Is Your Book Club This Fun?
How fun is your book club? Because I have to tell you, I really enjoy mine. I have been participating in my neighborhood book club for over a year now and it is one of the nights I most look forward to all month. There are about five or six of us that meet regularly once a month. In the beginning we were a book club affiliated with church but we recently became a neighborhood book club. Long story short: it opens up scheduling and book selections. With this change, we now rotate hosting and I hosted my first book club discussion at my home this past month. The book that we discussed was Escape by Carolyn Jessop, which I highly recommend and reviewed here. It’s about one woman’s journey grouping up in the FLDS community, becoming a polygamist wife, and her eventual escape. We all loved it and I was actually the only one who hadn’t meet either Carolyn or her children as she ended up living in our neighborhood after her escape from the FLDS. So it made for a great discussion.
But this is what made the discussion unforgettable. I’ve been wanting to post these photos for a couple of weeks now but time has gotten the best of me this month. Keep in mind, we met the week of Halloween and when I opened up the door, I was greeted with this:
And then the doorbell rings again and this time it’s this!
That hair!!! Both went shopping so they could specifically dress up for book club. We were all laughing so hard, and the longer they sat there, as we discussed polygamy, the stranger it got. Seriously, they looked the part. Of course, by dressing up we had no intention to belittle those currently choosing to live the polygamist lifestyle, but it made for a really fun book club night. And Rebecca is even pregnant!
Do you belong to a book club? What’s the funnest thing that you have done?
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Category: Bookish Musings & Miscellany
Tags: book club, halloween, polygamy
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Lol. It does sound like fun. My book clubs are online. There is a local one but mine and their reading tastes differ too much. I want to live in your neighborhood!
on November 16th, 2008 at 7:21 pmUnbelievably, I’ve never belonged to a book club. Someone has talked of starting one in our neighborhood and I’ll probably join if she does.
on November 16th, 2008 at 7:28 pmWow, that’s just great Natasha. What fun! I only have an online book club, a neighborhood one would be fantastic.
on November 16th, 2008 at 7:28 pmI’m looking forward to joining my first book club sometime in the next month or two. I found out that one of my fellow book bloggers (B&b ex libris) lives near me and has a book club. I can’t wait!
Those pictures are great! It sounds like you ladies had a fun time. I have read Escape, and I agree that it is a very good book.
on November 16th, 2008 at 7:40 pmLadytink_534 – At the beginning of the year, I was doing two online book clubs. I couldn’t keep up with them. I do have my own tele-book club through Rich Women Sisterhood that I moderate. I just found out that there is a children’s lit book club in my town and I’m planning on going for the first time to check it out.
Kathy – If there wasn’t one already going on when I moved into my neighborhood, I would have tried to set something up myself. I do enjoy mine. It gets us all out of our comfort zone to try something new.
Darlene – Where do you do your online book club?
on November 16th, 2008 at 7:42 pmAlyce – How awesome that you’ll hook up with Bethany! I’m planning on a Utah book bloggers get-together hopefully in January. There are about 5-6 of us pretty active and I’d love to meet. I also found out that one of the Cybil’s judge’s who blogs about kids books lives here in SLC and hosts a children’s literature book club for adults. I emailed and asked if I could join up. I hope to go to my first meeting soon!
on November 16th, 2008 at 7:44 pmWhen we moved about ten months ago, I visited several book clubs but didn’t feel at home in any of them.
I read so many books for my blog, that every day is a book club between myself and my readers (not to mention friends and family), so I still get the literary interaction I need, but I do miss the fun moments.
By the way, I am impressed by your blog (I found it via Twitter, my latest obsession). My wife and I lived in SLC for about two years ten years ago, and hated to leave (but wanted to be closer to our families on the east coast).
on November 16th, 2008 at 8:25 pmOh my WORD that had me laughing. I want to know those girls! I’m in a neighborhood book club and I run an online one too. I love them both for different reasons
on November 16th, 2008 at 8:39 pmDavid – That’s what I enjoy so much about blogging, especially having a book blog, I read what I want and get to discuss it with everybody! It is like my own personal book club. And thanks for coming on over via Twitter. I joined about two months ago and it’s been a lot of fun.
Corinne – We were laughing so hard. Everytime a new person came into the room, we would laugh all over again as they took it in!
on November 16th, 2008 at 8:43 pmI belong to two book groups — Corinne’s online one, which I adore: wonderful women (and men) talking intelligently about books; and my in person one, where I go and intimidate most of the other women. That’s okay, though, because it’s a night out and I enjoy their company. I do (sort-of) wish it were more like yours, though, Natasha. I like hanging out with crazy people.
on November 16th, 2008 at 9:31 pmIts funny you had this post because I am hosting our ward’s first book club this Wed. Our ward can be slackers so I hope so people come out. We are going to talk about The Giver, wish us luck!!!
on November 17th, 2008 at 8:51 amWhat fun! Those silly girls!
My book club started out as a church one too, but that lasted for exactly one month! We learned fast to make it a “neighborhood” one so we could have much more freedom, and invite whoever we wanted to join us.
We haven’t done anything too out of the ordinary. I keep thinking I wish I would have organized an excursion to the midnight movie this week of Twilight, but I didn’t.
I also keep thinking it would be fun to have a Pride and Prejudice party sometime and all of us just sit and watch the whole entire Colin Firth movie together. Hmmm….
on November 17th, 2008 at 8:53 amMy book club has unfortunately been foundering for a little while. We usually have problems meeting over the summer, but we’re also usually back in the swing of things before now. Unfortunately I have to miss this month due to a fellowship night with my small group.
on November 17th, 2008 at 9:20 amMelissa – I like ours because it’s really laid back and we laugh a lot. Kids running around, cell phones ringing, mommy talk. But we do talk plenty about the book as well.
Laura H. – So funny, The Giver was the book we discussed in September. It’s a good one to discuss. Good luck heading that up. Rebecca (the polygamist pregnant one) lead ours and she did a fabulous job.
Suey – Ours lasted much longer than a month and the longer we went on the more difficult it became. It was only the same people who came but yet we found ourselves not being able to schedule certain nights because of other activities. Basically we were scheduling for people who never came and had no interest in coming. And then we had someone who didn’t come to the meeting complain about a book (that I loved and reviewed with great recommendation). After that we were told what we could and could not read. We “apostatized” after that and became a neighborhood book club. It’s not like we got out of our way to read bad books.
on November 17th, 2008 at 9:30 amJen – I think last year we didn’t meet in December but that’s right when we were getting started. Our regulars all seem to really enjoy it. We always have about 4-5 with others coming some months and not others. Breaking Dawn was our best group with about ten. That brought out people who came just for that one night. Lots of laughing over that one.
on November 17th, 2008 at 9:32 amI’m glad you are having such fun with your book club! I’ve been running a vibrant (and growing) book club since 2005 and I love it. Have you been to our blog? I know you visit MY blog, but here’s a link to the club’s if you want to check it out. We’ve done “dress up” meetings for several books, themed food for others, and even book reports and show and tells. It’s great fun!
on November 19th, 2008 at 11:50 amThat is too funny, Natasha! We have a work bookclub, but it is in the first stages and kind of struggling a little bit (we’ve decided not to meet outside of work, but rather to meet at lunch which takes away some of the social aspect of it). Sounds like you guys have a lot of fun!!
on November 21st, 2008 at 1:23 pmI still can not stop laughing about these two. I even called Amy today to tell her to check out your blog so she can see what you posted about it. They looked awesome. It was such a fun night that I will never forget. I just got done readig Stolen Innocence which was about Elissa Wall that was affiliated with the Warren Jeffs group who testified against him in court. That book really opened my eyes about how hard they had it and how sad it was the way people treated them. I cried through out the whole book. I can’t imagine going through what she did at 14. I was date raped when I was 17 and I can’t imagine having to have that happen over and over and over again for years like she did.
on November 24th, 2008 at 11:06 amHeather – I think I’ve visited once or twice but I need to subscribe so I can do a better job keeping up with what you are doing. I’m sure you have some great ideas.
Trish – My husband has a book club at his office (all guys). They meet during lunch I think. He’s never been in a book club so he’s liking it. It’s hit and miss with the books he likes.
Michelle – I keep meaning to email everybody this link! Since we have book club tomorrow night I’ll have to make sure to tell everybody that it’s up. Since we had this meeting I also read Stolen Innocence. It’s in my review pile. I can not believe all that she went through. I had to keep reminding myself that Elissa is just 21, right now! I have a very close family member who has also been raped. I can’t imagine going through that for years and then reliving it all in the courtroom. Ugh.
on November 24th, 2008 at 11:26 amThat is fun! We do dress up events too – each uly we pick a Queen of the Bookies ( she breaks all ties in book choices). This idea came from a book called Same Sweet Girls by Cassandra King. This October we will have our first “dress as your favorite fiction character” party thanks to the book, “The Wednesday Sisters.
on June 25th, 2009 at 10:55 pmIf you look in my archives it is under July 2008… or this link:
http://bookjourney.wordpress.com/2008/07/09/a-bookie-event-all-hale-the-queen/