The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro (Copper Hen)

One of our best nights ever: high marks for both book and restaurant.  Plus lots of conversation about politics and the harassment issue that has been dominating the news.  The only grumbling about the book, which everyone agreed was a well-written masterpiece, was that the character of the butler seemed more of a caricature than a real person.

The next book is Sam Shepard's Cruising Paradise.  Other suggestions were J. D. Salinger's 9 Stories and Matthew Desmond's Evicted.  We will meet on January 24; Paul will suggest the next book.

Other books we have been reading: Alistair MacLeod, Island; Amy Goldstein, Janesville: An American Story; John Le Carre, The Pigeon Tunnel; Nicholas Stargardt, The German War; Jeannette Walls, The Glass Castle; Daniel Mendelsohn, An Odyssey: A Father, a Son, and an Epic.

Silent Nights of the Shadow Catcher by Timothy Egan (The Local)

This meeting marks the 20th anniversary of our book club.  We started the evening with a short visit to the Minneapolis Club which has a collection of photographs by Edward S. Curtis, the subject of this month's book.  Then we made our way to The Local, an Irish Pub which serves fish and chips, chicken pot pie, roast beef, and other comfort food.

The book by Timothy Egan was very popular.  Most of us knew something of Curtis' work, but we found the nuances of his career interesting and inspirational.  Tragically, in the end he lost control over his own work and lived in semi-poverty for two decades.

The next book for us is Nobel-winning Kazuo Ishiguro's The Remains of the Day.  Other titles considered were Trevor Noah's Born a Crime and Stefan Zweig's The World of Yesterday.  We'll meet on December 20 and Paul suggests the next book.

A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah (Tavern on Grand)

The Tavern on Grand proved to be a fairly accommodating venue.  The food is not haute cuisine, but tasty and affordable (everybody ordered walleye).  Service was good and another book club was seated nearby.

The book was mostly popular although it was a grim story of war (young African and his pals are swept up in the lethal action) and unfolded in a predictable scenario.  Surprisingly, we didn't have much to say about it, so many other conversation topics dominated the evening (the eclipse, travel, knee surgery, local politics, etc.).

The next book is Timothy Egan's Short Nights of the Shadow Catcher, a life of photographer Edward Curtis.  Other books considered: Dan Ephron's Killing a King, Jonathan Schell's Time of Illusion, and Tom Vanderbilt's Traffic.  Our next meeting is November 2 and Roger will suggest the next book.

Desolation Island by Patrick O'Brian (Tullibee)

The restaurant is a fairly new place inside the Hewing Hotel in Minneapolis' North Loop.  It's a chic place with an attractive menu.  Service was fairly good but the prices very high.  We sauntered through a thicket of conversational topics, including state and national politics and golf before getting to the book.  Most of us were happy with it, but wished it came with annotations that explained the many obscure nautical terms.  The swashbuckling action was nicely leavened by the below-deck touches of civilized discourse and music making.

Our next book is Ishmael Beah, A Long Way Gone.  Others considered were Madeline Albright, Prague Winter, and J. D. Vance, Hillbilly Elegy.  Jim will suggest the following title; we plan to meet on October 2.

One recommended book, outside the bookclub, is Tom Ricks' double biography, Churchill and Orwell.

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot (Lexington)

One of the most sought after reservations in town is at the "new" Lexington restaurant.  We gathered with high expectations, and indeed the food was mostly very good and reasonably priced.  But the service was very slow (mostly because of the kitchen not the waitstaff) and the noise level kept the conversation pretty fragmented.  The book got a mixed reception.  Some rated it high because of its blend of science, research ethics, and human interest while others found it choppy and repetitive.

The next book is Patrick O'Brien, Desolation Island and we'll meet on July 31.  Other titles suggested were Ivan Doig, Dancing at the Rascal Fair and Larry McMurty, Horseman, Pass By.  Max suggests the following book.

A book one member enjoyed reading (outside of the book club): Bill Bryson, Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid.

The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen (Tiny Diner)

Offbeat, eclectic, and full of families, Tiny Diner was a nice break from our usual fine dining venues.  There were only five of us and there was a little conversational catching up to do since two of our group had recently returned from winter sojourns in the southwest.  The book got mixed reviews: some liked the unique perspective and literary style of the author while others thought it was jumpy and hard to follow.  The book's narrator traces his mixed allegiances and actions following the fall of Saigon in Vietnam, Southern California, and Philippines.

The next book is The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot.  Other books recommended were Richard Russo's Nobody's Fool and Neither Wolf Nor Dog by Kent Nerburn.  We'll meet on Wednesday, June 28.  Bill will suggest the following book, Max is on deck.

Some other books recently read by members of the group: William Shirer, Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, Louise Erdrich, La Rose, David Grann, Lost City of Z, and Arlie Hochschild, Strangers in Their Own Land.

Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather (Rinata)

This was our second visit to Rinata and it ranked a little lower than last time, close to our overall average (fun fact: they get their wild boar from Texas).  Two of our compatriots were missing in action, actually out of state, but we had a lively conversation about politics, the governor's race, Trump, North Korea, and travel to Fiji.  The book by Cather was well received although it was variously described as "a little slow with minimal action" or "elegiac".  Everyone agreed that Cather was a wonderful writer.

The next book is the Pulitzer winning novel, The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen (We also considered a couple of nonfiction books: Helene Cooper's Madam President and Matthew Desmond's Evicted).  The next meeting is scheduled for May 23; the wayward Don is on deck to suggest the following book.

Road to Little Dribbling by Bill Bryson (Strip Club)

We met at Strip Club, a mostly meat place that's closing in July.  The four of us who could make it were very happy with the food (try the pork chop) and service (we had a literary-savvy waitress).  Our conversation touched on the book, of course, but was mainly directed at non-political topics like travel to Fiji and Palm Springs.  Even Bryson fans thought this book somewhat grumpy.  One of us hated it; most liked it.

The next book is Willa Cather, Death Comes for the Archbishop, which was selected over a selection of chapters from Gibbons' Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire (very tempting).  Don is next in line to suggest the next book.  April 18 is the next meeting.

American Politics in the Early Republic by James R. Sharp (Italian Eatery)

There were only four of us at the dinner/meeting to discuss J. R. Sharp's history of the early days of the American Republic, but we had a lively conversation that picked up on some of the author's themes that seemed most relevant to today's fractured politics.  While some thought the book was dense, repetitive, and "academic", others thought it stylishly written and informative.  We talked a lot about politics, then and now.  Most of us gave the restaurant high ratings for good food, good service, and a relatively low noise level.

Our next book is Bill Bryson's Road to Little Dribbling.  Other titles considered were Millard's Destiny of the Republic, Montgomery's Soul of an Octopus, and Krueger's Iron Lake.  We'll meet on Tuesday, March 7; it's Don's turn to suggest the next book (followed by Paul).