"Huzzah!!"

And they all lived happily ever after....or did they?

I finished the book and thought the second half was much more exciting than the first half. We've got new questions over there ==> 
to think about while you're reading or if you're finished. Feel free to pose your own questions to the group if you want.

So, who wants to start the discussion...?

Ready...Set...Set...okay, GO!

We're off to a slow start. Emily and I have had the book for a couple weeks now but life keeps getting in the way of our starting to read it. So, today we have made the unofficial commitment to start reading. Now that I'm, that is we're finally ready, let's try to read the first ten chapters by this weekend. I realize that many of you have had your books as long as we have and have likely started reading and possibly even finished reading them by now. Hopefully you haven't forgotten the story by this point so we can still discuss it.

Remember, you're all Official Bloggers now so any of you can start the discussion at any point along the way. 

*Aunt Becky, Morgan is drafting your bio. Once he has finished, he will begin drafting Terri's. You can avoid this, of course, by submitting your own bios for publication. :o)

Happy reading!

New book

I think I'm on the blog now! New book is The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle. Start reading soon!
Nancy

Final Chapters: How did it Rate?

So, what did you think of this book? 

Why do you suppose the elephant doesn't remember what happened and can only vaguely remember Peter? 

In the closing chapters we find the characters taking on some new roles in their lives. What do you imagine will happen to Vilna Lutz?

This story was a tale of lies, truth, and hope. Were you able to take away any other messages? 

How do you rate this book? 

Scale:

~ = LAME

* = OK

** = GOOD

*** = GREAT

Nancy - You get to pick the next book we read! (I can hear the crowd going wild!) Let's wrap up our comments on this book this weekend and get the new one in the works by Sunday or Monday.

Check in from Emily

SO WE'RE AT THE ASSIGNED 15 CHAPTERS. I hope everyone's enjoying the book. I know some of us couldn't help ourselves and read ahead, some to the end of the book... Mama, Verna, shame on you. Now we know Vilna Lutz has lied about Adele and she is truly still alive. We also know her backstory Peters also more, along with some characters a long the way. The elephant is becoming more and more mysterious as we go along.Here are some  Questions for these chapters : 1, When does Peter decide not to  become a soldier? Why? 2, Why are names so important? Would you be a different person if you had a different name? 3 What does Gloria Matinne long for, why does she fear she'll never have it? Hope you had fun reading and made the assignment.

And we're off!

So five chapters in and I'm enjoying the book so far. What do you all think? 

I know a lot of us are avid readers and may have read ahead. Is this pace too slow? I have to keep in mind the Tweens in the group who have homework and other reading to keep up with so I don't want to move too quickly. I'm thinking we should plan to be through Chapter 15 by Sunday, April 6th, and that we can continue posting our discussions throughout the week. Again, I don't know what I'm doing so I welcome your suggestions.

I like that the questions over there ==>

gave me something to think about as I was reading.  Maybe we can delve in to some of those questions or discuss other topics that came to mind while you were reading. I know Emily is anxious to answer at least one of those questions.

I want to say thanks to Becky for starting the discussion and getting us thinking about where this story takes place. France seems a likely option, given the use of french names as pointed out by both Verna and Nancy. 

One question I had while reading was this: At the end of chapter 2, the author tells us the "exceedingly bright star" the magician talked to while in prison was not a star but was actually the planet Venus and that it shone particularly bright that year. This seems to be a significant point - I wonder why?

In chapter 5, we find the Countess really upset at the arrival of the elephant. How does the elephant's arrival stir up the people of Baltese? And how does the Countess regain the upper hand?

We haven't heard much about the elephant yet, but I do find myself wondering about her feelings - maybe because of what the policeman said about it not being her fault and yet she is jailed along with the magician. She must be terribly confused and sad at this point. I hope we'll get to hear more from her perspective.

 

Are we ready...? Grab your book - Let's read!

This blog is a work in progress, I don't really know what I'm doing. But we should at least get started and I can learn more about blogging and change things on our page later.

Let's read the first 5 chapters of the book and then check in on Sunday, March 30, to see what's going on. I've got some discussion questions posted right over there ==>
to think about while we're reading.