Why do you suppose Frank didn’t share more information about his book club with Grace?
At the time, Frank sensed she wasn’t interested in it. And possibly, he didn’t want to share this group with grace.
Grace wasn’t a reader like Frank; she didn’t seem to find or seem to need the same kind of stress release and vicarious experience Frank did. He may have wanted Grace to think it was a typical book club not one that had become a therapy and support group.
High-level, I think Frank just didn’t want to push something on Grace he knew she wasn’t interested in.
On a deeper level, Grace had proven herself to be extremely judgmental. I think, to some degree, Frank was protective of the book club members and didn’t want to expose them to Grace’s biases. I also think part of this was how much he loved Grace and also didn’t want others to judge her harshly.
I agree with Emily. Grace was judgmental and Frank knew that. I think that’s why he didn’t share his book club friends with her- to protect them from her judgment. And she would not understand his need to belong with them. She was even judgmental of her grandson and he knew it too!
I also agree with Emily - Frank was protecting both Grace and the book club. Sometimes we just need to spend time with a small group of like minded people. Frank did invite her several times, but she wasn’t interested. This group all loved to read and also leaned on one another to navigate the different struggles they were experiencing.
Frank invited Grace to join or visit the book club several times. Because she dismissed the invitation each time, I think he felt that she had no interest in learning more about it.
Frank tried unsuccessfully to convince Grace to become part of the group. The author skillfully makes it obvious how judgmental and intransigent Grace could be without portraying her in a negative light. I got the idea that Grace could become quite difficult if pushed, so Frank gave up and kept it for himself. I do believe that any extensive sharing of the group would have created tension between Grace and Frank so he thoughtfully avoided its problem. I agree with the other readers that it must have become his own private treasure. Books that are meaningful to the reader are frequently private things to be shared carefully. It’s a shame that Grace and Frank couldn’t share the specialness of the books and reading.
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I agree with the others, and Donna M speaks my thoughts very concisely. I found Grace judgmental and annoying and I would not have wanted to try to discuss books with her.
People who don’t enjoy reading don’t like the discuss them. My husband doesn’t read and I’ve found he doesn’t like me to tell him about the books I read. I think he is missing out but everyone has there likes and dislikes. My circle of friends are all readers so we discuss/recommend books every time we are together which is 2-3 times a week. We are all in the same book club too.
I think Frank chose not to share information about the book club because Grace had shown no interest in it. I think he asked her several times to just try one of the meetings but was always rejected. At this time, Grace was set in her ways and she didn’t seem to welcome changes in her life. I think Frank loved her very much and did not want to press her on something that had no appeal for her.
Each of the comments have bits of my thoughts. I do have another–perhaps Frank was embarrassed for himself and knowing Grace’s personality didn’t want her to be embarrassed of him.
I agree with the other responses that Grace showed no interest in it, so he didn’t bother sharing it with her any longer.