Columbia Mayor Darwin Hindman and his wife Axie, held their annual book talk in the cozy setting of Newcomer Schoolhouse in Shelter Gardens. A few attendees shared their memories of attending a one room schoolhouse and there was a discussion about the vivid dreams that Paul, the narrator, has in the book.
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At our One Read discussion with Tribune columnist Bill Clark we discussed a boxer, Stanley Ketchel. Bill believes Rose’s deceased husband, Casper Llewellyn is based on the real life boxer, Stanley Ketchel. Stanley started his boxing career in Butte, Montana in 1904 and had a reputation for living in the “fast” lane. He died in Conway, Missouri in 1910. For more information about Stanley Ketchel go to
International Boxing Hall of Fame http://www.ibhof.com/ketchel.htm
“The Whistling Season” is full of secrets. Of course there is the big secret at the end about Rose and Morrie. I won’t ruin the ending for those of you who haven’t read to the end. But, what about all the other secrets, the backwards horse race, the Halley’s comet program? Do you remember other secrets in the book?
Last night we had a great discussion on “The Whistling Season” at the Shelter Gardens one room schoolhouse. The setting was ideal and to see all the desks filled with adults discussing the One Read book was quite a picture. Mrs Hindman started the evening asking if anyone there attended a one room school house and 4 people had. They added some genuine insight to the one room schoolhouse experience.
Paul, the lead character in the book and the narrator of the story had very vivid dreams throughout the book and we discussed the importance of these dreams to the story. One participant mentioned that important people in books have dreams and referred to Job in the bible. Another thought the dreams were key to Paul finding out the secret of Morrie and Rose.
Let us know your thoughts on this or any part of the book.
My narrator in “The Whistling Season,” Paul Milliron, educator and bookman and graduate of a one-room school that he was, would have fully known the value of a community read, all the way from its linguistic beginnings. “Communitas,” the root of our usage of “community”—in Paul’s well-thumbed Latin-to-English dictionary, these several meanings of “communitas” are given: “sharing, partnership, social ties, fellowship, togetherness.” What better rewards could readers and writer alike ask for, than the common ground of literary fellowship through reading?
Regards, Ivan Doig
Each winter, the public submits suggestions for next year’s book. In January, a panel of community members reviews the suggestions, narrowing that list down to 10 titles, and then chooses two or three books to present for a public vote.
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