Bookish Brunettes

As a reward for finally meeting a work-related deadline, I decided it would be okay to pick up this month's book selection, Wicked. Even if I didn't really have the time to read it, it would be there when I was ready. The husband and I ventured out with our Half-Priced Books and B&N gift certificates and my short list of one book.

I was crushed when I saw the 1-inch wide gap next to Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister. I felt like I had just missed the book, and I just knew that somewhere, wandering around the store, was some guy with my copy of Wicked under his arm. As consolation, I wracked my brain for the authors of the other titles...was it Dunant and Diamanti?...they seemed too similar to be right and with my memory these days... Consolation, indeed! There were six copies of The Red Tent to make up for the lack of Wicked and The Birth of Venus and I wanted to buy every single one of them just to share with the gang.

Six books later (five for the husband--which he claims are for his mother), we walked out with B&N still on our list. (This post should really be titled Pathetic Date Nights of the Tired and Married.) Perhaps B&N has some magical lighting, but every book looked good and so very promising. I remember the days when as a poor graduate student I would stand and stare at the displays of books, picking one up at a time to carefully to flip through...then I would pull out a little ringed note pad and make a list--for the library. It was my "books-to-check-out-when-I-have-time-to-read-list" which I would tear out of the note pad, fold up and place in my wallet right next to my "CDs-to-buy-when-I-have-money-list."

In no time, I found Wicked. And then I found next month's selection. My husband said to me, "I thought you wanted the one." And I thought so loudly, "I want them all," I was sure he heard me think it. Maybe after two years, the poor, graduate student ways are starting to finally fade. Maybe the need for a little r&r is ringing loudly in my ears. Maybe the lighting in B&N was especially effective this particular night. I really did want them all. I counted at least five books I would have eagerly jotted down in that little note book if I was still in the habit of carrying it everywhere and making wish lists.

In the end, we left with three new books between us and a new calendar (with an astrological theme--to fill my recent quest for an "almanac" to warn me of an auspicious day for traveling). A nine-book night, not bad for a Saturday night. The bonus, those two gift certificates we were shrewd to take with us were never actually remembered or used. Which means...we've got another bookstore date-night in our future!


[As a follow up...I learned today from a fellow brunette that despite my wide-eyed wonder, I missed the 3-for-the-price-of-2-books-table (or something like that) which actually had next month's book on it. It looks like I'm not the only Brunette Book Junkie...]

Posted by at 7:07 PM | Permalink | Comments

I'm not referring to our first official book club gathering...


I'm referring to our book club selection for the month of February, Wicked by Gregory Maguire. After pondering the heavy and sad subjects of geisha life, I guess we were ready for something different.


There were 10 Brunettes! 1o Brunettes!

The discussion of Memoirs was interesting and lively. Our discussion ranged from comparisons between the movie and book (the kimonos in the movie hardly rivaled the beautiful and intricate designs described in great detail in the book; pale and flat Mameha, Hatsumomo, Nobu characters; the omission of Sayuri's emigration to the US--it wasn't really a terrifically happy ending) to themes of loss, solitude, cruelty, rigidity, rules, competition, superstition, tradition, and love. We even coined the word Hatsumomo as a substitute for the common profanity used to describe that person who vexes you and thwarts your happiness. We also pondered the age old conundrum: men wonder why women go through so much trouble and fuss over themselves then are disappointed when we don't go through so much trouble and fuss over ourselves.

Will there be 11 Brunettes next month? Hopefully. Other changes to count on: we have decided to make book selections two months in advance. This way, slower readers can participate every other month and speedy readers can get a head start on the next selection (or sneak in a different read). The book selction for March is The Birth of Venus by Sarah Dunant. Have extra time? Other book suggestions included The Red Tent by Anita Diamant (which had already been read by a couple folks and was highly recommended) and Saturday by Ian McEwan (say that ten times fast).

Do you have any suggestions that might improve our book club? Know anyone who might be interested? Interested in hosting our book club in April or May (and having the final say on that month's book)? Also, I'm investigating ways to make this site more interactive, don't be surprised to find an email inviting you to join the "team"--which will make it possible for you to post instead of just placing comments...

Posted by at 8:09 PM | Permalink | Comments

Our movie outing is rapidly approaching! Everyone (that responded favorably) seemed to agree that a late afternoon showing on Sunday, January 8th would work best. We have two options that fit this criteria: 3 Pm and 4 Pm. I suppose I could pick a time and insist you be there...but with my luck I'd pick the one that just happened to not work for everyone. Please respond and let me know which time you prefer. We can plan to meet up 20-30 minutes early--that should give plenty of time to purchase tickets, make introductions and catch up, exchange some preliminary commentary on the book, grab concessions (for those whose pocketbooks or NY's resolutions didn't ban the stuff) and corral some seats.

Just writing about it is getting me excited for this first official Brunettes event!

Posted by at 11:24 PM | Permalink | Comments

I hope you're not experiencing that old high school or college sensation...pressed for time to finish reading this month's book club selection Memoirs of a Geisha.

(I may have confessed to a few of you that I don't recall ever reading any of those mandatory classics back in high school...though it is entirely probable that the pressure and stress of the deadline may have obscured any enjoyment or memory of those books altogether--please don't let this happen to you in this club. Join us even if you're trudging through it but not quite finished--many of the discussion topics require first and foremost your opinion rather than a thorough reading. However, I can't guarantee we won't spoil the ending for you.)

To make matters more pressure-packed, the "deadline" is moved up by a few days if you're interested in catching the movie in advance of our meeting next week. Memoirs is playing at Fiesta 16 and it would be great if we could organize a group watch sometime in the next few days...Thursday evening or Sunday afternoon. Please email or post your availability and interest in watching the movie together. A discussion of the movie would be an interesting twist on the traditional book club format at our next meeting on January 11th.

If it makes you feel better, I was overwhelmed with work and holiday pressures but managed to s q u e e z e the book in here and there--imagine my surprise when I read it in an amazing four days. Guess you can say it hooked me! So, I am looking forward to not only watching the movie but discussing the book with the rest of you.

Posted by at 7:38 PM | Permalink | Comments