BuzzSugar

Book Club: What Did You Think of Water For Elephants?

BuzzSugar — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 08:00:00 PDT

Well, that's a wrap on my first book club book of the Summer, Water for Elephants. A light but engaging read, the novel following a young man who joins the circus in the 1930s proved to be a great story, leaving plenty to be discussed. I particularly loved older Jacob's happy ending (though I would have liked to hear more about his life with Marlena). I was also pretty shocked to learn that it's Rosie, and not Marlena, who lays the fatal blow into August's head. (It should be particularly interesting to see how this scene plays out on the big screen.)

So what are your final thoughts? Who was your favorite character? (I admittedly developed a soft spot for Walter and Queenie.) Were you surprised at the way it ended? Did you like that Jacob runs away from the nursing home or do you think the suggestion is too far-fetched, not to mention dangerous? I want to hear all of your reactions, complaints, and cheers!

Summer Book Club: Water for Elephants, Part 3

BuzzSugar — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 08:30:00 PDT

We're chugging right along with Water for Elephants, and chapters 11-15 had plenty of action. Camel finds himself in dire straits, Jacob finally musters the courage to kiss Marlena, and the circus loses one of its performers. I hope you're all ready to chat, because I know I am - and don't forget that you can always start your own discussions in my book club community group! Here are a few talking points:

Jacob feels guilty after the night with Barbara and goes to the church seeking absolution. Why do you think he acts so ashamed?
Jacob doesn't seem to be as afraid of August as the rest of the performers - he kisses Marlena even though he knows its wrong and talks back to August. Why do you think that is?
How have Jacob's relationships (particularly with Walter, August, and Camel) changed since the beginning of the book?
What's your favorite part of the book so far? What are the biggest questions on your mind?

Share your own thoughts and questions, and let's go ahead and finish the book for next week's discussion!

Book Club: Let's Talk About Water For Elephants, Part Deux

BuzzSugar — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 07:30:00 PDT

Well kids, we're almost halfway through Sara Gruen's Water for Elephants, and I'm totally hooked. In fact, I'm having a hard time avoiding all of the photos from the movie set and sadly have already seen a few spoilers. Anyway, in the second installment of my Summer Book Club, the plot thickens as Jacob and Marlena grow closer, Jacob undergoes a few "initiation rites," and we finally meet Rosie the elephant. Here are a few thoughts and talking points:

Many of you said last week that you feel that Jacob loves Marlena more than she loves him. We still haven't gotten to any real love scenes yet, but it's clear that Jacob has feelings for her. Since Marlena is taking Jacob under her wing, do you think a bit of Jacob's feelings could be a reaction to losing his own mother?
Marlena says the best thing to do is to ignore August's "bad spells." It seems like he might be an alcoholic or have anger management issues - any other guesses to his problem?
Jacob is still very naive (as we see in his hilarious incident with Barbara), but he's already growing bolder in the way he talks to August and defends the animals in the circus.
When Jacob is comforting Marlena, he says his experience with comforting women is limited. Do you think he feels more comfortable with animals than humans?
Did anyone else notice a parallel in the way older Jacob feels trapped in the nursing home and how the circus animals are treated by August and Uncle Al?
August says "The whole thing's illusion Jacob and there's nothing wrong with that." What examples of this have we already seen?

Share your thoughts below or start your own topic threads in my community group! And don't forget to read chapters 11 through 15 for next week's discussion!

What Are Your Thoughts on Water For Elephants, Part 1?

BuzzSugar — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 09:30:00 PDT

Hopefully by now you've started reading Water For Elephants, because it's time to start discussing! The chapters absolutely flew by for me and I was instantly absorbed in the dichotomy of Jacob's past and present lives. I want to hear all of your initial thoughts, so here are a few talking points to get the ball rolling:

Jacob's recount of his younger years with the circus are obviously the focal point of the novel, but I'm finding his time in the nursing home to be equally engaging (not to mention heartbreaking). Which story are you enjoying more?
It's a bit jarring to find out that Marlena kills August in the prologue. Do you feel like the climax of the novel is already spoiled? Do you think she kills August out of love for Jacob?
Whenever a film adaptation of a novel is announced, I inevitably start picturing the actors as the characters. Though Jacob is described as a redhead, I'm already seeing Pattinson in the role - what about you?
So far we're getting a look at the nitty gritty behind-the-scenes drama of the circus, but it still feels a lot like a fairy tale to me. Do you think the cartoonish characters are meant to be a product of Jacob's memory or Sara Gruen's story telling?

Share your thoughts below or start your own topic threads in my community group! And don't forget to read chapters six through 10 for next week's discussion!

Summer Book Club: Water For Elephants, Part 1

BuzzSugar — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 07:30:36 PDT

Last week I revealed my very first Summer book club book, and hopefully by now most of you have either bought, borrowed, or downloaded a copy of Sara Gruen's Water for Elephants. I can't wait to start discussing Jacob Jankowski's trip down memory lane to his days working for the circus. To kick us off, let's all spend week one reading chapters 1-5 of the novel. I'm here to be your guide, but I really want to hear your input, so as you read, be sure to post your talking in my community group so we can keep the forum open and ongoing. Then, next week I'll round up my thoughts and yours so we can continue to dissect and chat about the first portion of the book before moving on. Sounds easy enough, right? Now get reading!

Tell Me the Book You Most Want to Read This Summer!

BuzzSugar — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 07:30:00 PDT

I'm already celebrating Summer with the movies in my Netflix Challenge, but I also have a hankering for something literary to bide my time. With so many adaptations in the works, there are plenty of reads to pick from - so much so that I've decided to start up my book club yet again. And I'd love for you to join me!

Starting next week, I'll be cracking open a brand-new book, but I don't want this to just be one of my choosing - I'd like for you to weigh in on which story you'd like to read first, too. Whichever gets the most votes will be declared the official winner (democracy at its finest, people). If you need a refresher on what they're all about, click here; then check back, as the book club gets going!

Buzz Book Club: The End of Everything I Needed to Know About Being a Girl I Learned From Judy Blume

BuzzSugar — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 14:30:27 PDT

Welcome back, Buzz Book Club readers! We've reached the end of Everything I Needed to Know About Being a Girl I Learned From Judy Blume. This section contained some of my favorite essays of the entire book, and I'm excited to chat about them with you after the jump.

But more about that in a second. First, for those of you new to my book club format, here's how it works: every week I'll suggest chapters to complete by the next post (which, in this case, have gone up every Friday in July). In these weekly posts, I'll posit a few discussion-provoking questions for you to respond to in the comments section.

Of course, you are always welcome to read beyond the weekly chapters, but please don't spoil anything in the comments! After the jump, you'll find some questions that struck me as I read this section.

Now, to discuss the end of the book, in which we read from "The Wienie Girl's Guide to Making Friends" to the end, just

The Sally J. Freedman lover in me was thrilled to read "Brave New Kid." I love the way author Diana Peterfreund tapped into exactly the thing that made me love Sally: she wanted to be an adventurous, questioning kid, and that was also my main goal at that age. Thinking about the book characters (not necessarily Blume's) that you've loved over the years, can you identify why you loved your favorites?
I'm not an oldest kid, but "Superfudged" still cracked me up. Are any of you oldest siblings, and did you see yourself (or your siblings) in the Fudge books?
The details in "Are You There, Margaret?" were great - like the E-S-P on the front of the author's t-shirt and the R-I-T on the back. If you were writing one of these stories about your own childhood/teenagehood, what details would you use about your attire, music choices, etc.?
Now that the book is over, did you have a favorite essay? A least favorite? One that surprised you?
Can you think of other influential authors who deserve this kind of anthology tribute?

Buzz Book Club: Everything I Needed to Know About Being a Girl I Learned From Judy Blume, Section Three

BuzzSugar — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 08:30:06 PDT

Welcome back, Buzz Book Club readers! This week's section of Everything I Needed to Know About Being a Girl I Learned From Judy Blume really brought back memories as the authors reflected on a wide range of Judy Blume novels, from It's Not the End of the World to Tiger Eyes.

But more about that in a second. First, for those of you new to my book club format, here's how it works: Every week I'll suggest chapters to complete by the next post (which, in this case, will go up every Friday in July). In these weekly posts, I'll posit a few discussion-provoking questions for you to respond to in the comments section.

The next assignment: Finish the book! We'll discuss this section next Friday, July 31.

Now, to discuss the third section, in which we read from "It Wasn't the End of the World" through "The Mother of All Balancing Acts," just

Reading "It Wasn't The End of the World" got me thinking about characters we latch onto at different stages of our lives. When you pick up a book, do you look for characters with whom you can identify? Or do you look for an escape to a different world? And has that changed since you were younger?
After all the Deenie love earlier in the book, "Freaks, Geeks, and Adolescent Revenge Fantasies" sure put a different spin on things. Have you ever read a book where terrible things happen to the main character and you thought, "Ha! That's what you deserve!" If you read Deenie, did you identify more with Deenie herself or with the characters like "the Creeping Crud"?
I think my favorite part of "Guilty's House" was actually the line in Jennifer Coburn's bio about what her mom told her when someone called her "weird": "Weird was simply a word used by boring people to describe interesting ones." That's a piece of wisdom that would be right at home in one of Judy Blume's books! Have you noticed any other lines like that?
Man, I wish I had the Judy Blume diary as described in "A Different Kind of Diary." That story also touched on one of my worst fears as a kid: having my diary found and read aloud! Diaries were actually a big theme in this section, as Beth Kendrick's hilarious entry about her mom shows up in "The Mother of All Balancing Acts." If you kept a diary as a kid, can you still remember what it looked like? Have you ever reread it?
Have any of the essays encouraged you to seek out other writing from these authors? Do you think any of them have Judy Blume potential?

Buzz Book Club: Everything I Needed to Know About Being a Girl I Learned From Judy Blume, Section Two

BuzzSugar — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 08:30:17 PDT

Welcome back, Buzz Book Club readers! This month, we're focusing on how one of the iconic authors of my youth affected tons of women writers by reading the essay collection Everything I Needed to Know About Being a Girl I Learned From Judy Blume. This week, we read another group of essays by writers who had some very different thoughts on how Blume's writing affected their lives.

But I'll get to that in a second. First, for those of you new to my book club format, here's how it works: Every week I'll suggest chapters to complete by the next post (which, in this case, will go up every Friday in July). In these weekly posts, I'll posit a few discussion-provoking questions for you to respond to in the comments section.

The next assignment: Read from "It Wasn't the End of the World" through "The Mother of All Balancing Acts." (Stop before "The Weenie Girl's Guide to Making Friends.") We'll discuss this section a week from today, July 24.

Now, to discuss the second section, in which we read through "Vitamin K, Judy Blume, and the Great Big Bruise," just

I'm amazed how many of these writers have specific memories of the way Blume talked about sexuality and even masturbation. I don't remember Judy Blume's books being that dirty, but at least one of you said you remember being kind of uncomfortable with her sexual themes. Do you remember noticing that at the time you read Blume? Or were you oblivious?
On a related note, do you think Judy Blume fans fall into "Sunday Cartoon Camp" and "After-School Special Camp," as Stacey Ballis suggests? And which were you?
Another thing that's surprised me is how many of the writers mention Deenie! That book has come up in nearly every essay. I can't say it was ever my favorite, but looking back, it probably makes sense that it had such a deep effect on people: it deals a lot with themes of appearance, self-confidence, and identity that are often significant to teen and preteen girls. Were you a Deenie fan?
I really enjoyed "Forever . . . Again" and the way the author discussed her rediscovery of Forever. . . as an adult. Would you ever turn to a favorite old book - especially a young adult book - for help with an adult problem? Do you ever reread books you loved as a teenager or preteen?
At this point, I think I prefer the essays that don't talk about the author's own writing to the ones that do. Do you think it's odd when the writers talk about their own work? Or, since Blume inspired many of them to write in the first place, do you think it's perfectly appropriate?

Buzz Book Club: Everything I Needed to Know About Being a Girl I Learned from Judy Blume, Section One

BuzzSugar — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 08:30:23 PDT

Welcome back, Buzz Book Club readers! This month, we're focusing on how one of the iconic authors of my youth affected tons of women writers by reading the essay collection Everything I Needed to Know About Being a Girl I Learned from Judy Blume. So far, I've been impressed with just how many of the writers had similar experiences reading and learning from Blume's books - but I'll get to that in a second.

First, for those of you new to my book club format, here's how it works: Every week I'll suggest chapters to complete by the next post (which, in this case, will go up every Friday in July). In these weekly posts, I'll posit a few discussion-provoking questions for you to respond to in the comments section.

The next assignment: Read from "Cry, Linda, Cry" through "Vitamin K, Judy Blume, and the Great Big Bruise." (Stop before "It Wasn't the End of the World.") We'll discuss this section a week from today, July 17.

Now, to discuss the first section, in which we read through "A Long Time Ago, We Used to Be Friends," just

Did Forever. . . have the kind of mystique for you that Megan McCafferty describes in the book's opening essay? Or was there another Judy Blume book that did? I remember thinking the period scenes of Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret held some kind of secret, revelatory knowledge - but Forever was deemed "the one about sex" and I don't think I ever actually got my hands on a copy!
What do you think of Jennifer O'Connell's definition of a "Judy Blume moment"? Do you have any "Judy Blume moments" of your own? I know I'm still terrified of Man o' Wars because of Starring Sally J. Freedman As Herself.
Do you think the characters in the Judy Blume books you read were "regular girls," as Stephanie Lessing suggests? Or did they strike you as unrealistic?
What do you think of the characterization of female friendships in "A Long Time Ago, We Used to Be Friends"? I thought the author captured well the feeling of growing apart from a formerly close friend without even noticing until the break is permanent. At the same time, I think female friends can be a lot more than companions who "travel down the road with [us] as [we] either seek out or wait for The One."
Is there a particular favorite Judy Blume book of yours that's already come up in an essay? Is there one you hope comes up later?