June potluck

Two weeks ago my book club met for our annual June potluck dinner and summer reading suggestions evening. As usual we ate very well- lots of delicious food. We have a couple of new members (one of our members moved to VA).

We had read Best to Laugh by Lorna Landvik. I think overall it was fairly well received and met the criteria we established in May which was something light, humorous, and not terribly long. I don't think it is one of Landvik's better books but it was enjoyable. What I found interesting was the journey of becoming a standup comic. I had recently taken my mom to her 75th college reunion in Maine and the Saturday night entertainment was a woman comic. Having read the book I could relate to the comic's presentation because of the timeline of the book. The discussion was not very lengthy which is what usually happens when we have a potluck. Oh well. I did manage to put together a short list of summer reading ideas. I finished Pachinko which I really enjoyed. Set in Korea as it was being colonized by Japan, it follows a family through several generations.

I found it very interesting as my knowledge of Korean history and its relationship with Japan is limited to say the least. After finishing that I read The Accusation, smuggled out from North Korea, written by Bandi who is residing in North Korea.This group of short stories is fictionalized from actual events in North Korea. Disturbing and interesting.

My current read is The Amazing Story of the Man Who Cycled from India to Europe for Love, a true story. Enjoying it so far.

So that is it for now. Looking forward to lots of summer reading.