接骨师的女儿讨论问题

1． 为什么露丝(Ruth)会选择在每年的八月失声一个星期？

2． 为什么茹灵(LuLing)会开始记录下自己的过去?

3． 你认为宝姨(Precious Auntie)对茹灵隐瞒她的真实身份对吗？为什么宝姨会保守这个秘密那么多年？

4． 宝姨，茹灵和露丝这三个女性她们各自的性格特征是什么? 有什么共性吗？

5． 茹灵是怎样反叛母亲宝姨的？露丝和茹灵在这方面有什么相同之处吗？

6． 露丝的童年记忆怎样影响她的生活？母亲茹灵的记忆又是怎样影响她对露丝的行为的？

7． 出于什么目的露丝决定找人翻译并阅读母亲的回忆录？

8． 为什么妹妹高灵(GaoLing)比姐姐茹灵更容易融入美国的生活？

9． 在茹灵和女儿露丝矛盾爆发最激烈的时候，发生了一件什么事情差点要了茹灵的性命？

10． 你认为造成茹灵和露丝母女之间矛盾冲突的最终原因是什么？

11． 露丝和亚特(Art)的关系陷入一种什么样的困境？结局如何？

12． 你最喜欢小说的哪一部分？

13． “接骨师的女儿”和我们之前读过的“喜福会”相比在描写母女关系这一主题上有什么不同？

14． 你认为什么是打开母女之间感情交流之门的钥匙？

15． 家里有女儿的谈谈你们和女儿有矛盾时是如何解决的？

七月七日读书会 -- 三言两语话夏天

出席者: 大雁, 雪, 萤火虫, 姥姥, 水竹, Alice, 老牛, 紫罗兰, 潇竹
缺席者: 竹林子


Agenda:
7:00-7:15 -- Arriving and warming up
7:15-8:00 -- Report by 雪 -- 人多, 钱多, 骗子多; 照相, 烫发, 美容处处挨宰.
8:00-8:45 -- Report by 大雁 -- 省亲归来感概多, 时差难倒,办学更难.
8:45-9:00 -- Free chat -- ideas, suggestions and recommendations.

书海拾贝--2009回国购书单重登

去年买的. 多是小说. 可以作为将来读书会的可读书. 希望大家贡献更多的传记文学.

海淀区中国书城一逛，“大海捞针，书海拾贝” 的硕果粗粗排列如下。

1. The age of wonders = 奇迹年代by Aron Appelfeld
2. Remains of the Day = 长日留痕
3. Bell Jar = 钟形罩
4. Kitchen = 厨房
5. The Reader = 朗读
6. A Bend in the River = 河湾
7. The Master and Margate = 大师和玛格丽特
8. East of Eden = 伊甸之东
9. Three Cups of Tea = 三杯茶
10. Trail = 审判
11. Castle = 城堡
12. The Great Gatsby = 了不起的盖茨比
13. Tender Is the Night = 夜色温柔
14. The House on the Mongo Street = 芒果街上的小屋
15. Elegy for Iris = 当贝利遇到艾丽丝
17. My Name is Red = 我的名字叫红
18. A Hundred Years of Solitude = 百年孤独


• Gadfly = 牛虻
• Ulysses = 尤里斯丝

4月22日-- Three cups of tea

领读者: 雪 (遥控)

出席者: 紫罗兰, 大雁, 萤火虫, 竹林子, 水竹, 姥姥, Alice, 老牛

缺席者: 潇竹, 雪(遥控)

网上问答问题着: 雪, 紫罗兰, 大雁, 萤火虫, 竹林子

读书会一瞥: (good luck if you can open and view it)
1. Newcomer 寻找《三杯茶》的真正含义。
2. “读真人比虚拟人有意思”的说法得到点头赞许, 但也有人持异议.
3. 理解萬歲(对不起, 到此就没录下去, file 太大了, 就upload不上了)

又一样的人生《三杯茶》

继潇竹《厨房》后再次探讨人生.....

Discussing Questions:
1. When did story happen? At that time , your life was mainly occupied by what?
2. What makes Greg’s transition from a climbing bum to humanitarian hero? How Greg differs from Christopher in "Into the Wild"?

3. What does “Three cups of tea” mean? How do you view” Three cups of tea” verse “ One cup of tea” culture?
4. What was Greg’s reaction after he got hate mail in the week of September 11? Please also refer the pages in the book.
5. How do you view fitting into a foreign culture in this book? How does this relate to our "culture shock" in United States?
6. What did he do for preparing to climb K2? Describe the beauty of K2 using your own words and imagination.
7. Who was the only person to response Greg’s first hand-typed 580 letters?
8. How many schools have Greg established in Pakistan and Afghanistan?
9. What was happed when Greg was kidnapped for eight day in 1996?
10. What does fatweh mean in the book?
11. How do you view if you "educate a boy" verse "educate a girl" philosophy in Africa culture, comparing this with your own culture?
12. 什么令Greg想起1969宇航员登上月球？
13. 如何看待”Co-Author” David Relin’s comments” I wrote the story, but Greg Mortenson lived it”？How do you feel his mother-in-law's comments? “That's when I realized that he's just not one of us. He's his own species." 他的女友和妻子如何不同？有什么东西可能导致了妻子的不同？ 假若Greg是你的朋友或家人，你会如何看待他对事业的付出？
14. Greg认为 什么才是可以真正带来和平的武器？
15. 讨论文明对落后地区带来的好处和坏处，可以借题发挥电影《阿凡达》观后感。
16. 在你读《三杯茶》时，Greg这样一个和我们同年代的活生生的人和其它我们读过的小说中的的虚拟人物，给你带来的影响有不同吗？

三月二十四日的《厨房》

这晚的《厨房》除了刘姥姥，电影迷，老牛等带来的美食外，还有紫罗兰准备的水果。大家对贴在网上有关《厨房》的“替菜”进行了“研”、“犟”、“暴吵”或“稍考”。Alice ，雪和老牛出手利索让新手潇竹大长见识。善于张罗的水竹抽空将中华食文化“热了热”；竹林子帮大家“择理干净”了心理学上的一些观点和性学上的几条“熟鱼”。电影迷分享了她的大陆，台湾及香港旅游见闻。紫罗兰和刘姥姥清闲自在地享受着大雁的作品“厨房交响乐”。大家都知道兰是不会在厨房露面的，因为“她经不起厨房的烟熏火燎”。

经过对《厨房》的讨论我们应该知道作者利用“死”作为故事的主脉。由Mikage外婆的死使她搬去Tanabe的家，由此有了Mikage，Eriko和Yuichi三个非常独立人物之间非常独特的亲密关系；从Eriko妻子的死演化出他的变性，俊男成靓女。从一个被人收养嫌弃的穷小子，到一个受人喜爱为人提供避难所的夜总会业主；再由Eriko的死将Mikage和Yuichi拉近，使彼此均失去所有亲人，情人的爱之后又找到了属于他们自己的爱。

作者让我们看到死亡是件自然的事情，不是因果的报应。书中主人翁在面对人生的困境及死亡时的哭泣、痛苦、挣扎、绝望、忧郁、甚至轻生等没有与常人有所不同。他们三人看似心理不健全却是那么的坚强、阳光、赋人以生命力。

民以食为天，厨房是生命的供给所。
“If a person wants to stand on her own two feet, I recommend undertaking the care and feeding something. It could be children, or it could be house plants, you know? By doing that you come to understand your own limitations. That’s where it starts.” –Eriko P41

自强、自立人之根本。
“There are many days when all the awful things that happen make you sick at heart, when the path before you is so steep you can’t bear to look. Not even love can rescue a person from that.” –Eriko P42

“When was it I realized that, on the truly dark and solitary path we all walk, the only way we can light is our own?” –Mikage P21

“Truly great people emit a light that warms the hearts of those around them. When that light has put out, a heavy shadow of despair descends. Perhaps Eriko’s was only a minor kind of greatness, but her light was sorely missed.” –Mikage P55

“As I grow older, much older, I will experience many things, and I will hit rock bottom again and again. Again and again I will suffer; again and again I will get back on my feet. I will not be defeated. I won’t let my spirit be destroyed.” - Mikage P42

灾难可以夺去你的一切，你的亲人、财产、健康和以致生命，但它无法夺取你面对人生的态度。

Discussion questions for "Kitchen

Hi ladies, wakeup! Let’s get “kitchen” ready for the reunion with our professor after her “Fat” Chinese Spring Festival vacation. We all know the limits in our kitchen compare to the ones she had seen in China. However we could still satisfy her taste buds if we have the essence.

Here are few questions to serve as “Bricks” hopping to attract “Jade”. I’d appreciate your generosity for posting more questions.

1. What Tanabes’ Kitchen looks like? What is it different from kitchen we normally see?

2. What impression you have on Tanabes’ personalities after saw their kitchen?


3. How the author described Yuichi and Eriko when using of “Light”? How would you relate it to their personality?

4. What do you think Eriko’s transsexuality adds to this story? Explain how you think Mikage’s and Yuichi’s love affair would have been different if Eriko had just been a mother who worked at a nightclub.


5. What are the scenes surprised you through the book? Will you please mark the pages and share with the rest when we meet?

6. In the book, few deaths are mentioned, what are the emotions you see in the book? What are not?