Our September book, “The Vanishing Half” by Brit Bennett, was the basis for a multifaceted discussion among eight of us (see screen shot) on Wednesday the 21st. The book has an abundance of themes, including twin-ness, doubles, and halves; disappearing, reinventing and finding yourself; secrets, hiding, lying, acting, and revealing; racism, colorism and passing…plus a quartet of intriguing women. We liked pretty much everything except the ending, which seemed abrupt and lacking nuance; we would have liked to know more about these characters.

We braved the rain and gathered together at the home of Donna Dong ‘13. We reviewed the finances for the past fiscal year, the plethora of events that were planned and executed, and what we’re looking forward to in the new year. The new executive board was approved via electronic survey prior to the meeting.

Nisha Thatte-Potter hosted five of us for Annual Book Club Movie Night where we gather to watch a movie based on a book. Our potluck menu reflected the movie, “Victoria & Abdul,” about Queen Victoria and an Indian who became her closest companion in the last years of her life. Most of us had read the book on which the movie is based, by Shrabani Basu; we thought the moviemakers had excavated a charming tale from a poorly done book. Both book and movie avoid larger issues such as Britain’s relationship with India and instead focus on the genuine affection between the queen and her “Munshi” amid opposition and racism from the queen’s household. We all enjoyed the movie. Thanks, Nisha, for your hospitality.

Our July book was “City of Thieves” by David Benioff. We all liked this coming-of-age novel, despite the frequent scenes of horror and violence. We felt it was very well written, with research well integrated, humor balancing the heavy spots, immensely likable main characters, and vivid scene-setting details. The siege of Leningrad was not familiar history to most of us, so we learned a bit as well.

Michael Lewis’ “The Premonition” drew nine of us into a lively discussion on Wednesday, June 15. Many of us were happily surprised by this book’s readability, particularly its focus on individuals, who are profiled engagingly (if perhaps a bit too uncritically).

A small group visited Filoli, a gorgeous 16-acre formal gardens surrounded by a 654-acre estate in Woodside, CA. Our own Diana McDonough ‘66 acted as docent, showing us around this incredible property.

We gathered on this beautiful day to welcome local students who are heading to Smith for the first time this Fall! It was a great mix of new students, current students, young alums, and less-young alums.

On Wednesday, May 18, eight Smithies gathered on Zoom to discuss “Band of Sisters” by Lauren Willig. We were proud of these Smithies, fictional but based on real alums who went to France in 1917 to aid the civilians whose lives had been torn apart by the war.

We spent a lovely afternoon wandering around the Hakone Gardens, an 18-acre traditional Japanese garden in Saratoga made up of a variety of hillside gardens, historic buildings, multi-tiered waterfalls and koi ponds, strolling gardens, unique lanterns, stonework, and more. We had the pleasure of taking part in a traditional tea ceremony.

Twice a year, our care package coordinators lead the effort to create, assemble, and send care packages to current Smith students who hail from the Peninsula Bay Area. Thank you to Christine Hoffman '14 for leading the charge on the project this term.

On Wednesday, April 20, in recognition of Poetry Month, eight of us discussed Walt Whitman and some of the poems in “Leaves of Grass.” We liked Whitman’s spirit: enthusiastic, optimistic, honest, egalitarian, with a reverence and sense of wonder about nature.

We gathered for a beautiful hike at Mori Point near Pacifica . It was about a 2.5-mile loop trail where some of scrambled to the highest peak to take in gorgeous views up and down the coast, and wandered to a lower point that made us feel like we were hanging over the breakers below. We then settled ourselves onto a grassy area and had a lovely group picnic.

We invited all Bay Area alums to join us for this virtual faculty speaker event: Using AI to Learn the Laws of Nature presented by Smith College Professor Luca Capogna, Professor of Mathematics & Statistics; Department Chair of Mathematics & Statistics.

On Wednesday, March 16, eight of us discussed “The Bowl with Gold Seams” by Ellen Prentiss Campbell (a Smithie). This interesting novel brings to light an unusual moment in history, when a group of Japanese diplomats, captured in the fall of Berlin in World War II, was housed in a Pennsylvania resort/hotel as prisoners of war.

On Wednesday, Feb. 16, seven of us gathered on Zoom to discuss “The Souls of Black Folk” by W.E.B. Du Bois. We were all glad we’d read this multifaceted classic. We were very impressed with Du Bois’ impactful writing, by turns scholarly and poetic, with moving descriptions of the conditions of the freed slaves and powerful arguments for improving those conditions. It’s a telling commentary on America in 2022 that a lot of what Du Bois says is still relevant today.

We tackled Marcel Proust’s “Swann’s Way,” and the nine of us who met on Wednesday the 19th were glad we did. When you accept that you have to read in a different way, slowly, giving in to page after page of his complex, endless sentences, with layers of imagery and detail, you are rewarded by exquisite descriptions and perceptive psychological characterizations. Plot, not so much, which explains why most of us found it wearing to read. Those who had read the graphic novel found it helpful in presenting what plot there is, but missed the full impact of Proust’s extraordinary language.

It was a beautiful day above the clouds at Mount Umunhum! A small and happy trio hiked to the top of the of mountain, where we were met by another club members who was able to drive to the parking at the top of the trail and provide some refreshing treats!

Thanks to club member Joy Silver '96, we were able to gather outdoors on her back patio and take the necessary precautions to rekindle our annual tradition of the cookie exchange. It was a great way to reconnect and an excellent excuse to eat our weight in cookies.

This micro-volunteer event was an opportunity to meet up at a local park in Santa Clara for a quick task to assemble care packages for current students from the Peninsula Bay Area, letting them know that their local Smith Club is thinking of them and wishing them the best during finals.

Each student received a metal pencil tin with a highlighter, pencil, pencil sharpener along with a typed calligraphy note reading "Smithies are so sharp!". Thanks to everyone who helped out!

“The Optimist’s Daughter,” by Eudora Welty, provided plenty of material for nine of us at the book club’s November meeting. A Pulitzer Prize winner, this novel focuses on Laurel, a 40-ish designer, as she navigates her father’s illness, death and funeral. We found the book easy to read and difficult to understand. Subtle and indirect, rich with imagery, it shows a woman freeing herself of the claims and deceits of memory—a protagonist we never get close to and never warm up to. We appreciated Welty’s portrayal of a small Mississippi town, a close-knit and supportive society that is also judgmental and restrictive to a young woman who wants a career; its abiding traditions; its class structure. We were struck by a kind of timelessness in the novel: set in the 1960’s, it shows nothing of that era’s politics, racial strife, and cultural clashes. All told, a multi-layered book that would probably reward a second reading.