IN MEMORIAM - by Alice Winn
Date & Time
Tue Oct 15 2024 at 07:00 pm to 09:00 pm
UTC-05:00Location
Center on Halsted | Chicago, IL
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HAPPY HALLOWEEN! Join us to Discuss our Monthly Book in Oct ...---- International Bestseller ----
---- Multiple Awards, Noms & A Best Book of Yr:
New Yorker, Wash. Post, NPR, British Book Awd,
Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis nom, Goodreads Choice Awd nom
A HAUNTING LOVE STORY OF 𝟮 𝗕𝗢𝗔𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗦𝗖𝗛𝗢𝗢𝗟 𝗖𝗛𝗨𝗠𝗦 DURING 𝗪𝗪𝗜, THE 𝗛𝗢𝗥𝗥𝗢𝗥 𝗢𝗙 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗧𝗥𝗘𝗡𝗖𝗛𝗘𝗦 & REALITY OF LIVING WITH THE TRAUMA OF WAR.
- - - - - Bay Area Reporter - - - - -
“𝘙𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘴 𝘢𝘴 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙧 𝙬𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘏𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘳 & 𝘏𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘳. 𝘐𝘵 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘴 𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘭𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝙜𝙖𝙮-𝙢𝙚𝙣-𝙞𝙣-𝙒𝙒𝙄 𝙨𝙖𝙜𝙖𝙨 & 𝘵𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴.”
SUMMARY: It's 1914 & 𝗪𝗪𝗜 is ceaselessly churning thru thousands of young men on both sides of the fight. The violence of the front feels far away to Gaunt, Ellwood and the rest of their classmates, safely ensconced in their 𝗶𝗱𝘆𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗰 𝗯𝗼𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹 in the English countryside. They receive weekly dispatches from their school newspaper, informing them of older classmates killed or wounded. Their heroic deaths only make the war more exciting.
Gaunt, half-German, is busy fighting his own private battle - an 𝗮𝗹𝗹-𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 with his best friend, the glamorous, rich, charming Ellwood - without a clue that Ellwood is pining for him in return. Gaunt's family asks him to 𝗲𝗻𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝘀 𝗮𝗻 𝗼𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗲𝗿 in the British army to protect the family from the 𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗶-𝗚𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗮𝗰𝗸𝘀 they're already facing. Gaunt signs up immediately, relieved to escape his overwhelming feelings for Ellwood.
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗻𝘁 is horrific & Gaunt tries to dissuade Ellwood from joining him on the battlefield. To Gaunt's horror, Ellwood soon 𝗿𝘂𝘀𝗵𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗷𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝗵𝗶𝗺, fueled by his education in Greek heroics & romantic wartime poetry. Before long most of their classmates have followed suit. But once in the trenches, the boys become intimately acquainted with the 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝘀𝗵 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝘄𝗮𝗿. Death surrounds them in all its grim reality, often inches away.
Gaunt & Ellwood find 𝗳𝗹𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿, but their friends are all dying, often in front of them & no one knows when they'll be next. An epic tale of both the devastating tragedies of war & the 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗯𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗲𝗻 𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 that blooms in its grip, In Memoriam is a breathtaking debut.
- - - - - The New York Times - - - - -
"𝘈 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝙜𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙜𝙚𝙙𝙮, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘪𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘰 𝘢 𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙜 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚.”
[free, no RSVP needed, just come & we'll welcome you in!]
Event Location
Center on Halsted, 3656 N Halsted St, Chicago, IL 60613-5974, United States,Chicago, IllinoisEvent Host
Gay Men's Book Group - Chicago
