The Book Club Chronicles

About the Book

As the ladies study A Midsummer Night’s Dream, they discover yet again the complexities of Shakespeare’s play. They discover that under the glorious poetry, A Midsummer Night’s Dream has a complicated structure. The plot, what there is of it is about lovers: lovers being parted by tyrannical fathers, lovers being won in combat, lovers being wooed, lovers moaning about unrequited love, fairy lovers squabbling and disturbing all life around them. Then there are the famous mechanicals who are a counterpoint to the over-the-top love stories. Penelope a very old lady has been invited into the book club. She inadvertently stirs up an old hurt and her own past comes back to haunt and entertain her. Clarissa, known as the kid, for she is merely in her mid-fifties, is conflicted about Steve who has returned to her. What is his place in her heretofore simple life? Hovering over them are Shakespeare’s imaginary characters who challenges their intellects, as well as their emotions. They, as always, wrestle with their own love stories, late life marriages, as they struggle to make sense of this beloved play.

About the Author

Joan H Parks lives in Chicago, IL, and after a career in clinical research refreshed her life by becoming a fiction writer. Her undergraduate degree was from the University of Rochester in Non-Western Civilizations, her MBA from the University of Chicago. She studies poetry, including Yeats and the Canterbury Tales (in Middle English); has an interest in the ancient world which she has gratified by studying at the Oriental Institute of The University of Chicago; is an aficionado of The Tales of Genji, which she rereads every year or so. Her family regards these activities with amusement, for she also listens to Willie Nelson and Dierks Bentley. She can be contacted at joanhparks.com