The library and the Putnam Museum are partnering to bring you a special ’round-the-world tour. Each month, a book discussion will be part of  a travelogue series  –  to Tuscany, the Pacific Coast, Fiji, Sweden and Sahel (West Africa).

At the “Inside the Tuscan Hills” show on October 13th,  the group will discuss The Sixteen Pleasures by Robert Hellenga.

This novel by the Knox College literature professor is set in 1966 Florence. The heroine heads off to Italy to become on of the “mud angels” – volunteers who race to save priceless boks and artwork. Hellenga is skilled at both characterization and depicting Italian culture. Insider knowledge of book restoration and conservation is woven into the plot.

Snow Falling on Cedars by David Guterson  is the choice for November 17th’s “Pacific Coast, Top to Bottom.”

Set on a fictional island off the coast of Washington in the l950’s, the story revolves around the death and possible murder of a World War II veteran and fisherman. One of the suspects is a first-generation Japanese American, and so resentment of the recent internment and other restrictions  are brought into play. The setting is hauntingly beautiful and evocative of  the region’s painful history.

Call the Putnam Museum & Imax Theatre at  563.324.1933 for details.