New books May/June 2014

 BOOK ORDER MAY/JUNE 2014

There was no single book which really gripped us this time and which made us say « we really must buy this ». However, I hope you will find this an interesting selection which will enable you to enjoy your summer reading. The books should be in the library by the end of May or early June.

NON FICTION

A Tale in Two Cities                          Brian Unwin

Trials of Passion                                 Lisa Appignanesi

Eavesdropping on Jane Austen’s England                Roy & Lesley Adkins    PB

The Broken Road                              Patrick Leigh Fermor

 FICTION

Lost for Words                                  Edward St Aubyn

The Strangler Vine                             MJ Carter

The Last Word                                   Hanif Kureishi

Mrs Hemingway                                Naomi Wood

Three Brothers                                   Peter Ackroyd

Still Life with Breadcrumbs              Anna Quindlen

The Cold Sond                                  Linn  Ullmann

The Lie                                               Helen Dunmore  PB

Lost for Words                                  Edward St Aubyn

The Stories                                         Jane Gardam

If you would like to read the relevant book reviews, send an email to foal@dbmail.com

NEWSLETTER April 2014

NEWSLETTER APRIL 2014

·        Some sad news to begin with. We have been obliged to cancel our World War 1 event for various reasons, one being that the Salle des Rencontres at City Hall was not suitable for our purposes. I was hoping the event would really put us on the map as far as City Hall is concerned. With the cancellation and the change of Mayor and his team, I shall have to start over again on the front of applying for premises but I shall pursue tenaciously as is my wont.

·        New address website : our provider no longer hosting us for free, we have changed the address of the website which is now : foal34.free.fr

·        Readership Survey : a survey of regular readers has shown that they are satisfied with frequency and choice of books. We shall be ordering new books soon, to be in the library before the summer break.

·        Art Fell has successfully completed his compilation of the 10 Best Novels of the 1st decade of the 20th century. His write-up will be sent to you by separate mail. Many thanks to Art and Phil Marchand for leading the project.

·        Foire aux Associations : we will have a FOAL stand this year. The Foire aux Associations will be on Sunday 14th September and we will be sending out a call for volunteers to man the stand nearer the time.

·        We wanted to change venues for a picnic in June but found nothing suitable. However, one Domaine we were able to contact suggested the following meal on Sunday 25th of May at the Domaine de Saumarez. Kick off is at noon with an aperitif, then there is a meal which consists of brasucade de moules, mechouis d'agneau, camambert à la braise, mignardise et café. Wines are available at cellar door prices . 25 euros for the meal. You can visit the site for details of how to get there, 10 kilometres from Montpellier.

·        Annual General Meeting : to be held on 12th June at 6pm at Martin Luther King. As usual, Foal will be providing drinks and nibbles afterwards. We do hope lots of members will attend. It is a nice way to get together mid year.

Website foal34.free.fr

e-mail  foal@dbmail.com

 

Book Quiz photo

We didn't get a general view of the Book Quiz but we did get a lovely photo of our two prettiest members who are happy to have it posted here

NEWSLETTER MARCH 2014

NEWSLETTER MARCH 2014

Great fun was had by all last Friday 28th February at the Book Quiz, due to the excellent work and organisation of Philippe Marchand and Katharine and Philip Claringbull and the very enthusiastic audience who had much enjoyment answering the questions. Roll on next year !

Upcoming events

First on the agenda a special Book Sale on 12th March, the closest opening day to the 6 March World Book Day. So on the 12th  if you buy two books, you get another one free. As you know, any money raised goes straight into the book  budget.

The next event which should  be of interest to many Foal members are the semi-finals and finals of the schools debating societies (in English, of course) which take place on April 11th at the CRDP (Allée de la Citadelle, near the Lycée Joffre) starting at 1.30pm.

Now for our big event : the WW1 Commemoration to be held on 23rd May at 6.30pm at the Salle des Rencontres in the new Town Hall. Your president has been able to negotiate this venue and also what is called « un verre de l’amitié » (in other words drinks and nibbles) provided by the Town Hall itself. We are hoping for a big turnout, well beyond just Foal and supporters.

We are currently working on content but just to give you an idea the event will take the form of readings, poems, songs and photos to commemorate the Great War.

I am hoping that holding the event at the Town Hall and the interest that has been shown by various councillors as well as the mayor will really put our association on the map and in a strong position for permanent premises. At any rate, that has been my guiding principle in the efforts I have made to organise this.

Although official Spring is not quite here yet, I am sure we all have Spring in our hearts and I know we all have a spring in our step !

FOAL Catalogue, Author Alphabetical Order

The new catalogue (Author Alphabetical Order) is now online. To download it, just click Here.
Scroll down to middle of page to a small red PDF file and click on "télécharger le fichier"... hey presto !

The new catalogue is now online !!

The new catalogue is now online. To download it, just click here.
Scroll down to middle of page to a small red PDF file and click on "télécharger le fichier"... hey presto !

NEW BOOKS FEBRUARY 2014

NON FICTION

Patrick Leigh Fermor : an adventure                         Artemis Cooper

 Catastrophe 1914 : Europe goes to war                    Max Hastings

A story lately told                                                     Anjelica Huston

Norman Mailer : a double life                                   Michael Lennon

Josephine : Desire, ambition, Napoleon                    Kate Williams

 FICTION

 Longbourn                                                                 Jo Baker

 Solo                                                                           William Boyd

 The Luminaries                                                          Eleanor Catton  (Booker prize 2013)

Expo 58                                                                     Jonathan Coe

Jeeves and the Wedding bells                                   Sebastian Faulkes

Just one evil act                                                         Elizabeth George (Inspector Lynley and

                                                                                   his sidekick Havers are back)

 

The Silent Wife                                                         Asa Harrison

The Cazalet Chronicles                                             Elizabeth Jane Howard (5 volumes)

Gods and Beasts                                                       Denise Mina

Tatiana                                                                       Martin Cruz Smith

The Valley of Amazement                                        Amy Tan

The Goldfinch                                                            Donna Tartt

Strange Bodies                                                          Marcel Theroux