Book Club

A few loyal members of the book club met this past Monday to discuss The Slaves of Solitude. The first half of the book was discussed in particular depth! The date for the next book club has been changed from November 10th to November 17th. There we will be discussing The Twins by Tessa DeLoo. We hope to see current and new book club members! So come join us (reading the book is not necessary). :)

Pub Night - The Old Harker Arms

A group of us met for drinks and dinner at the Old Harker Arms in Chester on Thursday, October 2nd. Despite the torrential rain that soaked many of us on our way in, the evening was a good bit of fun for all. The next pub evening venue and date to be determined soon.

July Book Club Meeting

This month's book club met and discussed The Way the Crow Flies by Annmarie McDonald. The book was surprising enjoyed by all even though it was over 700 pages (small print)! We definitely recommend this read. At this meeting, we also decided which books we are going to read for the next four months and what dates we are going to meet.

For September we will be reading Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons. This meeting will be held on Monday, September 8th.

For October, the book chosen is The Slaves of Solitude by Patrick Hamilton and will be discussed on Monday, October 6th.

For November, we chose The Twins by Tessa DeLoo. This discussion will be held on Monday, November 10th.

For December, we decided to head back to the classics and read Tess of Dubervilles by Thomas Hardy. The date for this meeting is to be determined.

So, start reading and join us. You are also welcome to any meeting if you have not had a chance to finish (or even read) the book!

Upcoming Book Club

The next meeting of the book club will be on July 7th. We are reading The Way the Crow Flies, by Annmarie McDonald. It is 700+ pages, so if you are not ready to pick it up and read from now until the 7th, join us anyway. At this meeting, we will be picking the books for the next several months. So come join us for a fun discussion (about the book and everything else), wine, treats and great company.

Day out in Llangollen - Plas Newydd

A group of us dressed in our raincoats carrying umbrellas descended upon the lovely town of Llangollen on June 25th for a day out. First we visited Plas Newydd, home of the "Ladies of Llangollen"; two runaways from Ireland who moved to the idyllic location of North Wales to live the remainder of their lives together in peace and romantic friendship. The house and grounds were beautiful and we learned about the lives of these two eccentric ladies. After our visit to Plas Newydd, we headed into the center of Llangollen to The Mill House for a nice lunch overlooking the river. Unfortunately the weather kept us from eating out on the decks overlooking the river, but we got a nice view nevertheless. Then it was onto shopping before heading back to Chester. On the trip home, we took a detour to the Aquaduct nearby. It is an iron bridge with water that narrow boats use to cross the valley. It is quite remarkable and is recommended for all to see!

Thank you Martina!

We would like to say thank you to Martina for all her time, hard-work, dedication and friendship for the past few years! She and her family will be moving on and will be sorely missed. We plan to have a going-away party for her and her family and will let you know the details as soon as they are finalized. So please join us in wishing her and her family a safe and happy move and an easy transition into their new lives.

We will miss you!!!!!

The Book Thief - by Markus Zazuk

On Writing the Book Thief:

The Book Thief was supposed to be a small book - only a hundred pages or so. When I was growing up, I heard stories at home about Munich and Vienna in war-time, when my parents were children. Two stories my mother told me affected me a lot. The first was about Munich being bombed, and how the sky was on fire, how everything was red. The second was about something else she saw...
One day, there was a terrible noise coming from the main street of town, and when she ran to see it, she saw that Jewish people were being marched to Dachau, the concentration camp. At the back of the line, there was an old man, totally emaciated, who couldn't keep up. When a teenage boy saw this, he ran inside and brought the man a piece of bread. The man fell to his knees and kissed the boy's ankles and thanked him...Soon, a soldier noticed and walked over. He tore the bread from the man's hands and whipped him for taking it. Then he chased the boy and whipped him for giving him the bread in the first place. In one moment, there was great kindness and great cruelty, and I saw it as the perfect story of how humans are.
When I remembered those stories, I wanted to build them into a small book, like I said. The result was The Book Thief, and it came to mean much more to me than I could have imagined. No matter what anyone ever says about that book, whether good or bad, I know it was the best I could do, and I don't think a writer can ask for more of himself than that.
Best Always,

The book club met last night to discuss our latest book, The Book Thief, by Markus Zazuk. It is a story told in the perspective of death as the narrator about life in Germany during World War II for a young girl and her family. It was a very interesting story that many of us found we could not put down after starting. The discussions of this book led to discussions about how different parts of Europe experienced "a different war" during WWII. It was an interesting and enlightening discussion for all. We had a great time and look forward to the next book, The Way The Crow Flies by Ann-Marie MacDonald. So if you are a quick reader (712 pages, small print), come join us on July 9th to discuss the latest. Even if you don't finish the book come and join us! Contact committee members or drop us an e-mail to find out the details of where and when.

Alyn Pub Evening

We had a wonderful evening at the Alyn Pub, situated on the banks of the River Alyn just over the Wales border. The view was beautiful and the food and company were great as well. As the weather gets nice (and stays that way we hope), come join us for our next pub evening...hopefully some of it spent outdoors.

Indiana Jones

On Tuesday evening a group of us ventured to the cinema to view the latest and greatest film, the fourth Indiana Jones movie. While the plot was thin, the action sequences were not, so the film was enjoyed by all. Recommended if you want to see another Indiana Jones movie. If you are looking for the next Gone With the Wind, maybe try something else! See you next month!

Potluck Lunch

We had a wonderful gathering for our last potluck lunch. Even the weather held out so we could eat and enjoy the sun outside in the beautiful garden. We had a nice turn-out and great food. See you at the next potluck lunch!

Potluck Date Change

Please note that the date for the Potluck Lunch has changed to Thursday, June 5th at 12 noon. The location is still the same. Contact us if you have any questions or need the address!

Bunco Evening

Bunco Evening on Wednesday was a rousing success! Unfortunately we had to compete with the ManU/Chelsea Football game, so attendance was on the low side, but those who did attend had a great time! Betty and Len walked out with prizes for winner and loser for the evening (one family with both ends of the spectrum). There was a lot of laughs and cheers during the evening. We have decided to postpone the next Bunco night until September as many people are travelling during the summer months. So we will see you all in September!!!!!

Coffee Morning

We had a great coffee morning this morning with quite a few members attending. We even had two new faces in the crowd....welcome! Those of you who couldn't make it; we missed you and hope to see you at the next coffee morning.

We held a raffle which will actually take place next month. We sold 5 tickets for 1GBP and more will be available at the next coffee morning when we will actually draw for the raffle.

There are Newcomers pens and recipe books on sale, so contact one of us to purchase them!

Those of you coming to bunco tonight, see you then. Those of you who are not, we hope to see you very soon!

The Interpretation of Murder - Book Club

by Jed Rubenfeld was discussed last night at the book club. Most everyone enjoyed the book and thought the author did a great job keeping us interested in several different but intertwining stories throughout the novel. Conversation was enlightening and grew ever more so as the evening wore on. Several bottles of wine and lots of delicious food was also consumed!

Next month we will be reading The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. So get reading and come and join us. Contact the blog e-mail for more information. Hope to see you there!

Pot Luck Lunch - Al Fresco

Several of us gathered together last Friday for a Pot Luck lunch. Our hostess was amazing and made a fantastic apple tarte tartin, which was out of this world. We braved the slightly chilly temperatures and sat outside until the lack of sun and a slight wind forced us indoors. The food from all was wonderful and the conversation even better. Let's hope the next pot luck lunch has us greeting even better weather.

Macbeth in Mold

A group of 15 of us ventured to Mold on Monday night to see Macbeth at the Clwyd Theatr Cymru. It was a fantastic rendition of the famous Shakespeare play! We were all so involved in the acting that we didn't even notice we sat still for 1 hour and 45 minutes (there was no intermission). A great time was had by all.

Trip to the Body Worlds Exhibit in Manchester

A few of us headed up to Manchester for the morning to check out the latest new exhibit at the Museum of Science and Industry; Bodyworlds by Gunther van Hagens. It was a very educational experience for us all. If you have not been, we recommend it to those who are interested. Gunther van Hagens found a way to "plasticate" bodies and body parts so that we can see them without the effects of natural deterioration. Not for the faint of heart, but definitely an interesting exhibit.

Welcome to our Blog

Welcome to our intial blog! We here at Newcomers to Chester wanted to find a good way to let you know what fun and interesting activities we have been involved in and to let you know what activities are coming up on our diary.

So keep checking up with our blog on a regular basis to see what we are up to and join us!