The Night Soldiers by Alan Furst

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The Night Soldiers is the story of Khristos Stoianev.  We first meet him as a teenager when his brother is killed by facist in 1930s Bulgaria and he is recruited by the NKVD.  We travel along with him through the ruthless training and his fieldwork in the Spanish civil war.  As part of the NKVD paranoia the spy agency turns on its members and Khristos flees to pre-war Paris assuming another identity and life.  But the Russians are never very far away and he is betrayed and ends up in a French gaol.  As the Germans invade France he is spirited out of his imprisonmnent and becomes a member of the Resistance.  Betrayed again, this time to the Germans Khristos flees France for a rendezvous with a former NKVD colleague in the Balkans where his eventual fate will be determined.  Throw into the mix a small cadre of comrades from the NKVD training days, British, French and American spies and a dash of romance and you have a well written and engaging spy thriller.  Alan Furst has a real feel for pre-WWII Europe and so far in his books that I have read, including this novel, he manages to bring to life the atmosphere that I imagined prevailed in those uncertain times.
A ripping yarn, highly recommended.

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A Week at the Airport by Alain De Botton

De Botton was made ‘Writer in Residence” at the new Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport and was given access to travellers and staff – and they set him up at a desk in the middle of the concourse! He ruminates on, and talks to, the travellers and how they may feel, both arriving (joy) and departing (sorrow). He talks to airport and airline staff and weaves all these conversations and his observations into a study on the turbulence and peace, soullessness and beauty of the modern travellers gateway. And excellent photography by Richard Baker. A short book and an interesting read, it challenges the reader to consider the inner workings of airports and as something more than just a place to get on and off a plane.

OK, here are the notes/books from last weeks meeting from Rebecca's email.

"Hi everyone
Last week we had another small meeting. The recommendations from this faithful group include:

Of Bees and Mist by Erick Setiawan
Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier
Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan (see review below)
A Week at the Airport by Alain de Botton (review coming in the next week or so)
My Name is Memory by Ann Brashares
The Post Birthday World by Lionel Shriver
Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

The new titles are:

At Home : a short history of private life by Bill Bryson
Seeing further : the story of science and the Royal Society ed. Bill Bryson
Darkmans by Nicola Barker
How to talk about books you haven't read by Pierre Bayard
The audacity of hope by Barack Obama
Life in Seven Mistakes by Susan Johnson
The thousand autumns of Jacob De Zoet by David Mitchell

Finally, just as a heads up, by popular request, we are probably going to go back to Wednesday nights starting next term."

The good thing about a small group is that we don't have to fight over who gets what!  I managed to snaffle Bill Bryson's 'At Home' and Pierre Bayard's 'How To Talk About Books You Haven't Read'  The Bayard book should have some good tips for when I'm at parties!!!!

The latest in reading technology

Check this out, its the simplest and most interactive that I've come across.

Will Grayson Will Grayson by John Green & David Levithan

This is the story of two Will Graysons, each character’s chapters written alternatively by each of the authors. The first Will Grayson (John Green) has a large gay friend, Tiny Cooper, who I think is the central binding character of the book. He certainly looms large and loud throughout the whole book. The second Will Grayson (David Leithan) inhabits a parallel universe until he meets the first Will and Tiny.
Will Grayson has been Tiny Cooper's best friend since elementary school. Tiny is, according to Will, "the world's largest person who is really, really gay" and constantly falling in and out of love--and dragging Will with him everywhere. When his latest attempt to hook Will up with a girl fails, Will meets Will Grayson, another teen who is depressed and discouraged. Both Wills make an effort not to feel too much in life, but are changed after meeting, and continue to change as the plot proceeds to a really big finale.
The book works well with the two authors bringing their own styles which mesh well and its funny, frank and inspirational.
Highly Recommended
In the video below John Green reads from the book, its a bit of fun!

Something I Found on YouTube

A short extract from the TV series that Alain De Botton made, based on his book 'The Architecture of Happiness'

The Architecture of Happiness by Alain De Botton

A fascinating book about the relationships we have with the buildings we inhabit, homes, workplaces and public buildings.  It is a work of psychology and philosophy as De Botton examines why some buildings (and the fixtures and fittings) are ugly and some are not, why they can evoke a particular feeling within us and how buildings can reflect cultural characteristics as well.
A really very interesting book on a topic that is rarely discussed in the public arena.  Highly recommended.

Notes from our July meeting

Yes I know it's late but I wanted to get the first set of notes up and running - they come from Rebecca who is the book club convenor.
'Last week we had a smallish but quality turn out at our first meeting for some time.  There were a few recommendations, notably:
Jasper Jonesby Craig Silvey; The Spies of Warsaw by Alan Furst; The Fracture Zone by Simon Winchester; Wild Things by Dave Eggers;  Will Grayson Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan;  The Night Watch by Sergei Lukyanenko; Valley of Grace by Marion Halligan; Post-Birthday World by Lionel Shriver; What the Dog Saw by Malcolm Gladwell; An Offer You Can't Refuse by Jill Mansell; and the Gastronomy of Marriage by Michelle Maistro.
The new titles for this time are:
Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout; A Week at the Airport by Alain de Botton; Widow Clicquot by Tilar J Mazzer; Dear John by Nicholas Sparks; The Book of Love by Phillipa Fioretti; Good to a Fault by Marina Endicott and Rhubarb by Craig Silvey.'
Our next book club meeting is next week so I'll post the notes and whatever comments as soon as I can.