Discussion Groups
Fiction Book Discussion Group
The Fiction Book Discussion Group meets one evening
each month from 7:30 to 9:00 p.m. Books are made available
a month before the discussion. Please email or
call the Readers’ Advisory Desk at (630) 960–1200.
July 1
Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
In this African-American classic, first published in 1937, Hurston relates the tale of light-skinned Janie Crawford, who returns to her hometown after a long absence and tells the story to her friend Pheoby of how she found herself through her three marriages.
August 5
Still Alice by Lisa Genova
Memory disturbances and disorientation prompt fifty-year-old Harvard psychology professor and renowned linguist Alice Howland to schedule a complete neurological assessment. After a diagnosis of early onset Alzheimer’s disease, Alice must break the news to long-time husband John, a Harvard biology professor and acclaimed scientist. Together, they must share the news with their three grown children and orchestrate a plan to navigate this life-altering journey.
September 2
Little Bee by Chris Cleave
How far would you be willing to go to save a stranger? From an orphaned refugee to a British journalist to a four-year-old boy, the characters in Cleave’s novel are all confronted with this question due to a nightmarish encounter with oil industry mercenaries on a beach in Nigeria. While some are disgusted to come to terms with their innate selfishness, a few find the compassion and strength to stand up to brutal injustice.
October 7
The Island by Victoria Hislop
A leper colony located on an island off the coast of Greece is the backdrop of this family saga that arcs from World War II to the present day. Alexis, the great-granddaughter of a woman banished to the island, has traveled to the area determined to learn more about her roots, which her own mother has kept secret from her.
November 4
Not My Daughter by Barbara Delinsky
Three teenage girls make a pregnancy pact prior to their senior year in high school. The girls find that their decision will have consequences not only on their lives, but on their families and community. The novel questions the bonds of friendship and family relationships with friendships tested on both the mother and daughter levels.
December 2
The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman
In this vibrant, offbeat debut, Rachman follows the private lives of the reporters and editors of an international English language newspaper based in Rome. Each chapter gives perspectives ranging from the obituary writer to the financial advisor as they struggle to keep their newspaper afloat in an era where print is giving way to the Internet age.
Nonfiction Book Discussion Series
The Nonfiction Book Discussion Series meets one evening
each month from 7:30 to 9:00 p.m. Books are made available
a month before the discussion. Please email or
call the Reference Desk at (630) 960–1200 for more information.
There are no Nonfiction Book Discussions in July and August.
September 13
Have a Little Faith: A True Story by Mitch Albom
Bestselling author Mitch Albom presents a story of two worlds that spans eight years. Albert Lewis, his old hometown rabbi, requests that Albom deliver his eulogy. As the two men meet many times over the years, Albom learns about the rabbi’s life and faith. Closer to his current home, Albom meets Henry Covington, a pastor to a poor Christian church. A former convict, Covington passionately ministers to the homeless and poor in a church without heat and with a hole in the roof. The author describes his journey of faith as he moves between these two different worlds.
October 4
True Compass: A Memoir by Edward M. Kennedy
History will place Edward Moore Kennedy at the forefront of the important issues of his time: health care, civil rights, immigration reform and educational entitlement. But the Liberal Lion of the Senate will also be remembered as the last child of Joseph P. Kennedy and part of a storied Boston political dynasty that dominated the American scene for three generations. His 2009 memoir divulges his relationship with his brothers, the triumphs and tragedies of his life in the headlights, and his personal philosophy to “try harder than anyone else.”
November 1
Bright-Sided: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Has Undermined America by Barbara Ehrenreich
Is the pervasive cultural attitude of optimism good for America or is it a way to brush off poverty, illness, and unemployment, to rationalize an order where all rewards go to those on top? With myth-busting analysis, Ehrenreich explores the downside of positive thinking which she
believes is at the root of America’s social and economic crises. At her provocative best, she pokes holes in what she considers a crippling habit of mind and makes an urgent call for a new commitment to realism.
December 6
Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell
The always-entertaining author of The Tipping Point brings us an investigation into the nature of successful people. To determine what makes great achievers a success, Gladwell looks for patterns in the lives of several individuals at the top of their field. He provides the reader an eye-opening examination of the “myth of the self-made man” and shows how the combination of chance and circumstance might be more important than you think.
GenLit Discussion Series
We're partnering with the Indian Prairie Public Library to offer a book discussion group for 20- to 40-somethings at 6:30 p.m. on the third Tuesday of each month. For more information, visit the group's Facebook page, or call Nicole or Lynette at the Readers' Adivsory Desk at (630) 960-1200.
Discussions take place at Nonnie’s, 1565 W. 75th St. Woodridge.
July 20
Stitches: A Memoir by David Small
In harsh gray tones and unforgiving imagery, David Small captures his childhood growing up with distant, unloving parents in 1950s Detroit. His father, a radiologist, often treated David’s minor ailments with x-rays that caused a small growth on his neck that his parents left untreated for years. Surgery revealed it to be cancer and David lost part of his vocal cord and, at first, his voice. The anger and hurt, even after many years, over these events prompts David to draw this painful story, sprinkled with moments of fantasy, as a means of catharsis and expression. Through art, his voice is strong. A graphic novel that will make you sad, but hopeful in the end.
Y The Last Man v.1: Unmanned by Brian K. Vaughn
First in a graphic novel series about a plague that destroys anyone with a Y chromosome, including all male humans and animals. Except for one man, Yorick, and his male pet monkey. As the last man on earth, Yorick travels in obscurity from New York to DC and faces many challenges not withstanding a group of so-called Amazons trying to erase patriarchy.
Aug. 17
The Tender Bar by J.R. Moehringer
Pulitzer prize winning writer for the Los Angeles Times J.R. Moehringer grew up with an absent father in Manhassett, New York. He finally turned to his Uncle Charlie and the bar where he worked as a place to seek male role models. This is a look at the camaraderie and culture of a local pub and the ordinary people who gave meaning and dignity to his life.
Sept. 21
A Long, Long Time Ago and Essentially True by Brigid Pasulka
Illinois author Pasulka begins her story with the old Polish fairy tale of Pigeon, who loved the village beauty Anielica, survived WW2, and moved his family to Krakow. The contemporary story line follows their granddaughter, a rather plain bar girl in Krakow, who after a tragedy uncovers family secrets and creates her own bright future.
Oct. 19
Half Broke Horses by Jeanette Walls
Based on the life of the author’s grandmother, Lily, a spirited woman who grew up in a dirt dugout in west Texas, became a teacher at 15, married twice, and sold liquor during prohibition.
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