Book Club #29: THE CALAMITY CLUB

It’s the 22nd of the month which means it’s BOOK CLUB DAY!

I hope you are buckled up for this one.

Buckled. Up.

Here we go…

…with Book Club #29!

If you would like to read the “rules” of Shay’s Book Club and see a complete list of every book we’ve read as a group along with my personal “star” ratings, they are all RIGHT HERE.

In this blog post and in the comment section, WE WILL BE DISCUSSING SPOILERS. If you are interested in reading this book, you might not want to read below this line. In JULY’S BOOK REVIEW later this month, I will give a quick recap and let you know if I recommend the book or not, so if you haven’t read it, you might want to wait until that official BOOK REVIEW because there will be no spoilers and based on that, you can decide whether or not to read the book.

Anything below this though will include spoilers as everyone commenting here has already read the book.

Ready, set, here we go!

This month’s book was…

…The Calamity Club by Kathryn Stockett.

Okay, we have to interrupt our normal flow before we can proceed…

You guys. Something happened when I was reading this book that has never happened before.

Ever.

After 29 Book Clubs, I started this book and eleven days in, I quit it.

Quit. It.

I probably quit 5 or 6 books a year and just never mention it to you. I like to be positive and upbeat and why tell you that I started a book and decided it wasn’t for me? I just quit and move on. Well, this was the first time I’ve ever actually QUIT A BOOK CLUB BOOK. That’s the problem with Book Club. If I quit, I HAVE TO TELL YOU. Sigh.

On July 7th, I texted two of my book besties, Erika and Shanna, and told them I quit. They had VERY strong opinions about me quitting such a good book. I told them that I was 11 days in and barely making my way through because I kept falling asleep. It just wasn’t holding my attention. I just couldn’t get motivated to read it and when I did, it moved slowly and I would fall asleep. I can typically read two books in 11 days…and I was only inching through this one. I kept telling myself that I can’t quit because it’s my Book Club pick for the month, but for the love, I needed to quit.

So, I quit.

The next morning, I was talking to Shanna on the phone about it, and she was confident that I would love it if I just kept going. Finally, I said “What if I listen to it on Audible?”.

And thus, friends…I listened to my first book 🙂 .

I downloaded the app (easy enough)…

…I bought the audible version of the book and holy cow, who knew (probably all of you but not me), it synced with my Kindle!

I opened the Audible app and about gasped when…

…it said I had just about 24 hours left to listen. Agh!

This is why I’m behind on every single one of my podcasts this month.

This is why I have only watched two episodes of The Five-Star Weekend.

This Audible book has consumed me.

My four children were SO ready for me to stop listening to this book. It’s all I did. I listened while I drove. I listened while I did laundry. I listened while I walked the dogs. I listened while I cooked. I listened while I made beds, got dressed, cleaned the house, worked out, emptied the dishwasher. I listened to 23 hours and 57 minutes of this book and finished it on Monday morning, and…

🙂

I would have given it FIVE STARS had I actually read it. I feel like I had to deduct a star because I *almost* quit.

Where to begin?!

First, since this was my first Audible experience let me just say a few things:

#1: I was pleasantly surprised by the narration. I don’t think all books are done this way, but I very very much enjoyed hearing the multitude of voices in this story. There were so many very distinct characters in this book, that hearing different voices added a really fun layer I wouldn’t have had if I had read it.

#2: I am so happy that I listened to this book, but I hope I don’t *need* to listen to more. I really really love reading actual books because it’s one of the only times (maybe THE only time) I allow my brain just to do one thing. Sitting and reading and being still with a book is something I treasure. It’s truly one of my favorite ways to unwind and spend my time. I love to actually read books…BUT THAT’S JUST ME. If you are one of those people who are always interested in these books but don’t have the time, the desire, the eyesight to read books, then you should totally listen! I absolutely see the value in listening to these stories too.

Okay, what about my thoughts on the book?

I’m going to jump all over the place here because THERE WERE SO MANY CHARACTERS AND PLOT LINES, but here are some of my notes…

#1: In my opinion, this book easily had enough going on that it could have been two different books. I could have read an entire book just about Meg and another book just about Birdie. I think that might have been part of my problem at the beginning trying to read the book. I would get invested in one character’s plot and then it would switch to the other where you almost felt like you had to start all over. Once the character’s lives intersected, the back and forth became easier and more fluid, but it felt daunting at the beginning of the novel.

#2: Birdie was instantly likable. Her part was so well-written and one of the best leading characters I’ve read in a long time.

#3: Garnett Pittman was terrible. The orphanage scenes were very hard for me to read. So were the flashback scenes of when Meg was abandoned at home and starving. Not only were they just hard to read, they hit me in a soft place. Meg was 11.5 and I have an 11.5 year old that used to live in an orphanage. I don’t allow myself to think about “what ifs” often, but reading those sections of this book did often make me think “what if?”.

#4: I absolutely loved Tom. I loved him. He was such a good man and solid character, and I was crushed when he died. Crushed.

#5: Rory’s character could have been developed a bit more for me. I wanted to know more about his story, his struggles, his relationship with his mom. I just could have had “more” from that character.

#6: I loved both Mrs. Tartt and Mrs. Heidelberg. I thought they were tough on the outside but both soft on the inside. I loved that we saw progression and change in both of them as the story moved on.

#7: I really don’t think I can recall another novel with a better cast. There were just so many wonderful characters: Charlie, Flossy, Ruby, Esmeralda, the twins, Jack, Willy May, Polly, Picador, Viktoria, and on and on. I loved them all. The story needed them all. If I were ever going to listen to my first Audible, I truly can’t think of a better one to start with than this one simply because of the characters. Even my kids were impressed with the different accents and voices that were used.

#8: If I’m being honest, at first, I couldn’t figure out how the author was going to make prostitution in any way positive to this story. Somehow though, the author was able to convey the desperation and lack of choices that some women face with enough comedic relief that it just worked. There was a balance of seriousness and playfulness that I personally think was required for this book to be about how a brothel saved the day.

#9: I’m glad, in the end, that Dr. Pittman that did the right thing. I needed his character to find his voice, so I was happy that he finally stood up to Garnett.

#10: I wish there had been an epilogue. I needed one more chapter. I needed a little bit more closure from both Birdie and Meg. Even though I spent hours and hours and hours listening to this story, I could have listened to one more.

One last note, I thought the author did such a fantastic job covering so many sensitive topics. This book covered everything. Everything. But she covered it all in a way that was respectful, sensitive, and with humanity.

Whew!

I could go on and on and on.

If I would have read the darn thing, it would be a Five Star-er for sure. 😉

Alrighty, so, what’s on tap for August?

Next month, we are going to read…