The Last Days of Dogtown by Anita Diamant

For fans of Anita Diamant's Red Tent or lovers of local lore and history, this book is a must. The novel is character-driven and interweaves the stories of the last residents of Dogtown, on the outskirts of Gloucester. I think it would make excellent company for a trip to the north shore beaches this summer.

Happy reading,
Jen

Crime-stoppers

I'm probably the last to know, but I just finished reading the article "Dog-eared Afternoon" in the April 2008 issue of Harper's and learned of Mel's involvement in the capture of some of world's most bumbling book thieves. I can't decide on my favorite part of the story, maybe their decision to keep the rare books in the same room that they were growing marijuana. Or maybe that one of the con-men stayed on campus after the heist to take an exam.

Anyone else been fighting crime lately?

jen

The Big House

The Big House: A Century in the Life of an American Summer Home by George Howe Colt
Thursday, March 13, 2007
The Summer Shack, Cambridge

In attendance: Anne, Cynthia, Donna, Manda, Beth, Rachel, Wendy, and Paula

Since it’s been over month since we met (sorry!), my notes are somewhat indecipherable (something about family therapy and fluff?). I’ll do my best.

After admiring Donna’s straight hair, and a heated conversation about Eliot Spitzer, we got down to business discussing the book. Well, for about 5 minutes. You see, this is the sign that not many liked, finished, or even attempted to read the book. I’m going to go back to assigning smut again for my next pick. Kidding. Sort of.

Donna earns points for doing some extra research and bringing A Trip Around Buzzard’s Bay so we could see pictures of the house. Donna had never heard the term Boston Brahmin, which is not surprising if you consider she hand never heard of the Molasses Flood of 1919. Not everyone is obsessed with weird local history like I am. I really liked the book, but I think I was alone. Beth mentioned that she was jealous of the family’s summers at the shore, especially that they had the free time to spend there. Rachel liked the book, but wasn’t very interested in the family’s psychological issues.

This is really all I have related the book in my notes. My end of the table drifted off into a debate over the virtues of ham and fluff. Now I really know the book wasn’t a good choice, since the rest of the conversation sounded like a discussion relating to a previous book!

Paula

Big House meeting notes coming soon, I promise...

Just a quick note to let you know that I plan to post our notes from our last meeting soon. I'm hoping to do it this weekend.

I'm terrified that Donna is going to add me to her list.

Paula