Book Club time, yay!

Next up: Museum of Extraordinary Things // Alice Hoffman (classy cover, huh?). I’ve never read anything by Alice Hoffman before, and to be honest, probably never would have. This book caught my eye when it first came out because the cover intrigued me, but I never would have picked it up…but that’s just reason #147 why I love book club (ok, it’s really more like reason #6).

I just started it and am already gobbling it up. Her writing is impeccable (I guess that’s why millions of people love her so much. I assumed it was because women of the late nineties loved cheesy movies about magic…and anything that starred these fabulous ladies). Not sure how much this will inspire great conversation at our book club meeting, but what the hell, it’s fun. And sometimes girls just want to have fun.

Last month: Advice to a Young Wife from an Old Mistress // Michael Drury

Last up was this little book that read more like a philosophical text than an eye-opening look at women’s sexuality in the sixties…and their presumed role in a marriage, the way I hoped it would. But…it really did make for an excellent book club meeting. We all had so much to talk about! For real. We talked more than we drank wine (sort of). We each had parts that didn’t sit well with us, we had passages underlined and dog-eared and we ultimately all had sections that totally resonated with us in our own relationships. Final verdict: it would have been a fascinating New Yorker article…not an entire book, even one as short as this.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars.

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Book Club: March Edition

Book Club: February Edition

It’s that time again…Book Club time!

Next up: Advice to a Young Wife from an Old Mistress // Michael Drury

I’m really looking forward to reading this. Written back in the sixties, it sounds super interesting and totally something I would never have picked up on my own (one of the best benefits of book club). Plus, it sounds like it will inspire some great conversation amongst us ladies, yay.

Last month: And Then There Were None // Agatha Christie

You may recall our last book club assignment was the incredible Ms. Christie. Although I had read this book many years before, I couldn’t remember whodunit…and, oh, was it fun. I had almost forgotten how much I enjoy reading Christie’s mysteries. They’re just so easy to slip into, and so satisfying since she’ll always tell you who did it and exactly how they did it…and there’s never any diddledaddling. As Mindy pointed out, “The first person died within the first 20 pages!” She ain’t messing around. Bring it on Agatha, bring it on.

Oh, and we played Clue. Yes, the board game. It was great.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars.

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Book Club: February Edition

Book club is the best thing ever. Not only is it an excuse for me and my girlfriends to get together, but we get to talk about books–my favorite thing! And drink wine (or vodka…my second favorite thing!). Our boyfriends and husbands like to tease us that it’s mostly girl talk and wine drinking and only about 10 minutes of actually talking about the book (which is sometimes true), but I stick up for us. Sometimes the book is really good and there’s lots to talk about. Sometimes we just want to drink wine. Sometimes there’s drama in book club…but that’s another story for another day.

Up next: And Then There Were None // Agatha Christie.

I read this book years and years ago, but am excited to re-read it. “Clue” is still one of my all-time favorite movies and these two are basically the same thing (OK, not really. Clue is based on the board game–which I also love–and we’re talking about the all-mighty Ms. Christie, but you get my point).

Some of my favorite past book club selections:

• Still Alice // Lisa Genova – (5 out of 5 stars) – We all LOVED this book. We all cried reading this book. It was so good and left us with so much to talk about.
• Helter Skelter // Vincent Bugliosi – (5 out of 5 stars) – Not all the ladies ended up reading this (it is looooong), but I still think it was one of the better book club selections. Murder, celebrities, cult, Manson…so much to discuss.
• Fifty Shades of Grey // E.L. James – (2 out of 5 stars) – I hated this book (for a number of reasons…for one, it still amazes me that such an insanely horribly written book could be so popular, it makes me lose hope in humanity, sheesh), but I bring it up here because it actually made for an interesting book club meeting. Straight down the middle, half of us despised it and half really enjoyed it (pervs!), but it got us talking. Which is the whole point, right?
• State of Wonder // Ann Patchett – (4 out of 5 stars) – This was a great choice for a group of women. Without giving anything away, this gave us lots to think and talk about when it comes to being a woman and becoming a mother.
• Inside Scientology // Janet Reitman – (4 out of 5 stars) – I loved reading this book…and talking about this book. The people, the beliefs, the conspiracies — fascinating!