Circling The Sun By Paula McLain

Please join us in reading Circling The Sun by Paula McLain for our monthly read.

We will be reviewing Circling The Sun, with our monthly book club discussion questions for July 31st, 2017.
Book Summary

Paula McLain, author of the phenomenal bestseller The Paris Wife, now returns with her keenly anticipated new novel, transporting readers to colonial Kenya in the 1920s. Circling the Sun brings to life a fearless and captivating woman—Beryl Markham, a record-setting aviator caught up in a passionate love triangle with safari hunter Denys Finch Hatton and Karen Blixen, who as Isak Dinesen wrote the classic memoir Out of Africa.

Brought to Kenya from England as a child and then abandoned by her mother, Beryl is raised by both her father and the native Kipsigis tribe who share his estate. Her unconventional upbringing transforms Beryl into a bold young woman with a fierce love of all things wild and an inherent understanding of nature’s delicate balance. But even the wild child must grow up, and when everything Beryl knows and trusts dissolves, she is catapulted into a string of disastrous relationships.

Beryl forges her own path as a horse trainer, and her uncommon style attracts the eye of the Happy Valley set, a decadent, bohemian community of European expats who also live and love by their own set of rules. But it’s the ruggedly charismatic Denys Finch Hatton who ultimately helps Beryl navigate the uncharted territory of her own heart. The intensity of their love reveals Beryl’s truest self and her fate: to fly.

Set against the majestic landscape of early-twentieth-century Africa, McLain’s powerful tale reveals the extraordinary adventures of a woman before her time, the exhilaration of freedom and its cost, and the tenacity of the human spirit.

Get Circling The Sun!

Book

Praise For Circling The Sun:

A New York Times Best seller and named for the best book of the year by NPR, 2015.

NPR says:  “Richly textured . . . Markham’s life is the stuff of legend. . . . McLain has created a voice that is lush and intricate to evoke a character who is enviably brave and independent.”

NY Times Review says: “…McLain undoubtedly has another best seller on her hands.”

Jodi Picoult says: “Paula McLain cements herself as the writer of historical fictional memoir with Circling the Sun, giving vivid voice to Beryl Markham, a singular, extraordinary woman. In McLain’s confident hands, Markham crackles to life, and we readers truly understand what made a woman so far ahead of her time believe she had the power to soar.”

Circling The Sun available here.

 

11 thoughts on “Circling The Sun By Paula McLain

  1. Aw, this was a very good post. Taking the time and actual effort to make a very good article… but what can I say… I put things off a whole lot and don’t manage to get anything done.

    1. Hello Olivia!
      McLain is a great author and so far she has chosen to write about interesting women. It’s makes for more of a pleasant read when it’s also set in Kenya. 🙂

      Thanks for stopping by!

  2. Excellent post like always!
    Somehow there are some trends I always read, like I read all books about sports. Horse trainer is one of the trend so I got this book and are already starting to read it.
    After reading the summary, I didn´t want this book with this fascinating women to be finish!

    Thanks for let me know about it, Dinh!

    1. Hello Johann!

      I am glad that Circling The Sun intrigued you. Markham is a fascinating women with such an interesting history.

      Thanks for stopping by.

  3. Hope you’re having a great summer, Dinh.
    Another excellent post.

    Circling The Sun and its colonial setting of the Great Continent can rapidly transport the reader into the adventures of this fascinating women.

    Your post carries me to this great land of unending beauty.
    Thanks for the magical ride.

    Paul

    1. Hi Paul!

      Beryl Markham is a fascinating woman. I look forward to finding out more about her life.

      Thanks for stopping by and reading the post.

  4. I saw this book a few months back, and have been curious about it for a while! I’m so glad you’re reading it. You can tell me all about this period. =)

    1. Hi Lonna!
      I am looking forward to reading and finding out more about Markham. She sounds like very strong adventurous character. 🙂

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