Babbitt by Sinclair Lewis (Heidi's)

We started at a new restaurant, Blackbird. But since they wouldn't seat us until all seven were present, we defected next door to Heidi's, which proved to be a great choice and an apt venue to celebrate our 10th anniversary as a book club. Our book-of-the-month, Babbitt, was universally praised as one of the best we have read. We noted Lewis' masterful evocation of the 1920s and American boosterism as well as the similarities to society today. We chose Cormac McCarthy's All the Pretty Horses as the next book, after considering the Cold War by John Lewis Gaddis and the Looming Tower by Lawrence Wright. Next meeting: February 4.

Gilead by Marilynne Robinson (Da Afghan)

We met at Da Afghan, which got a higher rating than the first time we were there. We were somewhat divided on the quality of the book, Marilynne Robinson's Gilead, but it did rate higher than the average. Our next book is the classic, Babbitt, by Minnesota author Sinclair Lewis.

Population 485 by Michael Perry (Salsa a la Salsa)

We had 100 percent participation at Salsa a la Salsa, a pretty good Mexican place (except for whatever Paul had--enchiladas, I think). We spent most of the evening talking about "The War", Ken Burns latest epic. When we finally got around to the book, Population 485, the discussion was mostly positive, although we agreed that maybe Perry has a tendency to over-write on occasion. The next book will be Robinson's Gilead; next dinner will be October 23.

Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole (Peninsula)

Our gathering at Peninsula Restaurant (serving Malaysian cuisine) was attended by only four of us, but the food was top notch and the conversation fun. We pretty much agreed that Toole's Confederacy of Dunces was a very good comic novel that made perfect summer reading. The next book is Michael Perry's Population 485. Other works considered: Viktor Frankel, Man's Search for Meaning; Noel Perrin, First Person Rural; and Marilynne Robinson, Gilead. Don is on deck. Our meeting is scheduled for September 17.

River of Doubt by Candice Miller (Sakura)

Our book was Candice Millard's River of Doubt, an account of Theodore Roosevelt's harrowing trip down an unexplored river in central Brazil after his failed bid for a third term as president. The trip was truly amazing, and Millard describes it in a compelling way, but some of us felt the book could have been more analytical. Dinner was at Sakura. Next book is John K. Toole, Confederacy of Dunces, August 27. Max is on deck.

French Lesson by Alice Kaplan (Saffron)

The book was a memoir entitled French Lessons by Alice Kaplan, a writer with local roots. The story includes the author's memories of growing up, her father's role at the Nuremburg Trials, her early experiences in school in France, and her adult life in the academic study of French language, literature, and society. We gave the book mixed but mostly positive reviews; the middle eastern restaurant, Saffron, that served as our venue fared about the same.

Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns (BBQ at Roger Brooks')

We tried another experiment this month as we met jointly with another book club (all women) that was reading the same book as our club, Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin. All who participated liked the experiment, but only about half of each group could attend. Nevertheless, the discussion was lively and penetrating. We discussed the nature of leadership, the challenges of writing a joint biography, and numerous civil war issues. The book got high ratings from all attendees. We chatted over a backyard barbeque at the Brooks house.

Imperial Life in the Emerald City by Rajiv Chandrasekaren, the One Percent Doctrine by Ron Suskind, Colossus: Rise and Fall of the American Empire by Niall Ferguson (Il Vesco Vino)

This month was an experiment. We each chose to read a different book about the War in Iraq and to discuss them as a group. We read Imperial Life in the Emerald City by Rajiv Chandrasekaren, the One Percent Doctrine by Ron Suskind, Colossus: Rise and Fall of the American Empire by Niall Ferguson, and others. Il Vesco Vino proved popular with most of us.

Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder (Chambers Kitchen)

Mountains Beyond Mountains is the inspiring tale of Dr. Paul Farmer and his fight against TB and other diseases in third world nations like Haiti. Our group, however, was less than wildly inspired, giving the book a slightly below average rating. On the other hand, our restaurant, Chambers Kitchen, was judged above average.