Please join us on Saturday, May 18th, at 11:30 for what’s sure to be a spirited discussion of The Storyteller’s Secret by Sejal Badani. Book reviewers describe this 2018 novel as “hard to put down,” “captivating, enlightening, & hopeful,” and “with a colorful cast of characters.” The story takes place in the United States and in India, and it moves between the past and the present. Our Library Director, Robin Close, will have several copies of this book available for checkout on Friday, April 19th.
Highlights from April’s book club meeting:
- Wow! 12 of us attended this get-together.
- A big welcome to new book club members: Aleah, Andi, & Barb W.!
- Thank you, Barb L., for the delicious cupcakes, sliced cheese & meat, and veggies & dip. What a treat!
- Thank you, Robin, for supplying the beverages, procuring books, and asking thought-provoking questions related to the book under discussion.
April’s book, Before We Were Yours, was given a big thumbs-up by our group. The novel is a heart-wrenching story, inspired by the real-life scandal involving Georgia Tann, who operated the Tennessee Children’s Home Society from the 1930s to 1950. This orphanage was a front for a child-trafficking scheme in which Tann sold children on the black market and made millions in the process.
We were a lively group, and time flew by as we offered our opinions, shared our own experiences, and commiserated about the plight of many innocent children… as portrayed in the book and in the world today.
Disturbing present-day facts: Every year 300,000 children are taken worldwide and sold by human traffickers as slaves. Of this number, 17,000 are taken in the United States – in other words, 46 children per day. Traffickers steal children as young as 5 years old and sell them into forced sex or labor situations. Victims can come from any walk of life. Traffickers prey on vulnerable children – from runaways, troubled teens, to a child left alone who can be easily abducted (https://www.erasechildtrafficking.org/statistics-of-human-trafficking/ ).
If you would like to read Before We Were Yours, it’s available at the Ola Library. Please contact Robin for more information.