Book Club - 02/10/13

I cannot believe it is October already.  This month we went to the Slug and Lettuce in Croydon, which was nice but too loud so we still haven't found our perfect venue yet!! We were discussing 'Everything's Cool' by Justin Carroll.  Its quite a short book so most people had finished it and the verdict was that it was actually quite gripping...until the disappointing ending.  We all agreed that it was so abrupt that we were all expecting to read the next chapter.  I'm all for leaving us wanting a bit more but this did really feel like the last chapter had gone missing. 

Nevertheless it was an interesting read, which took quite a twist towards the second half making most of us speed through it.  Its a bit of strange one really I felt like I couldn't put it down but I didn't really like it that much.  The story is about a guy called Stan who has some very strange behavioural issues.   He lives to a rigid routine, eating and drinking only specific brands and foods he considers safe for consumption and has extreme paranoia that the world is going to end and he is the only person who can stop this from happening.  He doesn't really seem to like life or other people but is intent on saving the world.  Unfortunately he convinces himself that the people around him are against him, one in particular his new boss who has genuine feelings for him and tries desperately to get to know him, not knowing that all along Stan suspects her of being a spy.  Lets say things start to take a turn for the worse.  

I actually pictured Stan as a young guy in his early twenties but a few people at book club pointed out that he was actually supposed to be an older man.  His behaviour and interaction with other people made him appear much younger, which might have been part of his mental illness.  I like the fact that Stan's character was so well described through his actions and thoughts, it made you feel tense and anxious like he felt himself, but I didn't think we knew enough about his background, why he was the way he was and how he had come to these conspiracy conclusions.

Overall the book got between 5 and 6 out of 10, as it wasn't a bad read it certainly kept your attention but it seemed unfinished and there were so many things that could have been expanded on to make it more interesting.      

The new way of choosing the next book seemed to work well last month so I got people to pick 3 bits of paper, read the blurbs and then we voted on which book we'd like to read out of the 3.  The result was...

'11.22.63' by Stephen King

What if you could go back in time and change the course of history?  What if the watershed moment you could change was the assassination of JFK...11.22.63 the day that Kennedy was shot.

In 2011 Jake Epping, an English teacher from Maine, sets out on an insane and insanely possible mission to prevent the Kennedy assassination.  Leaving behind a world of computers and mobile phones he goes back to a time of big American cars and diners, of lindy hopping, the sound of Elvis and the taste of Root Beer.

In this haunting world Jake falls in love with Sadie, a beautiful high school librarian and as the ominous date of 11.22.63 approaches, he encounters a troubled loner name Lee Harvey Oswald...

I have already started it, be warned it is a hefty book so if you want to get through it before we meet then get reading!!  I have a feeling this is going to be a great book with lots to talk about!

Next Book Club Meet:

Date: Wed 6th November 2013
Time: 7.30pm

Location: As usual I'm undecided - but if there happen to be any local firework displays maybe go to that first and then back to mine for some munchies and discussion! We shall see!

For those who missed last weeks meet up or left a bit early, we came up with the idea of having a Thanksgiving Book Club dinner (mainly so we eat loads of pie and naughty food, wear silly jumpers and be generally jolly)  This is probably going to be at Laura's house on the 29th November but more details to follow at the next meet up...