At the February Book Club meeting, the members discussed their reactions to The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald and The Other Side of the Bridge by Mary Lawson. The Great Gatsby received in general favourable reports. Daisy Buchanan is a character whose wilful and selfish behaviour led to the eventual destruction of that elusive character himself – Gatsby. By contrast, the readers felt a certain sympathy for Gatsby, whose consuming passion in pursuit of Daisy, despite his shady acquisition of wealth and the beautiful house, was the central theme in this description of a 1930’s society in America.

 At the time of its publication, the book did not sit well with the American public. Still it stood the test of time and, as one reader commented, it is and remains a classic not just because of its content but for the very style of Fitzgerald’s writing.

Mary Lawson’s book The Other Side of the Bridge was generally favourably received – some readers loved the depiction of rural life in a remote Canadian farming community which was the book’s main attraction. The characters in the main story (two brothers Arthur and Jake) stand in stark contrast to one another. The one solid, dependable, steeped in the love of the land. The other self-centred and his mother’s favourite. It is the events of a day on the bridge, that colours the future story concerning the brothers’ relationship and the lives of those in their remote community of Struan.

A positive meeting of the Book Club with both books favourably received and recommended

Submitted anonymously by a member of Nenagh Library Bookclub

N.B. Next meeting will take place Thursday March 13th at 7 p.m

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