Every month the Front Porch Book Club features two episodes on our selected book. The first episode is Linda and Nancy discussing the book from their perspectiv...
Nancy is excited that we are reviewing a Louise Erdrich book, THE MIGHTY RED, her latest novel, published last year. Nancy read Erdrich's book, THE BINGO PALACE, a number of years ago (it was published in 1994) and really loved it. THE MIGHTY RED is a New York Times bestseller, A Read with Jenna book club pick, and a finalist for the Kirkus Prize for Fiction. Erdrich is a contemporary American author. Many of her writings center on the Ojibwe people of the northern Great Plains. Her novels have received the National Book Award and a Pulitzer Prize for fiction. Linny and Nancy discuss the book's themes of mothers and daughters, large-scale agricultural practices, and faith and spirituality. Linny also learns a lot about sugar beets.
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John Janovy, Jr.
We talk with John Janovy, Jr., author of our February book, Life Lessons from a Parasite. John is one of the world's preeminent experts on parasites, a best-selling author, and an artist. In this fun and wide-ranging conversation, we discuss parasites, of course, but we also talk about what it means to be a decent human being, how to evaluate ideas and words we're exposed to, how the Vietnam War changed John's approach to teaching, and the fundamental importance of curiosity. We learn about John's early roots in the outdoors and his love of painting. John also tells us about the tapeworm in Robert Kennedy, Jr.'s brain. A jam-packed episode, for sure!
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Life Lessons from a Parasite
Our book for January is Life Lessons from a Parasite by John Janovy, Jr. John is one of the world's pre-eminent parasitologists. In his book we learn all about parasites -- the minuscule life forms that live inside other organisms. We learn about the scientists that study them. And, we are introduced to how theories about parasites and infections help us understand how infected words and ideas become parasites in our modern-day life. Linny's traumatic experience in high school biology was a challenge for her in reading about dissection, but both Linny and Nancy learned a lot about parasites and then enjoyed discussing the generalizations into how words and ideas travel through populations.
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Our Implementation of Atomic Habits
James Clear's bestselling book, Atomic Habits, tells us that tiny changes can yield remarkable results. Clear writes, "The quality of our lives often depends on the quality of our habits. With the same habits, you'll end up with the same results. But with better habits, anything is possible." Linny and Nancy discuss their initial attempts to implement what they learned from this book. Not surprisingly, they took two very different approaches. Nancy, ever the planner, created an entire system. Linny, the free spirit, embraced good habits as they presented themselves. They share these new habits and early results.
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Atomic Habits
Welcome 2025! In January we choose books that are about goal setting and achieving success and being the you, you want to be. Our book this month is Atomic Habits: An Easy and Proven Way to Build Good Habits and Break Bad Ones by James Clear. This book is designed to reshape the way you think about progress and success, and give you the tools and strategies you need to transform your habits--whether you are a team looking to win an Olympic medal, redefine an industry, or simply an individual who wishes to quit smoking, lose weight, reduce stress, or achieve any other goal. There is a curious amount of talking about cake in this episode! Oh, and also what good habits we're hoping to develop in 2025!
Every month the Front Porch Book Club features two episodes on our selected book. The first episode is Linda and Nancy discussing the book from their perspective. The second episode invites the author or an expert to delve deeper into the book. Our book selections are eclectic: fiction, autobiography, history, memoir, investigative journalism, and classics. They are books that give us insights into how we may be more intentional, creative, and loving in our lives.
Ireland