Reading Group Books for Previous Years
Helmdon Reading Group - Books for 2020
Date |
Title & Author |
Venue |
|---|---|---|
06 January |
The Corset |
At Carol's |
03 February |
Once Upon A River |
At Gill's |
02 March |
The House Opposite |
At Eileen's |
06 April |
The Burning Chambers |
Jean's book |
04 May |
The Centre of the Bed |
Lynn's book |
01 June |
The Shepherd's Hut |
Sally's book |
06 July |
The Dutch House |
Alex's book |
03 August |
Blackberry Wine |
Audrey's book |
07September |
Where The Crawdads Sing |
Carol's book |
05 October |
Life, Death & Vanilla Slices |
Eileen's book |
02 November |
West With The Night |
Gill's book |
07 December |
Those Who Are Loved |
Jean's book |
Helmdon Reading Group - Books for 2019
Date |
Title and Author |
Venue |
|---|---|---|
2018 |
The Other Hand |
Sally's book |
2019 |
The Ship |
at Alex's |
04 February |
No meeting |
|
04 March |
The Snow Child |
at Audrey's |
01 April |
The Body In The Ice |
at Carol's |
29 April |
Reasons To Stay Alive |
at Eileen's |
03 June |
After The Party |
at Gill's |
01 July |
The Music Shop |
at Jean's |
05 August |
The Penguin Lessons |
at Jenny's |
02 September |
Transcription |
at Lynn's |
07 October |
The Scavenger's Daughter |
Sally's book |
05 November |
A Gentleman In Moscow |
at Alex's |
02 December |
The Warden |
at Audrey's |
06 January |
The Corset |
at Carol's |
Reading Group - Books for 2018
2018 29 January | The Silk Merchant's Daughter Dinah Jefferies at Sally's |
| 05 March | Cousins by Sally Vickers at Alex's |
| 02 April | Moving by Jenny Eclair at Ann's |
| 04 June | The Secret Rooms by Catherine Bailey at Audrey's |
| 02 July | The Dry by Jane Harper at Carol's |
| 06 August | Miss Boston & Miss Hargreaves by Rachel Malik at Gill's |
| 03 September | Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman at Jean's |
| 01 October | A Year of Marvellous Things Sarah Winman at Jenny's |
05 November 2018 |
The last Painting of Sara de Voig |
Reading Group Books for 2017
| 09 January | The Light Between Oceans M.L Stedman at Jean's |
09 February 7.30 p.m. new time | The Sea Garden Deborah Lawrenson at Jenny's |
06 March | The Muse Jessie Burton at Lynn's |
03 April | The Watchmaker of Filigree Street Natasha Pulley at Alex's |
| 08 May | The Husband's Wife Amanda Prowse at Ann's |
| 05 June | Wait For Me! Memoirs of the Youngest Mitford Sister Deborah Devonshire at Audrey's |
| 03 July | When Nights Were Cold Susanna Jones at Carol's |
| August | No meeting |
| 04 September | The Essex Serpent Sarah Walters at Gill's |
| 02 October | The Power of One Bryce Courtenay at Jean's |
| 06 November | The Children Act Ian McEwan at Jenny's |
| 04 December | Birdcage Walk Helen Dunmore at Lynn's |
Reading Group Books for 2016
| 04 January | Poetry at Alex's |
| 01 February | The Enchanted April by Eliabeth von Arnim at Gill's |
| 08 February | The Enchanted April FILM at Carol's |
| 07 March | All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr at Jean's |
| 04 April | The Orchard of Lost Souls by Nadifa Mohamed at Jenny's |
| 02 May | Me Before You JoJo Moyes at Judy's |
| 06 June | The Behaviour of Moths Poppy Adams at Lynn's |
| 04 July | Somebody Else's Kids Torey Hayden at Val's |
| 01 August | Off Shore Penelope Fitzgerald at Alex's |
| 05 September | A Shepherd's Life: A Tale of the Lake District James Rebanks at Ann's |
| 03 October | The Silk Factory Judith Allnatt at Audrey's |
| 07 November | The Last Train To Brackley Central Stephen Done at Carol's |
| 28 November | Exposure Helen Dunmore at Gill's |
| 09 Januaary | The Light Between Oceans M.L Stedman at Jean's |
| 09 February | The Sea Garden Deborah Lawrenson at Jenny's |
Reading Group Books for 2015
|
Reading Group Books for 2014
| 6 January | Quartet - film at Carol's |
| 3 February | The Baroness (Hannah Rothschild) at Alex's |
| 3 March | The Last Dance & Other Stories (Victoria Hislop) at Audrey's |
| 7 April | To Kill A Mocking Bird (Harper Lee) at Carol's |
| 5 May | White Truffles In Winter (N.M. Kelby) at Gillian's |
| 2 June | A Genius In The Family: An Intimate Memoir Of Jacqueline Du Pre(Hilary du Pre) at Liz's |
| 7 July | Nothing To Envy (Barbara Demick) at Jean's |
| 4 August | How It All Began (Penelope Lively) at Jenny's |
| 1 September | Appletree Yard (Louise Doughty) at Judy's |
| 6 October | A Walk In The Woods (Bill Bryson) at Alex's |
| 3 November | We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves (Karen Joy Fowler) at Lyn's |
| 1 December | Poems and Nibbles at Alex's |
Reading Group Books for 2013
7 January | Poems at Gill's |
4 February | The Poisonwood Bible (Barbara Kingsolver) at Lynn's |
4 March | The Complete Mapp & Lucia (E.F.Benson) at Alex's |
8 April | In Pale Battalions (Robert Goddard) at Ann's |
6 May | An Act of Peace (Ann Widdecombe) at Audrey's |
3 June | The White Woman On The Green Bicycle (Monique Roffey) at Carol's |
1 July | The Hundred Year Old Man Who Climbed Out Of The Window And Disappeared (Jonas Jonosson) at Gillian's |
5 August | Pure (Andrew Miller) at Jean's |
2 September | The Cleaner of Chartres (Salley Vickers) at Jenny's |
7 October | When God was a Rabbit (Sarah Winman) at Judy's |
4 November | The Last Runaway (Tracy Chevalier) at Lynn's |
2 December | The Distant Hours (Kate Moreton) at Ann's |
Reading Group Books for 2012
2 January | Poems at Alex's |
6 February | The Masters (CP Snow) at Liz's |
5 March | East of the Sun (Julia Gregson) at Lynn's |
2 April | Christ Stopped at Eboli (Carlo Levi) at Alex's |
7 May | The Liffey Flows By (Niki Phillips) at Ann's |
4 June | The Sense Of An Ending (Julian Barnes) at Audrey's |
2 July | The Sealed Letter (Emma Donaghue) at Carol's |
6 August | Summer in February (Jonathan Swift) at Gill's |
3 September | The Peppered Moth (Margaret Drabble) at Jenny's |
1 October | The Hare With The Amber Eyes (Edmund de Waal) at Jean's |
5 November | State of Wonder (Ann Patchett) at Judy's |
3 December | English Eagles (Nigel Slater) and visit of the author at Carol's |
Reading Group Books for 2011
| 3 January | Poetry evening at Alex's |
| 7 February | A Week in December (Sebastian Faulks) at Judy's |
| 7 March | The Guernsey & Potato Peel Society |
| 4 April | The Persian Boy (Mary Renault) at Alex's |
| 9 May | Trespass (Rose Tremain) at Alex's |
| 6 June | England, Their England (A.G MacDonnell) at Ann's |
| 4 July | The 19th Wife (David Ebershoff) at Carol's |
| 1 August | The Long Song (Andrea Levy) at Carol's |
| 5 September | Started Early, Took My Dog (Kate Atkinson) at Gill's |
3 October | Before I Go To Sleep (SJ Watson) at Jean's |
7 November | Isa And May (Margaret Forster) at Jenny's |
5 December | Pigeon English ( Steven Kelman) at Judy's |
Reading Group Books for 2010
The Reading Group in 2010
(From left to right) Liz Woolley, Carol Brookhouse, Judy Porter,
Ann Smith, Audrey Forgham, Alex Corrin, Lynn Gartside and Jean Simmonds (not present: Jenny Overson and Gill Watson)
5 January The meeting is at Carol's. Take a favourite poem.
8 FebruaryThe meeting is at Judy's. Wolf Hall (Hilary Mantel)
11 March The meeting is at Ann's The Great Gatsby (F.Scott Fitzgerald) and The Beacon (Susan Hill)
5 April The meeting is at Lyn's Sacred Hearts (Sarah Dunant)
3 May The meeting is at Alex's. Members' recommended books
7 June The meeting is at Jean's. Rogue Herries (HughWalpole)
5 July The meeting is at Ann's. The Secret Scripture (Sebastian Barry)
2 August The meeting is at Carol's The Remains of the Day (Kazuo Ishiguru)
6 September The meeting is at Carol's The White Queen (Philippa Gregory)
4 October The meeting is at Gill's The Help (Katherine Stockett)
1 November The meeting is at Jean's The Five People You Meet In Heaven Mitch Alborn
6 December The meeting is at Ann's The Outcast Sadie Jones
Reading Group Books for 2009
New Year 2009 - Plenty of eating and chatting, but did books get a look in?
Left to right: Alex Corrin, Liz Woolley, Ann Smith, Audrey Forgham, Carol Brookhouse, Gill Watson, Lynn Gartside and, in front, Jean Simmonds
5th January The meeting is at Carol's. Take a favourite poem, with copies for the group and a plate of "nibbles".
9th February The meetingisat Alex's. Diary of an Ordinary Woman (Margaret Forster)
2nd March The meeting is at Ann's. The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (Agatha Christie)
NB King's Sutton Literary Festival is the weekend 7th and 8th March
6th April The meeting is at Jean's. The Reader (Bernhard Schlink)
4th May The meeting is at Judy's. The Return (Victoria Hislop)
1st June The meeting is at Carol's. The Bolter (Frances Osbourne)
6th July The meeting is at Alex's. The White Tiger (Aravind Adiga)
3rd August The meeting is at Lyn's. Coram Boy (Jamila Gavin)
7th September The meeting is at Ann's. Azincourt (Bernard Cornwell)
5th October The meeting is at Jean's. The Piano Teacher (Janice Y.K Lee)
2nd November The meeting is at Gill's. Under The Greenwood Tree (Thomas Hardy)
7th December The meeting is at Alex's. The Music Room (William Fiennes)
Reading Group Books for 2008
Some members of the Helmdon Reading Group 2008
From left to right: Jenny Overson, Alex Corrin, Liz Woolley,
Audrey Forgham, Carol Brookhouse and, in front, Jean Simmonds.
Notes for members:
2008
7th January Meeting at Alex's. Take a favourite poem, with copies for the group and a plate of "nibbles".
14th January Film trip to see The Kite Runner
4th February Meeting at Carol's. North and South (Mrs Gaskell).
3rd MarchMeeting at Lynn's. Star of the Sea (Joseph O'Connor)
8th March Kings Sutton Literary Festival - visit (contact Ann or Carol)
10th March Film trip to see The Other Boleyn Girl Cancelled
7th April Meeting at Ann's. Fair Stood The Wind For France (H E Bates)
12th May Meeting at Gill's. Purple Hibiscus (Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie)
9th June Meeting at Alex's. Notes From An Exhibition (Patrick Gale)
7th July Meeting at Carol's. Rough Music (Patrick Gale)
No August meeting
8th September Meeting at Judy's. The Ragged Trousered Philanthropist (Robert Tressell)
10th October Meeting at Ann's. The Forgotten Garden (Kate Moreton)
3rd November Meeting at Lyn's. The Road Home (Rose Tremaine)
1st December Meeting at Gillian's. Fallen Skies (Phillipa Gregory)
Jean Spendlove (centre) showing a document to
Carol Brookhouse (left) and Lynn Gartside (right)
2006 "For Freedom to be Equal"
In November 2006 we discussed a book written by a resident of Helmdon, Jean Spendlove. The book is called For Freedom to be Equal, and is set in Rennes in the time of the French Revolution. Jean attended the meeting so we were able to ask questions and discuss her work. Most of the book club ended up purchasing the book that Jean so kindly lent us to read. We are now hoping she will complete the follow-on book.
The Reading Circle
Some members of the original Reading Circle
The Helmdon Reading Circle was established in July 1999 to enable us to share the joy of reading. Ten of us meet on the first Monday of every month, with the meeting being held in the home of the person who has selected the book for that month. The meetings are usually about two and a half hours long. As a group we agreed that we did not want to read any science fiction or horror stories and that all books were subject to a limit of 500 pages. So far, we have read, amongst others, Hideous Kinky by Esther Freud, Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks, Sold by Zana Muhsen, and Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt. The Helmdon Reading Circle has proved to be extremely successful and enjoyable and I hope it will continue to flourish.
