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 Welcome to the Catholic Center Book Club
Look below for book recommendations from your co-workers and share your recommendations with others. Looking for a particular book? We can post an announcement here for you! Recommendation from Pete Ueberroth
Following is a book I read recently that I’d recommend:
Blasphemy by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child (fiction)
I would describe this as a combo “light” science fiction/thriller novel. The U.S. has built a $40 billion super-collider in Navajo territory in desert of Arizona. A fundamentalist televangelist hears that this super-collider is intended to prove that God doesn’t exist. The 12 scientists working on the project have it up and running but are experiencing a severe glitch that they characterize as a super-hack, but is it? Their discovery and the religious fanatics crying “Blasphemy!” pose some interesting conflicts. The “hero” of the novel is a devout Catholic who is Ex-CIA and ex-monk. This novel reads fast, the characters are intriguing, especially the religious fanatics, the ex-CIA spy and the chief scientist. This book is available from the library. Recommendation from Kathy Sarver
Walking in a Relaxed Manner by Joyce Rupp
It is a true account of how Joyce and a friend walked the En Camino in Spain, the joys as well as the trials and tribulations. (The En Camino is a pilgrimage that many walk. It takes much preparation both physically and mentally.) This is a fast and easy read with great depth. Recommendation from Cathy Darmofal
I recently finished “A Thousand Splendid Suns”. I almost quit after about 100 pages and it was really something but I picked it back up and finished it. Quite powerful and a difficult read in parts but it sticks with you.
I also just recently finished “Water For Elephants.” That sounded like it was going to be better than it was. It started out really interesting and ended interestingly but I thought they could have done more with the middle part and gone into more depth in parts and taken a different angle/perspective. It is about circus life in the depression. Both of these I got from the library and do not own. Recommendation from Sr. Nancy
I would like to recommend two books by Thrity Umrigar. She is originally from Bombay and currently lives in Cleveland. She also teaches at Case Western Reserve.
The Space Between Us takes place in Bombay and is the story of two women, Sera who is from the upper class and Bhima who works for Sera. From the outside it appears there is a great space between their lives. Class colors everything but in the end life’s ups and downs are found in both of their lives. Once I got into it was very difficult to put it down. The second book is If Today Be Sweet. This is the story of an Indian woman, recently widowed who comes to visit her son in Cleveland for six months. He is married to an American woman and they have one son. Tehmina, the mother, has to choose between returning to India or moving in with her son. The clash of cultures plays into the story. Both of these books were borrowed from the public library Recommendation from Sr. Joyce
LIGHT ON SNOW
Anita Shreve
Little, Brown and Company
Fiction
ISBN: 0316010677
The book is a story of a father and daughter who find a newborn infant while snowshoing near their house in New Hampshire. The story unfolds though the eyes and mind of the twelve-year old, herself now motherless, and the balance between the facts and her fantasies keep the reader thoroughly captivated. Shreve's character depictions are masterful and make the story feel very immediate.
AVAILABLE BOOK FROM FATIMA MARTINEZ
I can loan my book A Thousand Splendid Suns, for someone who wants to read it. (Check out her review below!) Recommendation from Sr. Nancy
I am currently reading Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin. It is the real life story of Greg Mortenson. Greg suffered severe health problems while trying to climb K2 in Pakistan. He is nursed back to health by people in the village of Korphe. There he saw the lack of a school building for the children. He promises to return and build the village a school which he does. This starts him on an adventure to build many more schools in the impoverished villages of Pakistan. One person can make a difference. I am two-thirds through the book. It is a great read that has inspired me. I am using a book from the public library. Recommendation from Cathy Darmofal
I just finished reading the other day The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid by Bill Bryson for my Monday night book group at the library. It was very good. It is about life in the 1950’s and not having grown up then, it was interesting to read about what it was like then. Even if you didn’t live then, which I didn’t, it is very readable and interesting and you can relate things from your own growing up decade to that one. I got it from the library. From Cheryl Schroeder
I’ve just started Water For Elephants – The first few pages truly captured my interest. I’ll let you know how it goes. Recommendation from Fatima Martinez
There are two book that I read recently and both are good. One of them I own and the other one I borrowed from the Toledo Public Library.
A Thousand Splendid Suns (Which I own)
A story of two Afghan women, Mariam and Laila who are brought together through tragedy in each of their lives, and must face the torment of Rasheed who marries them both.
The Kite Runner both are from author Khaled Hosseini.
Is the story of an illiterate Afghan boy with an uncanny instinct for predicting exactly where a downed kite will land. Recommendation from Sally Oberski:
 I just finished reading Run by Ann Patchett.
It's a fictional story that intertwines the lives of a widower and his family, that includes two adopted African American boys. The story takes an ironic twist after one of the boys is nearly hit by a car - saved by a black woman who pushes him out of the way. Not to spoil the story, I'll leave it at that. I highly recommend the book, it's a fast read, and is available at the library.
The book was also reviewed in the Blade on Sunday, January 6 on their Books page. Booklist from the Way Library Book Club per Cathy Darmofal: Monday Evening Book Discussion Group Thursday Evening Book Discussion Group |
