Storied Life of A.J. Fikry ~ Gabrielle Zeven ~ June Book Club Online

[bellamarie]

The Book Club Online is the oldest  book club on the Internet, begun in 1996, open to everyone.  We offer cordial discussions of one book a month,  24/7 and  enjoy the company of readers from all over the world.  Everyone is welcome.

June Book Club Online - Starts June 6

Storied Life of A.J. Fikry
by Gabrielle Zeven

You'll fall in love with Fikry, who owns a bookstore.  Does he have a future?  Will there be any bookstores in the future? Let's discuss it! Join us in June.  This book is perfect for the lovely month of June, you'll laugh!  Yes, you will - OUTLOUD - We did. If you are interested please post, we will post our discussion schedule shortly. SCHEDULE JUNE 6-9  CHAPTERS 1-3 JUNE 10-15 CHAPTERS 4-6 (Through "The Jumping Frog") JUNE 16 CHAPTER 7 "The girls in Their Summer Dresses." JUNE 18 PART II. CHAPTERS 1-3 JUNE 26. FINISH BOOK QUESTIONS, END OF BOOK   1. AJ hates e-readers and big chain bookstores. How do you feel about them. How do you think e-readers will change the world of books? 2. "The easiest way to get old is to be technologically behind" says AJ's mother. What do you think of that? 3. When AJ hears what the doctor says, his first thought is "At least I will never have to read the rest" of Proust. What would you love to have an excuse to leave undone? (say I who used these questions as an excuse to leave the dishes undone). 4. Lambiase tells Ismay that she saved AJ's life when she stole the manuscript. What does he mean? Do you agree? 5. "We read to know we're not alone." Do you agree. Why do you read? 6. "we are not quite short stories....In the end, we are collected works." What does AJ mean by this. 7. In the end, AJ discovers what is important, but can't get Maya to understand. What is the author saying here. 8. The end goes back to the beginning. Why? .

Discussion Leaders: Joan K and Pat H

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Yes, JoaK., that is excellent retirement advice.  I jumped into volunteer work a couple of months after retiring.  I planned on once a month.  It's turned into 2-3 times a month and I feel very guilty thinking of cutting it back.

Monday works better for me too, I got busy today and didn't even get back to the book. 

Path., I loved your women watching deduction. 

[JoanK]

OK, Monday it is. Good, I'm still washed out, and maybe Pat, Ella and Steph will be in better shape.

[Frybabe]

Happy news of sorts; it, according to the PA I save today, is all allergy symptoms.  My lungs are clear, which I was what I was concerned about. 

[bellamarie]

Frybabe, Good to hear your lungs are all clear!  Sounds like the same stuff I had only I had upper respiratory infection and ear infections, all from allergies.  Hope you are feeling better real soon.  Snuggle in with some fluids, tylenol and read a few chapters of the book. 

Want to wish all you gents in the club a Happy Father's Day!!!!

[JoanK]

FRY: GREAT! I suffer from both allergies and lots of colds, and I always have trouble telling them apart.

[JoanK]

I've put the questions for the next part in the heading. here they are also:

Questions, PART II. CH 1-3

1.Is the portrayal of Maya as a fourteen year old writer more realistic than the one of her as a baby?

2. This is the second time the author has given Maya a chapter from her point of view. Is this an effective technique?

3. Does the story she writes about her mother sound like something a 14 year old would write. What is the purpose of the clipped style in which it's written?

4. "After many years of hosting the Chief's Choice Book Club Lambiase knows that the most important thing, even more than the total at hand, is the food and drink." From your experience with book clubs, what would you say is the most important thing to their success?

5. What is the most important thing that determines whether you like a book? Which is most important to you: empathizing with the characters, the setting, learning new things, the writing, the ideas or philosophy, humor, feelings, other?

6. Did the new romance surprise you? How would you describe the character of Ismay? Labiase? Are the realistic?

7. What do you think of Lambiase's decision to ignore a crime? Why did he?

.

[bellamarie]

Good Monday morning or almost afternoon!!!  Well, after a wonderful fun-filled Father's Day with all the family, and fun in the sun I am exhausted today.  I finally finished the three chapters this morning and I am blown away!!!!!  JoanK. you have posted some great questions and I will try to answer with some of my thoughts.  I'm going to start with #3 since it may also include my answers to 1 & 2.

3. Does the story she writes about her mother sound like something a 14 year old would write. What is the purpose of the clipped style in which it's written?

Maya's story was a bit morbid, and unattached with no real personal substance for the characters, from my point of view.  I think it was wise the author did not allow her to win the prize.  For a fourteen yr. old struggling with how her mother committed suicide, and left her in a bookstore as a baby it was realistic for her to try to write about it to maybe express her inner feelings.  The fabrications in her story was a bit much.  Were they her hopes and dreams of what she would have liked her mother's life to be?  I like how Zevin allows Maya the opportunity to show her talent and writing skills.  It seems natural for her to become an author/writer, books have been her whole life, and she obviously has inherited some of her father's genes/abilities to be interested in reading and writing stories. 

This is a joy to listen to A Conversation with My Father reading... I can see why A.J. would want Maya to know this story.  She indeed needed much more insight into her writing skills.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-HDLXoqWWU
 

[bellamarie]

Okay, I can see why they called this chapter A Perfect Day for Bananafish.  It's about as bananas as A Trip to the Beach!

Phew.....  be back later, this book took a very strange turn, from happy, happy to just plain crazy!!

[PatH]

Does it seem to you that Zevin tends to alternate?  Every time things start looking too happy, she throws in something dark.

That is a strange twist indeed.

[bellamarie]

PatH.,  I don't mind life changes in stories, but jeepers creepers, Maya's story was just all over the place, just like A Perfect Day for Bananafish.  It gave me goosebumps. 

[Leah]

I thought the book's narrative was pretty organic. I found it to be both realistic AND quirky or eccentric - which is pretty much how life events look to me normally. The dialogues often made me laugh out loud which I found very satisfying.

And the "storied" aspect was an invitation to explore it at various levels, from wading to total immersion. Which is why I expect remnants of the stories to keep resurfacing in my thoughts as the seasons roll on and my subconscious reveals new connections and sparks new insights.

It is one of those many-faceted reads that will demand to be read and read again, which ought to be good for sales!

[JoanK]

BELLAMARIE: Salinger's story is weird indeed: is that what threw you? We've always known that Maya's mother committed suicide.

LEAH: "And the "storied" aspect was an invitation to explore it at various levels, from wading to total immersion. Which is why I expect remnants of the stories to keep resurfacing in my thoughts as the seasons roll on and my subconscious reveals new connections and sparks new insights."

You said that WONDERFULLY! That's exactly what good writing should do!

Maya's story is only the most obvious example of Zavin describing the most dramatic events, tragic or happy in the driest, most matter of fact prose. Why does she do this? Is it effective?

[Leah]

I read Maya's story again and only then did I notice the (mostly) short sentences which is what seems to give it that "clipped" quality JoanK mentioned. A characteristic of Hemingway's style, I've heard it said.

The tone of it has a sort of distancing effect - which fits based on the fact that what she knows about her mother is relayed to her years later. Here I am thinking of the concurrence of distance in time  and emotional distance.

[JoanK]

'The tone of it has a sort of distancing effect"

I agree. Do others

[bellamarie]

Maya's story is like Salinger's in the way it's jumping around, and not making a lot of sense, although you can see the characters are in a very sad place.  Maya's ending is also sudden and tragic like Salinger's ending.  That is what creeped me out.  It's as though they ran out of storyline, so they ended it abruptly.

Distancing, or as I mentioned, unattachment, no personal feelings. 

JoanK.,  I read Salinger's story after I read Maya's so it had no effect on my thoughts while reading Maya's.  What threw me is that both of them were so dark and tragic.  I did not expect that from a fourteen year old girl who grew up among so many people who have loved her and encouraged her, being positive role models in her life. 

[PatH]

Maya has been raised lovingly and well, if in a rather eccentric way, and is reasonably happy.  But her mother did just drop her at the place of a stranger and then drown herself, and those around her have told her all they know about it.  Her story is a straightforward fleshing out of what she knows with imagined details to make the story complete, and it ends abruptly with tragedy, like Marian Wallace's life.

[bellamarie]

Maya's story shows us our past can not escape us, and it will affect our future in some way.

4. "After many years of hosting the Chief's Choice Book Club Lambiase knows that the most important thing, even more than the total at hand, is the food and drink." From your experience with book clubs, what would you say is the most important thing to their success?

I recently read, The Jane Austen Book Club, and I think what makes a book club successful, much like this one, is...... the people.  Without the members you have NO "club."  You can serve food, drinks, and hold it anywhere, but without the members interacting, voicing their opinions, and showing up, it can not survive.   I also feel the choice of the book to be discussed is vital, because although members need to step out of their comfort zones and read different genres, they must agree to choose books that will generate interest, and keep the members wanting to be there.  It truly can be no fun if you have a book club of members, and only one or two are willing to voice their thoughts and opinions.  At some point it diminishes the whole reason for having a book club/discussion.   

[PatH]

We discussed that book in 2004, and the author joined in.  She was delightful; some of us met her for tea when she did some book talks in Washington, DC.

Did you notice the chapters paralleling the different Austen books?

[PatH]

The character I can't seem to get a handle on is Ismay.  I don't seem to be able to figure out what she's really like.  Is anyone else doing better?

[JoanK]

I'm not! She never comes together as a real person for me. What do others think?

Just noticed a typo:

"Lambiase knows that the most important thing, even more than the TOTAL at hand"

should of course be "the TITLE at hand"

I agree with you, BELLAMARIE: it's the people who make the book club. The title is important, but I've often found, in face to face clubs, the most interesting discussions are when no one likes the book or when we disagree. The discussions are boring when there is no complexity or nothing thought-provoking about the book.

[bellamarie]

Pat and Joan that is interesting you mention not being able to get a handle on Ismay.  Early on when she said she was the bad sister that struck a chord in me.  She does not see herself good, so I for some odd reason felt she may have been envious of her sister Nicole.  I didn't care for her character from the get go, especially when she tried to kiss A.J. after she miscarried in the hospital.  That really got me suspicious of her.

So, let's discuss the shocker in this chapter....The Tamerlane is found after Lambiase and Ismay have sex and he is snooping in her closet the next morning while she is cooking breakfast.  A typical detective I suppose. Which brings us to Joan's questions #6 & 7

So this brings us to the chapter, The Tell-Tale Heart, where we learn more about Ismay.  She and Lambiase decide to date and several evenings later they discuss the type of books they like to read.  This totally was an eye opener for me, Ismay says:  "No children, Children often spoil a story for me."  "I don't mind them in real life.  I just don't want to read about them.  Endings can be happy or sad, I don't care anymore as long as it's earned.  She can settle down, maybe open a little business, or she can drown herself in the ocean.  Finally, a nice-looking jacket is important.  I don't care how good the insides are.  I don't want to spend any length of time with an ugly object.  I'm shallow, I guess."  Then when Lambiase compliments her she says, "Well, I'm warning you.  I could be a bad book with a good jacket."

She really does not mind pointing out her vanity and flaws and how she sees herself as a bad person, but yet she manages to come over to other people as Lambiase points out as:  "Caring teacher.  Godmother.  Upstanding community member.  Caretaker to sister's husband and daughter.  Bad marriage, probably made too young, but tried her best."

"Sketchy," she says.

Why does she mention open a little business or drown herself in an ocean?  It is obvious she is referring to Nicole and Marian Wallace.  Does Ismay see her life as a story and people she knows are just characters in her story?

[bellamarie]

Discussing Ismay and Lambiase brings us to Joan's questions:
6. Did the new romance surprise you? How would you describe the character of Ismay? Labiase? Are the realistic?
7. What do you think of Lambiase's decision to ignore a crime? Why did he?

Yes, I really did not see the Ismay/Lambiase relationship forming so I was surprised by it.  I liked Lambiase from the beginning and can see he was lonely, so it is realistic he would notice Ismay, since they both spend so much time with A.J. and Maya.  I just never saw Ismay dating him because I felt she has a secret love for A.J 

I kind of felt the author brought this about so the Tamerlane could finally be discovered.  I suspected Ismay took it early on because she knew the value, she was with A.J. when he found it and maybe she felt a little entitled to some of the worth since she was there with him.  Who knows her motive, because it has not been revealed just yet.

At this point Lambiase appears to be willing to put it back where it was, and not mention it.  He is a really good guy, so I can't imagine him letting this go.  His statement,  "I've always wondered why Maya's mother chose Alice." leaves me to think he will not let it go.  I guess we will see in the next chapter.  As of now it's like Ismay says in reply to Lambiase, "Who knows why people do what they do?"

[bellamarie]

In the The Tell-Tale Heart opening letter to Maya, I feel the way A.J. is writing this to Maya truly is like he is journaling for her to read and have as a keepsake.  Especially this part:   

This is arguably the best known of E.A. Poe's stories.  In a box marked ephemera, you'll find my notes and twenty-five pages of my dissertation (most of it concerning "The Tell-Tale Heart"), if you're ever interested in reading more about the things your dad did in another life. __ A.J.F

I have still not figured out who the narrator is in this story.  Have all you figured it out?  I have a suspicion, but that is all it is and I can't even say I feel strongly about it.        

[Leah]

I see Ismay's behaviors as fueled by low self-esteem and a distorted self-image. I have an impression, too, that she often feels invisible; perhaps a consequence of Daniel's inconsistent treatment (or lack thereof) of her. He takes advantage of her and she allows it. What puzzles me is the fact that they still have enough room for physical intimacy for there to have been multiple miscarriages, while their relationship seems like a miscarriage in its own right. Daniel is always on the prowl, she knows it, but they are so freeze-dried with co-dependence (?) that they are incapacitated and don't even consider doing anything to alter it - unless, of course, you interpret Ismay's 'inattentive' driving as such an attempt. She seems to be in a deep state of despair and is not in total control of herself.

Lambiase is observant, which is to be expected of a police chief, but it is informed by his genuine compassionate and thoughtful nature. I liked his deliberation over the Tamerlane affair - It felt compassionate AND WISE. And it got the job done. The worst thing he could have done was to approach Ismay with his knowledge of it in a blaming, shocked, or shaming way. I think he handled it just right, and maybe he could run for president! ❤️

And I was not at all surprised by their getting together. Not sure 'why', I just wasn't.

I think the voice is considered a third person narrative from the 'omniscient' point of view. It does not seem like it is a character in the lineup.

[PatH]

We had at least one clue to Lambiase's interest.  At AJ and Amy's wedding he was aware of her going off, realized she was thinking of suicide, and gently eased her away from it.

[nlhome]

I always thought the voice was the third person also.

Ismay and Lambiase's relationship just flowed for me, a logical outcome in a book, I thought, and expected it to happen. A lot of bits and pieces through the book connect up with others along the way.

[JoanK]

NLHOME is sharper than me. I'm with those that didn't expect it. Nor did  see, like BELLAMARIE did that Ismy had taken it.

LAMBIASE told Ismay that she saved AJ's life when she stole Tamberlane. What does he mean? Do you agree?

[countrymm]

I have almost finished the book. How do I make comments in the main part of the discussion rather than in the pre-discussion area?

[PatH]

How do I make comments in the main part of the discussion rather than in the pre-discussion area?

You just did it, countrymm.  We didn't make a separate discussion site because there wasn't a lengthy prediscussion, and there were some links in it that were useful for a while.  This is it.

I'm sorry that wasn't clear.  We'd love to hear your thoughts on all but the last three chapters.  How are you liking the book and what do you think of all the issues?

[bellamarie]

As far as Ismay and Lambiase's relationship, if we can call it a relationship, I feel Ismay is just using him.  I sense Imay has issues with attachment of emotions.  I don't see Daniel to blame for Ismay's actions or feelings, she seems to have issues with being less to Nicole.  She is constantly comparing herself to Nicole.  She even says she is the  bad sister.  How could she keep the fact Daniel was Maya's biological father from Maya and A.J.  That to me is just cruel, and then to accept being the Godmother and be a part of Maya's life like she knew nothing.  Ismay is very strange.

Leah,

I think the voice is considered a third person narrative from the 'omniscient' point of view. It does not seem like it is a character in the lineup.

I agree, I mentioned that earlier on, but for some reason I keep seeing different possibilities.  Could the narrator be changing at times?  Mostly I see it as spiritual, because it is able to speak the "inner feelings" of the characters, that only the characters themselves are feeling and thinking and not expressing out loud.

JoanK., 

LAMBIASE told Ismay that she saved AJ's life when she stole Tamberlane. What does he mean? Do you agree?

I did not read this, is it in the next chapters?  The only thing Lambiase says to Ismay at the breakfast table is he wonders why Marian Wallace came to Alice Island.  The chapter ends there.

Are we going on to new chapters? 

PLEASE NO SPOILERS if you have finished the book, I am so anxious to read the final pages and be shocked or satisfied or whatever.   

[JoanK]

COUNTRYMM: WELCOME. Glad you're joining the discussion. Give us your thoughts.

BELLAMARIE: "Could the narrator be changing at times?" I felt that too. I think it's a flaw in the writing. At times, Zavin wants to make a chapter told from someone's point of view, but keeps slipping back into the impersonal narrator.

I think Lamniase's comment is in the third chapter we're reading. No one is talking about that, and it's a shocker! was it not clear it was covered?

[JoanK]

It's time to finish the book (which doesn't mean we can't talk about Part II, chapter 3.)

Let's hear your reactions to the plot twist in Chapter 3 and Start discussing the end of the book Sunday (is that enough time?)

[bellamarie]

I mentioned my thoughts on chapter 3 in post 2194.  No I did not see Lambiase's comment about her saving A.J.'s life by stealing Tamerlane, it must be in the next chapters. 

JoanK., 

"Could the narrator be changing at times?" I felt that too. I think it's a flaw in the writing. At times, Zavin wants to make a chapter told from someone's point of view, but keeps slipping back into the impersonal narrator.

I am glad to hear you felt the narrator kept changing also.  At times the author has the narrator speak omniscient, like the voice is telling the story written that is outside the story and knows everything…  then other times the narrator is speaking in the first person, telling present time happenings, and going back and sharing things that happened in the past which clearly for me is A.J. Fikry.

Could the author actually have been flawed in the writing?  That's an interesting thought. 

Okay, I'm off to finish the book!   I have my two very active and chatty grandkids spending the night, so wish me luck.  Sunday is plenty of time for me because I am anxious to finish it, so I'll have it read tomorrow!!   

[Leah]

I think this definition explains the impression of a shifting narrator:

"Third person omniscient is a method of storytelling in which the narrator knows the thoughts and feelings of all of the characters in the story, as opposed to third person limited, which adheres closely to one character's perspective.

Through third person omniscient, a writer may bring to life an entire world of characters. For instance, Anna Karenina is told from multiple points of view."

[Leah]

I can't paint Ismay as any more or less of a "bad guy" than her husband or Maya's mother. Daniel and Marian also made some pretty hefty human mistakes - he with his philandering and her for sleeping with him even knowing that he was a married man. Theirs is a triangle of errors, and all are culpable. That said, I think each paid a heavy price for their indiscretions in this life. Lambiase might agree.

Daniel should have had had a pretty good idea that Maya was his daughter, and yet he did not step up to the plate. The actions of each managed to fuel and influence the actions of the others and created a messy triangle that ended up having unexpectedly positive results for Maya - and A.J., too, I suppose.

[bellamarie]

Leah, Thank you for the definition of the " Third person omniscient, vs. third person limited" it makes it so much clearer to see how the author did indeed shift from one to the other, flawlessly. 

I agree, all involved made poor choices resulting in very fatal results, yet their choices benefitted Maya and A.J's life.  They all had character flaws, but then again who doesn't?   

[JoanK]

Thank you LEAH, that was very helpful.

And now we have AJ at the doctor, Lambiase talking to Ismay abouit "Tamberlane, everything changing. Is that realistic?

[bellamarie]

Are we beginning to discuss the last chapters?  A.J. mentions the short stories, Ironhead and Bullet in the Brain.   Both these short stories are sad and deal with death, as this chapter prepares us for A.J. learning he has brain cancer and faces death. 

In Ironhead the boy felt lonely and out of place with his family because they all have pumpkin heads and he has an ironhead.  A.J. seems to be similar in his life, out of place living in Alice Island among Nic's friends, yet they in time become his friends as well.  In Bullet in the Brain the main character feels aloof, until he begins looking back over his years after being shot, and this is where the reader begins to really start caring about him, much like I found myself feeling about A.J. once he is diagnosed.  A.J. struggles with making a decision of either having the surgery, or not spending the money to save for Amelia and Maya after he dies, yet he does want to live as long as possible.  We finally are introduced to A.J.'s mother who he seems to really treat rudely.  I felt bad for the Mom.

In this chapter I am finding myself feelings so many different emotions for all the characters.  I am extremely sad for A.J. who finally has a loving wife, Maya, a successful bookstore, a new home, friends and yet now he has to face this horrible life threatening cancer.  It shows how in a split second your entire life can come to a halt and you have little to no control of it.  Ughh.....  I really did not like this chapter. 

Will be back later to talk about Tamerlane.

[PatH]

I was just talking with JoanK, and she accidentally posted a future comment too soon, so hold your other comments for a bit.  But she has asked about things being realistic, and that brings up something I have felt.  For me, the whole book has a slightly dreamlike quality--not that it couldn't have happened, but it's somehow slightly ethereal.  Does anyone else feel this?

[JoanK]

I GOOFED!, I somehow thought our reading included one more chapter than it did. I've been waiting, wondering why no one was talking about the next chapter.

I'm so sorry. Go on with your reading, and we'll talk about the rest Sunday. (and I''ll repeat the questions  that shouldn't have been in this section).