Books-n-Bars Book Club: July 2024

For those who like to imbibe in books, beverages or both!

Please join us at the Eldo at 5:30 pm on Thursday, July 25 for the next meeting of the Books-n-Bars. We will be discussing:

“The Lincoln Highway” by Amor Towles

In June, 1954, eighteen-year-old Emmett Watson is driven home to Nebraska by the warden of the juvenile work farm where he has just served fifteen months for involuntary manslaughter. His mother long gone, his father recently deceased, and the family farm foreclosed upon by the bank, Emmett’s intention is to pick up his eight-year-old brother, Billy, and head to California where they can start their lives anew. But when the warden drives away, Emmett discovers that two friends from the work farm have hidden themselves in the trunk of the warden’s car. Together, they have hatched an altogether different plan for Emmett’s future, one that will take them all on a fateful journey in the opposite direction—to the City of New York.

Spanning just ten days and told from multiple points of view, Towles’s third novel will satisfy fans of his multi-layered literary styling while providing them an array of new and richly imagined settings, characters, and themes. “Once again, I was wowed by Towles’s writing—especially because The Lincoln Highway is so different from A Gentleman in Moscow in terms of setting, plot, and themes. Towles is not a one-trick pony. Like all the best storytellers, he has range. He takes inspiration from famous hero’s journeys, including The Iliad, The Odyssey, Hamlet, Huckleberry Finn, and Of Mice and Men. He seems to be saying that our personal journeys are never as linear or predictable as an interstate highway. But, he suggests, when something (or someone) tries to steer us off course, it is possible to take the wheel.” – Bill Gates

This group *typically* meets every 4th Thursday of the month from 5:30-7 pm at local watering holes. They read mainly contemporary fiction, with a few non-fiction titles every once in a while. Copies of books are placed on hold for book club participants and are available to check out at the library. Titles for the next month’s meeting are announced a month before. They will also be available in e-edition, audiobook, large print, etc.