Saturday, December 7, 2013

january book

We've chosen a slender volume for December reading, Complicity by Iain Banks.



COMPLICITY n. 1. the fact of being an accomplice, esp. in a criminal act 
Local journalist Cameron Colley writes articles that are idealistic, from the viewpoint of the underdog. A twisted serial killer seems to have the same MO -- he commits brutal murders on behalf of the underdog. As the two stories begin to merge, Cameron finds himself inextricably and inexplicably implicated by the killer. 
When the arms dealer whom Cameron plans to expose is found literally "disarmed" before Cameron can even put pen to paper and the brewery chief, loathed by Cameron, who sold out at the expense of his workers finds himself permanently unemployable, the police become convinced of Cameron's guilt, as do half his friends and colleagues, forcing Cameron to employ all his investigative skills to find the real killer and his motive.

Monday, November 11, 2013

december book

Next month's book pick is The Love of a Good Woman by Alice Munro.
Read the whole book, read a few of the stories, join us for drinks and stimulating conversation on Tuesday, December 3rd.



Alice Munro has a genius for entering the lives of ordinary people and capturing the passions and contradictions that lie just below the surface. In this brilliant new collection she takes mainly the lives of women - unruly, ungovernable, unpredictable, unexpected, funny, sexy and completely recognisable - and brings their hidden desires bubbling to the surface. The love of a good woman is not as pure and virtuous as it seems: as in her title story it can be needy and murderous. Here are women behaving badly, leaving husbands and children, running off with unstuitable lovers, pushing everyday life to the limits, and if they don't behave badly, they think surprising and disturbing thoughts.

Wednesday, October 2, 2013

november book

Next month's book will be The Dante Club: A Novel by Matthew Pearl
See you on Tuesday, November 5, 7:00 pm, Railway Club. 
Be there.

18402

Boston, 1865. A series of murders, all of them inspired by scenes in Dante’s Inferno. Only an elite group of America’s first Dante scholars—Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Oliver Wendell Holmes, James Russell Lowell, and J. T. Fields—can solve the mystery. With the police baffled, more lives endangered, and Dante’s literary future at stake, the Dante Club must shed its sheltered literary existence and find the killer.

Monday, September 30, 2013

Is the book dead?

Is anyone out there?
Is there any interest in keeping this thing going?
Does anyone still read?

John and I will be at the Railway club tomorrow evening, having a beverage, trading quinoa recipes and discussing politics and Miley Cyrus.
Join us! We may even choose a book to read next month.

Friday, July 19, 2013

september book

Next month's book will be The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce



Recently retired, sweet, emotionally numb Harold Fry is jolted out of his passivity by a letter from Queenie Hennessy, an old friend, who he hasn't heard from in twenty years. She has written to say she is in hospice and wanted to say goodbye. Leaving his tense, bitter wife Maureen to her chores, Harold intends a quick walk to the corner mailbox to post his reply but instead, inspired by a chance encounter, he becomes convinced he must deliver his message in person to Queenie--who is 600 miles away--because as long as he keeps walking, Harold believes that Queenie will not die. So without hiking boots, rain gear, map or cell phone, one of the most endearing characters in current fiction begins his unlikely pilgrimage across the English countryside. Along the way, strangers stir up memories--flashbacks, often painful, from when his marriage was filled with promise and then not, of his inadequacy as a father, and of his shortcomings as a husband. Ironically, his wife Maureen, shocked by her husband's sudden absence, begins to long for his presence. Is it possible for Harold and Maureen to bridge the distance between them? And will Queenie be alive to see Harold arrive at her door?

Wednesday, June 5, 2013

some suggestions for august

Two of our members made have already made suggestions for our August read:

Christina suggested the new Colum McCann book, Transatlantic.

http://www.amazon.ca/Transatlantic-ebook/dp/B00BATWLSY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1370471866&sr=8-1&keywords=transatlantic


Sarah suggested Dear Life by Alice Munroe

http://www.amazon.ca/Dear-Life-Stories-ebook/dp/B008ADUHKW/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1370471902&sr=1-1&keywords=dear+life

july book

Next month's book will be The Reader by Bernhard Schlink



Hailed for its coiled eroticism and the moral claims it makes upon the reader, this mesmerizing novel is a story of love and secrets, horror and compassion, unfolding against the haunted landscape of postwar Germany.

When he falls ill on his way home from school, fifteen-year-old Michael Berg is rescued by Hanna, a woman twice his age. In time she becomes his lover—then she inexplicably disappears. When Michael next sees her, he is a young law student, and she is on trial for a hideous crime. As he watches her refuse to defend her innocence, Michael gradually realizes that Hanna may be guarding a secret she considers more shameful than murder.

Sunday, June 2, 2013

June 4 meeting

Not sure what is happening, our erstwhile leader James seems to be AWOL.
Lets meet and discuss whatever we have been reading, have a cold beverage, and plan a course of action for July. 

Monday, April 8, 2013

may book


Next month's book will be The Bartender: Darkness on the Edge of Town by Axel Matfin *The Author will be in attendance!*

PLEASE NOTE: The May meeting will take place on MONDAY, May 6th 7:00pm


Action, Adventure, Intrigue! Mercenary bartender Tom Wolfe thought he was out of the game. Then a package lands in his lap that's more than he bargained for. Inside; a loaded handgun and a note telling him to watch his back. Will he find out who his secret admirer is? Down there, down in THE DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN.

Wednesday, March 6, 2013

april book

next month's book will be Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel

It's a big one! Get started on it soon.




England in the 1520s is a heartbeat from disaster. If the king dies without a male heir, the country could be destroyed by civil war. Henry VIII wants to annul his marriage of twenty years, and marry Anne Boleyn. The pope and most of Europe oppose him. The quest for the king''s freedom destroys his adviser, the brilliant Cardinal Wolsey, and leaves a power vacuum and a deadlock.
Into this impasse steps Thomas Cromwell. The son of a brutal blacksmith, a political genius, a briber, a bully and a charmer, Cromwell has broken all the rules of a rigid society in his rise to power, and is preparing to break some more. Rising from personal disaster - the loss of his young family and of Wolsey, his beloved patron - he picks his way deftly through a court where -man is wolf to man.'' Pitting himself against parliament, the political establishment and the papacy, he is prepared to reshape England to his own and Henry''s desires.
In inimitable style, Hilary Mantel presents a picture of a half-made society on the cusp of change, where individuals fight or embrace their fate with passion and courage. With a vast array of characters, overflowing with incident, Wolf Hall re-creates an era when the personal and political are separated by a hairbreadth, where success brings unlimited power but a single failure means death.

Monday, February 11, 2013

march book

next month's book will be Great Apes by Will Self
















Like Franz Kafka's Metamorphosis, Great Apes is a strange and twisted tale, a surreal satire on the human condition, and an omen for those who wander too far. After a long night of partying, Simon Dykes, a successful British painter, wakes up to find that his girlfriend has turned into a chimpanzee. In fact, the world Simon once knew has become a planet of apes. Convinced he is still human, Simon is confined to the emergency ward of a hospital and put under the care of Dr. Zack Busner, clinical psychologist, radical psychoanalyst, maverick drug researcher, and media personality. Written with the glittering satiric edge that is Self's hallmark, Great Apes is a hilarious, disturbing, and truly unforgettable novel.

Friday, February 1, 2013

suggestions for february book?

Please post any suggestion for our February read in the comments, OR bring the book to our next meeting, Tuesday, February 5th, 7:00pm
See you soon!

Wednesday, January 9, 2013

february book

Next months book will be The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery.

Renee is the concierge of a grand Parisian apartment building, home to members of the great and the good. Over the years she has maintained her carefully constructed persona as someone reliable but totally uncultivated, in keeping, she feels, with society's expectations of what a concierge should be. But beneath this facade lies the real Renee: passionate about culture and the arts, and more knowledgeable in many ways than her employers with their outwardly successful but emotionally void lives. Down in her lodge, apart from weekly visits by her one friend Manuela, Renee lives resigned to her lonely lot with only her cat for company. Meanwhile, several floors up, twelve-year-old Paloma Josse is determined to avoid the pampered and vacuous future laid out for her, and decides to end her life on her thirteenth birthday. But unknown to them both, the sudden death of one of their privileged neighbours will dramatically alter their lives forever. By turn moving and hilarious, this unusual novel became the top-selling book in France in 2007 with sales of over 900,000 copies to-date.

january wrap up

This month's book, Jennifer Egan's A Visit from the Goon Squad was a hit!
Eight out of nine attendees gave it an enthusiastic thumbs up. If you read the book, but were unable to attend, please feel free to leave your impressions in the comments area.

Friday, January 4, 2013

powerpoint chapter in colour...with music!

Take a few minutes to enjoy the "powerpoint chapter" of Jennifer Egan's A Visit from the Goon Squad in full colour, and with relevant musical content included.
Hear the Great Rock and Roll Pauses for yourself!

http://jenniferegan.com/books

suggestions for our next book?

Please post any suggestion for our next read in the comments, OR bring the book to our next meeting, Tuesday, January 8th, 7:00pm

2012 books ranked or David Mitchell we love you


#1 Ghostwritten
David Mitchell

#2 (tie) Solar
Ian McEwan

#2 (tie) New York Trilogy
Paul Auster

#3 Sisters Brothers
Patrick deWitt

#4 England,England
Julian Barnes

#5 Just Kids
Patti Smith

#6 (TIE) Exit Ghost
Philip Roth

#6 (TIE) Bonfire of the Vanities
Tom Wolfe

#7 (tie) Brain That Changes Itself
Norman Doidge MD

#7 (tie) Swamplandia
Karen Russell

#7 (tie) Real Cool Killers
Colum McCann

#7 (tie) In Patagonia
Bruce Chatwin

In 2011 we voted David Mitchell's The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet our number one pick

new blog for 2013!

Welcome to the NEW railway club book club blog. RCBCB for short.
Please note new address, bookmark this site and check often for updates.
Your participation is needed: use the comments area to make book suggestions, or send me an email if you'd like me to post anything pertinent to the book we're reading or have any other book related info to share.