Audio Review: Let's Pretend this never happened by Jenny Lawson

Jenny Lawson realized that the most mortifying moments of our lives—the ones we’d like to pretend never happened—are in fact the ones that define us. In the #1 New York Times bestseller, Let’s Pretend This Never Happened, Lawson takes readers on a hilarious journey recalling her bizarre upbringing in rural Texas, her devastatingly awkward high school years, and her relationship with her long-suffering husband, Victor. Chapters include: “Stanley the Magical, Talking Squirrel”; “A Series of Angry Post-It Notes to My Husband”; “My Vagina Is Fine. Thanks for Asking”; “And Then I Snuck a Dead Cuban Alligator on an Airplane.” (GoodReads)

This book came out a few years back and popped up on my radar when I found out the author was the Keynote speaker at a Book Blogger Convention during BEA. I was unable to attend that year and didn't really know much about Jenny Lawson at all. She was a blogger, appropriately named The Bloggess. That's all I knew.

Well, like most things, I was waaaaaaay behind on this one. I am so incredibly happy I finally got around to reading/listening to this. The Ladies' Book Club chose this for our June pick and I can not be happier with it. Lawson reads it herself, which is perfect, much like Tina Fey was reading her humorous memoir. 

Lawson's squeaky, anal, always somewhat self righteous and perturbed tone makes her over the top stories and opinions an absoolute riot to listen to. I was lucky to find a whole Goodreads page of favorite quotes from this book because I honestly could not keep up with how many I wanted to write on my walls for a quick reminder chuckle for the future. 

“When I was in junior high I read a lot of Danielle Steele. So I always assumed that the day I got engaged I'd be naked, covered in rose petals, and sleeping with the brother of the man who'd kidnapped me.” “It's true, I did say I wanted girlfriends," I capitulated hesitantly, "but couldn't we start with something smaller and less terrifying? Like maybe spend a weekend at a crack house? I heard those people are very nonjudgmental, and if you accidentally say something offensive you can just blame it on their hallucinations.” 


Excuse me while I fall off my chair from laughing.

"It's true, I did say I wanted girlfriends," I capitulated hesitantly, "but couldn't we start with something smaller and less terrifying? Like maybe spend a weekend at a crack house? I heard those people are very nonjudgmental, and if you accidentally say something offensive you can just blame it on their hallucinations.” 

Hilarious.

It's so much better on audio, to hear her tell it all. I am so excited to discuss this with my book club. There are actual serious moments too. Lawson is honest in her attempts to have a child and her battles with her health and keeping a marriage going. But you can tell that humor is what has carried her and helped her gain some much needed perspective on life. I actually learned quite a bit from listening to her. Look for the light in situations.

So far this is her only book and I'm kind of going through a withdrawal. Luckily she has a blog that I can stalk... I mean, follow. :)

Author Website:
Jenny Lawson

Happy Reading and as always, thanks for stopping by!

red headed book child

Book Club Update

Remember my 2 book clubs? They are still very much going on. Have I posted about them recently? Absolutely not. Why? Because I'm plum lazy, that's why. I wrote a post last fall about my struggles with keeping up with reading the titles picked for these clubs and I want to say it's gotten better.  Ahem. It hasn't. But darnit I do try and I am honest when I know I just won't like something. Like Cloud Atlas. No thank you. 

Luckily my ladies in both clubs really understand and are truly laid back. Gotta love that.

The Ladies Book Club continues to meet every month at someone's house and we dish about life and enjoy loads of treats that are really not good for us. Our picks are varied and sometimes on the lighter side, like in next month's case; Let's pretend this never happened by Jenny Lawson. HILARIOUS!!!

Books, Bottle or Bars book club is every other month and our list is picked and settled at the beginning of the year. Last month was Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell. I cracked it open, attempted the audio and promptly ignored it after that. Our next choice is Looking for Alaska by John Green. I can do that one.

My update is simply to assure you all that the book clubs are still in existence and I will try to post something more often than not but it may  not be every month.

I did get the opportunity to go to a Reader's Advisory Round Table/MLA Book Club with a library co-worker called Tomes on Tap.  We read Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver and I chose to listen to it.  It was pretty good. Next up is Keeping Hope Alive by Dr. Hawa Abdi. Being the new addition, I got to pick! No pressure. Guess that means I'm in  a third book club somewhat officially.

I can do this.

Sure I can.

That's it for now.

Happy Reading and as always, thanks for stopping by!

red headed book child

My Book Club Update

Oh, my dear sweet neglected book clubs, how I feel I've failed you. For those of you new to my blog, or just simply forgotten, I am a part of two book clubs. My Ladies Book Club is a group of my friends that I have known for many years and have been a part of previous book clubs as well. This one is a bit more laid back and we meet every month, usually at someone's house. We have loads of treats and drink really good wine. I originally started out posting very extensive posts about our meet ups; what we ate, what everyone thought, etc. That was going well until this summer. Basically our lives caught up with us. My posts fell by the way side a bit, as did my attendance. More about that later.

My second book club started last year with a former Borders co-worker and her circle of friends and colleagues. I now call these ladies friends and have really grown to love this group. This is a bit more organized. We meet every other month and had our list of books set for the year. Our official second year will begin in January. I posted about my struggles with this club earlier this summer when I was having a hard time getting in to the books picked. I left off stating that I had better get my butt into gear for September with Freedom by Jonathen Franzen. Well, it didn't happen. I was unable to attend and I didn't read it. I am not going to pressure myself with our last book for this year, Never Let me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro, though it seems like something I would really like. And it's short. I'm looking forward to finding out what our next year's books will be. We have broken them up into categories; Classics, Fiction, Mysteries, Young Adult and Memoir, in hopes to get more variety. We had so many hard, intense novels this past year. Yowza!

As for my first book club, our titles were good reads but didn't bring on much discussion. Over the summer we read Night Road by Kristin Hannah, Is everyone hanging out without me? by Mindy Kaling, Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout and The Girl who fell from the sky by Heidi Durrow. I missed two of those meet ups due to scheduling mishaps at work. Next month we are discussing Bossypants by Tina Fey. Atleast I have that one down! And Christmas time we will meet up again and eat lots of treats and maybe read and discuss a Christmas themed book.

Overall, I am grateful for my book clubs in my life. I know my readers have enjoyed being a part of that experience and for that, I feel bad for not keeping up with the posting. I am going to try to do my best next year. But after discussing it during our nights, it's hard to rush back to the computer to sum it all up again. 

I will keep a sidebar of the books we plan to read on my blog but I may or may not link an extensive post about each book.

Honestly, sometimes I just enjoy the damn wine. :)

Happy reading and as always, thanks for stopping by!

red headed book child

Ladies Book Club: May 2012

Book Read: When She Woke by Hillary Jordan

Ladies in Attendance: 9

Treats Shared: Sweet potato chips, blue corn chips, hummus, sweet salsa, chocolate chip cookies, strawberries, DQ Buster Bars!!! Merlot and White Zinfadel

To Read or Not to Read: 2 read 1/2, 6 read it all, 1 didn't read it 

My Reaction: I was one of the folks who read half of it, due to a busy schedule and well, not getting it in time from the library. What I did read was really interesting and held my attention. I went into it expecting a bit more of a literary novel but it read simply, almost like a psychological thriller. It had a lot of drama, love, good and evil and a bit of dystopian thrown in there that I generally have a fancy for.

If you are not familiar with the story, here is a description from Goodreads:

I am red now. It was her first thought of the day, every day, surfacing after a few seconds of fogged, blessed ignorance and sweeping through her like a wave, breaking in her breast with a soundless roar. Hard on its heels came the second wave, crashing into the wreckage left by the first: he is gone.

Hannah Payne’s life has been devoted to church and family. But after she’s convicted of murder, she awakens to a nightmarish new life. She finds herself lying on a table in a bare room, covered only by a paper gown, with cameras broadcasting her every move to millions at home, for whom observing new Chromes—criminals whose skin color has been genetically altered to match the class of their crime—is a sinister form of entertainment. Hannah is a Red for the crime of murder. The victim, says the State of Texas, was her unborn child, and Hannah is determined to protect the identity of the father, a public figure with whom she shared a fierce and forbidden love.

A powerful reimagining of The Scarlet Letter, When She Woke is a timely fable about a stigmatized woman struggling to navigate an America of the not-too-distant future, where the line between church and state has been eradicated, and convicted felons are no longer imprisoned but chromed and released back into the population to survive as best they can. In seeking a path to safety in an alien and hostile world, Hannah unknowingly embarks on a journey of self-discovery that forces her to question the values she once held true and the righteousness of a country that politicizes faith and love

Pretty crazy, huh? Can you imagine? The colors of our crimes visible on our skin? How many folks would be colorful? This was a perfect book that opened up a lot of talk about the what ifs of the reality of this.  I really thought it was well written, thought provoking and different. I know the author had written a novel previously that had gotten some acclaim but I was not familiar with her work. I am planning on finishing it even though the discussion led to some spoilers.

The Ladies Reaction: All the ladies that read any part of it enjoyed it. They found it to be completely absorbing once you got started. Some brought up that our society already has ways to showcase our crimes (i.e tattoos of how many people you have killed, gang colors, etc). Though the characters were flawed and made some interesting choices throughout, we all agreed we were eager for it all to resolved in a happy ending. Unfortunately, the ending was a bit abrupt for some and did end up leaving some questions. 


Good Book Club Pick? Overall, the Ladies agreed that this was definitely a great pick for our book club and some were eager to check our her other titles. 

Next Book Up: The Family Fang by Kevin Wilson.

Happy Reading and as always, thanks for stopping by!

red headed book child

The Ladies' Book Club: April 2012

Book Read: Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey  

Niffennegger

Ladies In Attendance:
5 members 

To Read or Not to Read:
All 5 read it. (I'm the 6th that was not in attendance). 3 liked it, 2 "ok read", 1 disliked it.

Treats Shared:
Wine, Black Box Moscato and Shiraz
Taco dip & chips, chocolate chip cookies, red velvet cake, Girl Scout
Cookies, Cheese Curds, Chips & Salsa, Wheat Thins & Hummus

My Reaction:

I had read this several years ago before it was released and loved it. I was one of those who read The Time Traveler's Wife late, really late. But I loved it, just like everyone else did. I was very excited to read her follow up. Though different and quite a bit darker, I still enjoyed Her Fearful Symmetry. Here is my review from 2009. I was happy when the ladies picked this one because, a) I didn't have to read another book and b) it's a good one with lots to discuss.

In case you are not familiar, here is a description from Goodreads:

Six years after the phenomenal success of The Time Traveler's Wife, Audrey Niffenegger has returned with a spectacularly compelling and haunting second novel set in and around Highgate Cemetery in London.

When Elspeth Noblin dies of cancer, she leaves her London apartment to her twin nieces, Julia and Valentina. These two American girls never met their English aunt, only knew that their mother, too, was a twin, and Elspeth her sister. Julia and Valentina are semi-normal American teenagers--with seemingly little interest in college, finding jobs, or anything outside their cozy home in the suburbs of Chicago, and with an abnormally intense attachment to one another.

The girls move to Elspeth's flat, which borders Highgate Cemetery in London. They come to know the building's other residents. There is Martin, a brilliant and charming crossword puzzle setter suffering from crippling Obsessive Compulsive Disorder; Marjike, Martin's devoted but trapped wife; and Robert, Elspeth's elusive lover, a scholar of the cemetery. As the girls become embroiled in the fraying lives of their aunt's neighbors, they also discover that much is still alive in Highgate, including--perhaps--their aunt, who can't seem to leave her old apartment and life behind.

Niffenegger weaves a captivating story in Her Fearful Symmetry about love and identity, about secrets and sisterhood, and about the tenacity of life--even after death

The Ladies' Reaction:

"Unrealistic plot. Pregnant & switching people. Didn't like
anything about the plot.  Contrast to The Time Traveler's Wife which had a strong core relationship. Odd interpersonal relationships,
Unbelieveable. Scenery, etc. very detailed & believeable ... I enjoyed that."

"Everyone is "trying to pull a fast one over on someone else" but
no one is telling them."

"Something kept her spirit on earth ... what" no unresolved
issues? How/Why was she trapped in the house? Interesting ghost
stories. Intriguing but not believable. Quick read"

" Some strange parts, but an entertaining
read.  Swaps character focus mid-paragraph sometimes ... odd writing style
Twins relationship was creepy, almost incestuous."

These were snippets from the conversation taken from my pal Kari. It seems like it was a rather heated discussion. Even though I rather enjoyed it, I can certainly see the points that the ladies made.

Good Book Club Pick?
Overall, yes. Though opinions were divided, it still brought on a good, healthy discussion.

Next Book up?
When she Woke by Hillary Jordan (which we have already read and discussed. Post to come)

Happy Reading and as always, thanks for stopping by!

red headed book child

The Ladies Book Club: January, February, and March 2012

The Ladies Book Club is back!

You may have thought that I forgot all about my Ladies Book Club posts! Oh no, not the case. We have just been simply absorbed in the world of the Hunger Games. I thought it would be much easier to do a "wrap up" post rather than "review" each book.

Let's face it. Hunger Games rocks but I'm done with it, okay. I read the first two books years ago when they came out. When Mockingjay came out much later I was not as enthralled to "catch up" and read it. I was happy that my group of ladies wanted to read the first one. I could vaguely remember what happened. But then the fever struck. They needed to finish them all!!! No problems really but I wasn't as enthusiastic as the others. I skimmed through Mockingjay and read the ending. I sat and listened to how it all turned out during the discussion and turns out had a great time being a part of the fun. Okay, okay, I give in. We made a plan to see the movie together and did just a few weeks ago. It was AMAZING! Really well done and so much better had I read the book.

This is not an official book club post since it covers three months but, no worries, lots of wine and chocolate were consumed and heated discussion was had. We seem to have a core group of us that make it every month which is lovely. They always come ready to chat and give their two cents.

Overall, these were fun books to read especially during the crazy time when it seems EVERYONE is reading it now. My bookstore certainly is selling them like hotcakes. Book clubs are fun to be a part of no matter what you read. I just love getting together and talking about books!

Next Book Up:

Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffennegger

Happy Reading and as always, thanks for stopping by!

red headed book child

The Ladies Book club: December 2011

I'm a bit behind on this post because really all we did was eat and drink. We chose not to read a book for the month of December. Too busy with the holidays and whatnot. We all bought treats and wine and had a blast!!!

Treats included homemade oreo balls, truffles, nut goodie bars, spritz cookies, nuts, cheese, crackers, peanut butter cups, etc. And wine...lots of wine. We feasted!

All 11 of us were in attendance too!

It's been a lovely year with the Ladies and I've enjoyed sharing our book choices and our opinions this year. Thanks for going along on the ride.

We are starting up again in January and ready for a rocking good reading year.

Our book choice?

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

YAY!

Stay tuned!

Happy Reading and as always, thanks for stopping by!

red headed book child

Ladies Book Club: November 2011

Book Read:

Loving Frank by Nancy Horan

Ladies in Attendance:

Ladies Book Club: 3 (I was unable to attend due to work)

B.Y.O.B Book Club (11 members)

Treats shared:

Ladies Book Club: Drunken Goat Cheese, Chips, Jalapeno and Mango Sausage, Chicken Wings, Hummus, Pita and Wine.

B.Y.O.B Book Club: Tortilla Roll Ups, Pumpkin Bars, Cream Cheese with savory sauces, Chips, Chocolate, a delicious cheesy/nut crockpot delight, wine and so much more I can't remember.

To Read or Not to Read:

Ladies Book Club: 2 Ladies read 25%, 1 read 75%, 1 read it all.

B.Y.O.B Book Club: 10 members read it all, 1 member was almost done with it

My Reaction:

I will not be combining my book clubs like this in future posts but we did happen to read the same book for this month. It generated a lot of discussion and I wanted to share it with you all. I was unable to make it to the Ladies Book Club night due to work but I did make it to B.Y.O.B group night, so I wanted to include their reactions as well.

First, my reaction was that it was indeed a very well written, well researched novel. I could tell the author was in awe of her subjects, Frank Lloyd Wright and Mamah Cheney and wanted to flesh out their story as much as possible. In some parts it was too detailed and it became a tad boring in the middle but overall, it kept my attention.

My flaw with it was that of the decisions of the characters themselves. I found Frank to be completely self absorbed, immature and irresponsible, in his work and in his personal life. I did not know anything of him or his story before I read it so it came as a surprise to me that as talented as he was, he was such a putz like little man at times.

Mamah I had issues with because of her decisions to abandon her children for Frank. I know these are real people who made these real choices and I can't dislike the book for that. I just did not agree with the choices they made. Mamah was educated, well cared for, loved by her husband and still yearned for more. She ran off to find it in Frank and along the way, she latched on to others that intrigued her. As a woman, I could identify a bit with her yearning. As a mother, I was appauled she abandoned her kids for two years to seek out those desires.

We had much discussion about this. Was it the times back then? Was it okay to do that? To leave your children with relatives for long extended periods of time?

Who knows. Perhaps. It just pissed me off. I can be a volatile reader. Don't mess with the mom in me, I guess.

Overall, I am glad I read it. It certainly was hyped up to book clubs while I was working at the bookstore. I just didn't find it to leave me with a warm feeling at the end. In the B.Y.O.B club we rate our books on a scale of 1-5, 5 being the best. I rated the story a 2 and the writing a 4. Overall, a 3 rating I guess.

Description from Amazon's Website:

Horan's ambitious first novel is a fictionalization of the life of Mamah Borthwick Cheney, best known as the woman who wrecked Frank Lloyd Wright's first marriage. Despite the title, this is not a romance, but a portrayal of an independent, educated woman at odds with the restrictions of the early 20th century. Frank and Mamah, both married and with children, met when Mamah's husband, Edwin, commissioned Frank to design a house. Their affair became the stuff of headlines when they left their families to live and travel together, going first to Germany, where Mamah found rewarding work doing scholarly translations of Swedish feminist Ellen Key's books. Frank and Mamah eventually settled in Wisconsin, where they were hounded by a scandal-hungry press, with tragic repercussions. Horan puts considerable effort into recreating Frank's vibrant, overwhelming personality, but her primary interest is in Mamah, who pursued her intellectual interests and love for Frank at great personal cost. As is often the case when a life story is novelized, historical fact inconveniently intrudes: Mamah's life is cut short in the most unexpected and violent of ways, leaving the narrative to crawl toward a startlingly quiet conclusion. Nevertheless, this spirited novel brings Mamah the attention she deserves as an intellectual and feminist.

Ladies' Reaction:

I received notes from my pal, Rachelle for the Ladies and the gals from B.Y.O.B had a pretty lively discussion. It may be a bit hard to sum it all up. The Ladies leaned a bit more towards my feelings of it all; a little dry in the middle, transitions from chapter to chapter a bit choppy, the characters were a bit whack, the roles of women at the time were intriguing, etc. B.Y.O.B gals all rated it really high, stating it was well written, full of intriguing flawed characters with a dynamic and shocking ending. I wish I could have made it to both clubs to compare so I am sorry if I have more notes from B.Y.O.B this time around. More of the gals seemed to sympathize with Mamah much more than I, saying she was strong to follow her dreams and courageous to leave her family. Also, more gals could see the genius and creativity in Frank instead of concentrating so much on the irresponsibility and the disrespect for the common man that I couldn't get past. Call me a bitch but I would have been like "Yo, Mamah..what's up? Frank's a loser with tons of debt and doesn't pay his helpers. That's not cool. And, by the way, where are your kids? Oh yeah, thats right. you LEFT them." Grrr...

I'm sure I am sound uber disrespectful and I apologize to the Cheney and the Wright family. I do. I just had a hard time with their love affair.

But I thank my book club ladies (both of them) for opening up my eyes to their views and trying to convince me of the humanness of them both. Towards the end of the B.Y.O.B discussion, I could see their point. It was a different time. The roles of women were different. Classist societies were definitely in existence. Art and creativity were something to be in awe of. And, no, Mamah did not deserve to come to a fiery end.

Good Book Club Pick?

Obviously from my rantings and ramblings you can see it was indeed a good pick. I wish I was at the Ladies meet up to discuss it but it seems they felt a bit more like me. Less impressed but still somewhat intrigued. The B.Y.O.B gals rated it a 3.98 overall and agreed that it was a great pick to discuss. We had official questions but we generated plenty of chatting on our own. They thought it was an excellent, well written book, that even with some slow parts, kept them all intrigued up until the tragic ending.

Next Book Up:

The Ladies will be having our Holiday Party next month. No book to read but there will be books to swap and pick for next year and plenty of booze and goodies!

B.Y.O.B Book Club will be reading The Maze Runner by James Dashner

Happy Reading and as always, thanks for stopping by!

red headed book child

The Ladies' Book club: October 2011

Book Read:

Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion

Ladies in Attendance:

4 regular members

1 new member

Treats shared:

Pita Chips
French Bread

Spinach Dip

Pumpkin Scones

Sugar Cookies

Pumpkin Wine

White Wine

Apples with Caramel, Chocolate and Nuts to dip

To Read or Not to Read:

1 read it all, 2 read over 3/4 of it, 2 did not read it

My Reaction:

I had received this book as a potential review a few months ago and opted not to review it because I didn't think it would be something I'd like. I gave it to my friend Amanda who LOVES anything Zombie related and she really liked it. She likes to pick the book for the spooky month so it was her choice to read it for October. Overall, even though it was not really in the genre that I enjoy reading, I thought it was different enough to keep my interest. I wouldn't categorize it as horror or thriller. It was more of a straight forward novel that just happened to have a zombie as the main character.

It was fairly simple and easy to read. "R" was the zombie who was discovering he was not like the others. He was starting to feel things, and yearning to be different. He falls in love with one of the Living, a girl named Julie. He is a sweet, sometimes sad, hopeful and honest in his quest to figure himself out and essentially, get the girl. Aside from that storytline, you have the world surrounding them in shambles. The dead taking over the living, apocalypse everywhere. I just pictured the movie 28 Days Later, but fluffier! I'm glad I read it. I had about 30 pages left when I got to book club last night and I plan on finishing it today.

Description from Author's Website:

R is a young man with an existential crisis–he is a zombie. He shuffles through an America destroyed by war, social collapse, and the mindless hunger of his undead comrades, but he craves something more than blood and brains. He can speak just a few grunted syllables, but his inner life is deep, full of wonder and longing. He has no memories, noidentity, and no pulse, but he has dreams.

After experiencing a teenage boy’s memories while consuming his brain, R makes an unexpected choice that begins a tense, awkward, and strangely sweet relationship with the victim’s human girlfriend. Julie is a blast of color in the otherwise dreary and gray landscape that surrounds R. His decision to protect her will transform not only R, but his fellow Dead, and perhaps their whole lifeless world.

Ladies' Reaction:

The Lady that picked it really, really liked it. She thought it was a straight forward social commentary on the life of zombies. Though parts did not match up to the zombie lore that she knew, it was still a twist on seeing zombies in a different light. Those that read it felt that "R", the Zombie had a lot more going on than the Living characters, especially Julie, the girl he falls for. Her character did not seem to evolve much throughout the book. This was an interesting contrast. As a reader you expect the Zombies to be lacking and the Living to have more depth. In this twist, it was quite the opposite. I have not read many other Zombie books but those that have, say it is quite different and worth reading.

Good Book Club Pick?

Our group was a bit smaller this time around, which happens this time of year but overall, the group of us that read it found it to be a different, unique read. We all agreed we needed something a little different and this was a good choice to shake it up!

Next Book Up:

Loving Frank by Nancy Horan

Happy Reading and as always, thanks for stopping by!

red headed book child