Bangkok Book Club

 [Summary: details on the International Book Club of Bangkok - general info and chosen books for January to April]

The post below relates to early 2008. For dates and titles for the second part of 2008 see: http://littlebang.wordpress.com/2008/06/01/bangkok-book-club-2/

 

While not really connected to Buddhism, the International Book Club might be appealing to some. Here is a general description, and below are details of this month’s chosen books:

The group is for people who are interested in reading and want to meet up with like-minded souls who enjoying talking about books.
We meet on the last Wednesday of the month at 7.30pm at the bookstore known as Books @ 53 in Sukhumvit Soi 53.
The group is made up of people from different nationalities and backgrounds and there are men and women in the group.
Books that have been chosen for discussion in the past have covered a number of subjects and from authors from around the world.  All books chosen are in English.
The meetings are very relaxed and informal.   Members come and go, as often they have to miss our meetings due to work and other commitments.  There is no application form or fees involved, though we ask for a 50baht donation, as there is tea/coffee available from the coffee shop and wine at the meetings. Each meeting is focused around one book that has previously been chosen by the members attending earlier meetings.   Please do join us for any of our meetings; we are always looking for new members.   All you need do is attend any of our meetings.

Books @ 53 is large bookstore just 200m on the left as you turn into Soi 53 from Sukhumvit; the nearest Skytrain is ThongLor.
There is a 10% discount for books purchased by Bookclub members.

Upcoming books :

January 30th

Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert Heinkein
A 1961 science fiction novel was a breakthrough best-seller and eventual
cult classic, it tells the story of Valentine Michael Smith, a human raised
by Martians on Mars, as he returns to Earth in early adulthood. The novel
explores his interaction with – and eventual transformation of – Earth
culture. The publisher describes the book as” a sprawling satire of human
conceits, including marriage, love, sex and–most importantly-religion; it
is an invitation to think–not to believe.”

February 27th.

The Devil and the White City by Erik Larson
This nonfiction crime book won national American prizes in 2003 and 2004. It
recounts the inconceivable events surrounding the Chicago World’s Fair in
1893, Larson’s tale captures a time and place that vividly comes to life.
The central characters in this tale are Daniel H. Burnham, the architect
responsible for the construction of the fair, and H. H. Holmes, a serial
killer who used the popularity of the fair for his own nefarious ends.
Breathtakingly written, this almost unbelievable history reads like the work
of a highly inventive novelist.

March 26th The Testament of Gideon Mack by James Robertson
A strange but compelling manuscript, supposedly the memoir of a Church of
Scotland minister who has gone missing, arrives on the desk of an Edinburgh
publisher. It tells the story of Gideon Mack, a son of the manse raised in
chilly austerity and dominated by a joyless father, who claims to have met
the Devil. Mixing fantasy, legend and history, The Testament of Gideon Mack
is an ambitious, mesmerizing novel which combines superlative storytelling
with immense imaginative power.

April 30th The World is Flat by Tom Friedman
This is Thomas Friedman’s, a New York Times columnist, account of the great
changes taking place in our time, as lightning-swift advances in technology
and communications put people all over the globe in touch as never
before-creating an explosion of wealth in India and China, and challenging
the rest of us to run even faster just to stay in place.