Distractions
Let's be honest here. Belonging to a book club comes with very few rules and responsibilities. Numero uno: READ THE DAMN BOOK.
Everyone knows that dutiful members begin next month's book the day after last month's meeting. (Unless they're too hungover.)
They make notes in the margins as they read, conduct an obligatory Google search on the author and arrive at meetings with theirwine bottles well-thumbed copies in hand, ready for dinner a spirited discussion.
Sad to say, every book club has a slacker. Or two. (It's in the bylaws, look it up.) These clowns are the "readers" who get the new book, study the cover, read the first page, frown and go read something else.
Something like Greg Iles' "The Devil's Punchbowl." Not only is it not a Villette selection. It's 580 pages long and it's written by - gasp - a MAN. Still, Jersey will tell you this page-turner has everything: Murder, torture, river boat gambling, dog fighting, tenacious journalists, honest and corrupt politicians, tarts with hearts and pit bulls.
Best of all, Iles (born in Germany, like the Kaiser) does what good authors do: turns the setting of his story into a major character in the book.
Hello, Natchez.
Did you know that in 1840 Natchez, Mississippi "had more millionaires per capita than any city in America"? Did you know it survived the Civil War "intact" which means the place is loaded with antebellum mansions that were never sacked or burned by marauding Yankees? Did you know the Mississippi River is a mile wide in Natchez? Yep, Jersey is going there in December to see for herself. And yes, she'll take pictures.
The best part of this particular mystery? It was a gift from Jersey Junior who managed to snag a signed copy (thanks Square Books!) and then she took the time to inscribe it herself.
Is there anything better than an inscription in a hardback book? It's a sure sign that the person who gave it to you knows you well. She knows what you've read and haven't read. What you'll enjoy and what you won't. And she knows she's given you a book that will never, ever find it's way to a used book store.
But back to the rights and responsibilities of book club members...Once the punchbowl was empty surely it was time to pick up "Appassionata," right?
Not so quick.
You see, for months an enticing novel a neighbor dropped off - you'll love it - has been sitting on the nightstand, begging to be read.
Hence, "The Help" has been occupying Jersey's spare time all week.
This memorable first novel is set in Jackson Mississippi (yes, a trend here) in the mid-1960s. It's the story of an unlikely relationship - not a friendship, exactly - between a young college-educated white woman and two black maids, set against the backdrop of the Civil Rights movement.
Would the Villettes like it? Who knows. This one did.
With just three days till the monthly gathering, time to tackle (speaking of tackles, college football is something else that interferes with autumn reading) "Appassionata" and the kind of brainy, slightly mind-numbing literature that the smarter members push on the dumber one from time to time.
Featuring sentences such as this:
Passages from a Bach Partita peregrinate through her mind, steady and ceremonious.
Peregrinate? Please.
Wethinks Ms. Hoffman is showing off. But what do we know, we're still on page 11.
It gets better. Right? Right?
Everyone knows that dutiful members begin next month's book the day after last month's meeting. (Unless they're too hungover.)
They make notes in the margins as they read, conduct an obligatory Google search on the author and arrive at meetings with their
Sad to say, every book club has a slacker. Or two. (It's in the bylaws, look it up.) These clowns are the "readers" who get the new book, study the cover, read the first page, frown and go read something else.
Something like Greg Iles' "The Devil's Punchbowl." Not only is it not a Villette selection. It's 580 pages long and it's written by - gasp - a MAN. Still, Jersey will tell you this page-turner has everything: Murder, torture, river boat gambling, dog fighting, tenacious journalists, honest and corrupt politicians, tarts with hearts and pit bulls.
Best of all, Iles (born in Germany, like the Kaiser) does what good authors do: turns the setting of his story into a major character in the book.
Hello, Natchez.
Did you know that in 1840 Natchez, Mississippi "had more millionaires per capita than any city in America"? Did you know it survived the Civil War "intact" which means the place is loaded with antebellum mansions that were never sacked or burned by marauding Yankees? Did you know the Mississippi River is a mile wide in Natchez? Yep, Jersey is going there in December to see for herself. And yes, she'll take pictures.
The best part of this particular mystery? It was a gift from Jersey Junior who managed to snag a signed copy (thanks Square Books!) and then she took the time to inscribe it herself.
Is there anything better than an inscription in a hardback book? It's a sure sign that the person who gave it to you knows you well. She knows what you've read and haven't read. What you'll enjoy and what you won't. And she knows she's given you a book that will never, ever find it's way to a used book store.
But back to the rights and responsibilities of book club members...Once the punchbowl was empty surely it was time to pick up "Appassionata," right?
Not so quick.
You see, for months an enticing novel a neighbor dropped off - you'll love it - has been sitting on the nightstand, begging to be read.
Hence, "The Help" has been occupying Jersey's spare time all week.
This memorable first novel is set in Jackson Mississippi (yes, a trend here) in the mid-1960s. It's the story of an unlikely relationship - not a friendship, exactly - between a young college-educated white woman and two black maids, set against the backdrop of the Civil Rights movement.
Would the Villettes like it? Who knows. This one did.
With just three days till the monthly gathering, time to tackle (speaking of tackles, college football is something else that interferes with autumn reading) "Appassionata" and the kind of brainy, slightly mind-numbing literature that the smarter members push on the dumber one from time to time.
Featuring sentences such as this:
Passages from a Bach Partita peregrinate through her mind, steady and ceremonious.
Peregrinate? Please.
Wethinks Ms. Hoffman is showing off. But what do we know, we're still on page 11.
It gets better. Right? Right?
I wouldn't be too sure about it getting better. But all will be revealed at tomorrow night's book club meeting. Dare I be the one to suggest the next title after foisting this one on all of you?!
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