Decorah Public Library staff are hosting five book discussions in February. The groups are open to the public and newcomers are encouraged to attend. Anyone interested should call the library at 382-3717 to learn more or to reserve a book. Zoom links are available on the Library’s website or you can email [email protected] to be added to any of the five groups’ email distribution lists. Funds for multiple copy sets were generously provided by Friends of Decorah Public Library.
For more information, contact Carmen Buss (Friday Book Group), Zach Row-Heyveld (Cookbook Group) or Kristin Torresdal (Happy Hour, History, and Speculative Fiction Book Groups) at 563-382-3717.
Sharks in the Time of Saviors
The Happy Hour Book Group will meet via Zoom Wed. Feb. 9 at 5:15 p.m. to discuss Kawai Strong Washburn’s “Sharks in the Time of Saviors.” In 1995 Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, on a rare family vacation, seven-year-old Nainoa Flores falls overboard a cruise ship into the Pacific Ocean. When sharks appear in the water, everyone fears for the worst. But instead, Noa is gingerly delivered to his mother in the jaws of a shark, marking his story as the stuff of legends. Nainoa’s family, struggling amidst the collapse of the sugarcane industry, hails his rescue as a sign of favor from ancient Hawaiian gods—a belief that appears validated after he exhibits puzzling new abilities. But this supposed divine favor eventually begins to drive the family apart.
Jubilee: Recipes from Two Centuries of African American Cooking
Cookbook Book Group will meet on Thursday, February 10 at 7 p.m. to discuss Toni Tipton-Martin’s James Beard Award winning cookbook “Jubilee: Recipes from Two Centuries of African American Cooking.” Cook along with pioneering figures in African American cuisine, from enslaved chefs to middle- and upper-class writers and entrepreneurs. With more than 100 stories and recipes, from classics such as Sweet Potato Biscuits, Seafood Gumbo, Buttermilk Fried Chicken, and Pecan Pie with Bourbon to lesser-known but even more decadent dishes like Bourbon & Apple Hot Toddies, Spoon Bread, and Baked Ham Glazed with Champagne, Jubilee presents techniques, ingredients, and dishes that show the roots of African American cooking—deeply beautiful, culturally diverse, fit for celebration.
Killers of the King: The Men Who Dared to Execute Charles I
The History Book Group will meet via Zoom Thurs. Feb. 17 at 3:00 p.m. to discuss Charles Spencer’s “Killers of the King: The Men Who Dared to Execute Charles I.” On August 18, 1648, with no relief from the siege in sight, the royalist garrison holding Colchester Castle surrendered and Oliver Cromwell’s army ended the rule of Charles I of England. Yet still, the king refused to accept he had lost the war. As France and other allies mobilized in support of Charles, a tribunal was hastily gathered and a death sentence was passed. On January 30, 1649, the King of England was executed. This is the account of the fifty-nine regicides, the men who signed Charles I’s death warrant.
God Land
The Friday Book Group will meet via Zoom Fri. Feb. 18 at 2:00 p.m. to discuss Lyz Lenz’s “God Land.” In the wake of the 2016 election, Lyz Lenz watched as her country and her marriage were torn apart by the competing forces of faith and politics. A mother of two, a Christian, and a lifelong resident of middle America, Lenz was bewildered by the pain and loss around her—what was happening to faith in the heartland? Part journalism, part memoir, “God Land” is a journey into the heart of a deeply divided America. Lenz visits places of worship across the heartland and speaks to the everyday people who often struggle to keep their churches afloat.
Far From the Light of Heaven
The Speculative Fiction Book Group will meet via Zoom Wed. Feb. 23 at 5:15 p.m. to discuss Tade Thompson’s “Far From the Light of Heaven.” The colony ship “Ragtime” docks in the Lagos system, having traveled light-years to bring one thousand sleeping souls to a new home among the stars. But when first mate Michelle Campion rouses, she discovers some of the sleepers will never wake. Answering Campion’s distress call, investigator Rasheed Fin is tasked with finding out who is responsible for these deaths. Soon a sinister mystery unfolds aboard the gigantic vessel, one that will have repercussions for the entire system—from the scheming politicians of Lagos station, to the colony planet Bloodroot, and even to Earth itself.
