Henry's to Hemingway's

Henry's is where I work, and Hemingway's is where we met last night to talk about Love in the Time of Cholera. I just like the way it sounds. Henry's to Hemingway's. Like a song!

The discussion went well, I think, and everyone had fun answering the quiz questions I had printed out. Some of them were too easy, and some of them were a bit ambiguous- but I didn't have the answer sheet, so it didn't really matter! I think my favourite question was...

The song Florentino writes and plays for Fermina is called:
(A) Crowned Goddess
(B) Rockabye, Sweet Fermina
(C) Like A Virgin
(D) Share Your Love With Me

Haha... Like a Virgin... There were many instances of weird, quirky, and dare I say, illegal sexual encounters in this book, but since it was set around 1900, I don't think it really mattered. I was grossed out by the affair between the protagonist and his teenage lover, but I understand the value of the relationship within the story. The old people sex scene was a little unnerving, but funny at the same time. LOL

My personal opinion on this book? I think it could've been much shorter. And at time, it felt like a chore for me to read. I'm not sure if this had to do with the fact that it was translated from Spanish, or if it's because it written in a very classical language (as opposed to pop lit, or something closer to a soap opera, although the premise of the story would've fit nicely into say, The Young and the Restless). I know that the book was supposed to be humourous in places, too, but only a couple of times did I actually laugh out loud.

The story was interesting, though, the themes (suffering from love/cholera, and the fear of death) were relevant, and the characters were developed nicely. Nestor pointed out that he liked the way the author would time travel, to inform the reader of the character's past. Sometimes I found this a bit confusing, but I was thankful for it. I also found the names of the characters a bit confusing (see my previous post).

Ultimately, I think we all enjoyed the book. It was also great to see Daniella (our newest member), and her seeing eye dog Roger, who was super cute (especially when he licked Julia's knee)! John didn't make it out (even though he was the one who chose the book), because he was sick. Feel better John!!

Next book- The Time Traveler's Wife, by Audrey Niffenegger. Nestor's pick. Meeting date: November 22. Venue TBA.