Virtual Book Club

On Monday night, my virtual book club held our first Skype meeting. We are virtual because we span territories from Northern California to Northern Virginia and South to Costa Rica. The book of [their] choice: Cadillac Desert: The American West and its Disappearing Water by Marc Reisner. As the title hints, the nonfiction book of 1986 discusses land development and water policy in the western United States.

While my normal book rotation includes three, it was clear from the get-go--in a book loaded with facts, Cadillac Desert, would demand more time. This is in combination with my dedicated team members, who spent much of their time from the previous week emailing lengthy notes back-and-forth. I, instead, played catch-up. I finished Ms. Hempel Chronicles by Sarah Shun-lien Bynum and The Life and Death of Charlie St. Cloud by Ben Sherwood. In addition, I read Lottery by Patricia Wood from beginning to end.

With a hundred pages under my belt, I am starting to truly enjoy the book. Free and clear from true 'summer reads' I am ready to invest more time in this book, making it a sole priority in the upcoming weeks. For several reasons, this is a good: 1) I need the intellectual stimulation, 2) the discipline adds structure to my structureless life, and 3) I have a hungry interest in the topic at hand.

Asking questions, demanding answers. Challenging ideas. Debating ethical issues and author biases. I'm already blown away by my lack of knowledge in a area I considered myself informed.

To leave you with an introductory quote from the author, agreed upon by all to be a solid life motto: "I had an aisle seat, and since I believe that anyone who flies in an airplane and doesn't spend most of his time looking out the window wastes his money..." (Marc Reisner)