Virtual Book Group
2025 Reading Selections
First Thursday of every EVEN month on ZOOM, link just below.
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88403047762
Event details (e.g. time of day) will be found on the CALENDAR
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Final Virtual Book Group Choices 2025
| Dec – Jan | Feb 6th Discussion |
| Title | Murder in Bridge City |
| Author | Kevin Luby |
| Publication date | 2021 |
| Number of pages | 218 Pages |
| Genre ( if known) | |
| Short summary | A series of murders in Portland, Oregon. Are they related? That is the question being investigated by police detectives Bill Karb and Mike Kelley, as well as investigative podcaster Meg Nguyen. With each murder, the three of them seem to increasingly dance around one another as they work to identify suspects and motives. Could one of them be the killer? If so, why? Their individual and collective efforts reveal their respective flaws to one another, raising disturbing questions, and weaving a complex tale of violence, guilt, ambition, and intrigue. |
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| Feb-Mar | Apr 3rd Discussion |
| Title | Magpie Murders |
| Author | Anthony Horowitz |
| Publication date | 2016 |
| Number of pages | 477 |
| Genre ( if known) | Mystery, Fiction |
| Short summary | When Susan receives Alan’s latest manuscript, in which Atticus Pünd investigates a murder at Pye Hall, an English manor house, she has no reason to think it will be any different from the others. There will be dead bodies, a cast of intriguing suspects, and plenty of red herrings and clues. But the more Susan reads, the more she realizes that there’s another story hidden in the pages of the manuscript—one of ambition, jealousy, and greed—and that soon it will lead to murder. |
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| Apr-May | June 5th Discussion |
| Title | Can’t Wait to Get to Heaven |
| Author | Fannie Flagg |
| Publication date | 2006 |
| Number of pages | 384 |
| Genre ( if known) | Fiction, Humor |
| Short summary | In this comedy-mystery, those near and dear to Elner discover something wonderful: Heaven is actually right here, right now, with people you love, neighbors you help, friendships you keep. Can’t Wait to Get to Heaven is proof once more that Fannie Flagg “was put on this earth to write” (Southern Living), spinning tales as sweet and refreshing as iced tea on a summer day, with a little extra kick thrown in. |
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| June-July | Aug 7th Discussion |
| Title | The Five Wishes of Mr. Murray McBride |
| Author | Joe Siple |
| Publication date | 2018 |
| Number of pages | 234 |
| Genre ( if known) | Fiction |
| Short summary | The international bestselling novel about Murray McBride, a lonely 100-year-old man who’s outlived just about everyone he’s ever loved. But when he meets a boy awaiting a heart transplant, Murray may learn something about finding meaning in life again . . 100-year-old Murray McBride finds new meaning in life, and starts a positive butterfly effect on the lives of those around him, in this series about coming of age, friendship, purpose. |
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| Aug-Sep | Oct 2nd Discussion |
| Title | The Professor and the Madman |
| Author | Simon Winchester |
| Publication date | 1998 |
| Number of pages | 242 |
| Genre ( if known) | Non-fiction |
| Comments | A Movie was made about this book starring Mel Gibson and Sean Penn |
| Short summary | The Professor and the Madman, masterfully researched and eloquently written, is an extraordinary tale of madness, genius, and the incredible obsessions of two remarkable men that led to the making of the Oxford English Dictionary — and literary history. The compilation of the OED, begun in 1857, was one of the most ambitious projects ever undertaken. As definitions were collected, the overseeing committee, led by Professor James Murray, discovered that one man, Dr. W. C. Minor, had submitted more than ten thousand. When the committee insisted on honoring him, a shocking truth came to light: Dr. Minor, an American Civil War veteran, was also an inmate at an asylum for the criminally insane. |
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| Oct-Nov | Dec 4th Discussion |
| Title | The Zen Monkey and the Lotus Flower |
| Author | Jinzo Banyu |
| Publication date | 2023 |
| Number of pages | 160 |
| Genre ( if known) | |
| Short summary | 52 Stories to Relieve Stress, Stop Negative Thoughts, Find Happiness, and Live Your Best Life. Do you need more time for yourself? Do you want to get your mind off things? Do you long for more happiness and contentment? Then this is the book for you! It contains 52 stories that will change your life and your way of thinking. Each story is carefully selected to explain important Buddhist wisdom and thought processes. |