Book Notes | ‘Tom Lake’
Tom Lake by Ann Patchett is set in the early summer of 2020 at a cherry orchard on the shores of Lake Michigan. The three daughters of the main character, Lara, have returned home during the COVID-19 pandemic to help harvest the cherry crop. The young women ask their mother to tell them the story of her relationship with a famous movie star, Peter Duke, with whom she shared a stage and a romance.
Over the course of a few weeks, Lara tells the story a bit each day. She begins with her first role, when she was a teenager, as Emily in Our Town by Thornton Wilder. She moved on to a small part in a Hollywood movie, and eventually came to star once again as Emily in Our Town in summer theater in Michigan with Duke. During her time in Michigan, Lara suffered a broken foot and was replaced in both the play and Duke’s affections with her understudy.
After that summer, Lara gave up acting and returned home to care for an aging grandmother. After her grandmother died, Lara became a seamstress for theater productions in New York. She reconnects with her former director from the Michigan Our Town production, marries him, and moves to his family’s cherry farm, where her daughters were born and raised.
The book has a surprise ending because there is a part of the story about Duke that Lara fails to share with her daughters.
The members of the UMRA Book Club all liked the book for its setting (cherry orchard) and story framing (telling a tale during a pandemic lock down). The “action” starts slowly and builds, which was a mild criticism that some had with the overall telling of the story. Some members listened to the book read by Meryl Streep, who brought the characters to life with her rendering of the novel.
—Kathryn Sedo, UMRA Book Club I
Book Club I in January
Fri, Jan 17, 2025, 2pm
Upcoming Events
Many life challenges that get in the way of quality of life and good health at home have little to do with medical issues. Cathy Lauring, our presenter for UMRA’s February 18 workshop, will explore a variety of resources to assist in keeping us healthy at home—including physical, emotional, cognitive, and financial services.
John Bantle will lead the discussion of A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail by Bill Bryson when the UMRA book club meets via Zoom on February 21.
Join UMRA members to watch two of the best hockey teams in the nation. UMRA has negotiated a discounted ticket price of $33.
Barbara Klick, RN, MBA, the presenter for UMRA’s February 25 Forum, has decades of experience working in human and veterinary medicine, and will bring her wisdom and perspective to our discussion about what we can learn from our pets about facing end-of-life challenges and decisions.
The Fourth Friday Book Club will meet via Zoom on February 28 from 2 to 3:30 p.m. CST to discuss The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain.
Join members of the UMRA Hiking Club for a hike on March 3 at the Holland Lake Trailhead in Lebanon Hills Regional Park in Eagan. It is the largest park in the Dakota County park system. Our route will take us on an unpaved trail with some roots, rocks, and easy hills. It will be about 5 miles for 2 to 2.5 hours. We will meet for an optional lunch afterwards somewhere nearby (TBD).
Will Craig discusses using local sources for family history.
The THEME is Insects
The UMRA Photo Club will meet at 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 11, 2025, in the meeting room of the Hennepin County St. Anthony Branch Library, in the small shopping center at New Brighton and St. Anthony Boulevards.
For those interested in lunch, meet at the Great Dragon at 11:30 a.m.
The UMRA Hiking Club will explore wildlife along the Mississippi River in Fort Snelling State Park. The 3.9-mile Pike Island Loop is generally considered an easy route and takes just over an hour. Hikers can leave at that point, or stay to add another short loop. The trail is located below the bluff on which the historic fort sits. The last time we were there we saw a lot of deer, and the river always provides fascinating views.
The UMRA Photo Club will meet at 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 8, 2025, in the meeting room of the Hennepin County St. Anthony Branch Library, in the small shopping center at New Brighton and St. Anthony Boulevards.
For those interested in lunch, meet at the Great Dragon at 11:30 a.m.
Theme to be announced.
The University of Minnesota Archives, with its major holdings largely tucked away in two huge underground caverns along the Mississippi River under the West Bank campus, holds the essential records of our University of Minnesota’s past. University Archivist Erik Moore will interpret the holdings and bring out a sampling of what it holds. We will also get a tour of the caverns (Minnesota Library Access Center), revealing where these precious materials are housed, including the original tapes of KUOM, now Radio K.
You are cordially invited to see Rick Huebsch, Associate VP for Research, Technology Commercialization at UMN, who will discuss UMN Technology Commercialization. Tech Comm facilitates the transfer of UMN innovation beyond the research lab, to benefit the public good, foster economic growth, and generate revenue to support the University's mission.
Do you have a box or several albums of old family pictures that you are not quite sure what to do with? Or perhaps you just want to find out more about your ancestors and are not sure where or how to begin. This meeting of the Family history group will be an open discussion.