This month we brought our own choice of book to the meeting. This is something we do a couple of times a year, giving us the opportunity to share with each other books and authors we may otherwise not have come across.

The books shared this time included, The Hand That First Held Mine by Maggie O’Farrell, which looks at the bonds of love and affection and the independence of women told in 2 paralleled and believable stories with great characterisation.

Flowers for Algernon is a poignant Sci-Fi, chronicling Charlie’s transformation through experimental surgery and highlights how his relationships are changed as a result.

A Lake District farmer describes his time working in Norway caring for eider ducks in The Place of Tides by James Rebanks. It reflects on ancient practices still continuing in an amazing landscape.

Andrey Kurkov’s Death and the Penguin however had a thin plot but gave an intriguing insight of a corrupt and unhealthy society.

A case of an illegal adoption, albeit to protect the child, leads to taking the child on the run, followed by an intriguing court case in Kingsolver’s Pigs in Heaven.

The Herb Knot by Jane Loftus disappointed the reader with its unexplained coincidences and lack of detail.

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr is a beautifully written story of resilience and staying true to oneself in the most trying of circumstances, set in WWII.

George Elliot’s Silas Marner tells the story of a weaver, wrongly accused of theft, embittered by the experience until a little girl is left in his care.

Uckfield’s Railway – Triumph and Tragedy depicts in words and beautiful pictures, the rise and fall of the railway system in East Sussex

The Skylark’s Secret by Fiona Valpy follows 2 parallel love stories whilst chronicling the events of the Arctic Convoys in WWII and their effects on the peaceful harbour village of Ewe. It is both informative and deeply touching.