We switched our meeting night to Wednesday this month as our host Annie, had a conflict on our planned Thursday date. Annie served a variety of salmon dishes which were all delicious. And thanks to Paul for his contribution in the preparation! Annie, Christe, Ellen, Judy, and Nanc attended the meeting.
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| Sunset from near the top of Annie's driveway |
Our book this month was Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Americanah was not really plot driven so much as a book about the main character, Ifemelu, who speaks her mind and uses a blog to speak openly about racism in America.
The only reason you say that race was not an issue is because you wish it was not. We all wish it was not. But it's a lie. I came from a country where race was not an issue; I did not think of myself as black and I only became black when I came to America. When you are black in America and you fall in love with a white person, race doesn't matter when you're alone together because it's just you and your love. But the minute you step outside, race matters. But we don't talk about it. We don't even tell our white partners the small things that piss us off and the things we wish they understood better, because we're worried they will say we're overreacting, or we're being too sensitive. And we don't want them to say, "Look how far we've come, just forty years ago it would have been illegal for us to even be a couple blah blah blah," because you know what we're thinking when they say that? We're thinking why the fuck should it ever have been illegal anyway? But we don't say any of this stuff. We let it pile up inside our heads and when we come to nice liberal dinner like this, we say that race doesn't matter because that's what we're supposed to say, to keep our nice liberal friends comfortable. It's true. I speak from experience. ~ Chimanmanda Ngozi Adichie
If you're telling a non-black person about something racist that happened to you, make sure you are not bitter. Don't complain. Be forgiving. If possible, make it funny. Most of all, do not be angry. Balck people are not supposed to be angry about racism. Otherwise you get no sympathy. This applies only for white liberals, by the way. Don't even bother telling a white conservative about anything racist that happened to you. Because the conservative will tell you that YOU are the real racist and your mouth will hang open in confusion. ~ Chimanmanda Ngozi Adichie
Racism should never have happened and so you don't get a cookie for reducing it. ~ Chimanmanda Ngozi Adichie
I realized that if I ever have children, I don't want them to have American childhoods. I don't want them to say "Hi" to adults, I want them to say "Good morning" and "Good afternoon." I don't want them to mumble "Good" when somebody says "How are you?" to them. Or to raise five fingers when asked how old they are. I want them to say "I'm fine, thank you" and "I'm five years old." I don't want a child who feeds on praise and expects a star for effort and talks back to adults in the name of self expression. Is that terribly conservative? Blaine's friends said it was and for them, 'conservative' is the worst insult you can get. ~ Chimanmanda Ngozi Adichie
Next Book: Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger
Location: Trempealeau Hotel (after Ann Dahmen Memorial Harp Concert at the library)
Date: Thursday, May 11, 2017
Time: 8:00pm (Harp Concert begins at 6:30)
Upcoming meetings:
June 8, 2017 Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier at Linda's
July 13, 2017 TBA
August 10, 2017 TBA
August 10, 2017 TBA
Books we've read so far:
January 2014 - Grace (Eventually): Thoughts on Faith by Anne Lamott
February 2014 - The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
March 2014 - Life After Life by Kate Atkinson
April 2014 - The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian by Sherman Alexie
May 2014 - The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
June 2014 - Breaking Free by Marilyn Sewell
July 2014 - The Orphan Train by Kristina Baker Kline
August 2014 - The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker
September 2014 - Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides
October 2014 - The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd
November 2014 - The Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman
December 2014 - No book. Holiday gathering.
January 2015 - No book. Watched The Book Thief
February 2015 - The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton
March 2015 - Empire of the Summer Moon by S.C. Gwynne
April 2015 - The Orchardist by Amanda Coplin
May 2015 - The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway
June 2015 - The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom
July 2015 - Still Alice by Lisa Genova
August 2015 - The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
September 2015 - Ruby by Cynthia Bond
October 2015 - To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
November 2015 - No book. Watched To Kill a Mockingbird
December 2015 - No book. Holiday gathering.
January 2016 - All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
February 2016 - Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption by Bryan Stevenson
March 2016 - Brooklyn by Colm Tóibín
April 2016 - Two Years Eight Months and Twenty-Eight Nights by Salman Rushdie
May 2016 - Jewelweed by David Rhodes
June 2016 - One Woman's River by Ellen Kolbo McDonah
July 2016 - Gift from the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh
August 2016 - Deep Water Passage by Ann Linnea
September 2016 - This Road I Ride by Juliana Buhring
October 2016 - The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
November 2016 - No book. Watched The Boys of '36
December 2016 - No book. Holiday gathering.
January 2017 - About Grace by Anthony Doerr
February 2017 - Between the World and Me by Ta-nehisi Coates
March 2017 - Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
April 2017 - Meeting canceled due to most members having conflicts
