The Island House Readers is a traditional book club that meets on the 1st Wednesday of the month at 12:00 p.m. at The Elk Rapids District Library to discuss group-selected titles. The club is open to the public and newcomers are always welcome. A limited amount of books are available at the library or you can arrange to order them through the Mel system. Contact the library for more information. 

"In the days before Homeira Qaderi gave birth to her son, Siawash, the road to the hospital in Kabul would often be barricaded because of the frequent suicide explosions. With the city and the military on edge, it was not uncommon for an armed soldier to point his gun at the pregnant womans bulging stomach, terrified that she was hiding a bomb. Frightened and in pain, she was once forced to make her way on foot. Propelled by the love she held for her soon-to-be-born child, Homeira walked through blood and wreckage to reach the hospital doors. But the joy of her beautiful son's birth was soon overshadowed by other dangers that would threaten her life. No ordinary Afghan woman, Homeira refused to cower under the strictures of a misogynistic social order. Defying the law, she risked her freedom to teach children reading and writing and fought for womens rights in her theocratic and patriarchal society. Devastating in its power, Dancing in the Mosque is a mothers searing letter to a son she was forced to leave behind. In telling her story -- and that of Afghan women -- Homeira challenges you to reconsider the meaning of motherhood, sacrifice, and survival. Her story asks you to consider the lengths you would go to protect yourself, your family, and your dignity."-- book jacket. Click here for more info on this book.