Wool

Thanks to Ms. K for hosting our May BC.  We started out with a platter of burrata smothered in sun dried tomatoes with crostini for scooping, followed by Thyme Cafe's chicken stew with biscuits and a mixed green salad, with two kinds of cupcakes for dessert.  Lish!

"If the Lies Don't Kill You, the Truth Will."  

Whoa, now that's deep.  The self-published novel Wool, by Hugh Howey, came in just shy of a 7.  Surprisingly, an almost identical score to The Hunger Games, our last pop culture sci-fi sensation, but with different player haters. While Ms. K. excoriated Hunger Games, she bestowed upon this book a solid 7.5.  By contrast, El Jefe was a big time HG fan but found this book to be "meh."  After all, Wool isn't really such a unique piece.  As the Maharani pointed out, it sticks pretty close to sci-fi 101:  post-apocalyptic world, only vague understanding of why, population control, Big Brother suppressing the innate sexual urges of lusty young adults, to no avail. Talk about lish!  This stuff is gratuitous, entertaining and campy; just right for a Hollywood movie. What's not to like? How about 500+ pages, for starters. Wool turned out to be a veritable tome (and wait, there's more-- rumor has it a prequel is in the works).  Logan's Run just couldn't slog through it (truly a sign of not enough editing--where's censorship when we need it?) and Red thought the story was fine but way too drawn out. Other criticisms were that the book came across as overly masculine (int, since there was a female lead), the reveals were obvious, and it made the reader claustrophobic. This latter point, however, seems to be a compliment to the author, whose highly visual writing rendered life in the silos with such detail that it actually caused discomfort in the real world. And, let's give credit that despite all the pulp, there was food for discussion. Of course the most vexing question being the one that the characters in the story couldn't answer themselves:  Why do people clean? Was it out of a sense of euphoria from going outside and (falsely) discovering that the world was alive and full of color? Was it to try and clear the lenses so that others could view the same miracle? Or was it simply out of respect for the tradition, regardless of whether the cleaners knew or suspected the truth? After all, if the lies don't kill you, then, you know.

So, who would we cast?  Because the world in which El Jefe might be able to answer that question is indeed a fictional one, here's the opinion of someone else who knows better:

Rhona Mitra-- as Juliette

Liam Neeson-- as Holsten

Helen Mirren-- as Mayor Jahns

Paul Giamatti-- as Bernard

Andrew Garfield-- as Lukas

Our next meeting is Wednesday night, in Cabana 173 by the Sea. Bring a sweater. Can't wait.  xoej

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

Si, si, El Jefe es muy tarde.  But no less excited to welcome Baby Alec, the newest member of the younger BC generation!  And, he's turning out to be such a sweet and cooperative little munchkin that I am sure the Doctor will be right back into the swing of things by November, having had plenty of free time sit and finish our 500 page Jonathan Franzen novel.  But in the meantime, thanks to Ms. K for hosting a lovely and intimate TCOB.  To hear and be heard was a revelation, and it's what makes those occasional small group meetings so...pleasant!

We caught up on the month's gossip over a simple yet elegant new dip, created by Logan's run.  Creamy hummus topped with pesto and scooped up on crunchy corn tortilla chips.  It was a blend of cultures and tastes that was unusual and delicious.  Then, a platter of lishy chicken enchiladas from Thyme Cafe (Happy 1-Year Birthday Thyme, today!) and a green salad.  And for dessert, a light but flavorful medley of wild berries topped with fresh whipped cream.

Our book, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, scored about a 7.  Everyone was fascinated by this book on so many levels:  from the science to the history to the personal tragedy, someone could not have dreamed up this story as fiction if they tried.  Having grown up in an era where cell research already was well established, we took the existence of cell cultures as a fact of life.  Not one of us would have had the occasion to ponder the miracle and the mystery of where these cells came from, nor did we understand the breadth of what they have accomplished.  So, from a purely scientific standpoint, this book was a real eye opener.  The social and medical history, too, was a new discovery for us, and a disappointing one.  Who wants to look squarely at a past where black people were intentionally injected with syphilis and subjected to questionable treatments in overcrowded mental asylums?  These painful realities set the stage for the myriad ethical issues raised by this book, which, unfortunately, the author did not leave as open as she could have.  After years of painstakingly researching this story and infiltrating the lives of the Lacks family, Ms. Skloot clearly (and understandably) was not writing this book from a position of objectivity.  Although she did accomplish laying out multiple viewpoints from which to consider the moral questions surrounding cell research, her own agenda came through:  she felt that the Lackses had been wronged and deserved some financial consideration in return for Henrietta's cells.  Whether or not any particular reader agreed with her, we did agree that her point was a bit heavy handed, and that although her research had taken a decade, we did not want to continue reading about this family for a decade.  Overall, a great read in terms of content, but some additional editing would be welcome.

Henrietta Lacks, late 1940s.

Henrietta and David Lacks, circa 1945.

Divide and Conquer.

Our November meeting is on our regularly scheduled first Wednesday of the month at Chez Mademoiselle...and we'll all need the address! For the book selection, see last month's posting.  The Highlander is on apps, and we need a volunteer for dessert.  Until next time, read early and often!  xoej