This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Arts & Entertainment

Book Club - The Spectator Bird

This month we are reading The Spectator Bird by Wallace Stegner.

A postcard from a long-lost friend reminds retired, and tired, Joe Allston of the Danish trip he took with his wife twenty years earlier. He goes to his study and retrieves the diary that he wrote at the time. His wife, Ruth, asks him to read it aloud, so that she can relive these memories as well. And as we share in their moments together, both currently and on this memorable Danish trip, we realize that there had been some unspoken questions between the two of them dating from this journey. Bringing it into the open resolves their uncertainties with one another, and causes Joe to recall the emotional turmoil he went through which has never entirely gone away.

This is a book about love, about duty, about the sweet fulfillment of an enduring marriage, and about the sad futility of age. It is about kindness and despair; about joy and the bittersweet sadness of unrequited love. It is filled with intelligence and wit and written by a man who was a master of his craft.

Find out what's happening in Los Alamitos-Seal Beachwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

We would love to see you at our book discussion.  We welcome new members each month.  Join us for an interesting evening.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?