Book Twenty-Seven

December 14, 2012 @ Jackie's

The Story of the Other Wise Man, by Henry Van Dyke

 

Even the salad blinks a bright red and green!

A sweet story by old Henry.  Was it sad that Artaban never achieved his goal?  Or is the journey more important?

Much fun was had trying to personify the reindeer as they are depicted on the plates.  Or perhaps just contemplating whether the plates were, in fact, strategically placed to reflect the secret inner desires of each of us. Unfortunately, Stacey was not able to channel Blixen, as she was under the weather.  We missed her!

Channeling an inner Ethel Merman, perhaps?  And equally as attractive, I might add.  Sally, at least, is beautiful!

The best part of the evening: A Christmas sing-a-long!  Thanks, Sally!

The Christmas spirit was evident throughout the evening!

A really fun way to celebrate Christmas with good friends!

 

Our next meeting:

 

Friday, January 25, 2013
6:00 p.m.
Cora Lee's house

 

  The Life Before Us, by Romain Gary



Book Twenty-Six

November 16, 2012 @ Sally's

The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald

 

An interesting conversation about the American Dream vs. the Pursuit of Wealth, the excitement of the chase vs. the reality of obtaining your desire, and cheating vs. fidelity, with a little side trip to Victorian England and the invention of a not-to-be-mentioned-in-public apparatus!

 

Sally's delectable chili, served in authentic Santa Fe Railroad dishes!  Doesn't get much better than that!

 Sally has the most beautiful decorations ...

 Five of Seven.  Can't wait until next month!

 

Our next meeting:

 

Friday, December 14, 2012
6:00 p.m.
Jackie's house

 

The Story of the Other Wiseman, by Henry Van Dyke

 

 

On tap for January:  The Life Before Us, by Romain Gary

On tap for February (brace yourselves):  Hemmingway (Anne's choice!)

 



 



Book Twenty-Five

October 19, 2012 @ Cora Lee's

East of Eden, by John Steinbeck

 

 Love, love, love this book!

 

 Okay, we got the 1955 movie (with James Dean) from Netflix, thinking we could enjoy the Reader's Digest version of the book.  Sadly, the movie was really lacking, and I, for one, would have had to have had a LOT more wine to suffer through all of it.  Not even close to the book.

 

 Our favorite passage of the book!  Lee, the wisest man in literature, assures us that we can choose our actions. 
Your mother was a murderess and a prostitute?  Doesn't mean you're evil!  What a relief.

 

 Stacey and Cora Lee, pausing to pose!

 

 Sally and Carol, relaxing.

 

 Jackie and Cory, contemplating careers as fashion models.  Notice the hilarity at this notion.

 

Six of Seven!  Another great time at book club!

 

 

Our next meeting:

 

Friday, November 16, 2012
6:00 p.m.
Sally's house

The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald





Book Twenty-Four

September 14, 2012 @ Carol's

Gone Girl, by Gillian Flynn

It was the concensus of the group that the main character in this book was,
in the words of our articulate member Stacey, "Batshit crazy."

 

Anne, glowing.
Is it because of the afternoon light? Or could it be because of the comraderie of book club?

Walking tacos! Yum! (And a bonus: very few dishes to wash afterward!) 

Cory, graciously posing, as the evening came to a close. 

Six of Seven (sporting "Chubby Stick Raisin" liptick), hoping we never run in to Amazing Amy in a dark alley.

Our next meeting:

Friday, October 19, 2012

6:00 p.m.

Cora Lee's house

 

East of Eden, by John Steinbeck

Book Twenty-Three

August 3, 2012 @ the Cowfish Back Deck

Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal, by Christopher Moore

What could be better than book club on the back deck of the Cowfish in summer? 
Nothing, that's what!

Anne, Cory and Carol posing for the camera!

Carol and Stacey, all summery and whatnot in their cool shades.

The evening was cool - can you believe it?

Smokey cheddar burger.  Yum!  And yes, there was both cheddar and burger present in this particular sandwich, unlike the quinoa salad, where one had to search diligently to discover even the most minute trace of the grain-like ingredient for which the salad was named!  Harumph!

Five of seven Literary Spirits!

Our next meeting:

Friday, September 14, 2012
6:00 p.m.
Carol's house

Gone Girl, by Gillian Flynn



Book Twenty-Two

July 1, 2012 @ Jackie's

Fifty Shades of Grey, by E.L. James

Well, only three of the five actually read the book, but an interesting discussion ensued, nonetheless.

Yummy fresh, cool salad, compliments of Sally!

Jackie, preparing the mimosas!

Anne and Carol, settling in for a scintillating (dare I say "titillating"?) conversation!

 Here's to summer!  (And in memoriam of the Lander Community Center, RIP.)

 Anne - the first to run through the sprinklers!

 Carol was the next brave soul...

...followed by Cory, 

...and Sally, 

...and Jackie! 

 And then we settled down and posed for the obligatory group photo!

Our next meeting:

Location: TBA

Friday, August 3, 2012

6:00 p.m.

Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal, by Christopher Moore



Book Twenty-One

June 1, 2012 @ Anne's

The Happiness Project, by Gretchen Rubin

  

Summer, rhubarb pie, vegetables and good friends: it makes us happy!

 

Anne, the hostess extraordinaire, fluffing what appears to be croutons!

Anne and Cory: happiness personified!

In keeping with the book's expert advice,  we decided it was best to be ourselves in order to be happy.  Each of us counted on our fellow Literary Spirits to define us, and what follows is who we are (in alphabetical order, because that's how I roll, yo):



Be Anne:  Sophisticated, Fun, Spitfire/supportive, Successfully professional, Courageous

Be Carol:  Honest (in actions and words), Earthiness/funny/grounded, Diligently dedicated, Mother (and not just to her own children), Thoughtful

Be Cora Lee:  Accepting of others, Caretaker/problem solver, Teacher/clarity of expression, Perceptive, Leader/Amazing

Be Cory:  Wise, Beautiful, Soul-blossoming rose, Perceptive, Risk-taking/adventurous

Be Jackie:  Wickedly funny, Controlled, Intelligent, Loyal, Fierce sense of integrity

Be Sally:  Adventurous, Serene, Sister/problem solver/caretaker, Deep pool, Family/fun/great big spirit

Be Stacey:  Gorgeous, Good, Mature/intergenerational relationships, Motivated, Balanced, Professional

Yes, we did resort to a thesaurus!

Sally, sitting serenely.  Beautiful!

It was definitely dark before the party broke up.

Hey!  Why is Anne's gun pointing at Cory?  And why is Jackie's arm serving as an antler for Sally?  And why, for the love of all that's holy, is Cora Lee acting normal?

Our next meeting:

Jackie's House

Sunday, July 1, 2012 (brunch!)

1:00 p.m.

50 Shades of Grey, by E.L. James

(gulp!)

Book Twenty

April 6, 2012 @ the Cowfish (the back, back room)

11/22/63, by Stephen King

So many ways to absorb this novel: CD, hardcopy, Kindle, phone ....

Anchovies?  Personally, I'd rather have poundcake.

Detail of the Cowfish ceiling - in the spirit of "going back in time."

All seven of us!  And we were all in the literary spirit.  What's not to love?

Our next meeting:

Anne's House

Friday, June 1, 2012
6:00 p.m.

The Happiness Project, by Gretchen Rubin