Category: Clubs & Societies

Book Club, Gardening Club, Horticultural Society, Short Mat TN22 Clubs, Variety Club.

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Hadlow Down Book Club Review for March

Words define us, they explain us, and on occasion, they serve to control or isolate us.’

We think of a dictionary as giving objective, authoritative definitions of words, based on their usage and written sources. This is not entirely the truth, however – they also reflect the dominant culture. In this month’s book The Dictionary of Lost Words (2022) Pip Williams gives an account of the making of the Oxford English Dictionary – the first dictionary since Samuel Johnson’s (1755). Work began in 1857 and it was published in full in 1928. Her novel explores those words that are omitted or inadequately defined. Continue reading “Hadlow Down Book Club Review for March”

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Hadlow Down Book Club Review for February

“An act of free and general pardon, indemnity, and pardon.”
Last month we read The Act of Oblivion by Robert Harris (2022), a historical thriller set in the 17th century in the aftermath of the Restoration. The Act of Oblivion (1652) was the edict that pardoned those who had fought against the king except for those directly responsible for his execution. One of the most prominent of these was Colonel Edward Whalley, a cousin and friend of Oliver Cromwell, who fled to America with his son-in-law Colonel Will Goffe. The novel follows their pursuit through the wilds of pre-revolutionary New England. Continue reading “Hadlow Down Book Club Review for February”

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Hadlow Down Book Club Review – December

 Grief “like sliding down the outside of a really long glass building while nobody can see you”.

The book group has followed the Lucy Barton novels by Elizabeth Strout so we were interested to read the third in the Amgash series Oh William! (2022) which was shortlisted for the Booker Prize this year. Amgash was of course the remote settlement where Lucy grew up in abject poverty and in an abusive home before marrying William, moving to New York and becoming a successful novelist. Continue reading “Hadlow Down Book Club Review – December”

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Book Club Review – November

‘I’ve always believed in inherited pain’

This month our chosen book is The island of Missing Trees by the Turkish writer Elif Shafak, shortlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction 2022. It is about the Cypriot civil war and how the trauma of such a war imperils future generations as well as uprooting ordinary lives. It is also a Romeo and Juliet story of the passionate love affair between Kostas, a Greek Cypriot and Defne a Turkish Cypriot and it centres on the story how their daughter Ada comes to terms with the past she has never known. Continue reading “Book Club Review – November”

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‘An Evening With Pete the Pond – The importance of Wildlife Ponds in our Environment’

A ‘Supper Talk’ not to be missed!!!!
‘An Evening With Pete the Pond – The importance of Wildlife Ponds in our Environment’
Presented By the Hadlow Down Horticultural Society.
October 12th. in the Village Hall
‘Pete the Pond is a local legend who has worked tirelessly for many years to help sustain and restore many of our local aquatic ecosystems, especially ponds, which are critical to the health of local nature and wildlife. In the process he has built up a reference collection of aquatic plants in his back garden which is unique in its range and diversity and is now an immensely valuable asset in maintaining local biodiversity.’
With his wooden leg and often seen with a parrot on his shoulder Pete has also understandably been called ‘Pete the Pirate’
Pete will possibly be bringing some of his pondy friends with him.
There are still some tickets left for what will be a memorable evening with the usually excellent meal and an amazing speaker.
If you would like to attend the supper please contact Kathy by phone 01825 830616 or by email (kathy.cracknell48@gmail.com) to order your tickets. They are £8.00 per person and £12.00 for a non member.
Wine will be available and of course our lovely raffle, plus we might also have a small plant stall, so please bring cash with you.
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Hadlow Down Book Club Review

We had our usual summer holiday free choice of books in August and an interesting and diverse number to discuss ranging from 18th century to July 2022 and encompassing Africa, Venice and indeed the entire planet.

A Journey to the Western Isles of Scotland Samuel Johnson (1775), a weighty account of his eighty day journey through the Highlands and Islands, full of witty insights and powerful moral judgements. He is more interested in the social conditions with Enclosures just beginning but shows an 18th century lack of interest in the scenery.

Donna Leon’s novels set in Venice featuring the likeable Commissario Brunetti. If you haven’t read these novels you are in for a treat with well-rounded interesting characters, good plots and of course descriptions of wonderful food against the Venetian backdrop. If you want to read them in order start with Death at La Fenice (1992) but the novels get better as the characters develop. Continue reading “Hadlow Down Book Club Review”