May 2006 Pick: Early Leaving by Judy Goldman

Thank you to everyone who came out for a charming evening with international best-selling author Alexander McCall Smith. The author was engaging and enchanting and was kind enough to meet privately with a few lucky CW’s book club members. He talked about some of the great adventures he’s had, including being one of the few gentlemen in the company of some very cheerful ladies at a recent global economic summit. In a group of women that included the wives of British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Russia’s President Alexander Putin, the author sat next to Laura Bush and says she was a gracious and charming woman and had read many of his novels. After meeting with us, he went on to delight the packed theater at the Blumenthal with a recount of his life as a serial novelist. A fun time was most certainly had by all.

McCall Smith is blessed with a true passion for life and the ability to take the stuff our lives are made of and help us transcend beyond them. It is also a quality the author of next book pick possesses. We have chosen Carolina native Judy Goldman’s stirring work, “Early Leaving” as our book club pick for May.

The book is set here in the Queen City and revolves around a seemingly perfect family. Perfect that is until the day their teenage son, Early, who is valedictorian at his prestigious private school, is arrested for murder the morning after graduation. The book is an examination of how well parents really know their children. Surely many parents strive to give their children all they can but when is it too much and when should a parent hold back? This book is an honest look at parenting and marriage and may inspire you to ask some courageous questions.

Goldman is a critically acclaimed poet and writer who was born in Rock Hill. South Carolina. Her first novel, “The Slow Way Back”, won the Sir Walter Raleigh Fiction Award and was a finalist for the Southeast Booksellers Association's Best Novel of the Year. She is also the author of two books of poetry.

The author will be at our next book club event on Monday, May 22, 2006 at Joseph-Beth Booksellers at SouthPark Mall at 7PM to talk about the book and her career. Please join us for a memorable evening of conversation but don’t forget to RSVP at http://www.thecharlotteweekly.com/