Book 90 rules of Civility
Books 90 -- Rules of Civility
Attendees:
Sarah Jay
Carol Conti
Nick Conti
Amy Marr
Jami Walsh
Enjoyment
Sarah - Liked it
Carol - Wanted to like it more
Nick - Didn’t get far, wasn’t into it
Amy - *yawn* Wanted to like it more
Jami - Made it 40% through and enjoyed what I read
1. At the outset, Rules of Civility appears to be about the interrelationship between Katey, Tinker, and Eve; but then events quickly lead Eve and Tinker offstage. Are Dicky Vanderwhile, Wallace Wolcott, Bitsy, Peaches, Hank, and Anne Grandyn as essential to Katey's "story" as Tinker and Eve? If so, what role do you think each plays in fashioning the Katey of the future?
C - this was my issue with the story…felt like the story started and really liked the dynamic between Eve, Tinker, and Katey, but then they were just gone. The issue with Anne was that she too just disappeared then she reappeared and it wasn’t developed enough.
S - felt that Anne was there to illustrate how much you don’t know about someone and their relationship with other people.
C - the prologue was all about Tinker then he disappeared for so long.
S - in the prologue the juxtaposition of the two Tinkers was really what the book was all about. So few people are constant in your life and it’s about how they shape you
C - loved her relationship with Wallace.
A - her life changes quickly in a short amount of time that it makes it hard for the reader.
2. Katey observes at one point that Agatha Christie "doles out her little surprises at the carefully calibrated pace of a nanny dispensing sweets to the children in her care." Something similar could be said of how Katey doles out information about herself. What sort of things is Katey slow to reveal, and what drives her reticence?
C - she knows that society is prejudice against someone of her circumstances.
S - Katya and all references to Russian orthodox are gone.
C - Eve is directing it
A - she allows herself to be driven by Eve.
C - Katey is very guarded and apprehensive and wary
S - she’s an introvert.
C - didn’t feel like the info was hidden, but more like it had been several years since she had been there and she was living a different life now.
S - she’s comfortable letting others make their own assumptions about herself.
3.After seeing Tinker at Chinoisserie, Katey indicts George Washington's "Rules of Civility" as "A do-it yourself charm school. A sort of How to Win Friends and Influence People 150 years ahead of its time." But Dicky sees some nobility in Tinker's aspiration to follow Washington's rules. Where does your judgment fall on Tinker? Is Katey wholly innocent of Tinker's crime? Where does simulation end and character begin? Which of Washington's rules do you aspire to?
C - all I could think of the episode of WW where President Bartlett references the book.
S - thinks it’s interesting that he latched on to it and it helped him overcome his adolescence.
S - when she first encountered it she thought it was charming, then it becomes a symbol to her of the upwardly mobile scheming and that those rules of civility maybe are not.
C - it’s more a scheming then a sentimental thing.
S - he takes the rules to heart but still makes morally questionable choices
4. A central theme in the book is that a chance encounter or cursory decision in one's twenties can shape one's course for decades to come. Do you think this is true to life?
Everyone agrees yes.
5. How do the various photographs serve as themes?
A - didn’t really think anything of it
S - those pantings come back
6. When Eve says, "I like it just fine on this side of the windshield," what does she mean? And why is the life Tinker offers her so contrary to the new life she intends to pursue?
C -in the beginning she wanted something fun and flirty, but then when she had to be dependent on her she didn’t like that.
S - originally she wasn’t looking for a husband, but rather a rich boyfriend and she got more than she wanted.
7. When Tinker sets out on his new life, why does he intend to start his days saying Katey's name? What does he mean when he describes Katey as someone of "such poise and purpose"? Is the book improved by the four sections from Tinker's point of view, or hindered by them?
A - hated the sections from Tinker’s point of view
C-they were jarring
S - interesting to see some of the things from his point of view…when you find out his backstory is a lie then you see that he admires her for a lot of the same characteristics in her that were in him.
A - he talks about the calming influence she has on him.
8. T. S. Eliot's "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" is referenced in the book's preface and its epilogue. Why is that poem somehow central to Katey's 1969 reflections on her 1938 experiences?
No one remembered the poem was there.
S - including it is a bit of nostalgia..a little bit of star crossed lovers.
Next Meeting: May 12th, Bethany’s House
Upcoming Books: 11/22/63by Stephen King
Attendees:
Sarah Jay
Carol Conti
Nick Conti
Amy Marr
Jami Walsh
Enjoyment
Sarah - Liked it
Carol - Wanted to like it more
Nick - Didn’t get far, wasn’t into it
Amy - *yawn* Wanted to like it more
Jami - Made it 40% through and enjoyed what I read
1. At the outset, Rules of Civility appears to be about the interrelationship between Katey, Tinker, and Eve; but then events quickly lead Eve and Tinker offstage. Are Dicky Vanderwhile, Wallace Wolcott, Bitsy, Peaches, Hank, and Anne Grandyn as essential to Katey's "story" as Tinker and Eve? If so, what role do you think each plays in fashioning the Katey of the future?
C - this was my issue with the story…felt like the story started and really liked the dynamic between Eve, Tinker, and Katey, but then they were just gone. The issue with Anne was that she too just disappeared then she reappeared and it wasn’t developed enough.
S - felt that Anne was there to illustrate how much you don’t know about someone and their relationship with other people.
C - the prologue was all about Tinker then he disappeared for so long.
S - in the prologue the juxtaposition of the two Tinkers was really what the book was all about. So few people are constant in your life and it’s about how they shape you
C - loved her relationship with Wallace.
A - her life changes quickly in a short amount of time that it makes it hard for the reader.
2. Katey observes at one point that Agatha Christie "doles out her little surprises at the carefully calibrated pace of a nanny dispensing sweets to the children in her care." Something similar could be said of how Katey doles out information about herself. What sort of things is Katey slow to reveal, and what drives her reticence?
C - she knows that society is prejudice against someone of her circumstances.
S - Katya and all references to Russian orthodox are gone.
C - Eve is directing it
A - she allows herself to be driven by Eve.
C - Katey is very guarded and apprehensive and wary
S - she’s an introvert.
C - didn’t feel like the info was hidden, but more like it had been several years since she had been there and she was living a different life now.
S - she’s comfortable letting others make their own assumptions about herself.
3.After seeing Tinker at Chinoisserie, Katey indicts George Washington's "Rules of Civility" as "A do-it yourself charm school. A sort of How to Win Friends and Influence People 150 years ahead of its time." But Dicky sees some nobility in Tinker's aspiration to follow Washington's rules. Where does your judgment fall on Tinker? Is Katey wholly innocent of Tinker's crime? Where does simulation end and character begin? Which of Washington's rules do you aspire to?
C - all I could think of the episode of WW where President Bartlett references the book.
S - thinks it’s interesting that he latched on to it and it helped him overcome his adolescence.
S - when she first encountered it she thought it was charming, then it becomes a symbol to her of the upwardly mobile scheming and that those rules of civility maybe are not.
C - it’s more a scheming then a sentimental thing.
S - he takes the rules to heart but still makes morally questionable choices
4. A central theme in the book is that a chance encounter or cursory decision in one's twenties can shape one's course for decades to come. Do you think this is true to life?
Everyone agrees yes.
5. How do the various photographs serve as themes?
A - didn’t really think anything of it
S - those pantings come back
6. When Eve says, "I like it just fine on this side of the windshield," what does she mean? And why is the life Tinker offers her so contrary to the new life she intends to pursue?
C -in the beginning she wanted something fun and flirty, but then when she had to be dependent on her she didn’t like that.
S - originally she wasn’t looking for a husband, but rather a rich boyfriend and she got more than she wanted.
7. When Tinker sets out on his new life, why does he intend to start his days saying Katey's name? What does he mean when he describes Katey as someone of "such poise and purpose"? Is the book improved by the four sections from Tinker's point of view, or hindered by them?
A - hated the sections from Tinker’s point of view
C-they were jarring
S - interesting to see some of the things from his point of view…when you find out his backstory is a lie then you see that he admires her for a lot of the same characteristics in her that were in him.
A - he talks about the calming influence she has on him.
8. T. S. Eliot's "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" is referenced in the book's preface and its epilogue. Why is that poem somehow central to Katey's 1969 reflections on her 1938 experiences?
No one remembered the poem was there.
S - including it is a bit of nostalgia..a little bit of star crossed lovers.
Next Meeting: May 12th, Bethany’s House
Upcoming Books: 11/22/63by Stephen King