Hi everyone, a belated post regarding our December 2023 read.

In December 2023 we read and discussed the only short story ever published by Toni Morrison; the thought provoking Recitatif. 

The story packs quite a bit into less than 100 pages, chronicling the relationship of two women, Twyla and Roberta, who first meet as children in the late fifties, when both are left at an orphanage by their respective mothers. The girls spend months living as roommates and building a keeping-us-safe-from-the-rest-of-the-world type of friendship, only to part and meet again four times during their adult lives; once as young women at a Howard Johnson’s, then as wives at school busing protests, later at a grocery store and finally, the two more mature women, meet, by chance at a party, and subsequently have their most  in-depth and reflective conversation. 

And the big, purposely unanswered question the author raises, and weaves through the text, is about race; as readers know from the beginning one girl is black and one is white, but Morrison never reveals which is which, giving readers much to ponder about the interaction between the two women, the historical events unfolding at the time of each meeting and how race has, and continues to impact the way we live in America.  

December book club attendees gave Recitatif a sold thumbs up read rating!

And here is the current book club schedule:

Friday, February 9, 2024 Crook Manifesto: A Novel by Colson Whitehead (336 pages)

Friday, March 8, 2024 The Half Moon : A Novel by Mary Beth Keane (296 pages)

Friday, April 12, 2024 The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store: A Novel by James McBride (385 pages)

Friday, May 10, 2024 The Boston Girl by Anita Diamant (322 pages)

Friday, June 14, 2024 Let Us Descend by Jesmyn Ward (305 pages)

Friday, July 12, 2024 The Amazing Grace Adams by Fran Littlewood (256 pages)

And here is a listing of the items the library has ordered in January 2024:

Have a great day,

Linda Reimer, SSCL

P.S. Notes from the January 2024 book club gathering will be posted later this week; and our February Read: Crook Manifesto is the second book in a series by Colson Whitehead. You do not have to read the first book in the series to enjoy the second book. However, should you wish to read the first book first, it is titled Harlem Shuffle.