For those who love books, “Mayor’s Book Talk” has something for everyone. Join Mayor Pam Iorio as she examines today’s literary environment.

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July's Guest Author is Dudley Clendinen

Mayor Iorio’s guest on the July episode of “Mayor’s Book Talk” is author Dudley Clendinen. The two discuss his much heralded A Place Called Canterbury, a moving and often humorous look at life from inside Tampa’s Canterbury Tower. With an average resident age of eighty-six, the book follows the day-to-day struggles of seniors determined to grow old with dignity in this vibrant retirement community.

July's Discussion Group Book: Atherton: The House of Power by: Patrick Carman Patrick Carman, bestselling author of The Land of Elyon series,  grew up in Salem, Oregon and now resides in Walla Walla, Washington.   In Atherton: The House of Power, Edgar secretly scales the treacherous walls separating the three worlds of Atherton and discovers that its three realms are beginning to collapse, turning his entire world inside out. Atherton is not what it seems, but something far more dangerous, with a history locked inside the mind of a madman and a future beyond Edgar’s wildest imagining.

Discussion Questions for At-Home Participation.

1. What do you think are the major themes in The House of Power? How do those themes relate to our world today? Do they have an effect on your own life? How?

2. Authority and the fight for power and control is a central theme in the novel. How do different characters in the book exercise their authority? Why do you think power often corrupts people? If you were in a position of authority, how do you think you would handle it? What would you do to ensure success and fairness?

3. Samuel was told that his father died by falling off the edge of the Highlands. What do you suspect happened to him? What do you base your theory on?

4. Dr. Harding is considered a mad scientist. Do you agree with Dr. Kincaid’s assessment of Dr. Harding? Can you think of other mad scientists or geniuses – either from other fictional stories or throughout history?

5. Horace is surprised to learn of the plan to poison those in Tabletop: he’d thought it was the villagers attacking first. Rumors in the Highlands had been mounting as well. How can fear turn a gentle people to violent thoughts? Can you think of other instances in the book or in the real world when this has happened?

6. Maude thinks that the best chance at survival is to try and turn the cleaners against one another, but Horace, Charles, Briney, and Wallace agree that a united force against the Flatlands is their best defense. What argument would you make?

7. How do you think the quotations from Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein that precede each part of the novel are significant in relation to Atherton?

8. Besides being the hiding place of the key to the water source, do you think Mead’s Head holds great significance in the story? What do you think Mead’s Head is modeled after?

9. Dr. Harding cut the connection between the Dark Planet and Dr. Kincaid in Atherton. Where do you think Dr. Harding is? Do you think he is alive or dead? Why do you think he left or disappeared?

10. Lord Phineus ponders what kind of man he was before reaching Atherton. How would you answer that? Do you think he was hand-selected by Dr. Harding? What sort of person would you choose for the job?

11. Edgar goes to the Flatlands as a result of being tricked by Sir Emerik. Edgar doesn’t trust many people, yet he believed Sir Emerik. Why do you think it never occurred to Edgar that he might have been lied to?

12. Dr. Kincaid discusses how Atherton was populated and the notions of readiness training. If you were presented with that scenario, would you go? Do you think you’d still be you without certain memories? Do you think you’d be selected? Why or why not? What purpose would you have served in Atherton and which level would you be regulated to?

13. The mystery of the last page of The Book of Secrets was that Tabletop will fall into the Flatlands. The novel ends with the Highlands sinking into the middle of Atherton – a secret even to Dr. Kincaid. Such a cliffhanger paves the way for another chapter of Atherton. Predict what might happen. Try to address all the unresolved situations: Will Samuel and Isabel find the water supply? What are the creatures that live in Mead’s Hollow? Will Atherton reconnect with the Dark Planet?