min

Evening Book Discussion for 2012

Meets the first Tuesday of the month at 7:30 p.m.

Participation is free and new members are always welcome!

January 3         Battle Cry of Freedom: the Civil War Era James M. McPherson (Chapter 14 to end)
February 7      Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
March 6         Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha by Roddy Doyle
April 3             A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan
May 1             Hard Times by Charles Dickens
June 5            Listen to This (19 music essays) by Alex Ross
July 3             The Natural by Bernard Malamud
August 7          Long Day’s Journey into Night by Eugene O’Neill

September 4   The Complete Short Stories by Ernest Hemingway
October 2         Matterhorn: A Novel of the Vietnam War by Karl Marlantes
November 6       The Inferno by Dante Alighieri
December 4       Cleopatra: a Life by Stacy Schiff

Daytime Book Discussion for 2012

Meets the third Wednesday of the month at 10:00 a.m.
Participation is free and new members are always welcome!

January 18          Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
February 15         Almost a Woman by Esmerelda Santiago
March 21            Invisible Wall by Harry Bernstein
April 18            Little Bee by Chris Cleave
May 16            The House of Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne
June 20              A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick
July 18               Cleopatra: A Life by Stacy Schiff
August 15           Wench by Dolen Perkins-Valdez
September 19     Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese
October 17          Title TBA
November 14        Title TBA
December 12        Title TBA