My monthly book club is tonight and I’m hosting, which means I was the lucky one that got to pick the book. Let me back up for a minute. When we first moved to CA about 4 years ago, I was desperate to meet people and make new friends. I am a total people person and would be very happy to be with my friends 24/7. So, I found a book club on Craigslist, and decided to try it out. I know it is kind of silly that I would want to join a book club. I don’t even read books! But I needed to get out there and meet people. At this time I still had my pregnancy brain so things were very foggy. My kids were 1 and 3 at the time. So, I met my new book club friends at a coffee house each month. Well, I should say 3 months. I was kicked out after the third month. You see, I was the only mother in the group. Everyone in the group, with the exception of me, was single, young, hip, and still had full use of their brain. I was raining on their parade. I guess it didn’t help that I never read any of the books. I had every intention of reading, but never got around to it. I was working fulltime and taking care of a 1 and 3 year old. Who has time to read?
So, now fast forward 4 years and I’m in a new book club with moms. We formed the club when we were out celebrating my birthday in the summer. My Secret Bunco Sister was so thoughtful and planned a special surprise dinner for me with friends, since Rick was deployed to Iraq at the time. She even set up FREE babysitting for me. I was so thankful for her that she reached out to me. So, as we are eating, talking, and having a great time, our book club is born. I was in the club. Then out of the club. Now back in the club. So, it is my turn to pick the book. Remember I don’t read. What on earth am I going to pick? The pressure is really on now.
I first pick a book called “A Year of Absence” which follows the lives of 6 women whose husbands deploy to Iraq. What I didn’t realize is that none of our local libraries have the book. So, I had to pick another book, after already letting everyone know about my first choice and some people had already purchased the book. OOPS! Sorry about that! I asked my mom for a suggestion since she is in 2 book clubs and reads several books a week. I thought I could trust her opinion. The fact that she reads many books a week, and has been able to stay in 2 book clubs without being kicked out makes her very qualified in my mind. So, she tells me that everyone in both of her book clubs really liked the book, “The Double Bind” by Christopher Bohjalian. She said that there was a really interesting twist at the end that no one saw coming. OK, I now have a recommendation from a qualified person and they have plenty of copies at the library, so I go with it.
Of course, things don’t go smoothly. After all, I’m picking the book. You know, the person that gets kicked out of book clubs. I personally thought the book was good, but what do I know? I don’t read. It was on the New York’s Bestsellers List. How could I go wrong? Well, just in case you decide to read this book and you are offended by foul language, just skip the one paragraph on page 5 that uses graphic language at a pivotal moment in the main character’s life. I felt that the author had to use the wording he did in order to make it clear how horrific this incident was. Anyway, what is done is done. My poor mom felt horrible about it and went through the whole entire book again to make sure that there were no other parts of the book with offensive language. I think I learned my lesson. Next time, I will host by offering my house and goodies, but I will let someone else pick the book. That is if I’m not kicked out of this book club first!
So, if you made it to the end of my long, drawn out story, you are wondering where your savings tip is. Well, here it is. Don’t ever buy books from the bookstore. You only read the book one time so why do you need to buy it? That makes no sense to me. I always check things out at the library. It’s great! You can go directly to the library’s website and reserve the book. You can renew online. It’s so convenient and free! If you really feel the need to own books, do what my mom does and buy them at garage sales for a quarter a piece. You may have to search longer for the books you want, but you sure will get a deal and your bank account will thank you. And in the end, don’t you feel better about that? I know I do!
So, now fast forward 4 years and I’m in a new book club with moms. We formed the club when we were out celebrating my birthday in the summer. My Secret Bunco Sister was so thoughtful and planned a special surprise dinner for me with friends, since Rick was deployed to Iraq at the time. She even set up FREE babysitting for me. I was so thankful for her that she reached out to me. So, as we are eating, talking, and having a great time, our book club is born. I was in the club. Then out of the club. Now back in the club. So, it is my turn to pick the book. Remember I don’t read. What on earth am I going to pick? The pressure is really on now.
I first pick a book called “A Year of Absence” which follows the lives of 6 women whose husbands deploy to Iraq. What I didn’t realize is that none of our local libraries have the book. So, I had to pick another book, after already letting everyone know about my first choice and some people had already purchased the book. OOPS! Sorry about that! I asked my mom for a suggestion since she is in 2 book clubs and reads several books a week. I thought I could trust her opinion. The fact that she reads many books a week, and has been able to stay in 2 book clubs without being kicked out makes her very qualified in my mind. So, she tells me that everyone in both of her book clubs really liked the book, “The Double Bind” by Christopher Bohjalian. She said that there was a really interesting twist at the end that no one saw coming. OK, I now have a recommendation from a qualified person and they have plenty of copies at the library, so I go with it.
Of course, things don’t go smoothly. After all, I’m picking the book. You know, the person that gets kicked out of book clubs. I personally thought the book was good, but what do I know? I don’t read. It was on the New York’s Bestsellers List. How could I go wrong? Well, just in case you decide to read this book and you are offended by foul language, just skip the one paragraph on page 5 that uses graphic language at a pivotal moment in the main character’s life. I felt that the author had to use the wording he did in order to make it clear how horrific this incident was. Anyway, what is done is done. My poor mom felt horrible about it and went through the whole entire book again to make sure that there were no other parts of the book with offensive language. I think I learned my lesson. Next time, I will host by offering my house and goodies, but I will let someone else pick the book. That is if I’m not kicked out of this book club first!
So, if you made it to the end of my long, drawn out story, you are wondering where your savings tip is. Well, here it is. Don’t ever buy books from the bookstore. You only read the book one time so why do you need to buy it? That makes no sense to me. I always check things out at the library. It’s great! You can go directly to the library’s website and reserve the book. You can renew online. It’s so convenient and free! If you really feel the need to own books, do what my mom does and buy them at garage sales for a quarter a piece. You may have to search longer for the books you want, but you sure will get a deal and your bank account will thank you. And in the end, don’t you feel better about that? I know I do!
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