We cannot believe the response to the book club. Just one ticket left for monday january 19th!
we are especially pleased to announce that, because demand was greater than expected, we have been able to make a donation to wild writers literary festival in waterloo on november 7 - 9. check out their website and head out to the festival.
And. because of Dave's generosity, your ticket price also includes an honorarium for the author.
due to overwhelming demand for the event on january 20th, we have persuaded Carly to open the public kitchen on monday january 19th and carrie snyder has agreed to join us for a second night.
so head on over to the "join us" tab and buy some tickets. then go down to wordsworth in waterloo, grab your readers, snuggle into a comfy chair and get reading. january isn't too far away now.
the tickets are now on sale. just go to the "join us" tab on the website.
Once you have purchased your ticket, head on down to wordsworth books in waterloo and pick up your copy of Carrie's book, "girl runner". remember to take a copy of your confirmation email to show that you have paid.
then get reading. and have fun. it is a terrific book.
pencil this date into your calendar: Tuesday January 20 2015 at public kitchen. that's the evening when we will gather for the second meeting of the appetite for reading book club to talk with Carrie Snyder about her book, "girl runner".
watch this blog for information about ticket sales . and, if you want to be sure not to miss the notice of tickets going on sale, sign up for the mailing list by going to the "join us" tab of the website.
see you in January!
“Ultimately, Girl Runner is a beautiful, thoughtful homage to those forgotten women who stepped outside the boundaries of what was allotted to them, and a testament to the struggles and sacrifices that paved the way for the female athletes who followed.”
“What defines the novel is the depth and breadth of Aggie herself; she’s a rare heroine whose rich internal life is matched only by the abundance of her external living.”
Girl Runner is the story of Aganetha Smart, a former Olympic athlete who was famous in the 1920s, but now, at age 104, lives in a nursing home, alone and forgotten by history. For Aganetha, a competitive and ambitious woman, her life remains present and unfinished in her mind.
When her quiet life is disturbed by the unexpected arrival of two young strangers, Aganetha begins to reflect on her childhood in rural Ontario and her struggles to make an independent life for herself in the city.
Without revealing who they are, or what they may want from her, the visitors take Aganetha on an outing from the nursing home. As ready as ever for an adventure, Aganetha's memories are stirred when the pair return her to the family farm where she was raised. The devastation of WW1 and the Spanish flu epidemic, the optimism of the 1920s and the sacrifices of the 1930s play out it Aganetha's mind, as she wrestles with the confusion and displacement of the present.
Part historical page-turner, part contemporary mystery, Girl Runner is an engaging and endearing story about family, ambition, athletics and the dedicated pursuit of one's passions. It is also, ultimately, about a woman who follows the singular, heart-breaking and inspiring course of her life until the very end.
thanks to all the friends who came out to our inaugural meeting. just as we'd hoped, the evening was full of great food, great literature and great people. thanks to everyone for the insightful questions and special thanks to tasneem for her thoughtful answers and remarks on the book.
we had some really positive feedback about the venue and the concept. thanks so much for that.
now watch for details of the next meeting in late January. our guest author will be Carrie Snyder, author of "girl runner". we will post the details on the website as well as on facebook and, of course, we will send an email to anyone who has signed up on our mailing list.
looking forward to seeing everyone again in january for another fun evening!
in addition to putting the finishing touches on the september 30 meeting where we will meet with Tasneem Jamal, author of "where the air is sweet", we have been reading diligently and talking with Dave at wordsworth about the next book for the club.
with Dave's help and the "twitter-verse", we have reached out to Carrie Snyder, author of "girl runner". and Carrie has agreed to join us at our next meeting at the end of deepest, darkest January!
check the blog and facebook regularly for reviews of Carrie's book as well as details for the date and location for the meeting. we will also send out an email to the entire mailing list when tickets are available, likely in October.
And for those of you who have already bought Carrie's book and still want to join us for dinner with the author, don't forget that a book makes a wonderful gift and (dare we utter this next statement?) christmas is coming.
if you have a ticket, head on down to wordsworth books in waterloo (see map here https://goo.gl/maps/yfpBy) and pick up your copy. you will need to bring your confirmation email as proof that you have paid for a ticket to the event.
then get reading!! just a month before we meet with the author at Public Kitchen. get your questions ready.
and in less than a week! thank you everyone for your enthusiasm for the club.
we will keep a wait list should any ticket holders find they cannot come. But, if you are interested in upcoming meetings of the club, sign up to the mailing list and you will be first to hear the title of the next book, the date and the venue.
we are thrilled to be part of the beginning of something pretty great for readers and authors in this community. And it wouldn't have happened without your enthusiasm. thanks again.
For our inaugural meeting we have chosen a recent work by Kitchener author, Tasneem Jamal. Her first book, Where the Air is Sweet, tells the story of Raju, an Indian man living in Uganda between 1921 and 1975.
In 1972, dictator Idi Amin expelled 80,000 South Asians from Uganda. Though many had lived in East Africa for generations, they were forced to flee in ninety days as their country descended into a surreal vortex of chaos and murder.
Where the Air Is Sweet tells the story of Raju, a young Indian man drawn to Africa by the human impulse to seek a better life, and three generations of his family, who carve a life for themselves in a racially stratified colonial and post-colonial society. Where the Air Is Sweet is the story of a family: their loves, their griefs and, finally, their sudden expulsion at the hands of one of the world's most terrifying tyrants.
TASNEEM JAMAL was born in Mbarara, Uganda, and immigrated to Canada with her family in 1975. She has worked as a journalist for over a decade as an editor at The Globe and Mail, Saturday Night magazine and the National Post. She has written fiction and non-fiction for the Toronto Review of Contemporary Writing Abroad, The Globe and Mail, Saturday Night magazine, the National Post and the Literary Review of Canada. She lives in Kitchener with her husband and two daughters.
date: tuesday september 30
book: "where the air is sweet" by Tasneem Jamal
where: public kitchen at 295 lancaster street west in kitchener
time: we'll start serving dinner around 6:30. Tasneem will begin her talk around 8
“Big of heart and mind, Tasneem Jamal’s powerful debut novel exposes the fragility of belonging and, with its sweeping historical eye, brings home the true meaning of Canada.”