Goodreads All Sorts discussion

Our choice is Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt. It came to be on my TBR list after hearing the hosts of Literary Disco talk about it. (Literary Disco is a podcast where Tod, Julia, and Rider discuss - as the name suggests - literature, among other things. I definitely recommend it. They are quite an entertaining trio. I often find myself laughing as I listen.)

Anyway, we have yet to get our hands on the book, but as soon as we do, I'm looking forward to reading and discussing. (Naturally.)

So, as I mentioned, I put this book on my TBR list after hearing some other people talk about it. But I find, as I'm finally reading it that I can't remember what they said about it, or what it is actually about. And since I'm reading on a nook, I don't have easy access the the back of the book (or inside flap) description. It's not really a problem, but I just find it sort of a curious phenomenon. Why am I reading this? Because I have a vague memory of somebody saying it was worth reading, and I thought it sounded interesting.

I've finished Chapter 2, and here's a few thoughts: (view spoiler)[ I remember that this book chronicles a murder, but it hasn't gotten to that point yet. I like reading about the history of Savannah. I've particularly enjoyed the stories that Mary something told our author. There's the one about the poet whose gravestone is the bench by the water. Also, I thought the story of the dinner party host whose house had caught fire, simply asked his guests to pick up their plates and follow him to the garden, where they finished their party. Crazy.

Anyway, the first chapter was a bit slow to get into, but after chapter two, it's a little more engaging. What do you think so far? (hide spoiler)]

Well I just finished Chapter 6 and hope to speed up a bit this week. As you said it is a bit descriptive and a bit slow. I am now in Chapter 7 and I still haven't reached the point of feeling some sort of mystery taking place or generally I haven't felt like something is going to happen at all.

The nice thing until now are the interesting characters in the book and the beautiful description of Savannah. Now I feel I want to go there too! Also the fact that this book is non-fiction makes the whole story even more interesting since I could never imagine that these characters were non-fictional.

I am eager to finish the descriptive part of the plot and reach the point where finally some action takes place.

And if you want to see how the Mercer House really looks like :) : http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction...

I'm still mid-chapter 6. I had to take a little break, but I'll get back to it shortly. :) I totally agree that it's hard to think of these people as real. Also, I'm ready for the 'action'! I want to visit the city too, after reading some of the descriptions - especially how it's somewhat isolated or hard to get to. When was this published? 1990-something? I wonder how much has changed since this book.

P.S. Thanks for the link! I want to see inside too. :) Also, what's with the description: Don't ask them about "Midnight" book or movie. Maybe it'll make more sense after finishing the book.

Did you finish chapter 7? What did you think of it? (view spoiler)[ For some reason, maybe because I thought that Chablis was probably the most eccentric of all characters, the whole chapter seemed more vivid than the rest. I actually think that there are more dialogues present than the rest of the characters and definitely more action going on than just description. As usual, I was kind of curious about lady Chablis, so I googled her and this is what I found http://www.impcourt.org/Trans40/LadyC... The author really must be a very outgoing person to mingle with so many different personalities! I am still wondering who of all these people got murdered... (hide spoiler)]

Yes, I liked the Chablis chapter too. There is definitely more going on than just description of the city, etc. I also really appreciated the image of a Chinese dragon caravan of gowns leaving the club. :)

Have you read Chapter 9? I liked Chapter 10, (view spoiler)[ it also has a bit of action. And I am fascinated by the Married Women's Card Club - with the strictly scheduled 'parties'. I wonder if that's still around (hide spoiler)].

I finished Part 1 yesterday or so, and I found out who (supposedly) killed whom.

I am in the middle of chapter 10 and can't wait to finish part 1 today to finally find out the murder story. Chapter 9 although small, was also quite intense, suddenly you can feel lots of things happening:) I also think it was a nice break to have a mini "romantic" story :)

I just finished the book. I realize it's a little early, but I wanted to know what happened! Anyway, I quite liked it. Here are a few thoughts: (view spoiler)[ I think my favorite character/person is Minerva. She's just so bizarre, yet completely serious. Also, I was rather surprised by Jim's final fate- and agree that his final place was a bit creepy. Another thing, looking back up at your last comment, I don't think we ever see that girl again, whatever her name was. (hide spoiler)]

Hey, how's it going? Are you finished? Almost done? Not even close?

hry liz sorry for the late reply ,these weeks were kind of hectic with work so I delayed a bit . actually I managed to reach the last chapter but I will get back to you on that once I finish it .

Finally finished the book, commenting on your previous post yes I think Minerva was one of the most interesting characters of the book.

All in all I think the book was not as I expected it, which in this case is a good thing. I was stunned by the Berendt's imagery. The vivid pictures of Savannah were truly captivating and the descriptions of the characters were nothing less than fascinating.