A Thousand Splendid Suns 8/20/09

Our August book club meeting was at the Paet home.
I hope everyone had a great time.
In attendance this evening:
De Dotson
Sis. Rivers
Moana Piena
Molly Koch
Cortney Nadig
Sarah Ohki
Lynn Lambert
Joy Paet

We discussed the book "A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini. Thank you ladies for such open and candid discussion.

Next Months book club will be held on September 16 at Lynn Lambert's home.
Here are our book picks for the rest of the year.

September: The Immigrants by Howard Fast
October: The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
November: The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown
December: Grace by Richard Paul Evans

**Our Movie Night June 17, 2009**

Trisha Sessions, Terry Evans , Danica Palmer, Joy Paet, Laura Smith, Sarah Ohki, Molly Koch, Jane Gorton, Marci Palmer, Moana Piena, Sally Holstein, Ann Toilolo

Angels and Demons by Dan Brown was the Book Club Pick from June 2004. Five years ago!

Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time 5/20/09

Tonight's book club was so fun. Thank you Amber for opening your home for our meeting.
In attendance:
Amber, Molly, Jane, Cortney, Sarah, Joy, Lynn and welcome Laura to our book club!



We were impressed by the following quotes:

"I've learned that terror doesn't happen because some group of people somewhere like Pakistan or Afghanistan simply decide to hate us. It happens because children aren't being offered a bright enough future that they have a reason to choose life over death."

Prayer is better than sleep.

- from the hazzan, or call to worship

"Haji Ali taught me the most important lesson I've ever learned in my life...We Americans think you have to accomplish everything quickly. We're the country of thirty-minute power lunches and two-minute football drills. Haji Ali taught me to share three cups of tea, to slow down and make building relationships as important as building projects. He taught me that I had more to learn from the people I work with than I could ever hope to teach them."

For June - a classic:

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

Our next meeting will be at Sarah Ohki's home, June 17th.
It makes me sad just to type this but, next month's meeting will also be a farewell to Amber and Jane. Please, join in our Aloha 'Oi before they move to the mainland.

More books we talked about:
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer
Twenty Wishes by Debbie Macomber
The Whole Truth by David Baldacci
The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin by Benjamin Franklin
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown (avail 9/15/09)
My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult (the reviews on goodreads.com are amazingly torn on this one.)

The Book Thief 4/22/09

Our April book club meeting was at Molly Koch's home.
Molly your home is always so cozy!
In attendance this evening:
Cortney Nadig
Molly Koch
Moana Piena
Rhona Slingerland
Kaui Ching
Joy Paet
Jane Gorton

Book Sense Book of the Year Award for Children's Literature.
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

This was a worthwhile book that lent it self to lively discussion. Which is rather ironic since the protagonist of the story was Death.

~*~*~Quotes of Note~*~*~

"It’s a small story really, about, among other things:
* A girl
* Some words
* An accordionist
* Some fanatical Germans
* A Jewish fist fighter
* And quite a lot of thievery"

"Of course, I'm being rude.I'm spoiling the ending, not only of the entire book, but of this particular piece of it. I have given you two events in advance, because I don't have much interest in building mystery. Mystery bores me. It chores me. I know what happens and so do you. It's the machinations that wheel us there that aggravate, perplex, interest, and astound me. There are many things to think of. There is much story."

"It kills me sometimes, how people die."

"For some reason, dying men always ask questions they know the answer to. Perhaps it's so they can die being right."

Here are two that Cortney mentioned:

"They say that war is death's best friend, but I must offer you a different point of view on that one. To me, war is like the new boss who expects the impossible. He stands over your shoulder repeating one thing, incessantly: 'Get it done, get it done.' So you work harder. You get the job done. The boss, however does not thank you. He asks for more."

"Five hundred souls.
I carried them in my fingers, like suitcases. Or I'd throw them over my shoulder. It was only the children I carried in my arms."

For May:

Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace Once School at a Time by Greg Mortenson

I believe it's safe to say that by reading this book prepare to have our eyes opened as well as our hearts.

***UPDATE*** Thank you Amber for agreeing to host our May book club on the 20th!! Much Mahalos!!!

Princess Academy 3/25/09

Newbery Honor Book
Princess Academy
by Shannon Hale
I loved this book. I'm so glad we chose it for book club and that there were so many that took the time to read it so we could discuss it.

In attendance at the Paet home this evening:
Cortney Nadig
Molly Koch
Moana Piena
Rhona Slingerland
Lynn Lambert, newest baby Masen, and Lynn's mother-in-law Betsy
Joy Paet
Sarah Ohki

We followed the discussion questions found from the publisher's web site. I felt that right from the beginning of Princess Academy the decision of Miri's name by her mother set the basis of who Miri is and what she would become. She was not named for the linder stone but for the miri flower because it "conquered rock and climbed to face the sun" (p. 14). Princess Academy was filled to brimming with beautiful prose.

For April:
Another award winning book.
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

Because there are 5 Wednesdays in April and to give time to others to read the book. We will meet at Molly's home on the 4th Wednesday, April 22, 2009 at 7 PM. From those of us that have completed The Book Thief already, we believe it is a worthwhile novel and poses itself for good discussion and thought.

The Lucky One 2/18/09

Happy Valentine's Day! Love is in the air!

Thank you Cortney for hosting our meeting in your warm and inviting home.

This evening in attendance:
Cortney Nadig, Lynn Lambert, Arielle Klingler, Trisha Sessions, Molly Koch, Sarah Ohki, Jane Gorton, Kaui Ching, Ann Toilolo, Shirley Chu and Joy Paet

In addition to the farewell for Arielle Klingler, and presenting Lynn Lambert with a gift for the pending arrival of her son Masen, at tonight's meeting we discussed the book:

The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks

Synopsis: Is there really such thing as a lucky charm? The hero of Nicholas Sparks's new novel believes he's found one in the form of a photograph of a smiling woman he's never met, but who he comes to believe holds the key to his destiny. The chain of events that leads to him possessing the photograph and finding the woman pictured in it is the stuff of love stories only a master such as Sparks can write.

We shared words of love in the form of:
Jane shared a poem Grow Old with Me by Micheal Rew
Cortney shared a sweet Valentine's Card given to her by her husband Aaron. (AWE!)
Joy shared the lyrics to the song A Groovy Kind of Love. *grins*
Arielle shared the following scripture with the word Love substituted for Charity: 1 Corinthians 13:4-8
Cortney shared The Song of Solomon 8:6-7

~*~*~ Wishing Arielle a fond Aloha 'Oe for her family
on their move to Maryland. ~*~*~










Lynn, we wish you great love as we all anticipate Masen Robert Lambert's arrival.


Lynn showing off the adorable onsie and booties made by Arielle Klingler. Oh, how we are going to miss your talents Arielle!








Lynn Lambert and Shirley Chu





***UPDATE*** Congratulations on the arrival of Masen Lambert. He weighed 8 lbs. 15.8 oz (sounds like 9 pounds to me!) and was 21 inches long. He was born at 6:37 a.m March 7, 2009.

For March:
Newbery Honor Book Princess Academy by Shannon Hale

Our next meeting will be on the fourth Wednesday of March, the 25th. We will meet at Joy Paet's home. Our next book is Princess Academy by Shannon Hale.

This is such a refreshingly, tender, sweet, empowering, impressive, lyrical tale - just chock full of words of wisdom.

The Goosegirl 1/21/09

Happy New Year!

Thank you Lynn for hosting the first book club of 2009 at your gorgeous home.

In attendance:
Lynn, Molly, Cortney, Jane, Rhona, Arielle and Joy

Tonight's meeting we discussed a wonderful book:
The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale

There were nothing but positive comments about this beautiful book.
". . .a tale about learning to rescue yourself rather than falling accidentally into happily-ever-after"
It's a HIGHLY RECOMMENDED read.




An update to our February choice was made and now we will be reading a very Valentine worthy:
The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks

Our February Meeting will be at Cortney's Home. Love will be in the air as we are to bring a poem or letter professing LOVE.

In addition, this will be our farewell as a book club for Arielle to wish her well on their move to the east coast.





For March:

Newbery Honor Book Princess Academy by Shannon Hale

This is such a refreshingly, tender, sweet, empowering, impressive, lyrical tale - just chock full of words of wisdom.



Thanks to each of our wonderful book club members for making our once a month get-together so meaningful.

North and South 12/17/08

Merry Christmas!

What a fun book club we had this evening. Thank you Arielle for opening your home to us.

We were able to talk about North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell. There was a lot to like about this book and there were a lot of pages to sift through to get to the good stuff. Overall, I believe we enjoyed the story and can appreciate the essence the author wanted to share. Thank you Juliet for sharing movie clips with us as well. Seeing Margaret and Mr. Thornton in action was a real treat. Especially the delicious silence. ;-)

'It is no boast of mine,' replied Mr. Thornton; 'it is plain
matter-of-fact. I won't deny that I am proud of belonging to a
town--or perhaps I should rather say a district--the necessities
of which give birth to such grandeur of conception. I would
rather be a man toiling, suffering--nay, failing and
successless--here, than lead a dull prosperous life in the old
worn grooves of what you call more aristocratic society down in
the South, with their slow days of careless ease. One may be
clogged with honey and unable to rise and fly.'(chap. 10)

In attendance: Jane, Rhona, Cortney, Amber, Molly, Sarah, Arielle, Juliet, Joy




For January: The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale This one comes highly recommended by Molly, Sarah and Joy. I hope we will all enjoy this fun, fanciful read.




**1/21 UPDATE**:For February: The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski.
This book comes highly recommended by Jane and Rhona. This story sounds intriguing. The library has over 50 copies and I'm still #175 on the list! So it is a very popular book.



Some book titles kicked around tonight:
Cortney mentioned her sister really liked the Zion Covenant series by Bodie and Brock Thoene. The first book is entitled Vienna Prelude. I have to say it looks very interesting. **1/21 Update**: The Kapolei Library doesn't carrying this series. . .yet.

Rhona mentioned The Kite Runner or A Thousand Splended Suns by Khaled Hosseini.

Joy mentioned Princess: A True Story of Life Behind the Veil in Saudi Arabia by Jean P. Sasson. I am humbled each time I read this book. The first time was as a newlywed student in college. The story stuck in my mind and eleven years later I felt the need to read it again. The story of Sultana is haunting. Knowing the life she lived fills me with respect for her bravery.
Also, The Road by Cormac McCarthy. It is a post-apocalyptic quick-read which will be coming out as a movie in 2009. Rhona summed up the level of devastation as saying, "I hope it never gets this bad."

If I missed any suggestions or thoughts on tonight's meeting please let me know! I look forward to getting together again in the New Year!

~*~*~*~Wishing you a very Merry Christmas Book Clubbers!!~*~*~*~

Twilight 'r us! 11-22-08

The wait is over, TWILIGHT the movie is here!

Val, Amber, Sarah(Kenji), Molly, Rhona, Joy, Cortney, Juliet, Arielle, Moana

I am so happy to report that this month's book club was one of my favorites! That should come as no surprise to many of you.

Thank you sisters for making this such a wonderful treat and an amazing memory.

The Wednesday Letters - 10/15/08

The October book club found us enjoying the comfort of Jane's home for what we believed to be the last time. Then a few days later we get the great news: Jane's not moving after all. Jane says prayer works and that's a truth we can all believe in.

October's book: The Wednesday Letters by Jason F. Wright




Those in attendance:
Jane(taking the picture), Sarah, Moana, Trisha, Cortney, Joy, Juliet, Arielle, DeAnna


November: Let's see the MOVIE TWILIGHT on Saturday, November 22 - The first matinee of the day (12:15 PM) at Pearl Highlands Regal Cinema.
So the book for the month is to read Twilight if you haven't yet!! (as if!)
AND/OR read Midnight Sun by Stephenie Meyer posted on her website.




December's Book: North and South by Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell

Breaking Dawn - Twilight Saga 9/17/08

For September our book was Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer.

What a fun night! Thank you Arielle Klingler for offering your home for our meeting.
This was seriously a culminating event. We were able to talk openly about the entire Twilight Saga at our Book Club Meeting!

In attendance:
Arielle, Rhona, Moana, Sarah, Molly, Cortney, Aisha, *Juliet, *Lynn, and Joy.
(*yay! new blood, pardon the pun)

For the next few months here's the plan:

October's book: The Wednesday Letters by Jason F. Wright








November: MOVIE NIGHT November 21 - TWILIGHT (opening night)









December's Book: North and South by Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell

These is My Words - 8/20/08

Trisha Sessions Baby Shower

It was a wonderful evening.
We all had a great time wishing Trisha the best.










Thanks for the great turnout.
In Attendance:
Trisha, Bonnie, Tori, Nate, Neyliah and Kelly Sessions, Trisha's mom Terry, Cortney, Keri, Val and Crystal, Molly, Sarah, Arielle, Joy.



Cortney your talents know no bounds. This cake was delicious, delectable and delightful.

















**UPDATE** Trisha and Dan's baby boy - Brandson - arrived on September 17! Congratulations!

Our August Book was "These is My Words" by Nancy E. Turner.

**Joy's review on www.goodnessmatters.com**
Simply the best story of frontier life I have ever read. It is just so GOOD! These is My Words written by Nancy E. Turner is a compilation of diary entries of the author's great-grandmother, Sarah Agnes Prine. I just love Family History. What fun the author must of had uncovering the adventures of her own great-grandmother. This journey takes place in the late 1800's, beginning with Sarah as an uneducated girl traveling by wagon train. This quickly sheds light on the quirky title and grammar present in the first chapter. I vividly remember thinking that if These Words don't improve I'm going to put this book down - and it's likely not to get picked up again. Gratefully, it is not long that young Sarah's journaling gets profoundly better to where her words take a tightfisted hold. Soon I was so wrapped up in the indelible backdrop of harsh trailblazing conditions that finding a place to place my bookmark was a regrettable experience.

Sarah Prine's narrative made such an impression on me. It was easy to feel like I had walked up the steps of her front porch and we visited in her kitchen. While there, I witnessed her as a concerned wife, as a mother taking time to transfer bits of wisdom to her children and as a friend willing to share all she could provide. I loved reading how she would take in people passing through with kindness. There wasn't a lot of space on her humble homestead yet she would string up blankets in the front room for privacy and set out a cot if a visitor were to stay the night.

In my mind I can still see her in her ranch style kitchen fixing a pan of fresh baked biscuits while clothes are out hanging on the line and a shotgun always within reach. She was in fact a sharp shooter -- with a wit that was every bit as sharp as well.
One of my favorite quotes from Sarah's journal:

"Our children weigh hard on my heart, and thinking about them growing up honest and healthy, or just living to grow up at all, makes a load in my chest that is bigger than the safe at the bank, and more valuable to me than all the gold inside it. — entry for October 10, 1887"

Sarah Agnes Prine is truly an inspiring, forward thinking, no-nonsense gal. She valued family and education above all else.  These is My Words was rugged, inspiring, humbling, Excellence. A Highly Recommended Good Read. ~Joy  **updated 8/19/2011**

For September:

The time has come for the Twilight Saga Book Club Meeting!
We will be reviewing Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer for our September Book.

Thank you Arielle Klingler for offering your home.
We will next meet on Wednesday, September 17, 2008 at 7 o'clock.