Two Moons

Had the book gals over on January first. Remember that I have had the December gathering for two years in a row, but kept my mouth shut when somebody else wanted it. I did miss the toy drive, but January worked out very well. Nobody had to work the next day, nobody had worked that day, and nobody cared that there wasn't much wine.

I never provide wine, because at most, all I do is taste it. Usually 4-5 of the book club members bring a bottle, but apparently plenty of wine was had by all the night BEFORE book club, and one bottle of white was enough among the eight of us. In fact, one woman even brought her own special TEA BAG to start things off.

I did NOT provide takeout for this gathering! I found a recipe for soup from a popular restaurant- SUPER easy and it was so, so fabulous that the group agreed they wanted the recipe. Ha ha! What are the chances that a nervous hostess like myself would triumph with a copycat recipe? The soup has Italian sausage, potatoes and kale, in a broth with cream added at the last minute. So, not a thick cream soup, but still hearty. We had fresh apples and Italian bread.

In spite of the fact that Rachel was longing and longing for me to choose The Sun Also Rises, I just couldn't bring myself to choose Hemingway during December. (We meet the first week of the month, so the book reading is done the prior month.) People were wanting a short, or at least easy, read. I ended up choosing juvenile fiction, the Newbery award-winning Walk Two Moons. It was very well-received: Two 5s, five 4s and a 3. The 3 was slightly revised through the lens of juvenile fiction. Tears were shed, always a good sign of emotional attachment.

The book reminded us of several adult favorites, and although it didn't launch us into a huge conversation, one comment sticks out. Ann had read an article called "I Wish I Could Read Like a Girl." There is satisfaction in analyzing books for literary devices, but it certainly robs us of our ability to completely escape. Remember when you were a kid and you somehow BECAME the characters? (Whenever I read Heidi, I would have to go and melt some cheese on toast, and drink a big glass of milk.) You would emerge from your reading blinking at the strangeness of reality. Because you hadn't read the thousands of books the you eventually would, the first books you read somehow weighed more, took up more of your reading heart and mind. The characters I met in children's books leave little room for any but the most genius of adult literary characters.

I couldn't have read this book as a child, because it wasn't written yet, but I know that I would have breathlessly hung on every development.

So go ahead, get yourself a copy from the library. Then tell me what you think.