Hard liquor at the book Club?

Celia, a character in The Help didn't fair too well when she drank one too many 'Alabama Slammer's', so serving a similar drink at this week's book club doesn't sound like such a good idea.  A member texted me with the serving suggestion. I'll think about it, but with the one or two glasses of wine that we normally drink, we're already pretty lively!

Will it be Breakfast at Tiffany's?

I met a Brown Eyed Girl for breakfast this morning. Besides discussing the lastest on the  kids, our hubby's and a bit of politics (the passing of  the health care bill) we got down to business  - the three books she would present to the club members as options for the next read. After the big to do about the book choice at the last meeting, she is being very careful to select three books she really would like to read right now. As of today, she is considering very strongly Breakfast at Tiffany's, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, and The Catcher in the Rye. Neither one of us thinks these will be popular selections with everyone else, but it is her turn to choose, so let's see if anyone put's up a fuss!

Menu for this Saturday so far......Fried chicken, sweet potato casserole, and red velvet mini-cupcakes (our version of a southern meal, in honor of our book selection The Help.

Drama

As I mentioned previously our Book Club will be meeting next Saturday, and will be hosted by yours truly. I was not present at the last meeting ( which ended up being a good thing) as I wanted to be in bed early. Our meetings, which start at 6:30 p.m. often don't end until 12:00 or later. I had to get up early to head over to Huntington Beach to spend the morning run/walking a half marathon. I think if I would have gone to the meeting I would have had a hard time falling asleep with all the drama that took place that evening.
The battle lines appeared to be drawn over a common theme "What will we read next?" We had decided, quite early in the establishment of our club that a member would pick a book when it was their turn, and it would be read by all the club members. Sounds simple, right? For one reason or another, when it comes time to pick a book, more often than not, we have to figure it out as a group and we get into a big discussion. The person who should have chosen may not have shown up that night, nor think to advised another member of their book choice, or perhaps the member forgot it was their turn. At that point, there are members who can easily come up with several options, but of course they might not be books that appeal to everyone.
  It was decided that the person who was to pick the next book, would e-mail us with several options, and allow the rest to vote on the book we would most like to read. It did work out that the majority picked The Help, and thus it will be discussed next. As I wasn't at the meeting when this was all decided, I read the book and I'm bracing myself to see what the next meeting will bring!

I'm on to a new read

I finished reading The Help a week ago, and started on This Is Where I Leave You by Jonathan Tropper. My Mom loaned it to me a while back and highly recommended it, though she did warn me there were "some nasty parts" that caught her by surprise. By page 13 I understood, my 82 year old Mom  normally wouldn't seek out a book that includes a detailed description of the sexual acts of cheating adults as described by the husband who found them in bed. But seek out the book she did, as she had requested the book as a Christmas present from my Brother ( we never know what to get her so she gives us a list and then acts over the top surprised when she gets what she asked for).

My Mom is starting to forget some things, though I would hope to be as on top of things as she is at that age. When she got the book she acted as excited as ever, but later confessed to me that she had no idea why my brother had gotten her the book, though she was already reading and enjoying it. She finally expressed her curiosity to my brother as to why he would select that particular book, and he informed her that it was by her request. She can't remember how or where she heard about the book but it must have been an excellent review. So far I am cracking up as I read it, and at the same time feeling everyone's pain. I know already I will recommend the book to members of the book club.

The Start

Our first book club meeting was held on December 7, 2002 with four members present. I can't remember how we selected the book, but we choose to read Rain of Gold by Victor Villasenor, and it was discussed on January 18, 2003, with all 7 members ( at that time) present. I do remember having a fairly lively discussion about the book, with some members comparing the characters experiences with that of their own families, and how they relocated from Mexico to live in California. We seemed to agree that the experiences written about before the family came to reside in California grasped our attention much more and slowed for us after that.

Since reading this book, we decided to stick to fiction when ever possible. Don't most book clubs?

Book Club

It's been 7 years now and the Brown Eyed Girl's Book Club. I plan to document over at least the next year the goings on with the club. The meetings can be entertaining or at least very loud and long and often involve the consumption of several bottles of wine. I will note the books we read or attempt to read, and try to figure out how we can be a better group of readers as well as friends.

We meet again on April 3rd and will be discussing "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett.