March 30, 2018—Luke, from the New Testament

The next meeting of Great Books KC group will be March 30, 2018. We'll be discussing the book Gospel of Luke from the New Testament Bible.

Meeting Information:

          Location: Plaza Branch Kansas City Public Library

                           Small Meeting Room

          Date: March 30, 2018

          Time: 7:00 pm

          Address: 4801 Main Street

                           Kansas City, MO

Description of Book:

Luke is the first part of a two-volume work called Luke-Acts (our group's discussion will cover only the Luke portion). Scholars estimate that the most probable date for the composition of Luke-Acts is around 80–110 AD, and there is evidence that it was still being revised well into the 2nd century. According to Church tradition the author was Luke the Evangelist, the companion of Paul, but the scholarly consensus doubts this authorship because of the many contradictions between Acts and the authentic Pauline letters. 

Forty-one percent of Luke is similar to textual material found in the book of Mark, twenty-three percent shares "sayings of Jesus" that are common with Matthew, and thirty-five percent is unique to Luke. The portion of Luke taken from Mark has been expanded and the Greek grammar and syntax improved. Some passages from Mark, notably most of Mark Chapters 6 and 7, are eliminated entirely. Despite this, Luke follows Mark's plot more faithfully than does Matthew.

February 23, 2018 — The Fire Next Time, by James Baldwin

The next meeting of Great Books KC group will be February 23, 2018. We'll be discussing the book The Fire Next Time, by James Baldwin.

Meeting Information:

          Location: Plaza Branch Kansas City Public Library

                           Small Meeting Room

          Date: February 23, 2018

          Time: 7:00 pm

          Address: 4801 Main Street

                           Kansas City, MO

Description of Book:

The Fire Next Time consists of two essays, both examining the problems faced by African Americans in the early 1960s. 

Themes explored by the book include: 

• Description of racial tension

• Examination of the ineffectiveness of religious faith

• Explanation of the limitations of intergenerational influences and relationships among both blacks and whites

January 26,2018—"Annals," by Tacitus

We will meet January 26 to discuss The Annals by Roman historian and senator Tacitus. The Annals is a history of the Roman Empire from the reign of Tiberius to that of Nero, the years AD 14–68.

Meeting Information:
Location: Kansas City Public Library, Plaza Branch, Small Meeting Room
Address: 4801 Main Street, Kansas City, MO
Date: January 26, 2018
Time: 7:00 pm 

Click on "Comments" below to access notes by Bernard Norcott-Mahany.

Reading & Meeting Schedule for 2018

January 26 — Annals, by Tacitus

February 23 — The Fire Next Time, by James Baldwin

March 30 — Luke, from the New Testament

April 27 — Richard II, by Shakespeare

May 25 — The Kreutzer Sonata, by Leo Tolstoy

June 29 — The Good Earth, by Pearl Buck

July 27 — Sons, by Pearl Buck

August 31 — A House Divided, by Pearl Buck

September 28 — Growth of the Soil, by Knut Hamsun

October 26 — The Reivers: A Reminiscence, by William Faulkner

December 7 — Songs from the Slums, by Kagawa Toyohiko

December 1, 2017—Meditations by Marcus Aurelius

Next meeting is December 1, 2017. We will discuss Meditations by Marcus Aurelius. 

We will also select the books for our reading schedule for 2018. Bring your nominations and be prepared to explain why you selected them. Send you nominations to the following email address and I'll add them to a printed list to be distributed at the meeting.

email address:  greatbookskc@gmail.com

The following are some links regarding our book selections:

Categories of Books to be selected

 History of previous books

Meeting Information:
Location: Kansas City Public Library, Plaza Branch, Small Meeting Room
Address: 4801 Main Street, Kansas City, MO
Date: December 1, 2017
Time: 7:00 pm

October 27, 2017—Fear and Trembling by Søren Kierkegaard

The next meeting will be October 27, 2017. We will be discussing Fear and Trembling, by Søren Kierkegaard.

Link to Book (Many alternative links are available on line):

Fear and Trembling, by Søren Kierkegaard

Meeting Information:

Location: Kansas City Public Library, Plaza Branch, Small Meeting Room

Address: 4801 Main Street, Kansas City, MO

Date: October 27, 2017

Time: 7:00 pm

September 29, 2017—Obscure Books of the Bible

The next meeting will be September 29, 2017. We will be discussing some obscure books from the Old Testament:

Books to be discussed:

(the links are to the Revised Standard Version)

The Prayer of Azariah and Song of the Three Holy Children

Susanna

Bel and the Dragon

Meeting Information:

Location: Kansas City Public Library, Plaza Branch, Small Meeting Room

Address: 4801 Main Street, Kansas City, MO

Date: September 29, 2017

Time: 7:00 pm

August 25, 2017, "Sugar Street," by Naguib Mahfouz

The next meeting is August 25, 2017, Plaza Library, 7:00 p.m.
We will discuss "Sugar Street," by Naguib Mahfouz

Meeting Information:
Location Kansas City Public Library, Plaza Branch, Small Meeting Room
Address: 4801 Main Street, Kansas City, MO
Date: August 25, 2017
Time: 7:00 pm

"Sugar Street" is a novel by Egyptian writer Naguib Mahfouz, and the third installment of Mahfouz's Cairo Trilogy.
A review and description of the book "Sugar Street" is at the following link:
http://www.complete-review.com/reviews/mahfouzn/cairo3.htm
Reviews and descriptions of the previous books in the trilogy are at the following links:
Palace Walk:
http://www.complete-review.com/reviews/mahfouzn/cairo1.htm
Palace of Desire:
http://www.complete-review.com/reviews/mahfouzn/cairo2.htm

Naguib Mahfouz (1911– 2006) was from Egypt, was one of the first contemporary writers of Arabic literature, and was winner of the 1988 Nobel Prize for Literature.

July 28, 2017, "Palace of Desire," by Naguib Mahfouz

The next meeting is July 28, 2017, Plaza Library, 7:00p.m.
We will discuss Palace of Desire, by Naguib Mahfouz

Meeting Information:
Location: Kansas City Public Library, Plaza Branch, Small Meeting Room
Address: 4801 Main Street, Kansas City, MO
Date: July 28, 2017
Time: 7:00 PM

Description of Book: 
     Palace of Desire is a novel by Egyptian writer Naguib Mahfouz, and the second installment of Mahfouz's Cairo Trilogy. Palace of Desire continues the story begun in Palace Walk. The previous novel closed with the tragic death of Fahmy, the most promising of al-Sayyid Ahmad Abd al-Jawad's sons; this one begins five years later, and already the feel is a very different one. The impact of Fahmy's death is still being felt when Palace of Desire begins. 
    Naguib Mahfouz (1911– 2006) was from Egypt, was one of the first contemporary writers of Arabic literature, and was winner of the 1988 Nobel Prize for Literature.

June 30, 2017, "Palace Walk," by Naguib Mahfouz

The next meeting is June 30, 2017, Plaza Library, 7:00p.m. 
We will discuss Palace Walk, by Naguib Mahfouz

Meeting Information:
Location: Kansas City Public Library, Plaza Branch, Small Meeting Room
Address: 4801 Main Street, Kansas City, MO
Date: June 30, 2017
Time: 7:00 PM

Palace Walk is a novel by Egyptian writer Naguib Mahfouz, and the first installment of Mahfouz's Cairo Trilogy. Originally published in 1956 the book was translated into English in 1990. The setting of the novel is Cairo during and just after World War I.

The book's Arabic title translates literally into 'between two palaces' — a phrase which highlights the cultural and political transition Egypt experienced at this time, developments brought into focus by the lives of the el-Gawad family.

Naguib Mahfouz (1911– 2006) was from Egypt, was one of the first contemporary writers of Arabic literature, and was winner of the 1988 Nobel Prize for Literature.