Welcoming the unexpected at silent book club

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The mark of an accomplished meeting facilitator is how they handle with aplomb the arrival of unexpected attendees. Full marks to our east end Toronto silent book club co-founder and zoom maven Jo, who was taking advantage of warmer weather hereabouts and running our latest zoom meeting while ensconced under a tree in her backyard … and who didn’t miss a beat when a possum arrived unannounced.

Possum in Jo's backyard

Possum in Jo’s backyard – Photo by Jo Nelson

Sadly, the possum departed without reporting on its latest reading, so we’ll never know if it leans towards fiction or non-fiction, or would be open to a bit of poetry. But happily, we’re left with further proof of a few things, including:

  • There’s always room for one more whenever we gather.
  • Ours is a group – like many of our peer silent book club groups around the world – that relishes the surprising and unexpected, in our reading and in our meetings.

Vicki's books, getting ready for the zoom call

Perhaps you’ll encounter the enticingly unexpected with our combined reading lists. As always, the books we share run the gamut of subjects, formats, genres, styles and much more. The titles featured in each of our reports combine print and digital versions of books, along with audiobooks (which are indicated separately, with narrator/performer information where possible).

More book-related articles, resources, news, recommendations and more were offered by our members and/or came up during this meeting’s discussions and chat, including:

As always, we invite our fellow readers to boost their reading with fodder from our previous silent book club meeting reports (online and in-person incarnations) and book lists – find them all here. Perhaps you’ll come across the unexpected!

You can also check out links to articles, interviews and more here – some with San Francisco-based Silent Book Club founders Guinevere de La Mare and Laura Gluhanich, and some with us here in east end Toronto.

Learn more about silent book clubs via Guinevere and Laura’s Silent Book Club web site. You can find information on meetings happening around the world and close to where you live. Some clubs are currently on haitus, but many are running virtual meetings in different formats. Please feel free to contact me for more information about our club and its offerings.

Stay safe, stay well, stay hopeful … and, of course, do your best to keep reading!

More great additions to our young adult (YA) reading – the third of a series of review round-ups

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Toronto silent book club member Sundus Butt returns again with another rich and varied installment in an ongoing series of mini-reviews and previews of young adult (YA) titles and recommendations. Enjoy all the YA installments here.

May 2021 young adult (YA) book selections

Measuring Up by Lily LaMotte, illustrated by Ann Xu (8–12)

[…] Cici, you are always ready to learn and …
… part of me will go with you.

Twelve-year-old Cici has just moved to Seattle from Taiwan and is finding it hard to fit in. She also desperately misses her grandmother, A-má, who is about to turn 70. Cici decides to enter a cooking contest in the hopes of winning some money that can help A-má visit so they can celebrate her special birthday together.

This graphic novel is a simple and gentle story that touches on a lot of different issues. The immigrant experience, microaggressions (such as Cici being referred to as Chinese or Thai when she is Taiwanese), familial pressures, acceptance, and finding your place are all explored, and the cooking contest was an interesting and fun element to help deliver the story.

Punching the Air by Ibi Zoboi and Yusef Salaam (14+)

Dead to the world
but somewhere in our souls
we are both scratching at the walls
yelling to the sky
punching the air
to let everyone and everything know
that we are in here
still alive

Written in verse, this book follows Amal Shahid, a Black Muslim boy who’s wrongly incarcerated.

Yusef Salaam is one of the exonerated Central Park Five, and though Amal is not a direct representation of him, Salaam’s experiences give the book insight that makes it feel that much more concrete. Combined with Zoboi’s lyrical writing, you feel the injustice of how Amal is made a “man,” not a “boy,” and how his humanity is stripped away so he’s a “monster” and it’s easier to convict him. This story is a short, but powerful read about how the colour of your skin often determines the justice you receive, and how Amal deals with life in prison.

The War That Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley (9–12)

I slipped my hand into hers. A strange and unfamiliar feeling ran through me. It felt like the ocean, like sunlight, like horses. Like love. I searched my mind and found the name for it. Joy.

Ada has never left her family’s one-room apartment. Born with a clubfoot, Ada’s mother treats her horrifically and forces her to stay inside so no one can see her “ugly foot.” But when World War II breaks out and Ada’s little brother Jamie is sent away from London, Ada takes her chance to escape and joins him. In the country, they are taken in (unwillingly) by Susan Smith. These vastly different people thrown together challenge and learn from each other as they try to adapt to their new life.

This book is skillfully put together. The pacing of the story and character development make the story arc believable. There is a hard edge to what Ada experiences externally and internally, and even the characters you root for are flawed at times. The story covers a variety of issues, but it presents a clear case for how a life can change when given love and support.

The Okay Witch written and illustrated by Emma Steinkellner (8–12)

“See, Mother? This! This is the human world. Fun and free and full of life. This is the world my daughter and I love.”
“It is frightfully ordinary. And loud. And vulgar. Yes these salt blossoms are sublime.”
“It’s called ‘popcorn.’ And yes, popcorn is one of the amazing things we have […].”

Moth Hush has always been different, but she realizes how different when she discovers she’s a half-witch. Chaos ensues as Moth tries to navigate her new powers, her mom’s aversion to magic (even though she’s a witch, too), an age-old feud with witch-hunters, and how she fits into the world.

This story is really fun and lively, and that’s largely due to the enjoyable characters. Combined with fantastic artwork, this is a good coming-of-age story.

Dear Martin by Nic Stone (14+)

“You can’t change how other people think and act, but you’re in full control of you. When it comes down to it, the only question that matters is this: If nothing in the world ever changes, what type of man are you gonna be?”

Justyce McAllister is a good kid all set for the Ivy League; but when he’s wrongly handcuffed, he’s rattled by how easily being Black can negatively override everything else about him. Justyce begins a journal, writing to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the hopes that he can follow his teachings and find some answers.

There is a lot packed into this short book. It provides a brief, but wide look at the complex emotions a young Black man feels when he encounters injustice after injustice. The protagonist also feels the temptation of becoming what people expect of him because why resist a stereotype when that’s all people will ever see? You really feel for Justyce and share his frustration with events throughout the story. And although there are some unaddressed issues in the book (such as misogyny), it is a short and impactful read.

A Drop of Hope by Keith Calabrese (9–12)

Because Ryan realized that for every wish he knew about, there must have been dozens that he didn’t. Maybe that was the point, in the end. You can’t fix the world. But you do your best in your own little corner of it.
And you hope.

An old wishing well has been rediscovered in Cliffs Donnelly, Ohio, a small town down on its luck. But as students from the local school start to make wishes, remarkably, they come true by the inadvertent actions of three unlikely friends. Events start to snowball and lead to even bigger consequences for the town as a whole.

The characters in this book are endearing, and they are the heart of this story about small kindnesses. Told through multiple perspectives, you discover there’s more to each character than everyone realizes as they try to protect and care for each other. This is a warm and lovely read that lives up to its title.

Even between our little zoom boxes, books still connect us

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Silent book club member Todd TyrtleTodd Tyrtle is both a steadfast Toronto silent book club member and organizer of his own international book and tea chat online gathering, as you will quickly learn from his lively introduction to the latest Toronto meeting report. Todd is a wise and observant soul whose interests and activities are so varied, eclectic and vibrant that they almost defy categorization, so I’m going to borrow from one of his social media profiles to describe them further: blogging (at Go Outside Today), cooking, eating, cycling, traveling and doing a new thing every week for a year #52adventures.

I learned about the Toronto Silent Book Club back in 2019 from about as far away as one could: a Times of India article about one that had started in Delhi. Surely, Toronto, a city of readers must have something similar. A quick search proved me right. And so it was that in January 2020, I went to my first meeting having little idea of what to expect.

Some people imagine reading in front of a fireplace with a cup of tea while it snows outside. But from now on my view of cozy reading experience will forever be sitting in a room with other book lovers, the smell of coffee in the air, a scone in front of me with us all reading together. I love how my reading habits were shaken and refreshed. People were reading things I wouldn’t normally read and speaking about them so enthusiastically that I was moved to also try them. I owe my discovery of authors like Ali Smith, and Matt Haig to our group. Likewise, I owe my discovery of flash fiction and rediscovery of poetry to them.

And then, after two in-person meetings, the pandemic hit, and we were all banished to our little Zoom boxes. Even I, a big believer in the power of technology was unsure it would work but the meetings kept going strong, often meeting twice as often as pre-pandemic. Seeing how well it worked gave me an idea. If our attendees are no longer limited by our ability to converge on the same café at the same time, what could a silent book club look like?

And so, about a year ago, the International Book Talk meetings started. This group, consisting of people I’ve met in person, through blogs, or social media meets about once a month to talk about the books we love and our lives. Friends in Canada have talked about English and French books they’ve enjoyed. Others in India have talked about reading books in English, Hindi, and Kannada. A friend in Norway, born in India talks about reading a Marathi book about a famous musician.

It wasn’t long, though, before we realized that for us, books were merely a means of connection. Even with a smaller group than our Toronto contingent, meetings sometimes go up to two hours. Of course, we talk about books, but we also talk about our families, how we’re navigating the pandemic. We’re sharing stories of our childhood experiences in the US or how one person’s father in Pakistan started writing some of the first Urdu science fiction books after he retired. And sometimes it is the simplest of side discussions – what the weather is like where we all are – that it’s raining a little early in parts of Karnataka even as Toronto is getting snow in April.

Our small regular group has enjoyed this connection so much that we started inviting people to just join us. No book talk required. Just show up and enjoy the social connection. A couple of months after starting the book club, a second monthly meeting was started. This group has no agenda at all. Just show up and relax in a virtual living room. Bring a snack or tea and connect with other humans.

There has been so much suffering and sadness during this pandemic, but this group, that started with the idea of a “silent book club” was a blessing that will surely continue well beyond the end of the pandemic.

Vicki on screen, pointing to her books

Mary's books

Dawn's book

Sue R's books

If we do say so ourselves, our combined reading lists never fail to amaze. As always, the books we shared run the gamut of subjects, formats, genres, styles and much more. The titles featured in each of our reports combine print and digital versions of books, along with audiobooks (which are indicated separately, with narrator/performer information where possible).

More book-related articles, resources, recommendations and more were offered by our members and/or came up during this meeting’s discussions and chat, including:

  • Several of this silent book club’s members read with awe and enthusiasm Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland by Patrick Radden Keefe. His newest book is Empire of Pain traces three generations of the Sackler family, who pursued the American dream fueled by philanthropy and funded by the development of the painkillers that are now at the core of today’s opioid crisis. Keefe joins Toronto Star journalist Katie Daubs to discuss his book on Monday, May 31st in an online event presented by the Toronto Public Library.
  • A recommended companion to The Overstory by Richard Powers is the documentary My Passion for Trees with actor Dame Judi Dench.
  • The compelling adaptation of Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad is now streaming on Amazon Prime – highly recommended.
  • The TV series based on Us by David Nicholls is now streaming on CBC Gem – also highly recommended.
  • Silent book club member Todd, who wrote this report’s introduction, also recommends the poetry of Rudy Francisco: “This poem by Rudy Francisco is excellent and got me started reading him.”

We invite our fellow readers to boost their reading with fodder from our previous silent book club meeting reports (online and in-person incarnations) and book lists – find them all here.

You can also check out links to articles, interviews and more here – some with San Francisco-based Silent Book Club founders Guinevere de La Mare and Laura Gluhanich, and some with us here in east end Toronto.

Learn more about silent book clubs via Guinevere and Laura’s Silent Book Club web site. You can find information on meetings happening around the world and close to where you live. Some clubs are currently on haitus, but many are running virtual meetings in different formats. Please feel free to contact me for more information about our club and its offerings.

Stay safe, stay well, keep your spirits up … and, of course, do your best to keep reading!

Popping up with more reading inspiration

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They always deserve it because they make us feel so good. However, I am going to minimize my usual rhapsodizing and fanfare about our recent silent book club meetings and great straight to the bookish deliciousness we shared in two warm, wonderful, witty online meetings this past week.

Vicki's books and computer

Dawn's books

Dusty from Seattle's books

Sue's book

Our latest combined reading list blossoms, as always, with a diverse assortment of subjects, genres, styles and more. The titles featured in each of our reports combine print and digital versions of books, along with audiobooks (which are indicated separately, with narrator/performer information where possible).

More book-related articles, resources, recommendations and more were offered by our members and/or came up during this meeting’s discussions and chat, including:

  • The Philadelphia Library has a number of virtual book club meetings and related programming associated with their One Book choices for this year: The Tradition by Jericho Brown and The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo. Learn more here.
  • BBC Sounds is offering readings of Muriel Sparks’ works, by the author herself. Hurry here to enjoy A Far Cry from Kensington (abridged version) – it’s only available for a few more days.
  • On May 20th, you don’t want to miss Nobel Prize winning author Olga Tokarczuk and author and translator Jennifer Croft in conversation, part of the Pittsburgh International LitFest Found in Translation events.
  • To boost our young adult reading, silent book club member Sundus Butt has very kindly put together some great round-ups of mini reviews of recommended works. Take a look at her April and May selections.
  • A fellow silent book club enthusiast from Seattle points out to us that Seattle Arts & Lectures (SAL) has created a Summer Book Bingo card for adults. Check it out here.

Boost your reading with fodder from our previous silent book club meeting reports (online and in-person incarnations) and book lists – you’ll find them here.

You can also check out links to articles, interviews and more here – some with San Francisco-based Silent Book Club founders Guinevere de La Mare and Laura Gluhanich, and some with us here in east end Toronto.

Learn more about silent book clubs via Guinevere and Laura’s Silent Book Club web site. You can find information on meetings happening around the world and close to where you live. Some clubs are currently on haitus, but many are running virtual meetings in different formats. Please feel free to contact me for more information about our club and its offerings.

Stay safe, stay well, keep your spirits up … and seek out a sunny spot and keep reading!

Another boost to our young adult (YA) reading – the second of a series of review round-ups

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Toronto silent book club member Sundus Butt is back with another installment of what we hope will be an ongoing series of mini-reviews and previews of young adult (YA) titles and recommendations. Enjoy the first installment here.

Wonder by R.J. Palacio

Wonder by R.J. Palacio

Wonder by R.J. Palacio (8–12)

[…] The things we do are like monuments that people build to honour heroes after they’ve died. They’re like the pyramids that the Egyptians built to honour the pharaohs. Only instead of being made out of stone, they’re made out of the memories people have of you. That’s why your deeds are like your monuments. Built with memories instead of with stone.

Wonder is about August Pullman (Auggie), a child who was born with a facial difference and is about to go to school for the first time as a fifth grader.

All the characters in this book are well-crafted, which makes the telling of the story through multiple perspectives that much more enjoyable. And even though the story could’ve been gritty and harsh, it’s actually very uplifting in a way that real life wouldn’t be in these circumstances. The overall message is simple and overwhelmingly positive—it’s to be kind and to be kind deliberately, with purpose.

The Best Bad Luck I Ever Had by Kristin Levine

The Best Bad Luck I Ever Had by Kristin Levine

The Best Bad Luck I Ever Had by Kristin Levine (10+)

[…] my mama had a rule—we didn’t have to like anyone, but we had to be nice to everyone. That’s exactly the kind of rule grown-ups make up, ain’t it?

Set in Alabama, in 1917, this story is about a brave friendship between two children in a time and a place where racism is rampant. Dit is White and has lived in Moundville his whole life. Emma is Black and has just arrived from Boston. They have nothing in common and don’t think much of each other when they first meet. But when they’re thrown together, they learn from each other and challenge each other, and grow into the very best of friends.

The story is channelled through Dit, who is well-written. His observations and dialogue (inner and outer) ring true of a child growing up and discovering hard truths about his community and himself.

Pumpkinheads written by Rainbow Rowell and illustrated by Faith Erin Hicks

Pumpkinheads written by Rainbow Rowell and illustrated by Faith Erin Hicks

Pumpkinheads written by Rainbow Rowell and illustrated by Faith Erin Hicks (14-18)

“Maybe don’t repeat her name dreamily like she’s just handed you the One Ring.”

This graphic novel follows Josie and Deja working at the pumpkin patch. For their last-ever shift, Deja decides they need to go out with a bang. They abandon their post at the Succotash Hut and adventure all across the patch.

Right from the first page, the signature humour of both Powell and Hicks is on display in the fun dialogue and wonderful illustrations. Josie and Deja are great characters and their trails across the patch highlight some of the best things about autumn, friendship, and being on the cusp of adulthood (and delicious snacks!). The ending didn’t feel quite right, but overall, this was a charming and fun read.

Coraline by Neil Gaiman

Coraline by Neil Gaiman

Coraline by Neil Gaiman (9+)

Coraline sighed. “You really don’t understand, do you?” she said. “I don’t want whatever I want. Nobody does. Not really. What kind of fun would it be if I just got everything I ever wanted? Just like that, and it didn’t mean anything. What then?”

Coraline and her parents have just moved to a new flat, but it’s terribly boring. So Coraline goes exploring and finds another world where her flat, family, and neighbours are all duplicated. This new place is full of colour, fun, and great-tasting food. But Coraline soon learns there’s a price to pay for this world—a price that involves buttons, eyes, and her soul.

This story is full of the weird and wonderful that we’ve come to expect from Gaiman. He skillfully creates a world that feels sinister; the Other Mother in particular is a wonderfully creepy character. The pace is well-balanced and a lot of story is packed into a short number of pages.

The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy

The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy


The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy (6+)

“What do you want to be when you grow up?”
“Kind,” said the boy.

There is a thread of a story in this book, but essentially, it’s a compilation of simple quotes focused on love and kindness for others and yourself. There is a warmth to this read right from the introduction, and the four unlikely friends are all charming and whimsically illustrated. My favourite was mole, whose single-mindedness for cake was something I both respected and recognized. This is a very quick and light read, but it felt good for the soul.

Fuse, by Hollay Ghadery

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I’m pleased to welcome long-time bookish friend on social media Marion Agnew to present her first guest review to this blog.

Marion Agnew lives in Northwestern Ontario, near Lake Superior. She’s published fiction and creative nonfiction; her 2019 personal essay collection, Reverberations: A Daughter’s Meditations on Alzheimer’s, was shortlisted for the Louise de Kiriline Lawrence award for nonfiction. She is currently at work on a novel.

Fuse by Hollay GhaderyFuse, by Hollay Ghadery, is a remarkable book. I’ve seen it labeled “memoir,” but I’d describe it as a collection of personal — very personal — essays. Organized around themes, the chapters include poetic fragments and reflections, narratives and insights, considerations and re-considerations. Instead of building to a narrative climax, this rich material forms a mosaic, a representation of a life that’s coherent but still in progress. Ghadery deftly supplements her lived experience with background information to give readers insight into a larger cultural context.

And culture, in many iterations, lies at the core of this book. She explores clashes around Iranian-Canadian identity, both in her own life — in her own mind/body and in her community — and in the varying degrees of closeness and understanding in the relationship between her English-Canadian mother and Iranian-Canadian father. She looks at what it’s like to be culturally Muslim in a theoretically secular (but really waning-Western-Christian) society, and how differently her two brothers respond to their family’s nominal exposure to Islam.

Her subjects range widely: Life in a family, with its sometimes well-meaning expectations. Life in a human body, with its imperfections and demands that change with time and our experiences (pregnancy, fitness or lack thereof, age) of it. Life in a country with loud demands for conformity around all of the above, plus definitions of beauty.

Ghadery takes us along in her many attempts to make sense of these demands, through binging/purging food, starving, running, booze, men, and cleaning. All are forms of her drive to create and maintain order in the chaos of life.

And she doesn’t shy away from naming what she finds, in herself and in others. Here’s an example, about how people line up a stack of papers or wipe down a kitchen counter, then say, “I’m so OCD”:

“I have to swallow hot anger when I hear these comments. My disease has taken over my life. It’s made it so I’ve considered taking my own life rather than live for one more moment in my own head. And when I wasn’t actively thinking about killing myself, I was passively trying to kill myself by drinking and using prescribed pharmaceuticals.”

She adds this energizing, satisfying summary, one I’ve wished for to combat “jokes” around dementia:

“Increasing dialogue to create more knowledge about mental illness is great. Casual appropriation of these illnesses is not.”

Yes, this book might be difficult for some people to read, but it will be transformative for others. In sharing her actions, Ghadery is searingly honest — yet her exposure isn’t performative. There’s no parade: “look at me, I’m drinking vodka at all hours, fighting with everyone, and quitting yet another job!”

Instead, she owns these actions and their role in her life. Many of them were physically harmful, all of them were attempts to lessen spiritual pain. And all are part of her, part of what she has fused to create herself—a complicated woman and skilled writer.

Learn more about Fuse by Hollay Ghadery [Guernica Editions (MiroLand)] here.

I liked it so much, I started one of my own

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Toronto silent book club member (times two!) Beth Gordon offers this wonderful introduction to our latest silent book club meeting report. Lifelong reader, long-time book club aficionado, it is no surprise that she indefatigably attends and organizes multiple sbc meetings, for which we are all very grateful!

Silent book club member Beth Gordon with some of her reading, 99% Invisible City

I’ve always been a big reader and dedicated member of book clubs. With other demands on my time, I gradually became less enamoured of reading “what everybody else wanted to read”, so when Vicki invited me to a Silent Book Club meeting, I was intrigued enough to make the 45-minute trip to her neighbourhood on a Saturday morning. What I found at Press Books was a friendly and welcoming group of random people, some previously known to Vicki and Jo, and some who had discovered it in other ways.

At about the same time, another book club which I had joined about 20 years ago was ending, largely for logistical reasons. Inspired by my experiences at the East End SBC, I suggested to some of the members that we start a Silent Book Club in Midtown Toronto. Because it was being held in a private space, my condo dining room, I didn’t really publicize it, but there’s been good cross-pollination with the East End group and we have a healthy membership. I have noticed that it doesn’t matter how many people show up – we always manage to talk for at least an hour.

One of the benefits of having to switch to online meetings, of course, has been that geography has not been as much of a factor. A friend from Vancouver now joins us when she can, and one of the chief players in the previous book group can now join us as well, since she doesn’t have to travel. What hasn’t changed is the sense of community present in each meeting, and since there are fewer opportunities to meet in person, I think we’re all a bit more flexible about social chat as opposed to “sticking to business”.

There are many articles online about Silent Book Club which describe it as “a book club for introverts” because of the communal silent reading aspect. You’d have to ask an introvert if that rings true for them, but I respectfully disagree with that limiting description. The discussions at the beginning of each meeting are lively and opinionated, and have introduced me to a variety of books that I would likely never have found if left to my own devices. And speaking of devices, there is very much a live and let live atmosphere as to how we all consume our reading material. I am an ebook devotee, because I don’t like to leave home without a book and it’s much more convenient to have one on my phone. Others are fiercely loyal to their paper books, and several are audiobook devotees. Although I prefer to read with my eyes, I’ve swung towards audiobooks as walking companions during COVID lockdowns. I probably wouldn’t have gotten there as fast without the recommendations of my fellow SBC members. The debate rages about whether one is obligated to actually finish a book once started, but opinions may be changing as we all cope with “lockdown brain”.

So I’m grateful to Vicki for telling me about Silent Book Clubs and inviting me to join her SBC community. It has definitely enriched my life over the past couple of years, and has been a big part of my social life lately. Now that the weather is warming up, I’m hoping that safe meetings in the park will soon be an option again.

Sven and Jenn's bookshelves

Sven and Jenn's cat and books

Sue R's books

Sue R in the garden with a book

Jess' books

Vicki's books, next to her computer

Vicki with books and Jake the beagle-basset in the backyard

Once again, our latest combined reading list brims over with variety, diversity and range. The titles featured in each of our reports combine print and digital versions of books, along with audiobooks (which are indicated separately, with narrator/performer information where possible).

More book-related articles, resources, recommendations and more were offered by our members and/or came up during this meeting’s discussions and chat, including:

Boost your reading with fodder from our previous silent book club meeting reports (online and in-person incarnations) and book lists – you’ll find them here.

You can also check out links to articles, interviews and more here – some with San Francisco-based Silent Book Club founders Guinevere de La Mare and Laura Gluhanich, and some with us here in east end Toronto.

Learn more about silent book clubs via Guinevere and Laura’s Silent Book Club web site. You can find information on meetings happening around the world and close to where you live. Some clubs are currently on haitus, but many are running virtual meetings in different formats. Please feel free to contact me for more information about our club and its offerings.

Stay safe, stay well, keep your spirits up … and keep reading!

Silent book club members’ cups and tbr piles runneth over

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That’s an awkward paraphrase of a lovely tweet from one of the attendees of our most recent pop-up silent book club zoom meetings. (We call them “pop-up” because we somewhat spontaneously announce these mid-week even meetings with just a few days’ notice, in addition to our regular monthly Saturday morning meetings … which used to be in person at our local coffee/book/vinyl shop, Press.)

Not only did the meeting runneth over with great book reviews and recommendations, discussion and laughter, but again, one advantage of our online gatherings is that our local neighbourhood/city borders are allowed to runneth over, too. This meeting, in addition to attendees from Toronto, we welcomed fellow readers from Edmonton, Alberta, Jersey City, New Jersey and our dear nighthawk with her squirrel sidekick in Pontypridd, Wales.

And oh, does the latest combined reading list from our group runneth over, too! The titles featured in each of our reports combine print and digital versions of books, along with audiobooks (which are indicated separately, with narrator/performer information where possible).

Vicki's silent book club books for April 14, 2021

Mary's silent book club books for April 14, 2021

Kath E's silent book club books for April 14, 2021

Lyla's silent book club books for April 14, 2021

Lyla's silent book club books for April 14, 2021

Sue R's silent book club books for April 14, 2021

More book-related articles, resources, recommendations and more were offered by our members and/or came up during this meeting’s discussions and chat, including:

Our previous silent book club meeting reports (online and in-person incarnations) and book lists are here.

You can also check out links to articles, interviews and more here – some with San Francisco-based Silent Book Club founders Guinevere de La Mare and Laura Gluhanich, and some with us here in east end Toronto.

Learn more about silent book clubs via Guinevere and Laura’s Silent Book Club web site. You can find information on meetings happening around the world and close to where you live. Some clubs are currently on haitus, but many are running virtual meetings in different formats. Please feel free to contact me for more information about our club and its offerings.

Stay safe, stay well, try to stay sane (especially if you live in Ontario), keep your spirits up … and keep reading!

Silent book club group looks to boost its young adult (YA) reading – the first of a series of review round-ups

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Many thanks to Toronto silent book club member Sundus Butt for the first of what we hope will be an ongoing series of mini-reviews and previews of young adult (YA) titles and recommendations. Sundus introduces this first installment.

After the suggestion of reading more YA titles emerged from our Silent Book Club, Vicki kindly offered to post a list of YA books that I’ve enjoyed throughout the years. I love adult fiction, but the YA section (9–12 in particular) is also full of incredible writing. There is a sea of wonder, heartbreak, and warmth that feels specific to this age group and it’s why I keep returning to it.

This will be an ongoing list with more book titles posted at the end of each month.

I sincerely hope you enjoy some of the titles that I mention.

Happy reading!

 

The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman

The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman

The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman (10+)

The sight filled the northern sky; the immensity of it was scarcely conceivable. As if from Heaven itself, great curtains of delicate light hung and trembled. Pale green and rose-pink, and as transparent as the most fragile fabric, and at the bottom edge a profound and fiery crimson like the fires of Hell, they swung and shimmered loosely with more grace than the most skillful dancer. Lyra […] was moved by it: it was so beautiful it was almost holy; she felt tears prick her eyes, and the tears splintered the light even further into prismatic rainbows.

I’m beginning this list with a well-known book, but it’s one of my all-time favourites. I can’t fully explain how much it meant to come across Lyra when I was a young reader (strong female protagonists were rare in YA at the time). She was a complex jumble of fierceness, intelligence, and vulnerability. Following her on an adventure to rescue her kidnapped friend, Roger, was a delight. The story is populated with brilliant characters and an amazing world that is at once familiar and distant. The fantastical elements of dæmons, witches, and armoured bears are melded perfectly with real places and objects. Everything from this book has stayed with me as I’ve grown up.

Front Desk by Kelly Yang

Front Desk by Kelly Yang

Front Desk by Kelly Yang (9–12)

“Why put a scary part in the middle of a beautiful piece?” I remember asking my piano teacher.
“Because life is scary sometimes, little one,” he had said.

After immigrating to the U.S. from China, Mia and her parents have had a difficult time. But they think their luck has turned when they get a chance to run a motel.

Based on Yang’s own experiences growing up, the story touches on a large range of issues from racism to exploitation of immigrant workers to poverty. The seriousness of what happens is skillfully balanced with the warmth of Mia and other characters. The overarching message is one of love and hope in the face of hardship, and it’s what makes Front Desk a book with such great heart.

The Crossover by Kwame Alexander

The Crossover by Kwame Alexander

The Crossover by Kwame Alexander (9+)

[…] ever since I watched the clip of Dad […] soaring through the air—his long twisted hair like wings carrying him high above the rim—I knew one day I’d need my own wings to fly.

This novel written in verse follows twin brothers Josh and Jordan as they navigate basketball, school, crushes, and family life. With sparse text, Alexander is able to convey so much and create full characters you empathize with. Everything is channelled through Josh’s perspective, and his voice is entirely convincing as a teen dealing with his life changing on and off the court. The Crossover has a large focus on basketball, but it’s used to explore the struggle of growing up and the love within a family. It’s a very short read, but an engaging one.

The Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis

The Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis

The Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis (teen)

Parvana was fresh out of hope. […] She crawled onto the toshak, covered herself with a quilt and resolved to stay there forever.
For two days she stayed on the toshak. “This is what the women in our family do when we’re sad,” she said to Mrs. Weera.
“They don’t stay there forever,” Mrs. Weera said. “They get up again, and they fight back.”

The above describes The Breadwinner in a nutshell. The story is primarily about the defiance and strength of women and girls in Taliban-occupied Afghanistan.

When 11-year-old Parvana’s father is arrested, the family decides to disguise Parvana as a boy so she can go outdoors to work and pick up food (women aren’t allowed outside without a male chaperone).

The story is short, but it’s a hard-hitting, unvarnished look at life under the Taliban regime. But from Parvana’s daily deception to a subversive magazine organized by Parvana’s mom and family friend, Mrs. Weera, the focus is on resilience and the incredible things people can do in the face of adversity.

When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead

When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead

When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead (9–12)

I walked up the hill, where the sunlight seemed to touch everything like it was a hyper kid running all over a toy store—it bounced off the dirty metal lampposts, the shiny brass awning posts, even the sunglasses of a woman walking her dogs with a cup of coffee in one hand. Everything shined.

This book is a mesh of real life with slight mystery and science fiction. The story follows Miranda, a sixth grader living in New York City as she starts to receive cryptic anonymous messages about the future.

This book is so well crafted. The plot, the pacing, and the revelations are all balanced out beautifully in a story based on single moments having huge unforeseen consequences.

And the main characters are all very real with some goodness, humour, and flaws. (The interactions between Miranda, her mom, and her mom’s boyfriend, Richard, are heartwarming.) But it’s Miranda’s growth that’s the highlight of the story, as she learns to look at the people around her and realize they aren’t always what they seem.

Word Nerd by Susin Nielsen

Word Nerd by Susin Nielsen

Word Nerd by Susin Nielsen (teen)

It dawned on me that this was what it was like to have friends. People who liked you for you. People you didn’t have to try to impress.

Set in Vancouver, this story follows 12-year-old Ambrose who is homeschooled because he’s been bullied so badly. Ambrose is not a “normal” kid. He doesn’t wear cool clothes, he has no filter when he speaks (which annoys children and adults alike), and he loves Scrabble.

Word Nerd is full of unique characters that you feel for from Ambrose himself to his well-meaning, but overprotective mom to the kind landlords and their grown son Cosmo. All these people (and more) help Ambrose in his search for acceptance, and he realizes that some of the best friendships are found in unexpected places.

Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson

Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson

Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson (10+)

How amazing these words are that slowly come to me.
How wonderfully on and on they go.

Will the words end, I ask whenever I remember to.

Nope, my sister says, all of five years old now, and promising me

infinity.

This book explores Woodson’s childhood in verse. It’s a short read, but paints a full and vivid picture of being torn between the north and south (Woodson grew up in both New York and South Carolina), learning about the civil rights movement, navigating religion, falling in love with stories (in particular making them up), trying to forge your own identity, and cherishing the simple joys of a family. Woodson clearly loves language and writing, and it shines through from beginning to end.

Seeking out and supporting the arts and artists online, while enjoying the “fine balance” of our thriving book clubs

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An immense thank you to Toronto silent book club member Sue Reynolds for the introduction to our latest silent book club meeting report. Passionate about adventurous reading, animals and animal welfare, and Hollywood femmes fatales, Sue has also contributed previously to this blog, with a great review of Half Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan.

I have been very lucky during this past pandemic year that all of the bookclubs (silent and traditional) in which I participate have been able to carry on meeting and talking about books via zoom calls. It’s not quite the same as meeting at our much beloved coffee shop or in the park, but we have been able to connect, see each others’ faces, catch up on personal or neighbourhood news, and share our love of books and reading.

The global pandemic has sent many folks rushing off to their local libraries or bookstores as people rediscover reading, now that they have time on their hands and shops, gyms and pubs are closed. This is great news for writers and booksellers, and some bookstores have been flourishing, surely cause for celebration.

I would like to call attention to other art forms that have really taken a hit this past year, namely art that relies on live performance such as theatre, music and dance. These folks, those on
stage and those who work behind the scenes, have led the charge to bring their work to an online global audience. Some performers like Georgia’s Indigo Girls have used their streamed gigs to raise much-needed funds for food banks and other relief agencies.

The National Theatre in London, England has been streaming recorded plays to cinemas around the world for over a decade. During the early days of the pandemic NT Live streamed a different play every week, free of charge (although donations were gratefully accepted). Book lovers like us could watch innovative and exciting theatrical adaptations of Frankenstein, Jane Eyre, Treasure Island and Small Island.

Thanks to modern technology that allows streaming I have seen more plays, films, author interviews and concerts than at any other point in my life. I want to encourage other people to seek out plays, book readings, music and dance online and to support those artists who have kept us entertained and sane for the past year. We owe them a huge debt.

 

The latest combined reading list from our group brims with literary goodness to suit every taste, wethinks. (In addition to our zoom meeting, we got to discuss some of these books during a brief, masked, physically distanced meet-up at our favourite local park.) The titles featured in each of our reports combine print and digital versions of books, along with audiobooks (which are indicated separately, with narrator/performer information where possible). (And yes, you’ll find the book that inspired thoughts about maintaining a “fine balance” on this list!)

Emily's books

Kath's books

Vicki's books

Vicki and Jake heading to the park

Anita at the park

Jo at the park

Sue R at the park

Book-related articles, recommendations and more came up during this meeting’s discussions and chat, including:

  • These Precious Days by Ann Patchett (Harper’s Magazine, January 2021) – Many in our silent book club group are Ann Patchett fans. This captivating non-fiction piece by Patchett will warm the hearts of those fans, and is guaranteed to win her new ones.
  • Another recent Ann Patchett piece highly recommended by several silent book club members is How to Practice in The New Yorker.
  • Spacing is one of the most unique magazines on Canadian newsstands. The magazine uncovers the joys, obstacles and politics of Canada’s big cities by cutting through the cynicism that often pervades any discussion about urban issues. Spacing pushes readers to think critically about how they can shape the public spaces that surround their everyday lives. Learn more about their publications and other initiatives here.

Our previous silent book club meeting reports (online and in-person incarnations) and book lists are here.

You can also check out links to articles, CBC Radio interviews and more here – some with San Francisco-based Silent Book Club founders Guinevere de La Mare and Laura Gluhanich, and some with us here in east end Toronto.

Learn more about silent book clubs via Guinevere and Laura’s Silent Book Club web site. You can find information on meetings happening around the world and close to where you live. Some clubs are currently on haitus, but many are running virtual meetings in different formats. Please feel free to contact me for more information about our club and its offerings.

Stay safe, stay well, keep reading!