Round Rock New Neighbors is a social organization of women welcoming women in the Round Rock area since 1978. Both "new" and "old" neighbors are welcome. For more information: rrnewneighbors.org [Barnes & Noble requires that RRNN's book club be open to the public, so you do not need to be an RRNN member to attend book club, and both men and women are welcome and do attend. ]
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LOCAL LITERARY EVENT:

Saturday, August 26, 2006

Vanity Takes Many Forms

When we discussed All is Vanity, by Christina Schwarz, there were insights, as usual. Margaret was all vanity, all show from the getgo, and Letty fell into the trap along with her husband, when their fortunes changed with the new museum job. There was some discussion as to whether or not the characters were unrealistically exaggerated in their paths to trouble. We did find that there were important implications for the two women at the end of the book. This was a rare case when we found some good answers at the end; no one complained about the ending, so the author got points from us there.

Sometimes it isn’t a case of whether you like the book or not, and sometimes it is. One of our members said she thought the book was “stupid.” This kind of comment can spice up our discussions but also can be a conversation stopper. We all have to work together to be able to enjoy a mixture of opinions, by being tolerant and open-minded and listening to each other and also by backing up our opinions. How someone expresses their opinion can affect the discussion, but how they back up their opinion may be the more important aspect. Do you remember the reasons why she thought the book was stupid?

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