Book Club

The readers at Christ Church Geneva have joined forces with the readers of St. Peter's Church in Ashtabula for a monthly book club. We read a variety of novels that can lead to discussions about life lessons. The books covered are mostly secular. Some notable past favorites are Kristen Hannah's "The Nightingale" and Karen White's " The Sound of Glass," as well as Delia Owens' "Where the Crawdads Sing."

The group meets at 4 PM on the first Sunday of each month in our parish hall. However, in October we go out to eat to celebrate the club's anniversary! You do not have to be a member of either church to join, but we do ask that only those ages 16 and older participate as some books may contain mature themes. There are refreshments at each meeting. For more information, please contact Sandy Mitchell Pavick at 440-855-8559 or email us at christchurchgeneva@gmail.com

February 2 – "The Secret Life of Sunflowers" by Marta Molnar

"This book draws all the emotions out of you. I went from tears to snorting with laughter. It was both lighthearted and heart breaking, yet it inspires me to live my best life!" Michele Cox

When Hollywood auctioneer Emsley Wilson finds her famous grandmother's diary while cleaning out her New York brownstone, the pages are full of surprises. The first surprise is, the diary isn't her grandmother's. It belongs to Johanna Bonger, Vincent van Gogh's sister-in-law.

Johanna inherited Vincent van Gogh's paintings. They were all she had, and they weren't worth anything. She was a 28 year old widow with a baby in the 1800s, without any means of supporting herself, living in Paris where she barely spoke the language. Yet she managed to introduce Vincent's legacy to the world.

The inspiration couldn't come at a better time for Emsley. With her business failing, an unexpected love turning up in her life, and family secrets unraveling, can she find answers in the past?

"This book was so much more than I had expected, and I had high expectations... one of the most beautiful stories I've read in years." Kaela Stokes

March 2 – "By Any Other Name" by Jodi Picoult

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the co-author of Mad Honey comes an “inspiring” (Elle) novel about two women, centuries apart—one of whom is the real author of Shakespeare’s plays—who are both forced to hide behind another name

“You’ll fall in love with Emilia Bassano, the unforgettable heroine based on a real woman that Picoult brings vividly to life in her brilliantly researched new novel.”—Kristin Hannah, author of The Women

Young playwright Melina Green has just written a new work inspired by the life of her Elizabethan ancestor Emilia Bassano. But seeing it performed is unlikely, in a theater world where the playing field isn’t level for women. As Melina wonders if she dares risk failure again, her best friend takes the decision out of her hands and submits the play to a festival under a male pseudonym.

In 1581, young Emilia Bassano is a ward of English aristocrats. Her lessons on languages, history, and writing have endowed her with a sharp wit and a gift for storytelling, but like most women of her day, she is allowed no voice of her own. Forced to become a mistress to the Lord Chamberlain, who oversees all theatre productions in England, Emilia sees firsthand how the words of playwrights can move an audience. She begins to form a plan to secretly bring a play of her own to the stage—by paying an actor named William Shakespeare to front her work.

Told in intertwining timelines, By Any Other Name, a sweeping tale of ambition, courage, and desire centers two women who are determined to create something beautiful despite the prejudices they face. Should a writer do whatever it takes to see her story live on . . . no matter the cost? This remarkable novel, rooted in primary historical sources, ensures the name Emilia Bassano will no longer be forgotten.

Christ Episcopal Church