Old Vagina Book Club

met this past Thursday night at Sam's house. Her house is so absolutely amazing. It is on Caroline Street, overlooking the river, and we sat out on her covered porch and drank wine and admired the view by candlelight. Everything smelled like lilacs.

We were supposed to be discussing last month's selection, The Bluest Eye, by Toni Morrison. But it was hard to stay on topic and discuss such a sad story in such a beautiful setting. I thought the book was beautifully written. I loved the language. But the story - blecch. It was so sad. It was almost a little ridiculously sad. Racism, poverty, injustice, rape, incest, more rape, beatings, humiliation, oh, and let's toss in a creepy pedophile, too, just for good measure. All this in a relatively short book.

Most of us gave it a thumbs down. But I did like the writing. Some of the others have read more of her later books, although I think Cindy was the only one who had read The Bluest Eye before. Anyway, they recommended I try Song of Solomon. So perhaps I will. If I feel up for more crying in the bathtub.

I chose this next month's selection and I vowed No More Crying in the Bathtub. Not right now. So I picked David Sedaris. And I am loving him. I am seriously laughing out loud as I read. And I am surprised by that because I think I am a tough audience. Everyone has always raved about how hilarious David Sedaris is and I always kind of shrugged him off. I am the kind of humor snob who doesn't usually laugh when people are trying too hard to be funny. Do you know what I mean? Like most stand-up comics just annoy me. It's too rehearsed. So I figured if that is David Sedaris' reputation, if that's his thing - that he's funny, then I will probably not find him funny.

But he is. He is really funny. Leila, if you are reading this, pick yourself up a freakin' David Sedaris book, woman, because the man is seriously funny. And while you're at it, join the Old Vagina Book Club, too!