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In our first chat about Alan Lightman's imaginative Mr g, Alex, Lora and I talk about this retelling of the story of creation — the clever characterizations, how Mr. g's actions have unexpected consequences for himself and others, and how science fits into the storyline.

In this excerpt from Mr g, the new novel from Alan Lightman (author of Einstein's Dreams), we get a glimpse of the beginning of the novel — and the beginning of creation.

This week, we’re thrilled to start our discussions of Erin Morgenstern’s magical, enthralling The Night Circus, which landed this debut author a seven-figure advance and hit the bestseller lists within mere weeks of release. For the event, Alex and I are joined by our newest Chatelaine book club member, assistant editor Lora Grady. This time out, we read pages 1 to 131 — and trust me, it was hard to limit our reading to that first part of the book and not devour the rest of it!

It's not always easy, but picking up the phone or sending an email - even after years have passed without contact - can be really, really worthwhile.

Last year, I was trying to say yes to everything: parties, dinners, favours, assignments, dates, travel plans and after parties. (It was a very, very busy year and I am still very, very tired. But it was also very, very fun.)