Good Living Book Club - October

Led by Gail Eckwright, Good Living Book Club Coordinator

Book Club Meeting Date: Sunday, October 12
Time: 3 - 4:30 p.m.
Place: The Good Food Gallery (near the Deli) small snack will be served.

Welcome, one and all! Welcome Fall!

This month at the Good Living Book Club we are shifting gears, er, genres, and directing our attention to children’s literature. As with sub-genres for adult literature, children’s lit, too, may be divided into sub-genres, such as poetry, fairy tales, picture books, and so on. Our focus will be on three picture books very suitable for the upcoming Thanksgiving holidays. While the U.S. Thanksgiving is a well-known holiday, there are other countries that also celebrate gratitude and harvest festivals. Gratitude for gifts of harvest and daily life knows no borders, as these three picture books show so well.

Eric Adjepong’s Sankofa tells the story of a young Ghanaian American boy, Kofi, trying to find “belonging” within two very different cultures. But thanks to an understanding family member, food becomes the vehicle that transports him across the miles to the home of his parents and grandparents. Food and family become the bridge between his life in America and his family’s previous life in Ghana. Strong published reviews for the book speak to the “delectable story” and the beautiful, complementary artwork. Sankofa closes with a recipe for Ghanaian jollof rice.

At Our Table by Patrick Hulse describes Thanksgiving as the author experienced it in his childhood. In his Author’s Note, Hulse identifies the range of feelings toward Thanksgiving, from dissatisfaction with “inaccurate stories and images of Native communities” to conflicted feelings about food waste and holiday excess. Hulse chooses to emphasize the happy Thanksgiving memories from his early years, those times when he spent the holiday with parents and grandparents. Illustrations by Chickasaw Nation artist Madelyn Goodnight further enhance the story. Professional reviewers praise the book for its diverse representation and its “fresh take” on the Thanksgiving holiday.

Fry Bread by Kevin Noble Maillard speaks to the universal popularity and diversity of fry bread in Native American cultures. Maillard takes readers briefly through the steps of making fry bread, while simultaneously describing what makes fry bread: shape, sound, color, flavor, and so on. Maillard, a member of the Seminole Nation, includes his family recipe for fry bread. Fry Bread is lusciously illustrated by Juana Martinez-Neal. A lengthy Author’s Note goes into greater detail about fry bread history.

Please join us for our next Good Living Book Club meeting for a fun conversation about Sankofa, At Our Table and Fry Bread on Sunday, October 12 at 3-4:30pm in the Food Coop Deli/cafeteria. A copy of each book will be available for perusal at the meeting. All are welcome, no prior sign-up required.

Be sure to check local bookstores and libraries for copies of these books. Bookpeople of Moscow offers a 15% discount to book club members for titles featured at club meetings. Two of these titles are also available for purchase online in ebook and audio formats.

Future Book Club dates and books:
November 9: We Will be Jaguars by Nemonte Nenquimo.
December 14: Kamogawa Food Detectives by Hisashi Kashiwai.

  • November 9 : We Will Be Jaguars by Nemonte Nenquimo

    A memoir about an indigenous childhood, a clash of cultures, and the fight to save the Amazon rainforest and protect her people.

    December 14: Kamogawa Food Detectives by Hisashi Kashiwai. “Delicious and delectable!” (Fiction)

  • January: The Music of Bees by Eileen Garvin.

    Fiction. Oregon setting. Solid positive reviews by many national reviewing publications. Selected by GLBC regular.

    February: Taste by Stanley Tucci.

    Memoir by well-known foodie, actor, author. Taste is “a heartwarming read that will be irresistible for anyone who knows the power of a home-cooked meal” (from Goodreads). Selected by a GLBC regular.

    March: Kitchens of the Great Midwest by J. Ryan Stradal.

    Fiction. New York Times Book Review Editor’s Pick and well-regarded by other reviewing sources. Selected by a GLBC regular.

    April: Dodge County Incorporated: Big Ag and the Undoing of Rural America by Sonja Trom Eayrs.

    This title is from the 2024 Foodtank website book list. It’s a “a compelling firsthand account of one family’s efforts to stand against corporate takeover” (from Amazon). GLBC members are interested in this title.

    May: The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride.

    Winner of multiple literary prizes, including Library of Congress prize for American fiction; Best Book of the year by NPR, Washington Post, New Yorker and Time magazines; New York Times Notable Book.

About the Good Living Book Club

The book club will meet monthly, on the second Sunday of the month, January - May and September - December. Led by Gail Eckwright. Each month we will talk about a book related to good food, good health, good work, good neighbors and friends, or just plain good life in general! Some of these books offer guidance or caveats on how to achieve these “goods;” others provide examples of lives well-lived or perhaps cautionary tales. You will find memoirs, how-tos, manifestos, and fiction among the book club selections. All have the potential to stimulate lively conversation.

All books are available for purchase from Bookpeople of Moscow or from other commercial sources. I am able to order up to 4 copies of a title from Bookpeople, to be purchased by club members at a discount; but remember, some publishers’ books are not discountable. This link provides more information about the book club ordering and discount program through Bookpeople: https://www.bookpeopleofmoscow.com/book-clubs

If you choose to purchase a book club title through Bookpeople, keep in mind that a maximum of 4 copies will be available at the 15% discount. Most titles are available for e-readers and in audiobook formats through other commercial sources, as well. Be sure to check local libraries for specific titles, too.

Questions:
If you have any questions, please contact Gail at bookclub@moscowfood.coop