Thursday, December 17, 2009

Around the World in Mysteries: Winter Bookgroup 2010

Our mystery book group meets every Tuesday. We read a series of 10 books each session. In the past we've done themes such as Art Mysteries, Academic Mysteries, Award Winners, and Just Good Books. Last winter we read a series of books with the title: Around the World with Janet and Friends. This winter we're going Around the World again, touching on some countries we missed last year. Different places, different writers, different times. I think you'll find there will be a lot of discussion and, hopefully, an introduction to a few new authors.

The Group is very well read, and after 35 years of meeting every Tuesday, you can imagine that we may have read way more than the titles here. This cumulative knowledge is brought into each session. Besides discussing books, our book group has been responsible for putting on several mystery conventions including Left Coast Crime and Bouchercon. Some of the members include people known in the mystery community such as Bill & Toby Gottfried, Vallery Feldman, Noemi Levine and Sue Trowbridge, and there are even more.

We meet every Tuesday night at my home in Berkeley, CA, and we welcome new members. Email me if you'd like to join us. If you can't join us physically, how about sending a weekly review of each book to share.

Around the World with Janet and Friends II: Winter 2010

January 5 A Beautiful Place to Die by By Malla Nunn (South Africa)

January 12 A Carrion Death by Michael Stanley (Botswana)

January 19 The Witch Doctor's Wife by Tamar Myers (The Congo)

January 26 The Man of My Life by Manuel Vázquez Montalbán (Spain)

February 2 The Kiss Murder by Mehmet Murat Somer (Turkey)

February 9 Songs My Mother Never Taught Me by Selcuk Altun (Turkey)

February 16 The Kill Artist by Daniel Silva (Israel/Italy)

February 23 The Collaborator of Bethlehem Matt Beynon Rees (Israel)

March 2 The Menorah Men by Lionel Davidson (Israel)

March 9 No session (??Left Coast Crime??)

March 16 Beekeeper by J. Robert Janes (France)

March 23 Total Chaos by Jean-Claude Izzo (France)

March 30 or April 6 A Cara Black -- Everyone will read a mystery set in a different Arrondisement in Paris

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

If you need additional Arrondisements don't forget Fred Vargas' books. Happy holidays. May 2010 be happy and healthy. Stan Trollip (Michael Stanley)

Leighton Gage said...

I would SO like to participate in your group, Janet. Please tell Bill and Toby hello. They are among our favorite people.

Janet Rudolph said...

Actually, Leighton, we read your first mystery in our group last year when we did Around the World. Wish you could be in the Group, too.

Matt Beynon Rees said...

hi Janet,
I'm honored you're including my book THE COLLABORATOR OF BETHLEHEM in your reading group. I won't be in California -- at that point in February I'll be shivering through the desert winter nights in Jerusalem. But if you'd like me to participate either through Skype or through email, I'd love to do so. In any case, I'm delighted that you added me to what is really a super list of reading. Best for the holidays, Matt

Suzanne Arruda said...

Treasure Of The Golden Cheetah puts you on Mt. Kilimanjaro in 1920 Africa for lots of adventure and murder.

Suzanne Arruda
www.suzannearruda.com

Janet Rudolph said...

Hi, Suzanne, we will be reading other ancillary novels, and your novel will be on that list. Thanks! Have a great new year.