November meeting and December book

The November meeting at Katie's house was a blast. Despite the chilly weather we had a really good crowd, including Amanda, Ashley, Cindy, David, Jason, Kate, Katie, Kathryn, Kelly, Leigh Anne, Suzane, and me. We enjoyed their yummy food, cozy kitchen, and playing with their sweet, huge dogs. Oh, and we talked about the book some, too!

One topic that came up over the course of the night is what books we have read since the club's inception. You can find all of them listed on our Amazon list. There is a permanent link to it in the upper right corner of the blog that says "Click here for this month's book." The current book will always be at the top of the list, but all the books we have read since our start in July 2005 are listed there.

For December's book, I've chosen Eating Mammals by John Barlow. The book is actually a collection of three novellas, and I've chosen the title tale for our December read. From the reviews on Amazon, it looks like a witty, quirky tale that is unlike anything we've ever read, which is why I chose it!

And, I've got another poll for everyone! I'm the hostess for December's meeting, but we've been having such great attendance lately that I don't think my apartment is big enough. I've listed a few options, and left a spot where you can fill in your favorite place, so cast your vote, and I'll let you know where we'll be when I send out the meeting reminder.

October meeting, November book, and Business

Last night's shindig at Jenny and Dan's is probably the largest turnout we've ever had, and I'm happy to report we had several new faces as well! Jenny and Dan hosted Jem, Ashley, Katie, Kate, Leigh Ann, Kelli, Jenn, Christopher, Liz, Nelson, John, Anna, Amanda, Gus, Gwen, Noemi, Christy, Vincent, Magnus, Ava, and myself - and I'm probably leaving off a name or two, if not three (please let me know so I can add you).

I had a blast, and I think I can safely say that was the general consensus of the crowd. Jenny and Dan not only served up some yummy appetizers, they fed us all a hearty and delicious homemade chili, too, and provided pumpkins for us all to carve. Anna, Nelson, John, Gus, and Dan all carved some great ones, and the rest of us got to munch on Jenny's tasty toasted pumpkin seeds!

Katie will host November's meeting and she's selected The Wind Done Gone by Alice Randall, a short novel that is a retelling of Gone with the Wind from a slave's perspective. Sounds like an interesting read, and it's only 224 pages!

Which brings me to book club business - poll results! The results are in and the option to read novellas and short stories just barely edged out the option to read longer books every other month. It seems we're pretty evenly split over this since only one vote separated the two.

Therefore, I have a suggestion. What got this whole topic started was the fact that so many people do not read the book each month, and it was suggested that perhaps that is because the books are too long and folks simply don't have time. I can relate to that since I work full time and am in grad school part time. However, I also feel that no matter what, there will always be people each month who don't read the book for whatever reason. Personally, I'm OK with that since our club is really 2 parts social club and 1 part book club. Truth be told, I think most of us would agree that book club is a great reason to get together once a month, meet new folks, talk about all kinds of stuff, just generally enjoy each other, and hey, if we can read the book, too, that's just gravy! So, with that said, what do you guys think of this: Instead of making a new rule that we will only read novellas and short stories, let's just try to stick with books that are on the short side, say about 400 pages or less? I think most folks should be able to finish that in a month, and we can stick to our tradition of reading novellas during November and December since those months are so hectic for all. I'm not gonna do another poll, just let me know what you think - love it, hate it, good, bad, or ugly!

Runoff Poll

Voting ends October 19

October book

Jenny and Dan will host our October meeting and in addition to discussing the book, we'll get to carve pumpkins! Sounds like fun! October's book is Big Stone Gap by Adriana Trigiani, and it looks very good. Can't wait to see you all there!

September gathering, club business

Last night's gathering at Liz's was a blast! Liz hosted Anna, Cindy, Katie, Kathryn, Kelli, and me, along with newcomer Jen. Unfortunately, most of us had not read/finished the book, but we enjoyed great company and Liz's delicious venison sliders! It was a feast! Oh, and we got some ping-pong action in, too!

Now for the business:
1) We have no hosts/hostesses signed up for October, or any month thereafter! I apologize that I didn't realize this sooner, so please let me know if you're interested - especially for October! Just shoot me a quick email with your book selection to emcgoldrick@gmail.com.

2) Since so many of us often don't have time to read the book each month, we have a couple of suggestions that might take care of that issue. Cast your vote in the poll below. Voting ends October 1, and I'll send out the results shortly thereafter.

Better late than never...right?

Sorry for the delay, time has been flying lately! August's gathering was great fun, but unfortunately due to bad weather we didn't get to swim! However, Tara, Leigh Anne, Katie, and newcomers Beth and Elizabeth and I all had a great evening of fun conversation and Rock Band! If you weren't there, you missed a great time!
Liz will host our September meeting, and she's picked what I think will be a great read: The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America by Erik Larson. She also promises a night of fun with ping pong, wild game, drinks, and good conversation on the World's Fair! Can't wait to see you all there!

July meeting, August book

Cindy hosted Katie, Liz, Jem, Anna, Suzane, and myself for a great gathering earlier this week. Although the book was a bust, we had a great time discussing it, and plenty of other issues.
Tara will host our August 18th gathering, and since she has a pool, you're all invited to bring your swimsuits and towels and enjoy a refreshing dip! She has selected The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer, which looks like a really fun read. I'm looking forward to it, and to seeing all of you soon!

Catching up

When I logged in to post about June's meeting, I realized that I never posted about May's meeting! A great group turned up at Anna's to discuss her selection, The Year of Living Biblically, which as you might imagine, stirred quite a debate. It was one of our largest turnouts this year, with Anna, Jem, Carla, Leigh Anne, Katie, Liz, Cindy, John, Kelly, and one or two more who I'm forgetting, I'm sure. Anna was a wonderful hostess with plenty of goodies, and we enjoyed a great evening and a lively debate.
On Tuesday, Kelly hosted Katie, Cindy, Liz and myself for a small yet delightful gathering to discuss The Zookeeper's Wife. It was a great book to discuss, even with such a small group. It revealed some previously unbeknownst aspects of WWII life and Nazi resistance that we all enjoyed learning about. Kelly also provided a scrumptious meal of homemade pizza, pasta, and salad - a real treat!
Cindy will host July's gathering and she has chosen The Friday Night Knitting Club by Kate Jacobs. Looks like a fun read, and I'm looking forward to discussing it with everyone at our next meeting on July 21. As always, I'll send a reminder and directions closer to the date.