Reading Choices for May/June

Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney

Frances is twenty-one years old, cool-headed and observant. A student in Dublin and an aspiring writer, at night she performs spoken word with her best friend Bobbi, who used to be her girlfriend. When they are interviewed and then befriended by Melissa, a well-known journalist who is married to Nick, an actor, they enter a world of beautiful houses, raucous dinner parties and holidays in Provence, beginning a complex ménage-à-quatre. But when Frances and Nick get unexpectedly closer, the sharply witty and emotion-averse Frances is forced to honestly confront her own vulnerabilities for the first time.

The Wildflowers by Harriet Evans

A gorgeous family saga, The Wildflowers by Harriet Evans is a wonderfully captivating story. Glamorous, glittering couple Tony and Althea Wilde spend long summers at The Bosky, their Dorset beach house, with their two children Ben and Cordelia, but everything changes when Mads arrives. A little girl who’s been neglected and abused, we see the Wilde family through her eyes as fractures begin to appear and Tony’s past catches up with him. A story filled with long-buried secrets, holiday memories and heartbreak, The Wildflowers is the perfect summer read and one that will leave you warm and glowing.

The Things You Can See Only When YOu Slow Down by Haemin Sunim

The world moves fast, but that doesn't mean we have to. In this timely guide to mindfulness, Haemin Sunim, a Buddhist monk born in Korea and educated in the United States, offers advice on everything from handling setbacks to dealing with rest and relationships, in a beautiful book combining his teachings with calming full-colour illustrations. Haemin Sunim's simple messages - which he first wrote when he responded to requests for advice on social media - speak directly to the anxieties that have become part of modern life and remind us of the strength and joy that come from slowing down.

Hugely popular in Korea, Haemin Sunim is a Zen meditation teacher whose teachings transcend religion, borders and ages. With insight and compassion drawn from a life full of change, the bestselling monk succeeds at encouraging all of us to notice that when you slow down, the world slows down with you.

We will meet at 8pm on Thursday 23rd May in The Hundred of Ashendon to discuss our reading experiences with Mythos by Stephen Fry (and The Wisdom of Sally Red Shoes by Ruth Hogan if anyone has read this too) and then choose our next book. See you there.