Book Worm; Book Club

Yesterday eve myself and a few friends had a long overdue debut book club meeting. We had been planning it for a while - but due to busy timetables etc it was difficult to find a date that suited us all. The first book we had simultaneously read and studied was 'Surfacing' by the incredible Margaret Atwood. Atwood infamously uses feminist undertones in her writing. We all felt this rang true with this book. The protagonist, whose name we, weirdly, don't know, is hard to empathise with. Collectively we felt confused by her actions. It is generally easier to relate to a protagonist we can empathise with. Therefore, said protagonist was hard to read even though we had first hand insight into her brain. From a previous Meisner class, my teacher claimed 'There is nothing humans crave more than affection'. I was understandably flummoxed when this character didn't seem to attain basic human qualities. My friends agreed that we wanted to relate to her - through the course of the book she goes through some horrific moments, and we know she is not inherently bad - but her 'other-worldliness' made it hard to connect with her.
Last night re-established the joy you can get from discussing a book in detail - including view points, feelings and opinions. Not only that, but going to bed looking forward to winding down by reading a few pages of your latest book is a truly lovely feeling. Also, substituting iPhone scrolling with book reading on your commute can work wonders for your general wellbeing - especially lifting your mood for the day ahead or relaxing you en route home.
I have been reading the biography of actress Vivien Leigh over the past few months and it has had a big impact on me. I can identify with her mind-set and I have started to make parallels with descriptions of certain moods that I have experienced. In turn, this has helped me cope better with some scenarios because I have found someone I can identify with and empathise with her life and art form.
The next book on the book club reading list is: 'My Brilliant Friend' by Elena Ferrante. I have just ordered that, but in the meantime I am currently reading 'How To Stop Time' by Matt Haig, which is proving to be an engrossing fiction novel.