Apr. 30, 2021— Notebook of a Return to My Native Land, by Aimé Césaire

 The next meeting of Great Books KC Will be April 30, 2021.  We will discuss Notebook of a Return to My Native Land, by Aimé Césaire.

Meeting Location & Time:

Date: April 30, 2021

Time: 7:00 pm

 Zoom On-Line Meeting:

 —an email with link to join will be sent prior to meeting.

 —the link is sent to a limited mailing list of those who have either attended a meeting in the past year or have requested that their name be included on the mailing list. Requests to be added to the mailing list may be sent to GreatBooksKC@gmail.com 

Description of Book:

Cahier d'un retour au pays natal (1939), variously translated as Notebook of a Return to My Native Land, Return to My Native Land, or Journal of a Homecoming, is a book-length poem by Martinican writer Aimé Césaire, considered his masterwork, that mixes poetry and prose to express his thoughts on the cultural identity of black Africans in a colonial setting.

March 26, 2021—Lysistrata & Thesmophoriazusae, by Aristophanes

The next meeting of Great Books KC Will be March 26, 2021.  We will discuss the Greek plays, Lysistrata & Thesmophoriazusae, by Aristophanes.

Meeting Location & Time:

Date: March 26, 2021

Time: 7:00 pm

 Zoom On-Line Meeting:

 —an email with link to join will be sent prior to meeting.

 —the link is sent to a limited mailing list of those who have either attended a meeting in the past year or have requested that their name be included on the mailing list. Requests to be added to the mailing list may be sent to GreatBooksKC@gmail.com 

Descriptions of the Greek plays:

Lysistrata is an ancient Greek comedy by Aristophanes, originally performed in classical Athens in 411 BC. It is a comic account of a woman's extraordinary mission to end the Peloponnesian War between Greek city states by denying all the men of the land any sex, which was the only thing they truly and deeply desired. The play is notable for being an early exposé of sexual relations in a male-dominated society. 

Women at the Thesmophoria, is one of eleven surviving plays by Aristophanes. It was first produced in 411 BC, probably at the City Dionysia. The play's focuses include the subversive role of women in a male-dominated society; the vanity of contemporary poets, such as the tragic playwrights Euripides and Agathon; and the shameless, enterprising vulgarity of an ordinary Athenian, as represented in this play by the protagonist, Mnesilochus.

February 26, 2021—Othello, by William Shakespeare

The next meeting of Great Books KC will be February 26, 2021.

We will discuss the book, Othello, by William Shakespeare

Meeting Location & Time:
Date: February 26, 2021
Time: 7:00 pm
 Zoom On-Line Meeting:
 —an email with link to join will be sent prior to meeting.
 —the link is sent to a limited mailing list of those who have either attended a meeting in the past year or have requested that their name be included on the mailing list. Requests to be added to the mailing list may be sent to GreatBooksKC@gmail.com 

Description of Book:
Othello is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1603. The story revolves around its two central characters: Othello, a Moorish general in the Venetian army, and his treacherous ensign, Iago. Given its varied and enduring themes of racism, love, jealousy, betrayal, revenge, and repentance, Othello is still often performed in professional and community theatre alike, and has been the source for numerous operatic, film, and literary adaptations.

January 29, 2021—The Adventures of Augie March, by Saul Bellow

The next meeting of Great Books KC will be January 29, 2021.

We will discuss the book, The Adventures of Augie March, by Saul Bellow

Meeting Location & Time:

Date: January 29, 2021

Time: 7:00 pm

 Zoom On-Line Meeting:

 —an email with link to join will be sent prior to meeting.

 —the link is sent to a limited mailing list of those who have either 

  attended a meeting in the past year or have requested that their 

  name be included on the mailing list.

Description of Book:

The Adventures of Augie March is a picaresque novel by Saul Bellow, published in 1953. It features the eponymous Augie March who grows up during the Great Depression and it is an example of Bildungsroman, tracing the development of an individual through a series of encounters, occupations and relationships from boyhood to manhood.

The Adventures of Augie March won the 1954 U.S. National Book Award for Fiction. Both Time magazine and the Modern Library Board named it one of the hundred best novels in the English language.

2021 Schedule

Jan. 29, 2021— The Adventures of Augie March, by Saul Bellow

Feb. 26, 2021— Othello, by Shakespeare

Mar. 26, 2021— Lysistrata & Thesmophoriazusae, by Aristophanes

Apr. 30, 20201— Notebook of a Return to the Native Land, by 

                              Aimé Césaire

May 14, 2021 — The Real Life of Sebastian Knight, by Vladimir Nabokov 

May. 28, 2021— Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk, by Nikolai Leskov

Jun. 25, 2021—The 42nd Parallel, The U.S.A. trilogy, by John Dos Passos

Jul. 30, 2021— 1919, The U.S.A. trilogy, by John Dos Passos

Aug. 27, 2021—The Big Money, The U.S.A. trilogy, by John Dos Passos

Sep. 24, 2021— The Bluest Eye, by Toni Morrison

Oct. 29, 2021— Kakoro, by Natsume Soseki

Dec. 3, 2021— Story of David, 1 Samuel 16-31, 2 Samuel, and 

                         1 Kings 1-2 

December 4, 2020—Richard III, by William Shakespeare

Meeting Content:

We'll be discussing Richard III, by William Shakespeare.
We will also be creating the schedule of books for 2021. Suggestions of books may be sent to greatbookskc@gmail.com.

Please note the following links to assist in plans for preparing the 2021 schedule:
G.B. KC Categories of Books 
G.B. KC What Makes a Great Book 
G.B. KC History of Previous Books 

Meeting Location & Time:
Date: December 4, 2020
Time: 7:00 pm

 Zoom on-line conference
          —an email with link to join will be sent prior to meeting.

          —the link is sent to a limited mailing list of those who have either 

              attended a meeting this year or have requested that their name 

              be included on the mailing list

Description of Book:

Richard III is a play by William Shakespeare. It was probably written around 1593. It is labelled a history in the First Folio, and is usually considered one, but it is sometimes called a tragedy, as in the quartoedition. Richard III concludes Shakespeare's first tetralogy (also containing Henry VI, Part 1, and Henry VI, Part 2, and Henry VI, Part 3) and depicts the Machiavellian rise to power and subsequent short reign of King Richard III of England.

October 30, 2020—"A Madman's Diary," by Lu Xun

The next meeting of Great Books KC will be October 30, 2020.

Meeting Content:

     We will discuss "A Madman’s Diary," by Lu Xun.

     Greg Brown recommends the book, "Lu Xun : The Real Story of Ah-Q and 

     Other Tales of China," published by Penguin Classics.

     "A Madman's Diary" is in that book and only 20 pages long, so Greg Brown 

     recommended also reading "The Real Story of Ah-Q."

Meeting Time and Place:
     Date: October 30, 2020
     Time: 7:00 pm
     Zoom on-line conference
          —an email with link to join will be sent prior to meeting.

          —the link is sent to a limited mailing list of those who have either attended 

                 a meeting this year or have requested that their name be included 

                 on the mailing list.

Description of Book:

     "A Madman's Diary" is a short story published in 1918 by Lu Xun, a 

     Chinese writer. It was the first and most influential modern work written 

     in vernacular Chinese in the republican era, and would become a corner

     stone piece of the New Culture Movement. The story was often referred 

     to as "China's first modern short story." This book was selected as one 

     of the 100 best  books in history by the Bokklubben World Library.

September 25, 2020—Consolation of Philosophy, by Boethius

The next meeting of Great Books KC will be September 25, 2020.

Meeting Content:

We will discuss "Consolation of Philosophy," by Boethius

Meeting Time and Place:

Date: September 25, 2020
Time: 7:00 pm
Zoom on-line conference
—an email with link to join will be sent the day prior to meeting.
—If you wish to receive an invitation and haven't attended a meeting recently, send request by email to GreatBooksKC@gmail.com. 

Description of Book:

"The Consolation of Philosophy" is a philosophical work by the Roman statesman Boethius, written around the year 524 A.D. It has been described as the single most important and influential work in the West on Medieval and early Renaissance Christianity, as well as the last great Western work of the Classical Period.

August 28, 2020—The Town, by Conrad Richter

The next meeting of Great Books KC will be August 28, 2020.

Meeting Content:

We will discuss The Town, from Awakening Land Trilogy, by Conrad Richter 

Meeting Time and Place:

Date: August 28, 2020
Time: 7:00 pm
Zoom on-line conference
—an email with link to join will be sent the day prior to meeting.
—If you wish to receive an invitation and haven't attended a meeting recently, send request by email to GreatBooksKC@gmail.com. 

Description of Book:

The Town is a 1950 novel by Conrad Richter and the third work in his trilogy The Awakening Land. It continues the story of frontier woman Sayward (née Luckett) Wheeler and her family.

The Fields, by Conrad Richter—July 31, 2020

The next meeting of Great Books KC will be July 31, 2020. 

Meeting Content:
We'll be discussing "The Fields," from Awakening Land Trilogy, by Conrad Richter

Meeting Time and Place:
Zoom on-line conference
—an email with link to join will be sent the day prior to meeting.
—If you wish to receive an invitation and haven't attended a meeting recently, send request by email to greatbookskic@gmail.com.
Date: July 31, 2020
Time: 7:00 pm

Description of Book:
The Fields is a 1946 novel by Conrad Richter and the second work in his trilogy The Awakening Land. It continues the story of the characters Portius and Sayward Luckett Wheeler begun in the novel The Trees.

In Case You Have Trouble Obtaining a Copy of the Book:
An e-book copy can be accessed from the Sunflower eLibrary (Overdrive) through Bonner Springs Library. Jack Granath has offered to facilitate issuing library cards and access to the e-book.
Jack's telephone number at the Bonner Springs Library is 913-441-2665.
Ask for Jack Granath and he can make arrangements of issuing a library cards which will enable access to the e-book.