BoroMag_0317_p11

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MARCH 2017 I BOROMAG.COM 11 REDEFINED “I want to kind of work my way around the world and read more diversely than I have done in the past,” she added. During the discussion about “The Handmaid’s Tale,” participants kept circling back to the ways in which civil liberties were taken away in the dystopian novel, and many remarked upon how they had recently become more politically active. One woman told the group how she had never been very involved politically, but now she knew the names of her senators. For Adams, the current political climate made “The Handmaid’s Tale,” which has long been one of her favorite books, a great choice to start off the book club. She also thinks that the recent election is what made this a “good moment” for a feminist book club — and why there was such an amazing turnout. “I think a lot of people, myself included, are now understanding what democracy really means and that it’s a responsibility as much as a privilege,” said Adams, a writer, editor and mother of two teenage boys. “The fact is that voter turnout was very low, that over half of people didn’t bother to vote in this presidential election, and we can’t let that happen again.” One book club attendee, Astoria resident Diane Speicher, 70, was no stranger to feminist activities at the Astoria Bookshop: she went to a discussion group called a “huddle” held there after the Women’s March. She said she’d been looking for a book club and that after the Women’s March, she wanted to surround herself with “feminine energy.” Jennifer Andrus Doyle, 39, of Astoria said, “I also felt that with the current administration it was time to equip myself so to speak, to get in touch with what it means to be a feminist — it’s not a bad word — and to make sure my rights as a human being, as a woman over my body and the things that happen to me are still my choice. I need to make the administration very aware that we’re here and we’re paying attention, so I thought that this was a good way to get that going, that thought process going.” As they left Astoria Bookshop, book club attendees were complimenting Adams on posing thoughtful, open-ended questions and creating an interesting discussion, and Andrus Doyle echoed that sentiment. “I really enjoyed this meeting of likeminded people and was very happy to see that there was also a man here,” Andrus Doyle said. “It was a very engaging conversation. It was nice to discuss these things through the lens of this book and looking at it as a cautionary tale of what could happen if we’re not diligent.” If Andrus Doyle is any indication, February’s book club members are ready to come back next month for another discussion: “I already bought the second book,” she said. Photos: Marie Torio/BORO


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