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| Power Style Wellness Connections |
What Are They Reading?
By Elaine Rooker Jack • Photos by Joon Kim
Who they are and where they live: Mary Anne Baker (Louisville),
Carolyn Hauenstein (Elizabethtown), Sue Holt (Prospect), LaNell
Taylor (Lawrenceburg), Mary Thompson (Louisville), Gay
Stephens (Lexington), and Beverly Winsch (Louisville).
First meeting: Spring, 2000
How they got together: Mary, LaNell and Carolyn worked together in
Elizabethtown. Carolyn retired in 1999 and started the book club. They started
out as “a bunch of people in psychology,” both behavioral and clinical. Carolyn
jokes that in the early days they tried to get some non-psychology people to join,
but no one seemed interested. But that’s changing. Members who have joined
recently include Sue, a math instructor at UofL, and Gay, a counselor and speech
pathologist.
Their meetings: Every other month, on a Sunday afternoon,
for a meal. They started out with appetizers only but, since so many travel a long
distance, they need more sustenance. They exchange gifts at Christmas by
drawing names, and they bring birthday gifts to the meeting closest to a member’
s birthday.What they are reading this month: Mr. Timothy by Louis Bayard,
a novel based on the Dickens character Tiny Tim, taking place after the events
of A Christmas Carol.
What they thought of it:
“It was more like a Halloween book than a Christmas book.”
— Carolyn
Gay found it hard to get into the book at first, but “if you keep going, it’s going to
hook you.”
“I thought the writing was overdone. You couldn’t just read it, you had to stop
and read each sentence to make it make sense. The construction was odd.” —
Mary Anne
“It did seem like Dickens,” Carolyn said of the style of writing.
“I liked how he picked this little character who was not really developed and made
him whatever he wanted. It was witty. His father portrayed him as angelic, but he
said things like, “it sucked being crippled.” — Mary
“You get a really creepy feeling from reading it.” — Carolyn
“I couldn’t get into it. I started it, and I kind of liked the way it was written. But I didn’
t finish it.” — Beverly
“You had to give it a good 100 pages.”
— Gay
“I never reached the point where I had any trouble laying it down and going to
sleep.” — Sue
“It was a fun book for Christmas,” says Carolyn.
“But it is really creepy,” finishes Mary.Tonight’s meal: Wassail, soup, crabmeat or
asparagus quiche, Waldorf salad, Christmas pudding, mincemeat pie, eggnog ice
cream. And all this only two days after hostess Mary moved in to her new house.
English tradition: The members pull “crackers” to find paper hats, a toy, and a
couple of very silly jokes. The best one: “Why is an elephant large, grey and
wrinkly? Because if it were small, white and smooth it would be an aspirin.”
Their first book club book: Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood by Rebecca
Wells
Books they’ve loved:
• Geeks: How Two Lost Boys Rode the Internet Out of Idaho by Jon Katz
• An Hour Before Daylight: Memoirs of a Rural Boyhood by Jimmy Carter
• Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf
• The Far Pavilions by M. M. Kaye
• Remembering Kate, People Tribute (ed.)
• Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
• Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters’ First 100 Years by Sarah L. Delany, A.
Elizabeth Delany, and Amy Hill Hearth,
• Snow Falling on Cedars by David Guterson
• Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden
• The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
• Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
• The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
• Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right
by Al Franken
• Assassination Vacation by Sarah VowellBooks they were divided over: Naked
by David Sedaris, Murcheston: The Wolf’s Tale by David Holland, Life of Pi by
Yann Martel
Disturbing but important book: Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe. “I’d
rather read with other people if I find a book disturbing,” says Mary. “It gives me
the opportunity to process it.”
How they choose the next book: They rotate turns and either a member brings a
book and says “This is it,” or more often, she brings three or more choices and
lets the group decide.
“I love being the one to bring the books,”
says Carolyn.
“Oh, it makes me nervous,” says Gay.
“I’m already thinking, ‘Who can I ask for suggestions?’” says Sue.
Are you an avid reader? Are you in pursuit of the next great read? We're
introducing some exciting changes to this feature for 2008. We're calling it "What
is She Reading?" and we'd like to feature you! Contact Elaine at
elainejack@iamtodayswoman.com.
By Elaine Rooker Jack • Photos by Joon Kim
Who they are and where they live: Mary Anne Baker (Louisville),
Carolyn Hauenstein (Elizabethtown), Sue Holt (Prospect), LaNell
Taylor (Lawrenceburg), Mary Thompson (Louisville), Gay
Stephens (Lexington), and Beverly Winsch (Louisville).
First meeting: Spring, 2000
How they got together: Mary, LaNell and Carolyn worked together in
Elizabethtown. Carolyn retired in 1999 and started the book club. They started
out as “a bunch of people in psychology,” both behavioral and clinical. Carolyn
jokes that in the early days they tried to get some non-psychology people to join,
but no one seemed interested. But that’s changing. Members who have joined
recently include Sue, a math instructor at UofL, and Gay, a counselor and speech
pathologist.
Their meetings: Every other month, on a Sunday afternoon,
for a meal. They started out with appetizers only but, since so many travel a long
distance, they need more sustenance. They exchange gifts at Christmas by
drawing names, and they bring birthday gifts to the meeting closest to a member’
s birthday.What they are reading this month: Mr. Timothy by Louis Bayard,
a novel based on the Dickens character Tiny Tim, taking place after the events
of A Christmas Carol.
What they thought of it:
“It was more like a Halloween book than a Christmas book.”
— Carolyn
Gay found it hard to get into the book at first, but “if you keep going, it’s going to
hook you.”
“I thought the writing was overdone. You couldn’t just read it, you had to stop
and read each sentence to make it make sense. The construction was odd.” —
Mary Anne
“It did seem like Dickens,” Carolyn said of the style of writing.
“I liked how he picked this little character who was not really developed and made
him whatever he wanted. It was witty. His father portrayed him as angelic, but he
said things like, “it sucked being crippled.” — Mary
“You get a really creepy feeling from reading it.” — Carolyn
“I couldn’t get into it. I started it, and I kind of liked the way it was written. But I didn’
t finish it.” — Beverly
“You had to give it a good 100 pages.”
— Gay
“I never reached the point where I had any trouble laying it down and going to
sleep.” — Sue
“It was a fun book for Christmas,” says Carolyn.
“But it is really creepy,” finishes Mary.Tonight’s meal: Wassail, soup, crabmeat or
asparagus quiche, Waldorf salad, Christmas pudding, mincemeat pie, eggnog ice
cream. And all this only two days after hostess Mary moved in to her new house.
English tradition: The members pull “crackers” to find paper hats, a toy, and a
couple of very silly jokes. The best one: “Why is an elephant large, grey and
wrinkly? Because if it were small, white and smooth it would be an aspirin.”
Their first book club book: Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood by Rebecca
Wells
Books they’ve loved:
• Geeks: How Two Lost Boys Rode the Internet Out of Idaho by Jon Katz
• An Hour Before Daylight: Memoirs of a Rural Boyhood by Jimmy Carter
• Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf
• The Far Pavilions by M. M. Kaye
• Remembering Kate, People Tribute (ed.)
• Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
• Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters’ First 100 Years by Sarah L. Delany, A.
Elizabeth Delany, and Amy Hill Hearth,
• Snow Falling on Cedars by David Guterson
• Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden
• The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
• Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
• The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
• Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right
by Al Franken
• Assassination Vacation by Sarah VowellBooks they were divided over: Naked
by David Sedaris, Murcheston: The Wolf’s Tale by David Holland, Life of Pi by
Yann Martel
Disturbing but important book: Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe. “I’d
rather read with other people if I find a book disturbing,” says Mary. “It gives me
the opportunity to process it.”
How they choose the next book: They rotate turns and either a member brings a
book and says “This is it,” or more often, she brings three or more choices and
lets the group decide.
“I love being the one to bring the books,”
says Carolyn.
“Oh, it makes me nervous,” says Gay.
“I’m already thinking, ‘Who can I ask for suggestions?’” says Sue.
Are you an avid reader? Are you in pursuit of the next great read? We're
introducing some exciting changes to this feature for 2008. We're calling it "What
is She Reading?" and we'd like to feature you! Contact Elaine at
elainejack@iamtodayswoman.com.