Wednesday, July 13, 2005

Join the Club

I am here today to admit one of my several thousand failings:

I don't get book clubs.

And this is really sad, because being a part of a book club, or a reading group is IN. It's HIP and NOW and HAPPENING. Oprah does it. Katie does it. Hell, everybody does it. Join a book club, choose a book, read and discuss. So I bowed to the God of all things trendy and tried one on for size. I figured I would be a perfect fit because I can read, I like to read, and bookclub tables are generally stopping point number one every time I enter a store.

So, several of us online type folks got together and made us a book club. The winning book ended up being The Timetraveler's Wife, and in all honesty, I pushed for this particular title, partially because -- surprise, surprise -- I already owned it.

Once the books were purchased and the calendars were synchronized it was Ready, Set....
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You know when you do something for enjoyment, but when you have to do it, then you don't? Poor Timetraveler's Wife. I tried. I took it everywhere. I made it to page 64, but everytime I found anything else to do, (or nothing to do) I put it down. I even took it on vacation vowing to read it FIRST, but somehow, six other books jumped ahead in line.

So now, post-vacation, not only am I behind, but I'm supposed to be discussing. This is High School all over again. What did I think about this? What did I think about that? Give twelve examples in chapters 1-47. What do I think is coming next?

AIEEEEE.

Here's the problem. I don't analyze when I read. So my answers would be, in no particular order: I don't know, and I don't want to know. I don't want to rehash what I've read, and I don't want to speculate about what comes next. Call me crazy, but I just want to enjoy the ride in its complete and uninterrupted form. And then I'll talk.

But hey, if anybody wants to debate the greater social and literary implications of The Sweet Potato Queen's Book of Love, I'm ready, willing and able.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm not a book club type either. First, I read too fast for them - unless there's a club that does a minimum of five books a month, I'm not interested.

Second, analysis ruins the pleasure of reading.

So, I have a book blog (www.zenitopia.com), where I try to at least track what I read, so I know if I want to read more from that author, and so I don't duplicate titles.

TVJ said...

Fret not. I haven't finished it, either. And I'm only about 40 pages from the end. *sigh*

Anonymous said...

From annieclaus:
I read for pleasure. My pleasure. I don't care if what I read is great literature or if another soul on the planet loved it or hated it. I don't want to discuss what I've read. I don't want to read what other folks think of what I read. That sounds very selfish, but reading is a selfish process. Fooey on book clubs.

Mensch71 said...

I voted for the book too and I've bailed out. I've read dozens of books this summer and I'm too tired to talk about them. *shrug*

Jay Ann Cox, PhD said...

Bah on reading groups. I did a doctorate in reading groups. They are called "courses" and at the end you get a grade. The only thing I ever got at a reading group was frustrated. And cookies that are too sugary.

Now a food club? I could dig that. Come to my house and let's discuss clam dip!

Jay Ann Cox, PhD said...

Bah on reading groups. I did a doctorate in reading groups. They are called "courses" and at the end you get a grade. Inbetween, you get assignments and must sit through interminable hours of people trying to sound authoritative. Or worse, someone will "problematize" something.

The only thing I ever got at a reading group was frustrated since there were no grades. And the cookies are too sugary.

Now a food club? I could dig that. Come to my house and let's discuss clam dip!

Jay Ann Cox, PhD said...

*blush*

I meant to do that. Have mercy, Green Tuna, and delete the first one? and this one?

or I shall just die from over-editoritis.

bozoette said...

I have gotten quite a lot of good advice from SPQBOL. Let me just say that the Chocolate Stuff is amazing, and the Promise works.

hazela said...

I LOVED the SPWBOL...I think it was the first book I read that really made me think I understood Americans...well at least a small group...in a way I could relate to.
I'm enjoying my bookclub, but as a way to meet people, and only if I've read the book without being forced. If in doubt...Amazon reader reviews will at least let you understand what everyone else is talking about.
Stick with it Tuna...the conversation is worth it, even if the book is not :>)