I was fortunate to have a dear friend pass the book on after she was done. Once I have finished it, I will give it to the library. Of the 3 books mentioned, Homecoming and Fellowship Point are in our library system, but out. My library doesn’t have them and who knows how long the wait is. Nobody has the John Boyne book.
I read In Five Years and am very glad we didn’t choose it for the last round. 'Nuff said.
I’ll put The Hacienda on the list again – I don’t mind spooky things in December. 
I’ll also add The Ministry for the Future. @VeryHappy, without any spoilers, can you give us a general sense of why you initially hated it?
Homecoming by Kate Morton
Fellowship Point by Alice Elliott Dark
Remarkedly Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt
The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas
The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson
If there are no vetoes, five titles will work for our Ranked Choice Voting. I’ll wait a bit for other possible additions / comments, then will post a link.
Just wondering…I’m years behind on this one, but I assume that by this time, almost everyone has read The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid? Two different people mentioned it to me this week as being one of their favorite books. I haven’t read it, but it’s now on my list.
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I initially hated The Ministry for the Future because parts of it are very dense (to me, anyway!). For example, there’s a section that discusses something called “carbon coins,” where companies (and, rarely, individuals) are provided with a carbon coin if they avert dredging up a certain amount of fossil fuel. The carbon coins can be spent on something important to the company. It’s basically a new form of currency. The economic discussion about incentives versus punishments about how to get companies to rein in their use of fossil fuels left me lost sometimes.
BUT, the things Robinson writes about to try to minimize climate change have apparently been attempted and some of them continue to be used. I had no idea about most of them.
This was one of Obama’s favorite books of 2020.
ETA: I read The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. Delightful, but you can easily read it on your own.
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Thank you! Exactly what I needed to know. And that provides a nice segue to something I’d like us to think about for February. We generally read a classic every year – because so often, they aren’t easy to read on your own. The CC group is a good motivator.
If folks are agreeable, let’s consider creating a list of classics to choose from for our first book of 2024 – if a classic romance, so much the better. We had fun with Pride and Prejudice and I adored Far From the Madding Crowd. And I think Middlemarch ended up being a favorite for someone (@ignatius?)
Sorry – that’s a bit of a digression, but I just wanted to plant the seed for February. Anyway, back to December…
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I’ve always been grateful for our dip back into the classics. We’ve read so many I missed along the way (East of Eden) and revisited others that I had read but wanted to read again (Lonesome Dove). I also really liked each of the ones you mentioned. The first classic we read was in 2010 - The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins. I didn’t know anything about it but thoroughly enjoyed it. This book club has been good for me.
And @VeryHappy is right: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo is easy to read on your own. You’ll like it.
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I started Ministry for the Future but got so depressed by the premise and lost in the scientific details that I stopped. No desire to try again; real life is scary enough right now.
Evelyn Hugo was the least favorite for me of the author’s books; maybe because I disliked the character. I just read her Carrie Soto is Back and enjoyed it. And learned so much about professional tennis!
No time now to look over the other choices or think of ideas but will be back in a few hours.
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@momofboiler1 agree about fellowship point
No vetoes on any of these from me! Thanks for the info on Evelyn Hugo @VeryHappy and @ignatius–I’ve wanted to read that one, too. And I didn’t realize Carrie Soto is Back was about tennis–I love tennis!
I’m always grateful to dip into those classics I’ve never read–those are some of my favorites from this group.
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I won’t veto Ministry for the Future but I won’t read it. Right now I would love to read a book that takes me away from real world problems and is upbeat. No particular ideas to add.
Re a classic romance for February - just to start, I will throw in Rebecca, The Thorn Birds, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, and Outlander. It may be hard to find a book many of us haven’t read!
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I enjoyed Fellowship Point very much and think many in this group would, too. I won’t reread but will happily lurk or chime in. This is going to be a busy couple of months for me, so a book I’ve already read would let me catch my breath.
Not vetoing anything and will probably read whatever the group decides on.
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The Ministry for the Future is definitely not that.
For something light but fun, try Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk. That’s not a recommendation for this group, but it’s enjoyable. Or even better: Have You Seen Luis Velez?
It would be fun to re-read Thornbirds! It’s been….40-plus years for me!
I’m thinking of a re-read of Elmer Gantry. I love Sinclair Lewis, and I think Elmer Gantry might be relevant today.
Maybe we should pick a classic for December.
Well, I’d read a classic every month, but let’s save it for February. My daughter is getting married in December and although she is having a very tiny wedding, there’s still a lot of associated events on the horizon: shower, luncheon, etc. – not to mention the usual Christmas shenanigans. My head is not going to be in an Elmer Gantry place on December 1st.
From the February suggestions above, it looks like we will have a lot of great options!
FYI, I really enjoyed Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk.
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Just put a hold on Lillian Boxfish.
Me too ; )
It isn’t in my library system.
I haven’t read Elmer Gantry since high school. It would be fun to read with a different perspective now.
Whoops forgot about our new tech voting
@jerseysouthmomchess is showing her hand too early. 
Here’s the link for Ranked Choice Voting – please rank all five in order of desire: Ballot
And here are the results, which will continually change / update until all votes are in: Election Results
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