by Deborah Rogers –
The title of our April selection, The Book of Hope – A Survival Guide for Trying Times, had plenty of appeal for our group. Who wouldn’t like some suggestions on how to stay hopeful when the world feels like it’s falling apart? But it was quickly clear that the contents of the book had left our group divided. It’s formatted as a conversation between Dr. Jane Goodall, respected anthropologist and conservationist, and Douglas Abrahms. Through a series of in-person, online and email conversations the two discuss the idea of what hope is, and how it is possible, or essential, to remain hopeful.
It was very interesting to hear how differently our readers experienced the book. For those who had listened to the audio book, the conversation format was successful, and to hear Goodall herself relate incidents and experiences from her life was very impactful. For many who had read the book it landed differently. The main complaint was about Abrahms who seemed unsuited as a co-author, lacking credentials and contributing little. It was Jane’s thoughts that our readers were hungry for, and some came away disappointed by them too. Where the title suggests a guide, really the book is a nature book, sharing stories from the animal world to help us understand humanity better.
There is no doubt that Jane Goodall continues to inspire and make an impact with her life. But what became really interesting at our meeting was when the discussion moved from the book towards the philosophical question at its heart: “what is hope?” and “without hope who are we?” It was apparent that the subject was significant for many in the room. We’re a big group of people largely unknown to each other, so each month when we gather to share our thoughts, we’re really putting ourselves out there. Books provoke strong opinions; they are often written purposefully to challenge assumptions or question the status quo – and that means our readers come to the meetings full of passion about what they’ve read. This Book Club group is so respectful of each other’s opinions, and brave to speak opposing thoughts amongst strangers. It was hard to get a strong consensus on what the goal of this book really was, yet the discussion, debate and challenging of each other’s point of view was surely a good outcome.
For our May meeting we’ll be reading The Son of the House by Cheluchi Onyemelukwe-Onuobia. You can contact the Sidney/North Saanich Library to get your name on the wait list for a copy. We’ll meet on Tuesday, May 14 at 6:30 p.m. at the Sidney/North Saanich Library. Sign up to our mailing list for Book Club news: www.seasidemagazine.ca/book-club/.
