Brown Bag Book Discussion - September 2003

Told from the perspective of a man brought up as a girl (due to a rare genetic disorder), this dreamy lyrical second novel by Eugenides takes a looks at the American dream, suburbia, gender, and identity.

This latest Grisham novel looks at the greedy crooked lawyers who take on class action suits, setting up advertisements and sweatshops to elicit clients and making millions in the process. Another good read from Grisham.

Hillary Rodham Clinton examines her life and particularly her time in the Whitehouse. She gives side of Whitewater, the Monica Lewinsky situation and other scandals that rocked the Clinton presidency.

Bedford, Virginia has the distinction of losing the most men in one day during WWII. 19 of the small towns young men were killed in action at the storming of Normandy (three more died later). This book looks at the training they went through, the D-day invasion and the after-affects of their deaths on the small town they came from. Though not from a particularly patriotic view, this book looks at the individual spirit of each man as well as the mistakes made in the D-day invasion.

A great read-aloud for babies and younger children, this picture book features the paintings of Mary Cassatt, combining art and poetry.

This is the true story of Phineas Gage, a blasting expert who wound up with a spike through his head. Though he lived 11 years after this incident, he was a different man: vulgar, profane and difficult to get along with. These personality changes led those in the medical field to take another look at how the brain functions and affects behavior.

A funny, down-to-earth, insightful chronicle of Nevada Barr’s spiritual life and development. It is not preachy at all, but a very entertaining read with much food for thought.

If anyone had told me I would spend a weekend reading, in complete fascination, a book about the fight against smallpox and the enormous controversy surrounding the first uses of inoculation in Britain and in the US, I would not have believed them. But this book is nonfiction that reads like fiction and it is a true page-turner. Recommended for anyone interested in social as well as medical history.

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